Yeperz... i just put them in and let them run with the rest of the days work... really only necessary on rods @ 14mm or larger... I've even used thicker rods unannealed, but heating them slowly takes time and this rod was designed to save time.
Thanks for the kind words about my classes. I'm still surprised every time somebody takes my class for the third or fourth time, but like you said, I hardly ever teach the same thing the same exact way twice. Boro is limitless... I am constantly exploring new ideas and just love sharing it with people, so their work can progress in new ways. We are living in very exciting times... boro color is evolving by leaps and bounds. We've only scratched the surface of what is possible, so hold on tight folks... I'm a glass melting class teaching fool and I love every minute of it!