need advice - power cartridge case trimmer

[Double-O-Dave]

Good afternoon:

I am an experienced reloader for handguns (.32 H&R Magnum, .32 Long, .38 Special, .357 Magnum, .40 S&W, .44 Special, and .45ACP), but until now, I've never reloaded for rifles. Because of my teenaged son, who has developed a taste for hunting, as well as shooting, I need to start reloading for the long guns - 5.56mm, .30 M-1 carbine, .357 Magnum, and .308 Winchester. My concern is around trimming the cartridge cases to length. I have arthritis in my hands and wrists, so anything I can do to save wear and tear on my hands is something I'm interested in.

My question then, is what product(s) do you recommend for cartridge case trimming and/or cartridge case preparation (deburring, chamfering, etc.)? I've seen one product on the Midway site that looks intruiging - the Little Crow Gun Works World's Finest Trimmer:

Little Crow Gunworks World's Finest Trimmer 243 Winchester 260

It's a bit pricey ($72.00 + shipping), but if I have to go that route, so be it.

Your advice and recommendations are greatly appreciated.

Regards,

Dave

 

[webfarmer]

You'll get a fair number of answers but here's what I did as my hands get cranky as well. I bought an electric drill replacement shaft for my Lyman case trimmer from Midway. Don't know if you have a case trimmer but this worked well for me. I use it all the time.

I like the Lyman Case Prep Express. Does a lot of work for me on the bench. Hope that gives you some ideas anyway. Good luck!

 

[Double-O-Dave]

Webfarmer:

Thank you for your response. No, I haven't purchased a case trimmer yet, so I'm ready to learn from all of you experienced rifle reloaders as to what would work best. Obviously, there are powered case trimmers, but I don't know what works from what doesn't, and what works best. Any advice and suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Regards,

Dave

 

[John R]

I have the Lyman power trimmer, the reason I went that way was because of the way the collect is self adjusting for any case.

 

[muddocktor]

I have a WFT in 223 Rem. And if you are processing a whole bunch of brass, that sucker is the way to go. If you can sharpen a pencil, you have all the know-how to run a WFT on your drill. Any once fired brass I pick up is run through the WFT after resizing in 223. Once it has been trimmed the first time, the brass doesn't grow that much and the WFT hardly touches the case mouth after the first initial trim. Mine came set close enough to trim length that I didn't mess with it for 3-4k hulls. It's a little bit tricky to se if you break it down for a thorough cleaning, but not too bad. I'm still running the original cutter with about 6-8k hulls processed with it at least.

 

[RussellD]

The holy grail of case trimmers is the Giraud.

GTC Trimmer

There are less expensive options. However if you want to trim brass in volume and end up with a perfect finished product...look no further. If you ever get the opportunity to try one...no further discussion will be required.

 

[H Richard]

The RCBS trimmer will handle every known rifle case less than 50 BMG. What I do is remove the crank handle and chuck the shaft into my cordless drill. It works wonderful. Then I do have the RCBS "Prep Center", for chamfer, and debur and primer pocket cleaning.

 

[Ivan the Butcher]

The problem with self adjusting chucks or quick release shell holders, is the have a tendency to grab a little differently each time , when in a hurry. The least expensive yet fairly fast trimmer is Lee less than $20 and a drill or power screwdriver. I use one of the more expensive set-ups: L.E. Wilson on a Sinclair International base and power adapter. You use a different die type holder for each family of cartridges. Forget about trimming your 357 mag for rifle. Years ago I loaded several thousand 30 Carbine, and didn't trim them either and they were as good as the rifle needed, so don't worry about them either. 223 and 308, will need trimmed used or virgin (always after sizing). And depending on rifle needs retrimmed every 2 to 8 firings. Have fun. Ivan

 

[g-dad]

I have the Frankford prep center. Midway has it on sale now for 149. I used to hand crank my 223 cases with my RCBS trimmer but my hands couldn't do the volume I needed. The Frankford is not the fastest but it's consistent and I don't mind prepping the brass anymore.

 

[njl]

Most of the really highly regarded ones only do bottleneck cartridges, so you're out of luck on the .30 carbine. For that reason, I went with the RCBS Trim Pro Power. At the time, I only wanted to do .223 and .30 carbine. I sprung for the pair of 3-way cutters (.223 and .30 cal) that trim/chamfer/debur all at once. I'm about to start doing .308, and expect to be able to do it with what I have.

 

[Twoboxer]

Arthritis gets all of us in different ways. One problem with trimmers like the Girauds (yes, there are two including the Tri Way) is that you must hold the case while it is being trimmed. If you are doing 20 cases, its no problem. But if you have arthritis in wrist and/or fingers, trimming 100 or more can be a real issue.

Second problem with many of the "pencil sharpener" trimmers is they can be difficult to impossible to make a small (eg .002") adjustment because they use a set screw rather than a micrometer to change the depth setting. The Tri Way has a pseudo-micrometer which, knowing Giraud, likely works well.

Third problem is that each trimmer does only one caliber (or family of calibers in the case of the Tri Way). So, in the case of the Tri Way, for 3 calibers you're at $270.

And all these trimmers index off the shoulder, which means your resizing has to be spot on to get identical lengths. Admittedly in most cases, that's not an issue.

The solution for my arthritic hands was theRCBS Universal Case Prep Center. The trimmer has a universal chuck and a true micrometer for length adjustment. You can use the optional 3-way cutter to trim, deburr and chamfer in one step. But frankly I prefer to use the standard tools supplied and chamfer, deburr, neck clean as well as ream the primer pocket and deburr the flash hole when necessary.

The trimmer is very consistent and easy for me to use. The other tools operate at low enough torque that holding the cases for those operations is easy. Its expensive, but it contains pretty much all the case prep you need for any case.

 

[ironhead7544]

Take a look at the new Lee trimmer that uses the press. Can be set up for power. Not too expensive.

 

[Clovishound]

Take a look at the new Lee trimmer that uses the press. Can be set up for power. Not too expensive.

I have one of those for .223. It is designed to be hand cranked, but it has a large rounded handle that is easy on the hands. You must have a die for each caliber, but sounds like you only need one right now. Dies are inexpensive, under $10. The other nice thing is that it chamfers at the same time as it trims.

I run mine in my turret press. Run the cartridge up into the die, turn the handle until you feel it quit cutting, and you are done. I usually go ahead and measure the case just to be sure, but once you get a feel for it, you pretty much know when it hits the preset length. The other nice thing is that it is adjustable. You can cut them a little longer, or shorter, depending on your preferences.

Price is under $20 for the system, and most rifle dies are around $7. I see they now have a hand powered, and a drill powered version available.

 

[Bastogne71]

You've gotten a lot of good advice on what equipment is available, but I don't think you are using all of your assets! Why don't you put those young, supple hands of your son to good use? After all, he's the one who want to shoot the ammo. Think of the quality time the two of you will spend together as you teach and supervise him the art of reloading, the satisfaction he will get from shooting his own reloads, and the pride you will have in your son.

 

[rwsmith]

Cheap fast alternative....

I chuck my Lee tool into a drill press. It only takes a few seconds per case. It does require some manipulation to put the case in hits holder, move the assembly up the drill to the stop and hold there while trimming, which goes very quickly

 

[Bkreutz]

I stopped loading calibers that need trimming, problem solved.

 

[redcar]

I have the hornady case prep center and it works like a charm but it is a little expensive. It does come with a lifetime warranty and looks really cool next to my lnl.

 

[M&PUSER]

Good afternoon:

I am an experienced reloader for handguns (.32 H&R Magnum, .32 Long, .38 Special, .357 Magnum, .40 S&W, .44 Special, and .45ACP), but until now, I've never reloaded for rifles. Because of my teenaged son, who has developed a taste for hunting, as well as shooting, I need to start reloading for the long guns - 5.56mm, .30 M-1 carbine, .357 Magnum, and .308 Winchester. My concern is around trimming the cartridge cases to length. I have arthritis in my hands and wrists, so anything I can do to save wear and tear on my hands is something I'm interested in.

My question then, is what product(s) do you recommend for cartridge case trimming and/or cartridge case preparation (deburring, chamfering, etc.)? I've seen one product on the Midway site that looks intruiging - the Little Crow Gun Works World's Finest Trimmer:

Little Crow Gunworks World's Finest Trimmer 243 Winchester 260

It's a bit pricey ($72.00 + shipping), but if I have to go that route, so be it.

Your advice and recommendations are greatly appreciated.

Regards,

Dave

RCBS Trim Pro Power Case Trimmer; add the 3-way head [trim, deburr, & chamfer all at once] as an option: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3lXo96H-h7k

P.S. Remember, you get what you pay for. $72 Bargain trimmers are just that.

 

[John R]

The holy grail of case trimmers is the Giraud.

GTC Trimmer

There are less expensive options. However if you want to trim brass in volume and end up with a perfect finished product...look no further. If you ever get the opportunity to try one...no further discussion will be required.

That's nice, how much trouble is there in switching to a different caliber?

 

[meistermash]

I use two different set ups. First I have a trim pro RCBS. I unscrew the handle and chuck about 1/2" of the shaft in a cordless drill.
Next is the Lee manual trimmers. The ones with a mandrel and case holder. I chuck the shell holder in the same cordless drill. Then you can use the case trimmer mandrel and an inside and outside debering tool while the case is still being turned.