Case Trimmers - Page 3

jproaster · August 2, 2020, 09:03 PM

This thread topic is timely for me as I've decided to reload...after years of owning a goodly amount of equipment.

Lots of 223 to trim. I'm liking the Giraud tri-trimmer.

I bought an LE Wilson years back; still new in box. It appears too slow for bulk 223 though.

Marco Califo · August 3, 2020, 12:45 AM

Have you measured them? A case gauge will tell you if they are too long. My 223 do not require much trimming.
If they are not too long you don't trim them.

totaldla · August 3, 2020, 10:09 AM

I've used the Wilson for a lot of years (mine is from the 60s). It is OK.
I recently came across a product called the Worlds Cheapest Trimmer" - looked superior for trimming large batches. The WCT is $23.50 including shipping.
I confess that I haven't receive mine yet, but when it arrives there is a big bag full of 223 brass to be done.

mrcooper · August 5, 2020, 07:13 PM

I use the LEE set up also, best one out their, I have 2 fosters that are resting for the past 2 years.

RC20 · August 8, 2020, 01:45 PM

Quote:

Before you all say I should have bought them first , I say no cus I still need to trim all those other cases so I still need the other trimmer .

Well we all live and learn.

I started with a Lee trimmer, then my brother gave me his old RCBS, then I bought the WFT from him (after he got the Gearrard Motor Trimmer)

So then I wouild go out to his place and trim them on his Gerrrd.

At that point it was the heck with the money, this is the only way to go.

So I got the drill one (I load a lot fewer calibers than he does)

I got the drill one for the 308. Then the WFTII because no drill type in Gerard.

My take is you spend too much time adjusting the ones that will do common shoulder setups. Others may disagree.

The big jump was to put the Gerard drill in the Corded Drill, upside down and clamp in the vice and now I am as good and fast as the Gerared Motorised unit.

The tough decision is the Drill Type or the Motorized Gerard (my take, others of course do their own takes, this is just to help a decision process)

Its about 5 drill type to the Motorized Gerard. I think my brother has 6 trim calibers.

Gerrad does offer the 7.5 Swiss in the motorized. Probably would have gone that way but I am not behind (yet).

At most I will do one more caliber 6.5 something). So pretty much break even cost wise and the corded drill in the vice is as good and maybe ergonomically better (I can sit on my stool and its at the right level). You don't have to stuff in in the top, its horizontal.

I can hang the drill up and the Motorized Gerrard takes up bench space all the time.

Kind of a coin flip.

I am not unhappy with my progression. To me the Tri Trimmers are the only way to go.

I can process a heck of a lot faster and get to the shooting part sooner.

Some find solace in the reloading process. I don't. I don't mind it but its not soothing either. Shooting is the goal.

totaldla · August 10, 2020, 08:42 AM

So I gave the WCT a go on a couple hundred pieces of 5.56 brass.
PROS

- $23.50 including shipping.
fast - used an old corded drill running about half-speed.

CONS

Set screw in delrin wont handle much force.
Very difficult to setup unless you set the cut using a casing cut to the desired length.
Adjustment is difficult to do finer than .005" unless you do some tricks with feeler guages as shims.

So after a handful of attempts at finer adjustment, I left it cutting to 1.742" and finished the job. My overall impression is "meh".

Marco Califo · August 28, 2020, 06:44 PM

I received my Giraud Tri-Trimmer, slapped it into drill, and trimmed the first 7.62 case I saw: a 68 WRA. Just stuck it in until it didn't cut anymore.
My question is: What do you other Tri-Trimmer users hold the cartridge head with? It spun in my fingers a bit, but squeezing tighter stopped that. There is a recommended RPM and I am under the impression you want it spinning fast, the slip it in until you get contract. Stop when there is no longer contact.
That piece of brass had been sized after ejecting from its maiden firing in an M-60. I just went to my garage and grabbed some raw mostly LC once-fired, and those will not go in far enough to engage the cutter.
I like the cut: length and, inside and outside.

**Unclenick** · August 29, 2020, 07:25 PM

Has the mostly-once-fired brass been resized yet? Resizing is when the neck grows.

I use the motorized Giraud and have no problem holding on with my fingers. I just push in and roll it forward between my thumb and the side of my hooked index finger. I believe the pully ratio is about 2:1, so a standard 4-pole 1800 rpm motor is spinning the cutter about 3600 rpm. But I'll have to open mine to check that I am remembering that correctly and I don't have time just at the moment. The Gracey trimmer uses and 1800 rpm motor and that's about as fast as hand drills normally go. So unless they altered the cutters for slower speed, you are looking at something like maximum drill speed with the drill-powered version.

Marco Califo · August 29, 2020, 07:52 PM

No. Those are mostly LC, and, all unsized, are still in the bag Jeff Bartlett shipped them in, 15 years ago. Those will not go into the trimmer No reason why I should expect them to.
That WRA case I did trim, originally came in the same bag, but I must have been one of a smaller group I sized and processed. Sizing and processing 1000 MG fired brass is more work than I wanted, so most have sat. That one loose case probably was sized twice now.
I am really not wanting to trim unsized brass. They would need to be trimmed again.
Thank you for confirming the finger hold is appropriate. I do like the drill set-up. $115 including shipping. It comes setup with a sample trimmed case. My HFT cordless drill says it does 900 rpm with no load. I have a corded one that does 3000 rpm. I just found the cordless one first.

**Unclenick** · August 30, 2020, 10:56 AM

You'll like the corded drill's work better. A lot of guys set those up on a drill press running at maximum rpm so they can hold the case down. Clamp a block of 2×4 to the table, use a spade type wood boring bit to make a shallow case head-size recess in it to index the cases with. Then put the trimmer in the chuck and go to town.

jetinteriorguy · August 30, 2020, 11:52 AM

Get some of the rubber coated work gloves from a hardware store or Wally World. They are cheap, comfortable, and really grip good. They are made using a stretchy material that is coated in a nice sticky rubber on fingers and palm.

USSR · August 30, 2020, 12:44 PM

Quote:

Get some of the rubber coated work gloves from a hardware store or Wally World.

Exactly what I did.

Don

Marco Califo · August 30, 2020, 01:15 PM

Great ideas! Thanks all.

August 3, 2020, 12:45 AM	#52
Marco Califo Senior Member Join Date: April 4, 2011 Location: LA (Greater Los Angeles Area) Posts: 2,598	Have you measured them? A case gauge will tell you if they are too long. My 223 do not require much trimming. If they are not too long you don't trim them. __________________ ............

August 3, 2020, 10:09 AM	#53
totaldla Senior Member Join Date: August 10, 2009 Location: SW Idaho Posts: 1,296	I've used the Wilson for a lot of years (mine is from the 60s). It is OK. I recently came across a product called the Worlds Cheapest Trimmer" - looked superior for trimming large batches. The WCT is $23.50 including shipping. I confess that I haven't receive mine yet, but when it arrives there is a big bag full of 223 brass to be done. __________________ Lee Auto Bench Prime Castor Oil Case Lube

August 10, 2020, 08:42 AM	#56
totaldla Senior Member Join Date: August 10, 2009 Location: SW Idaho Posts: 1,296	So I gave the WCT a go on a couple hundred pieces of 5.56 brass. PROS - $23.50 including shipping. fast - used an old corded drill running about half-speed. CONS Set screw in delrin wont handle much force. Very difficult to setup unless you set the cut using a casing cut to the desired length. Adjustment is difficult to do finer than .005" unless you do some tricks with feeler guages as shims. So after a handful of attempts at finer adjustment, I left it cutting to 1.742" and finished the job. My overall impression is "meh". __________________ Lee Auto Bench Prime Castor Oil Case Lube Last edited by totaldla; August 10, 2020 at 08:49 AM.

August 28, 2020, 06:44 PM	#57
Marco Califo Senior Member Join Date: April 4, 2011 Location: LA (Greater Los Angeles Area) Posts: 2,598	New Tri-Trimmer I received my Giraud Tri-Trimmer, slapped it into drill, and trimmed the first 7.62 case I saw: a 68 WRA. Just stuck it in until it didn't cut anymore. My question is: What do you other Tri-Trimmer users hold the cartridge head with? It spun in my fingers a bit, but squeezing tighter stopped that. There is a recommended RPM and I am under the impression you want it spinning fast, the slip it in until you get contract. Stop when there is no longer contact. That piece of brass had been sized after ejecting from its maiden firing in an M-60. I just went to my garage and grabbed some raw mostly LC once-fired, and those will not go in far enough to engage the cutter. I like the cut: length and, inside and outside. __________________ ............

August 29, 2020, 07:25 PM	#58
Unclenick Staff Join Date: March 4, 2005 Location: Ohio Posts: 21,063	Has the mostly-once-fired brass been resized yet? Resizing is when the neck grows. I use the motorized Giraud and have no problem holding on with my fingers. I just push in and roll it forward between my thumb and the side of my hooked index finger. I believe the pully ratio is about 2:1, so a standard 4-pole 1800 rpm motor is spinning the cutter about 3600 rpm. But I'll have to open mine to check that I am remembering that correctly and I don't have time just at the moment. The Gracey trimmer uses and 1800 rpm motor and that's about as fast as hand drills normally go. So unless they altered the cutters for slower speed, you are looking at something like maximum drill speed with the drill-powered version. __________________ Gunsite Orange Hat Family Member CMP Certified GSM Master Instructor NRA Certified Rifle Instructor NRA Benefactor Member and Golden Eagle

August 2, 2020, 09:03 PM	#51
jproaster Senior Member Join Date: November 14, 2010 Location: SE Tennessee Posts: 239	This thread topic is timely for me as I've decided to reload...after years of owning a goodly amount of equipment. Lots of 223 to trim. I'm liking the Giraud tri-trimmer. I bought an LE Wilson years back; still new in box. It appears too slow for bulk 223 though.

August 5, 2020, 07:13 PM	#54
mrcooper Junior Member Join Date: April 24, 2012 Posts: 13	I use the LEE set up also, best one out their, I have 2 fosters that are resting for the past 2 years.

August 29, 2020, 07:52 PM	#59
Marco Califo Senior Member Join Date: April 4, 2011 Location: LA (Greater Los Angeles Area) Posts: 2,598	No. Those are mostly LC, and, all unsized, are still in the bag Jeff Bartlett shipped them in, 15 years ago. Those will not go into the trimmer No reason why I should expect them to. That WRA case I did trim, originally came in the same bag, but I must have been one of a smaller group I sized and processed. Sizing and processing 1000 MG fired brass is more work than I wanted, so most have sat. That one loose case probably was sized twice now. I am really not wanting to trim unsized brass. They would need to be trimmed again. Thank you for confirming the finger hold is appropriate. I do like the drill set-up. $115 including shipping. It comes setup with a sample trimmed case. My HFT cordless drill says it does 900 rpm with no load. I have a corded one that does 3000 rpm. I just found the cordless one first. __________________ ............

August 30, 2020, 10:56 AM	#60
Unclenick Staff Join Date: March 4, 2005 Location: Ohio Posts: 21,063	You'll like the corded drill's work better. A lot of guys set those up on a drill press running at maximum rpm so they can hold the case down. Clamp a block of 2×4 to the table, use a spade type wood boring bit to make a shallow case head-size recess in it to index the cases with. Then put the trimmer in the chuck and go to town. __________________ Gunsite Orange Hat Family Member CMP Certified GSM Master Instructor NRA Certified Rifle Instructor NRA Benefactor Member and Golden Eagle

August 30, 2020, 11:52 AM	#61
jetinteriorguy Senior Member Join Date: April 28, 2013 Posts: 3,176	Get some of the rubber coated work gloves from a hardware store or Wally World. They are cheap, comfortable, and really grip good. They are made using a stretchy material that is coated in a nice sticky rubber on fingers and palm.

August 30, 2020, 01:15 PM	#63
Marco Califo Senior Member Join Date: April 4, 2011 Location: LA (Greater Los Angeles Area) Posts: 2,598	Great ideas! Thanks all. __________________ ............