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Posted: 12/20/2015 2:26:01 PM EDT
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Currently the longest operation in reloading for me is case prep.
I'm using the lee cutter and lock stud to trim my brass. I'm looking to upgrade and am wanting to speed things up a bit. I'm really looking for a happy mix of speed and consistence. The Lee is the only trimmer I've ever used and that set up has served me well. I'm see the automatic case prep centers as well as lathe type trimmers. Can anyone offer advise on how to speed up my trimming without sacrificing the quality? |
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The Giraud Tri-Way is what you seek. Around $100. check caliber list
It's a real time saver. It trims, chamfers, and debur's at the same time. Get one! I chuck mine in a high speed electric drill and couldn't be happier. Or, if you want the powered unit and aren't on a budget, Giraud Trimmer with power ... around $500 The blades/cut are the same in both. |
If you have a progress press and a casefeeder (you likely don't), then add a Dillon trimmer to your case prep cycle and you just dump in the brass and crank the handle. You decap, resize and trim all without ever touching your brass. And, with something like a Dillon 650 or LnL, you could process 1,000rds of .223/5.56 per hour, all without touching a single case. 
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Quoted: If you have a progress press and a casefeeder (you likely don't), then add a Dillon trimmer to your case prep cycle and you just dump in the brass and crank the handle. You decap, resize and trim all without ever touching your brass. And, with something like a Dillon 650 or LnL, you could process 1,000rds of .223/5.56 per hour, all without touching a single case. This is the easiest method of brass prep. I have a Hornady LNL with a Dillon 1200 trimmer and it turned the chore of case prep into a breeze. The Dillon trimmer cuts very squarely so no deburring is needed, and most bullets don't require chamfering either. And, I use this same method to prep the brass I use to shoot .223 out to 800 yards. |
| Buy pre-processed brass. There are a couple of companies that will sell pre-processed or process yours for you. It costs about $0.10 per case. They clean, decap, swage the primer cup, deburr the flash hole, resize, and trim/deburr for a few pennies a case. Thereafter the cost goes down as they are cleaning, resizing and trimming/deburr. |
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Quoted: This is the easiest method of brass prep. I have a Hornady LNL with a Dillon 1200 trimmer and it turned the chore of case prep into a breeze. The Dillon trimmer cuts very squarely so no deburring is needed, and most bullets don't require chamfering either. And, I use this same method to prep the brass I use to shoot .223 out to 800 yards. Quoted: Quoted: If you have a progress press and a casefeeder (you likely don't), then add a Dillon trimmer to your case prep cycle and you just dump in the brass and crank the handle. You decap, resize and trim all without ever touching your brass. And, with something like a Dillon 650 or LnL, you could process 1,000rds of .223/5.56 per hour, all without touching a single case. I have a Hornady LNL with a Dillon 1200 trimmer and it turned the chore of case prep into a breeze. The Dillon trimmer cuts very squarely so no deburring is needed, and most bullets don't require chamfering either. And, I use this same method to prep the brass I use to shoot .223 out to 800 yards. Careful with those statements! The Brass Nazis will come after you for speaking heresy. The self anointed preach that to fail to debur and chamfer is blasphemy! (Yes, you are correct, you don't need to debur or in many cases chamfer the brass, even for your long range loads. While I don't go out to 800yds, my 68grn 5.56 level AR loads do well as my 400-500yds apple exploder rds and all they get is trimmed and then tumbled for 15 minutes to remove the lube. No debur or chamfer, however, I have been repeatedly chastised for evil deeds I espouse.) |
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The Giraud looks like the best way to do some volume but I'm loading for .223,300 aac, 243, 7mm mag, 308, 30-06, 270, 8mm Mauser,303 British , 6.5x 55 Swede, 45-70, 357 mag/38, 44mag and a few other that I may have forgotten.
I may just cherry pick a few like the 308 and 30-06 that do multiples. Is there a lathe type that anyone recommends? RCBS,Layman, Hornady? I'll still need something more economical to do an odd lot of a hundred or so. |
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Quoted: The Giraud looks like the best way to do some volume but I'm loading for .223,300 aac, 243, 7mm mag, 308, 30-06, 270, 8mm Mauser,303 British , 6.5x 55 Swede, 45-70, 357 mag/38, 44mag and a few other that I may have forgotten. I may just cherry pick a few like the 308 and 30-06 that do multiples. Is there a lathe type that anyone recommends? RCBS,Layman, Hornady? I'll still need something more economical to do an odd lot of a hundred or so. I use a Giraud for often loaded cartridges, and a RCBS lathe trimmer for low volume rounds. Another option is the Wilson lathe trimmer, there are a couple of recent threads about it. |
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Quoted:
I use a Giraud for often loaded cartridges, and a RCBS lathe trimmer for low volume rounds. Another option is the Wilson lathe trimmer, there are a couple of recent threads about it. Quoted:
Quoted:
The Giraud looks like the best way to do some volume but I'm loading for .223,300 aac, 243, 7mm mag, 308, 30-06, 270, 8mm Mauser,303 British , 6.5x 55 Swede, 45-70, 357 mag/38, 44mag and a few other that I may have forgotten. I may just cherry pick a few like the 308 and 30-06 that do multiples. Is there a lathe type that anyone recommends? RCBS,Layman, Hornady? I'll still need something more economical to do an odd lot of a hundred or so. I use a Giraud for often loaded cartridges, and a RCBS lathe trimmer for low volume rounds. Another option is the Wilson lathe trimmer, there are a couple of recent threads about it. This. I use Giraud for anything high production (308, 30-30, 223, 300 blk, and 30-06) and for long range shooting I use the Wilson. |
| whoa,ive been prepping several thousand cases the last week myself and thought...wtf..this suks!..i bought a wft trimmer.it does go a lot faster than the manual one i have,however it leaves a terrible bur that adds a step to get rid of.im going with the dillon for my 550. |
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The Dillon trimmer cuts very squarely so no deburring is needed, and most bullets don't require chamfering either. And, I use this same method to prep the brass I use to shoot .223 out to 800 yards. TimpAR, you've got this all wrong. Who taught you to reload? You don't chamfer bullets, you chamfer the brass/ Also, you don't shoot brass, you shoot bullets (chamfered or otherwise).
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Quoted:
Careful with those statements! The Brass Nazis will come after you for speaking heresy. The self anointed preach that to fail to debur and chamfer is blasphemy! (Yes, you are correct, you don't need to debur or in many cases chamfer the brass, even for your long range loads. While I don't go out to 800yds, my 68grn 5.56 level AR loads do well as my 400-500yds apple exploder rds and all they get is trimmed and then tumbled for 15 minutes to remove the lube. No debur or chamfer, however, I have been repeatedly chastised for evil deeds I espouse.) Lots of hate in those words, ... for a heretic!
I think most recommend deburring and chamfering from dogma but the real issues are uniformity and safety. |
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Quoted:
The Giraud looks like the best way to do some volume but I'm loading for .223,300 aac, 243, 7mm mag, 308, 30-06, 270, 8mm Mauser,303 British , 6.5x 55 Swede, 45-70, 357 mag/38, 44mag and a few other that I may have forgotten. I may just cherry pick a few like the 308 and 30-06 that do multiples. Is there a lathe type that anyone recommends? RCBS,Layman, Hornady? I'll still need something more economical to do an odd lot of a hundred or so. I think I have to recommend a WIlson lathe trimmer over all the others. Especially so for your lower volume brass trimming. Case holders are inexpensive but you may also find some of the case holders do double duty (multiple cartridges use the same holder). Wilson also makes pistol case holders for that OCD part of you. |
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I like reloading for the most part but trimming cases is tedious. I also shoot enough .223 that I wanted to speed things up.
Originally I was using a turret press and handling the brass multiple times just to get them ready for loading. To prep my 6000 cases took days! I picked up for a song a Gracey trimmer. It has the upgraded motor and an aluminum mounting plate. It came with .223 and .308 dies. This works excellent but still required handling each piece of brass individually. I bought a Dillon RT1500 trimmer. I finally got around to setting it up yesterday. I have a Hornaday LnL AP press. Now I only handle my brass 2 times, 3 if it is once fired brass. Once fired, new to me, brass is separated from my reloaded brass. I mark my brass with a permanent ink stamp pad I got from Amazon. This way I know which brass has the primer pockets prepared. Here is my work flow for brass prep now. 1. Tumble brass after sorting into 2 containers. (My previously loaded brass and new to me brass) 2. Lube a couple hundred cases with spray lube and shake in a large plastic tub. 3. Drop lubed cases into the case feeder. 4. Run through the press. Station 1 is a universal decap die, Station 3 is the Dillon trimmer and station 5 is a Lyman M die to run through the neck to make sure it is uniform tension. 5. Back into the tumbler. I will be doing the same for .308 and .30-06 when I get ready to load those calibers. If I can get consistent case lengths I will probably sell the Gracey trimmer. So far with .223 the lengths are very consistent. |
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Quoted: Lots of hate in those words, ... for a heretic! I think most recommend deburring and chamfering from dogma but the real issues are uniformity and safety. Quoted: Quoted: Careful with those statements! The Brass Nazis will come after you for speaking heresy. The self anointed preach that to fail to debur and chamfer is blasphemy! (Yes, you are correct, you don't need to debur or in many cases chamfer the brass, even for your long range loads. While I don't go out to 800yds, my 68grn 5.56 level AR loads do well as my 400-500yds apple exploder rds and all they get is trimmed and then tumbled for 15 minutes to remove the lube. No debur or chamfer, however, I have been repeatedly chastised for evil deeds I espouse.) I think most recommend deburring and chamfering from dogma but the real issues are uniformity and safety. BTW, I've found no accuracy differences at all with test chamfered and non-chamfered 68grn Hornady in my Wylde chambered RRA A4 I use for shooting apples at 400+ yds. None at 100yds, none at 200yds, none at 300yds, none at all. And these are the same handloads (no chamfer) my son shoots with his Savage Model 10 that produce 5/8" groups for him at 100yds. But then again the Brass Nazis will say I'm crazy, unsafe, a danger to small children, and likely a recent escape from some mental institution. |
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I've used the Lee lock stud and will NEVER go back to it. My case prep is as follows:
1. Tumble brass in vibratory tumbler with walnut media. I mix in a capful of non flammable paint thinner (cleaner) and some used dryer sheets (catches dust). 2. Tumble brass in vibratory tumbler with corn cob media. I mix in a capful of NuFinish car wax to really shine them up. You can use the corn cob sold for reloading, but I don't prefer it because it will stick in your flash hole if the case is deprimed. I use a finer grit. 3. I then put the cases in a ziplock bag with a squirt of full synthetic motor oil. 4. Resize the case. 5. Trim the case. 6. Wash cases- hot water and dish soap, then rinsed with hot water 7. Dry cases- you can either lay them out or do what I do and put them in the oven at 200 for an hour. I use one of two methods for steps 4 and 5. If I'm doing low volume, high precision, I will resize on my single stage and then trim on the RCBS Trim Pro (truthfully I currently use an old model but have asked Santa for the Trim Pro kit). I like using the 3-way cutter for this because it trims, chamfers, and de-burrs all in one step. Now, for my high volume (223 for my AR fun guns) I started a new process. I started doing this two weeks ago, but had the idea when lee first came out with the power adapter for their Trim Pro. Also, if you search youtube, you can find other folks also thought of this and posted videos before I tried it. I have on my Lee Load Master a decapping pin in station 1, a resizing die without the decapping pin in station 2, 3 and 4 are empty, and I have a Lee Deluxe Quick Trim with the power attachment locked up in a 9V dewalt in station 5. You should be able to use just a resizing die in station 1, but for some reason on my 223 die the primers weren't coming all the way out. Same process as above, I just handle the cases a lot less. I can resize and trim about 200 cases per hour. So far this has worked very well. Cases come out fairly consistent. If you don't have a progressive press, you could use the Quick Trim on a single stage, you'll just be handling the cases more. See pic below for set up: 
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Quoted: M die? Quoted: Quoted: Those of you using the Dillon trimmer are you following up with an M Die? M die? |
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The Giraud Tri-Way is what you seek. Around $100. check caliber list It's a real time saver. It trims, chamfers, and debur's at the same time. Get one! I chuck mine in a high speed electric drill and couldn't be happier. Or, if you want the powered unit and aren't on a budget, Giraud Trimmer with power ... around $500 The blades/cut are the same in both. I noticed that the WFT and the Giraud tri-way are very similar, which one is better? |
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I noticed that the WFT and the Giraud tri-way are very similar, which one is better? Quoted:
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The Giraud Tri-Way is what you seek. Around $100. check caliber list It's a real time saver. It trims, chamfers, and debur's at the same time. Get one! I chuck mine in a high speed electric drill and couldn't be happier. Or, if you want the powered unit and aren't on a budget, Giraud Trimmer with power ... around $500 The blades/cut are the same in both. I noticed that the WFT and the Giraud tri-way are very similar, which one is better? Depends on what you want to do. Both of them use the shoulder of the case as the limiter, so you have to start with properly sized brass to start with. The Giraud will chamfer and deburr while it cuts. The WTF does not. If you buy the WTF2 which has changeable case holders, you can add a cartridge for $25, instead of $100 for another trimmer. I load a few calibers, so the WTF2 was the way to go for me. The WTF2 does leave a small burr on every case, or at least it does for me. Mine simply go back in the SSTL media tumbler to remove this and the sizing lube before loading anyway. They come out ready to load. |
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Those of you using the Dillon trimmer are you following up with an M Die? I use a 21st Century carbide straight expander die for the 223 brass and 300 BLK is trim my my Honey Badger Trimmer (F&FB) I process commercially in Canada. It more just breaks the edge on the inside of the case mouth and sets proper neck tension. When I am then loading said brass for myself I do use an M die to get it to work a bit better with the bullet feeder. |
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Anyone make something like this that would work for large primers? Or just a holder that I can hang onto the case with? After 500 pieces of the WFT my hands get a little sore. Quoted:
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I use the Lee trimmer for .223 but with a twist. Anyone make something like this that would work for large primers? Or just a holder that I can hang onto the case with? After 500 pieces of the WFT my hands get a little sore. I use these ignition wire pliers (sissy pliers) to hold cases when I'm reaming primer pockets. They would work for the Giraud etc.. 
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I use these ignition wire pliers (sissy pliers) to hold cases when I'm reaming primer pockets. They would work for the Giraud etc.. http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/71F9eiTH5zL._SX522_.jpg Quoted:
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I use the Lee trimmer for .223 but with a twist. Anyone make something like this that would work for large primers? Or just a holder that I can hang onto the case with? After 500 pieces of the WFT my hands get a little sore. I use these ignition wire pliers (sissy pliers) to hold cases when I'm reaming primer pockets. They would work for the Giraud etc.. http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/71F9eiTH5zL._SX522_.jpg Ive looked for a set of those locally, but no dice. Any idea where I might get them on the internet? |
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Ive looked for a set of those locally, but no dice. Any idea where I might get them on the internet? Quoted:
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I use the Lee trimmer for .223 but with a twist. Anyone make something like this that would work for large primers? Or just a holder that I can hang onto the case with? After 500 pieces of the WFT my hands get a little sore. I use these ignition wire pliers (sissy pliers) to hold cases when I'm reaming primer pockets. They would work for the Giraud etc.. http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/71F9eiTH5zL._SX522_.jpg Ive looked for a set of those locally, but no dice. Any idea where I might get them on the internet? Amazon or Ebay. There are many different styles to choose from. |
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I have a Hornady LNL with a Dillon 1200 trimmer and it turned the chore of case prep into a breeze. The Dillon trimmer cuts very squarely so no deburring is needed, and most bullets don't require chamfering either. Can anyone tell me how this thing actually does the trimming? Most trimmers I've seen require some sort of crank or motor. http://www.dillonprecision.com/#/content/p/9/pid/25244/catid/8/Rapid_Trim_1500___1200_B_Size_Trim_Die |
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Quoted: Can anyone tell me how this thing actually does the trimming? Most trimmers I've seen require some sort of crank or motor. http://www.dillonprecision.com/#/content/p/9/pid/25244/catid/8/Rapid_Trim_1500___1200_B_Size_Trim_Die Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: I have a Hornady LNL with a Dillon 1200 trimmer and it turned the chore of case prep into a breeze. The Dillon trimmer cuts very squarely so no deburring is needed, and most bullets don't require chamfering either. Can anyone tell me how this thing actually does the trimming? Most trimmers I've seen require some sort of crank or motor. http://www.dillonprecision.com/#/content/p/9/pid/25244/catid/8/Rapid_Trim_1500___1200_B_Size_Trim_Die Corrected an inadvertent misquote. Now to ABQ87120's question. The picture is of the trim die, not the trimmer. Each caliber requires a unique trim die that the trimmer screws to. The black cylinder with the wire is the trimmer mounted on the trim die that's screwed into the toolhead. The blue collar below it with the hose is to attach your vacuum to it to remove the brass shavings.  |
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Those of you using the Dillon trimmer are you following up with an M Die? For those who don't know, the Dillon trimmer will size but not expand the case. I have an m die but mine would pull the shoulder forward unless I lubed the inside of the case mouth, something a lube die won't do, so I stopped using it. I stopped expanding rifle cases a while ago, the boat tail bullets I shoot don't require it. I like to stretch the mouth to yield when seating, gives the most reliable neck tension. |
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Depends on what you want to do. Both of them use the shoulder of the case as the limiter, so you have to start with properly sized brass to start with. The Giraud will chamfer and deburr while it cuts. The WTF does not. If you buy the WTF2 which has changeable case holders, you can add a cartridge for $25, instead of $100 for another trimmer. I load a few calibers, so the WTF2 was the way to go for me. The WTF2 does leave a small burr on every case, or at least it does for me. Mine simply go back in the SSTL media tumbler to remove this and the sizing lube before loading anyway. They come out ready to load. Quoted:
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Quoted:
The Giraud Tri-Way is what you seek. Around $100. check caliber list It's a real time saver. It trims, chamfers, and debur's at the same time. Get one! I chuck mine in a high speed electric drill and couldn't be happier. Or, if you want the powered unit and aren't on a budget, Giraud Trimmer with power ... around $500 The blades/cut are the same in both. I noticed that the WFT and the Giraud tri-way are very similar, which one is better? Depends on what you want to do. Both of them use the shoulder of the case as the limiter, so you have to start with properly sized brass to start with. The Giraud will chamfer and deburr while it cuts. The WTF does not. If you buy the WTF2 which has changeable case holders, you can add a cartridge for $25, instead of $100 for another trimmer. I load a few calibers, so the WTF2 was the way to go for me. The WTF2 does leave a small burr on every case, or at least it does for me. Mine simply go back in the SSTL media tumbler to remove this and the sizing lube before loading anyway. They come out ready to load. There is another one I am considering and that is the Trim-It II. Anyone else use this? |
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