Case trimmer shopping opinions please

[TaylorS]

I've found it's time to trim some cases down to size and looking at the trimmers available I got a lil lost. There's ones that look like they'll use my existing shell holders, some with special collets for each size and some with some universal hootie that holds it all. From hand cranks to dewalt to stand alone motor driven. Most every thing has it's own stand but lee has one that goes into the press. So what's everyone useing to get things done with the most speed and accuracy?

[Dryball]

That's like asking is Ford or Chevy better. I'm sure you will get you varied answers. This is the one I've had for almost 30 years. Yes there are faster or marginally more accurate ones out there but I love my Lyman, and the case retainer is universal.

[CGT80]

I have an electric lyman trimmer. I only use it for 30 carbine. The motor is slllooooowwww and underpowered, but it beats the hand crank models. The accuracy is good. I trim everything else on CTS gen I trimmers. They will go into a drill or drill press. I have a motorized base that I built for mine. They are very similar to the WFT but cts doesn't have bearings in it. They are $43 each from ebay. Set one up for a caliber and then leave it be and just swap out the whole trimmer when you switch to different brass. I even have one for 460 mag straight cases, but it uses a holder since it is straight walled brass. The bottle neck cts trimmers work off the shoulder of the brass. There is a little variance, but I don't sort my brass. I do FL size all my rifle brass. I am more into action shooting and plinking than shooting tiny groups, so I don't care about extreme accuracy. I am able to crimp to a crimp groove and have pretty consistent results. As long as I don't have to change my die and it all chambers fine, I am happy.

The CTS trimmers take 1-3 seconds per piece of brass to trim. It is much easier on my hands than using the lyman electric trimmer, but I have to be careful not to push myself too hard. You do have to hold the brass with your fingers and I did get an uncomfortable blister on my trigger finger once, right where the trigger would rest. CTS is excellent for cost vs. speed. I would love to use a dillon trimmer on my dillon presses, but I don't really need that speed and I can't really afford the price. Giraurd looks like a great machine and I wanted one in the past. Now that I have the CTS trimmers, I will save my money. I don't have to debur after using the cts. My flare dies or powder dies will take the inner burr off and a light crimp will knock the outer burr off the case.

[Johnny_V]

That's like asking is Ford or Chevy better. I'm sure you will get you varied answers. This is the one I've had for almost 30 years. Yes there are faster or marginally more accurate ones out there but I love my Lyman, and the case retainer is universal.

Amen to that Dryball. I have used the Lyman, and although it is a good trimmer, I prefer my Forster over even the motorized ones. When I use the 3 in 1 cutter heads on the Forster it saves me from the chamfering and deburring tasks. Just my 2¢

[dromia]

If it is for speed and I'm not too concerned with absolute consistency then my Lyman power trimmer does the job and gets most of my trimming work.

For as much consistency as possible for long range work then my hand trimmer Forster gets the job.

[357shooter]

I've been asking the same question, having tried a few different approaches in search of a good toolset. Even the Dillon trimmer, that is expensive and kind of a pain, has it's drawbacks.

The conclusion is the Franklin brass prep center and trimmer looks like the best solution, I'll be trying it soon. It will take a pilot from Hornady to aid with consistent trimming. It has different tools running at the same time, the biggest difference is the integrated case trimmer that doesn't require screwing the case into a holder, and you can do a case from beginning to end very quickly. There is no batching case by operation. This looks to be the most promising solution. There are also primer crimp remover tools that fit the primer pocket station. Looks like a great solution to many problems and is very easy to use. Per the videos and posts I've read.

[brtelec]

I have a Forster and it works great. I had an RCBS and it worked great. My best friend has a Lyman and it works great. I hope you are seeing a pattern here. I have to admit I like the universal chuck on the Lyman, but the Forster collet set up works very well and is very quick. My son uses a Lee Zip trim and he loves that thing. It is a tedious job that needs doing, the products out there all get the job done.

[TaylorS]

That's like asking is Ford or Chevy better. I'm sure you will get you varied answers. This is the one I've had for almost 30 years. Yes there are faster or marginally more accurate ones out there but I love my Lyman, and the case retainer is universal.

Well we all know fords better then Chevy but fords just a f' old rebuilt dodge :D

I'll keep looking at em seems that for consistency one I can chuck to the drill or hand crank will be best

[Petrol & Powder]

No shame in getting a little lost while looking at case trimmers, there's more than a few to choose from. I think it comes down to speed and consistency. I prefer one of the hand cranked, lathe type trimmers but they are slower than some of the other types. If you're not trimming huge numbers of cases at a time, they give good results and are fast enough to preserve what little sanity I have left.

[TaylorS]

Mostly runs of 50 or so up to maybe 150 at a time I like to have 300 or so rounds on hand ready to make up

[ukrifleman]

I use the Lee case trimmers as they are cheap to buy and are probably the most consistent trimmer out there bar none.

I also use the Lee ball handled cutter head and universal chuck, which I put into a battery drill and clamp in a vice.

The universal chuck takes all my brass (14 calibres)from 45 Colt to 30-06 with no problems.

In my opinion, the Lee system might not be the fastest method, but it is certainly the cheapest and most consistently accurate.

ukrfleman

[Wally]

I have a Forester....however I now use a Lee 3 jaw chuck on a drill and their cutter on a hardwood ball & pilot. Very fast .... The pilots are about $4.00 each and when using you can never trim too short.

[Rory McCanuck]

I quite like the Lee piloted type on the Zip Trim or a drill.
Trim, chamfer, clean with some steel wool and a brush in the case mouth, remove it and hit it with a primer pocket tool, and it's fully processed. Takes longer to type out than do; I've never timed myself but I imagine 2-3 per minute?

I have a Pacific that uses regular shellholders, but it doesn't cut quite square, I have to turn the case 180° and cut twice.
If I were to get another lathe-type trimmer, it would be a Redding, as it turns the case rather than the cutter. That would tend to keep the mouth more square, and you could still buff it clean.

[petroid]

I don't have to debur after using the cts. My flare dies or powder dies will take the inner burr off and a light crimp will knock the outer burr off the case.

I have the CTS for 300 BLK and looking to get one for 223. I don't have to deburr anything. There is not burr left

[462]

There are a few things that Lee does right and their case length gauge and cutter are one of them. When used in conjunction with a cordless drill, trimming to length, and chamfering and deburring takes mere seconds. There isn't any time consuming measuring and setup required. It's a consistent and repeatable system.

[enfieldphile]

Wilson for me!

[covert]

Look up "Worlds Finest Trimmer" that's what its called. chucks in a drill or better yet a small bench top drillpress. Takes about 5 seconds to trim a case.

[Wally]

I have the CTS for 300 BLK and looking to get one for 223. I don't have to deburr anything. There is not burr left


Also one can take a batch of brass and do a dry run with the Lee system while watching TV...you use it to check case length. Those too long, you can trim later....It is very fast and convenient. When checking a batch of a few hundred cases I find that maybe only 5% need to be trimmed...

[youngmman]

I have a Forster hand trimmer and a Gracie for volume in 223/308

[EDG]

Trimmers are really easy if you have been loading 45 years.
There were only 2 good ones and a number of bad ones back then.

If you don't have too many different calibers the Wilson is very good but the cost of the case holders is a bit much if you need several dozen of them. The Wilson does not need pilots and it can be used to neck turn with an optional neck turning head.

The Forster uses a set of collets. If you do not load too many rounds you might get by with one or 2 collets.
The Forster uses pilots. All in all once you have a set of pilots and collets you can trim almost everything.
Add a new cartridge - who cares. You will have the collet and pilot for everything short of a 50 caliber on the top end and 17 caliber on the bottom end. Your can buy optional cutters for .17 cal.

If you troll ebay and classifieds you can often buy the Forster less collets and pilots for $25.

Some of the other brands may work fine. The self propelled RCBS is probably my next choice.
The other brands never impressed me enough to fool with them.

[gwpercle]

Back before things got all high-tech we would use a File & Trim die. Turn it into your press, run the brass up , file off any brass that stuck up above the die. They were hardened so the file wouldn't cut the die top. Cheap, easy and I still use mine. I know stone age stuff but they still make them.
Gary

[EDG]

I like the stone age stuff too. I have a lot of trim dies that I use for forming and cutting off cases.
There are even some applications where they work as a sizer die that barely sizes the neck since RCBS trim dies are .010 larger in the neck than a FL die.
I don't use them for trimming much because I can do that with the Forster trimmer.

[leadman]

I have the Lyman and the Lee case length gauges and cutter. I wanted a way to trim, deburr inside and out so ordered the new hand cranked Lee Deluxe trimmer with dies that go in the press.
I have several thousand 223 cases to do so set it up to try it out. I found that after 10 or so cases the die cutter body would fill up with shaving and the cutter blades would seize in place (spring loaded). It really needs a way for the shavings to get out of the cutter body.
I found it was just too slow so will go back to the Lee case length gauges and cutter. Sent the deluxe trimmer back for a refund.

I do have the conversion for the Lyman so I can use a cordless drill or screwdriver on it.

[Guardian]

I have purchased a number of case trimmers trying to find the perfect one. I'm still looking. It really depends on your preferences and what you are trying to accomplish. Below is a synopsis of the ones I've used and my opinion of them:

Lyman Universal Case Trimmer - I was given one of these in my first reloading setup. It was well broken in and worked just fine. Setup isn't complicated, but it is time consuming to return to a particular measurement after adjusting for another caliber. Keeping a "calibration case" makes it easier, but one oops will ruin that case. The trimmer has a collet that slides on the shaft for major adjustments and a threaded nut on the collet for minor adjustments with marks approximately representing 0.001-in. That collet and nut have set screws to lock in adjustments. You have to make sure when you begin the adjustment sequence you back the fine adjustment out before you set the collet to ensure you don't run out of adjustment. If the outer nut is screwed in to the point the collet is touching the shaft stop on the frame, you'll get inconsistent cut lengths. The universal chuck is a pleasure to use, IMO. It's quick and holds cases securely, as long as you get them in there correctly. It's easy to get one of the retaining ears not fully seated occasionally. I learned to just apply a little lateral pressure to a locked in case to ensure it was correctly seated. No big deal. I ended up buying a second of these so that I could leave the first set for my most frequently trimmed caliber. About 50 cases at the time is all I want to use this for. A carbide cutter head makes it better. I've had to polish down some of the pilots to fit the case necks without binding, but that really depends on your setup and how your case necks are sized. Pilots for the common calibers are included. I use this trimmer frequently for straight walled cases.

RCBS Trim-Pro2 - I bought one of these when on the road for an extended period and longing for my reloading equipment. It was what was available locally at the time. It required buying shell holders. The concept of the trimmer was nice, the function less so. I had a lot of problems with the sell holders allowing the cases to spin. The issue was exacerbated by tight necks or oversize pilots, I'm not sure exactly which. Adjustments were similar to the Lyman. I ended up giving the trimmer away.

Lee Case Length Gauge, Cutter, and Lock Stud and a drill - As others have stated, it's hard to beat the Lee stems and a drill when looking at it from a cost/benefit perspective. This is a very simple system that works well, relatively quickly, with little effort. Changing out cases is a bit slow as you have to make sure the case holder is tight. A ball on the cutter is highly recommended. There is no adjustment to these, you just thread the gauge into the cutter and trim away. You have to deprime before you use one of these, but you should have done that when sizing the case anyway.

World's Finest Trimmer (WFT) - These work surprisingly well. The end mill that does the cutting is secured into the trimmer body with set screws. Adjustment is trial and error and nearly impossible to move precisely, but once you get it set the work is quick. These index off the case shoulder and are available only for bottleneck cases. One issue I've encountered is inconsistent lengths resulting from the expander ball on the sizing die pulling the shoulders differently. I've eliminated this by removing the expander balls/mandrels from my dies and using Lyman M dies during bullet seating operations after someone on Cast Boolits suggested it (I'd give credit if I could remember who). You'll have to decide whether chamfer/deburring is necessary after use of the WFT, but I always felt it necessary. The WFT requires little effort to use. The down side is you need a new trimmer for each case family, so it can get expensive if you load a lot of calibers.

Forster Power Trimmer - This works with your drill press and requires a drill press that has a good repeatable hard stop. Unfortunately, my drill press does not have such. You can use Forster's 3 way cutters with this, but you need one for each caliber. The base uses collets to hold cases and it is very fast to swap cases. I made a chute out of plexiglass to go with it so that the trimmed case rides down to the bucket. Knock the completed case out and insert the new one. Alignment of the base and drill chuck is easy with the provided bar. If you have a worthy drill press, don't overlook this jewel. Assuming you already had the drill press, you could run with a Giraud for a lot less money. I replaced the lever on the base with one that has a bend in it and is longer, otherwise it's stock.

WFT and Forster Power Trimmer Base - Note: Use of tools in ways other than intended by either manufacturer! - I concocted this arrangement due to my arthritis. The WFT worked well enough, but my hands were killing me from gripping the cases, particularly 223. The Forster base holds the case and the WFT resolves the issue of my drill press stop. This setup is faster than the Giraud trimmer, if you didn't have to chamfer and deburr afterwards. Unfortunately, you must. The pressure from the drill press causes the WFT to leave a nasty burr on the case. The WFT also isn't designed to turn constantly. Also the higher pressure of the drill press results in spiral shavings instead of chips. The shavings hang in the WFT and the operation must be paused occasionally to clean the WFT. I've modified the WFT extensively trying to alleviate the chip loading issue and have been unsuccessful, so far. I have extended the time period between clean outs, but haven't eliminated the issue. The chamfer/deburring step requires more time due to the size of the burr created. I'll continue to work on this setup, but it still leaves much to be desired.

Giraud Case Trimmer - I recently acquired one of these. It's like a power pencil sharpener, but much more expensive. It works well! It's fast! Chamfering and deburring are done as part of the trimming! It only does bottleneck cases. It has the same issues as the WFT regarding care in sizing to ensure consistent shoulder lengths. Setup of the case length is easy, but setting the chamber/debur can be a bit challenging. Once set, It's just a matter of feeding cases. I use this trimmer for 223 currently and will be getting the parts to do 308.

Price, Speed, Quality - The old adage of pick any two still applies.

[rmcc]

Over the years have tried several. My Lyman Unuversal will always be on my bench beside the Herters (Forster made) for my "match" cases. For volume I have 2 WFT in 30/06 and 223. These have alearning curve on the "feel" but are amazingly consistent in turning out cases within.0000" accuracy! For all else nothing beats the Lyman EZ trim for my hunting or plinking loads. It is fast and simple.


rmcc

[kencha]

I didn't see it mentioned here yet...

Something to keep in mind is that the Hornady manual trimmer will only work with Hornady shell holders. All of the other brands (at least all that I have on hand) use a smaller primer hole, so they won't fit.