Recommend me a portable drill for case trimming/prep functions

[milspecnsn]

Hi All,

Have not had a need to own one of these before this. What type/brand/specs portable drill would you all recommend for taking care of case prep functions(trimming with a WFT or Lee cutter - appx 1,000 cases at a time max). Outside of using it for case prep, I'd have very little usage for it. Looking to spend appx $100 or less? Not sure of "power rating", chuck size, battery type Lithium vs Ni-Cad, etc. Specific name brand and model would be greatly appreciated if possible to help with my purchase.

Thanks

[JASON4X4]

if you are not going to use it for anything else I would buy a cheap small one. harbor freight sells a 3/8" 18v for 19.99 with the 20% off it is 15.99 and should work fine.

[snapshot]

IN that price range Craftsman 19.2 lithium somewhere around 70 bucks 3/8 drive

[rosewood]

I use a right angle Craftsman 12V Nextec impact driver to power my Lyman trimmer. Works great. Spins fast, is light and the right angle makes it more comfortable. Got mine for $40 on clearance at Sears. :) And the battery last surprisingly long between charges. It also doubles for light duty work around the house when I don't want to break out the heavy 18V Dewalt.

[Weaponologist]

I have a DeWalt 18v Battery version. It stands by it's self on the Battery. You can get these on sale for $99 with 2 Batteries if you can wait till Christmas. then watch Lowes hardware. They've done that for the last couple years in my area.. You can see it at the right in the picture. Makes quick work of any case prep...I'm using the Lee trimmer and 3-jaw chuck in the drill. Great for straight wall cases. However, there even faster trimming tools for Rifle cases such as 5.56/223 and 308/7.62
http://i60.tinypic.com/do1gtt.jpg

[troyboy]

Harbor freight mini lathe. Best piece of reloading gear for the bench period.

[dilly]

For what you are doing, you may want to look at a corded drill. The battery doesn't ever seem to be charged when you need it, and it's not that hard to find a plug. Nothing aggravates me more than when the drill is still "working" but losing power and can't perform simple tasks.

[wallenba]

Cordless screw drivers turn at lower RPM, but they are much lighter, have quick disconnects that will hold your lock stud if using a Lee. Might have to use an adapter for an RCBS or other trimmer. I have a DeWalt cordless drill and spare batteries for the bigger jobs, but re-chucking each time and the weight gets tedious. I use that when I use the Little Crow WFT's, no re-chucking necessary. The driver is used on small quantities for neck turning etc.

[Wayne Smith]

Cordless screw drivers turn at lower RPM, but they are much lighter, have quick disconnects that will hold your lock stud if using a Lee. Might have to use an adapter for an RCBS or other trimmer. I have a DeWalt cordless drill and spare batteries for the bigger jobs, but re-chucking each time and the weight gets tedious. I use that when I use the Little Crow WFT's, no re-chucking necessary. The driver is used on small quantities for neck turning etc.

Nope, the Lee three jaw chuck needs a chuck. It just has a round shaft that needs to be chucked. Go to Sears or Harbor freight and pick up a drill motor. You will not need much torque for this job so any of them will be adequate. But you do need a drill chuck.

[wallenba]

Nope, the Lee three jaw chuck needs a chuck. It just has a round shaft that needs to be chucked. Go to Sears or Harbor freight and pick up a drill motor. You will not need much torque for this job so any of them will be adequate. But you do need a drill chuck.

The three jaw chuck is different than the regular Lee lock stud, which most people use. I have a three jaw chuck too, haven't found it to be very easy to use. The regular one has a hex shaft that snaps right into my Ryobi cordless driver. I still have to tighten the shell holder though, but yeah I don't have to try turning both the jaw chuck and the lock stud at the same time.

[Weaponologist]

The Lee 3 jaw-Chuck takes a little coordination but once I got the hang of it I fly through my brass. It's really simple once you learn..

[Wayne Smith]

The Lee 3 jaw-Chuck takes a little coordination but once I got the hang of it I fly through my brass. It's really simple once you learn..

I have found it works much better if you keep it clean and lubed!

[DEC505]

[QUOTE=Weaponologist;2907341]I have a DeWalt 18v Battery version. It stands by it's self on the Battery. You can get these on sale for $99 with 2 Batteries if you can wait till Christmas. then watch Lowes hardware. They've done that for the last couple years in my area.. You can see it at the right in the picture. Makes quick work of any case prep...I'm using the Lee trimmer and 3-jaw chuck in the drill. Great for straight wall cases. However, there even faster trimming tools for Rifle cases such as 5.56/223 and 308/7.62
http://i60.tinypic.com/do1gtt.jpg[/QUOT

I use the same set up,drill motor stands on it's own,have 4 batteries and two chargers. Caught it on sale at Lowe's for $89.00

[HeavyMetal]

When you go to Harbor freight and buy the 18V cordless drill buy 2 extra batteries there cheap!

Three batteries wil get you through a 1000 rounds of pretty much any brass and then some!

Corded drill just seem to get in the way and most cordless drills are able to sit flush with the battery which is nice if you trim de burr and de burr the flash hole to!

[Weaponologist]

When you go to Harbor freight and buy the 18V cordless drill buy 2 extra batteries there cheap!

Three batteries wil get you through a 1000 rounds of pretty much any brass and then some!

Corded drill just seem to get in the way and most cordless drills are able to sit flush with the battery which is nice if you trim de burr and de burr the flash hole to!

I agree, and as I do just put your dead battery in the charger while your running a fresh one. it will be charged way before you'll need it. In Fact, my batteries seem to do better now that I'm using them with my Brass prep. Before I wasn't using them enough with home projects and a battery that's not used seems to go bad sooner...

[Garyshome]

Get a used Milwaukee corded drill, it'll be the last one you ever buy.

[Safeshot]

For about $55 (with a coupon) you can get a (corded) Drill Press at Harbor Freight. It is fantastic for case trimming chores. and a lot of other "stuff": sanding disk, sanding drum, wire wheel, buffing wheel, router bits, counter sink bits, and you can even use it as a "Drill Press" to drill holes. My "most used" power tool.

[bbqncigars]

I use my Craftsman 1/2" corded VSR drill. The limit stop on the trigger keeps the trimmer at the right rpm. And I don't have to concern myself with batteries.

[EddieNFL]

Bought a DeWalt a year or so ago. It was the smallest I could find that I felt would be strong enough with sufficient battery power. I can get through 800-900 5.56 cases on a single battery. I cut a groove in the power attachment so it doesn't slip out of the chuck.

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a338/EddieF/20140831_141718_zps5cf0349c.jpg (http://s14.photobucket.com/user/EddieF/media/20140831_141718_zps5cf0349c.jpg.html)

[bangerjim]

Bosch 18v LiON......period.

You will not only have the best drill you can buy, you will use for ALL your drilling needs around the home/shop. A charge last almost forever!

You get what you pay for. Avoid HF. Poor quality. Short battery life.

bangerjim

[DaveInFloweryBranchGA]

For decent battery life, get a lithium battery powered device. I have a Makita two battery, drill and screw driver home owner's set I bought during an aluminum boat installation 5 years ago. Batteries charge in 15 minutes, so you can swap a battery, use the drill and charge the other battery while using the drill. The set included a flash light that works well also and came in a Makita case.

Even after the very hard use/abuse I put it through drilling holes in 1/8" thick aluminum sheet for rivets, this set is still going strong today. The boat is completed and I use it for fishing on Lake Lanier here in Georgia.

Worth every dime I paid for it. The drill/driver are white and the batteries are the half sized homeowner's version. I meant to upgrade the batteries, but never found a reason to.

[Char-Gar]

Sooner or later a handloader and gun tinkerer will want a drill press. They don't have to be big, but of decent quality. A bench top model from a seller like Jet or Grizzly is just the ticket. A bench grinder with a fine wire brush on one side is also very useful.

The ultimate handloading tool is a bench top lathe. It doesn't have to be big, but needs to be of good quality. Here is my 1947 Logan 9 X 18.

If you are going to stay in the gun nut ranks, these tools will make life much easier and expand what you what you can do to a very large degree. They pay for themselves many times over and will never be any cheaper than they are today. For our purposes they will last a lifetime.

[bangerjim]

OMG............everybody DOESN"T have a lathe? I would be lost with out one. (have 5).

banger