Lee quick trim

[ubetcha]

Is there anyone using the Lee quick trim setup yet. I stopped at Titan yesterday and pick up a 357 and 30/30 trim set and was trying out the 357 die. I was using sized and untrimmed new WW brass and I'm not impressed about the "quick trim" aspect. Now I don't know if it was because it was new brass and required some material removal that it was slow rather than a slight trim of material on fired brass. I trimmed to 1.280 and the measured case before trimming were 1.285. When the brass did get to 1.280 it looked pretty nice. I did about 15 cases out of 50 with the Quick Trim and the rest with my Lyman Universal with a carbide cutting head. The Lyman was much faster. It was also hard to tell when the QT had reached the preset length because it still felt like it was cutting where as with the Lyman, there was a definite sound change when it stopped cutting. I will have to shoot up some loads and get some brass to lengthen and retry the QT.

[flashhole]

I want to follow this thread as I am considering the Quick Trim too.

[ubetcha]

One of the problems I have had using the Lee trimmer with the preset pilot was that the cases would sometimes rotate out of the case holder. A bit aggravating at times.

[flashhole]

ubetcha - do you have the Lyman e-zee trim?

[mold maker]

I recently bought them, but as yet haven't used them. Watching with interest. Ads always look good.

[ubetcha]

ubetcha - do you have the Lyman e-zee trim?

No I don't have a lyman e-zee trim,but I was just looking at the Lyman web site at it and it looks similar to the Lee set-up only nicer. The shell holder looks like it would work much better than the Lee. At lease from looking at the pictures a anyway. I was always happy with the Lyman Universal for any major trimming but was looking for something that could be used for a quick check after sizing without any setup to be done

[flashhole]

My impressions of the Lyman E-ZEE trim were similar to yours. I've been using the Lee equivalent for years with good success and they are finally showing wear and some of the pilots no longer sit square to the cutter. I've read complaints about the pin wearing down but I never experienced that. It's time to replace them, that's why I'm looking at the Quick Trim and the E-ZEE Trim. The hard-stop concept is great and I like the idea the Lyman system is more robust. I have 5 rifles but only one pistol and I don't do things in a hurry at the reloading bench so efficiency is not a player for me.

[jetinteriorguy]

I've been using the Lee trimmers for a few years now and just recently switched to the Lyman E-ZEE trim and like it much better. It's more concentric in its operation and the cases stay put in the shell holder. One thing that I found helps with the Lyman is to expand the case mouth first since some of the shell cases would fit too tight after sizing and the pilots wouldn't go in the case mouth, but after using the expander it's smooth as silk.

[ubetcha]

I've been using the Lee trimmers for a few years now and just recently switched to the Lyman E-ZEE trim and like it much better. It's more concentric in its operation and the cases stay put in the shell holder. One thing that I found helps with the Lyman is to expand the case mouth first since some of the shell cases would fit too tight after sizing and the pilots wouldn't go in the case mouth, but after using the expander it's smooth as silk.
Did you also have a problem with the cases rotating out of the Lee shell holders?

[dkf]

I have the deluxe version. Don't use it anymore as it was basically worthless before I even could trim 500 .223 cases with. It chamfered the inside and the outside of the neck good for about 150 cases then it wouldn't do much for the outside of the neck after about 300 cases the inside of the neck showed burrs, so doesn't chamfer anymore after 300 cases. After the first 300 cases the trim length was not consistent and got worse the more it was used after that. It also started trimming longer so I had to remove some material off the plastic adjustment ring but cut length still varied greatly. After every 75 or so cases I pulled the cutter out of the die and cleaned it good. After every 150 the blades were taken out, cleaned and put back in.

So in my experience the deluxe quick trim is garbage. I wanted it to work very much and thought it was a good idea when I first saw it. Lee just didn't do it right. From what I see the problem was the spring loaded spring steel blades that the cutter uses to chamfer AND trim the cases to length, the actual cutter never touched the brass unless it was WAY long. The spring loaded blades were not consistant and got worse as it was used. The plastic adjustment collar was garbage. The trimmer was fairly cheap but you get what you pay for. Swing and a miss by Lee.

[Garyshome]

Get the attachment for the drill, makes things much quicker

[flashhole]

ubetcha - thanks for starting this thread. I ordered the Lyman E-ZEE trim and several pilots today. I like the design and had good success with the Lee equivalent system doing thousands of cases over a decade or two but always wished the Lee system was more robust. Now that those need to be replaced I upgraded (I hope) to the Lyman. When Lee markets a die for 221 Fireball I will likely buy the Quick Trim (non Deluxe). I see Lee sells a 17 Remington Quick Trim Die but no mention if it will work for 221 Fireball.

[bangerjim]

I have the Quick-Trim and all the adaptors LEE makes for it. I really like it. Faster than the lathe-style trimmer I made earlier this year. It is only used for special needs now.

You really do not need the power adaptor. Just a few cranks and you are done. And you get upper body exercise in the process!!!!!! Messing around with a drill on top of your die and press would be VERY awkward from what I can see. Power adaptors work well on horizontal lathe-style trimmer.

banger

[emorris]

It was a good idea but poorly executed. The plastic length adjuster broke on mine shortly after 50 38 special cases.

[Big Tom]

I have been using the Lee Quick Trim for about 2000 .223 and 1000 .308 cases and am very happy with it - attached a drill to it and got very consistent results. The brass was all cleaned up and free of case lube (when trying it with lube remainder on it, results were not good, it was messy and inaccurate). If you get it, get the electric hand drill attached, raise the shell all the way up and run the drill on low speed and little pressure until the lock ring does not turn any more.

[Geezer in NH]

I have done 500+ 30-30 cases with great success Consistent lengths and look good.

[Garyshome]

Try turning the crank 30 times each for 2000 cases. I'm too old for that kind of exercise.

[ShootR]

I had one that did not keep the casing from spinning. Lee changed the design from o-ring to a nylon type insert. I got mine replaced. Only 5 turns of the crank for perfect length every time.

[jetinteriorguy]

Did you also have a problem with the cases rotating out of the Lee shell holders?
Oh yeah, it was very annoying. It hasn't happened yet with the Lyman trimmer, I really like it much better. It's faster and easier to use, and I think it trims more squarely due to the fact it isn't wobbling all over the place. I have found on my .38 and my .357 brass it helps to run them through the expander first. Every once in a while if the brass is thicker and you have resized it the pilot fits too tight and won't go in. One last thing too, they don't trim as short as the Lee trimmer. They leave the cases a bit longer. Sorry I'm so slow in responding, I forgot I had made a comment here.

[Maximumbob54]

How are people breaking their Quick Trim??? I've been using mine for about a year now and it still cuts just fine and nothing is worn out yet. I'm confused. I've been thinking of adding the drill bit adapter which says it's for a cordless screw driver.

[SWMO1]

I've used a Lee trimmer in the past and was satisfied until I recently found a different case trimmer. It's called WFT (worlds finest trimmer) and can be ordered through Sinclair. It fits into a drill and after adjustments one can easily trim 15 to 20 cases a minute. The down side is it's caliber specific and costs $65. Not to bash Lee or steal your thread but if one is looking for a trimmer consider the WFT.

[kryogen]

my 223 WFT works ok, my 308 WFT trims so bad that case necks have chips and waves on them....

the lee trimmers work ok if you wun by hand. with a drill, you will wear down the pin.

my lee 223 trimmer lasts approx 300 cases, and then the pin wears. I run low speed, low presure, and even added oïl, still got grinded down. screw that cheap stuff.

I use the lee trimmers for low volume calibers only.

[Moonie]

my 223 WFT works ok, my 308 WFT trims so bad that case necks have chips and waves on them....

the lee trimmers work ok if you wun by hand. with a drill, you will wear down the pin.

my lee 223 trimmer lasts approx 300 cases, and then the pin wears. I run low speed, low presure, and even added oïl, still got grinded down. screw that cheap stuff.

I use the lee trimmers for low volume calibers only.

There is no pin in the trimmer being discussed here, you are talking about the old trimmer Lee has put out for years. This is not that. I have both and I agree, the pins eventually do wear out. The new trimmer seems to work very well as long as you keep them cleaned out as the brass shavings can build up and cause issues with consistent trim length.

[kryogen]

for any volume, I guess a WFT is faster. Not 3 in one though....

[Geezer in NH]

It appears there is confusion on the new trimmer. The new one works in your press using a standard shell holder. Also no insert that goes thru the flashole.
For lots of cases get the drill adaptor.

[bangerjim]

Another nice thing about the QT is you can trim with the primer in! No need to have that little finger sticking thru to judge the length anymore. I do not use any drill power to do this. It takes too much effort to hold your heavy drill above the press and perform the task. 5-6 cranks of the knob and your are done and get some upper body exercise also. And I do A LOT of rifle cases!

banger

[randyrat]

Just bought the non-Delux (wellfare model) QT by Lee and it worked great for 200 pieces of 7mm08. Fast, clean and precise.. I'm going buy more of the Lee trim dies, I really like this thing and the price was great!

As Moonie stated- you have to swipe out brass shavings or your length will be off..It's in the instructions

[C. Latch]

It works for me. :)

[ukrifleman]

I use the Lee de-lux Quick trim for 7 calibres and find it works very well. I have a mixture of the original `O` ring gauges and the improved Nylon.

I have not had any problems with cases turning in the gauges.

What I have found you must do is, keep the blades free of brass swarf and regulerly remove any debris from the case gauge and cutter body as you go along.

I also lube the cutter body very lightly with Ballistol so that it runs free and smooth.

I find that the Quick trim produces consistant results and the case ends are very neatly finished, definately a superior system to the old hand held Lee trimmers.

ukrifleman.

[6622729]

Is there anyone using the Lee quick trim setup yet.

I am and it's perfect! I use it in a Lee Classic single stage press with highly repeatable results trimming 223 cases. I would buy it again.

[Motard]

I have the the Lee quick trim for every caliber I own and bought some diff blade setup: hand cranck, drill adapter, spare blades. I has whorked rather well since now and only brocke one plastuc collar due to the fact I used a too fast elecric drill. cause it works also without the collar I hav no regrets at all

[Pee Wee]

Take a look a the trim-it ll trims and chamfers the case at the same time, fits in drill, works like the giraud trimmer just $300.00 cheaper. cost on brownells on sale is $109.00 plus $19.00 for cal. Collar. Google a YouTube and check it out. Works great.

[Motard]

IMHO the matter with the LEE QT is only from the dies bolt wich get screwed in from the radial pressure applied by cranking on the die. Not ythat I bash thi system. Is good (cheap self centering feature) for assial forces ie when sizing, seating, or crimping, but iis lacking when the action tendt to screw in it. Simple solution as per pics. Fit a screw on the bolt and tourn it upside down so to have metal face contacting the press and the rubber on the upper side.152458

[SniderBoomer]

I got the Deluxe Trimmer and a 30-30 Die

I'm no Bench-rest shooter, but I just wanted my brass trimmed to one consistent length.

I just can't get the QT to make the brass lengths the same. I have to keep checking and measuring every few cranks of the handle, it's taking so long.

The problem is, it feels like it is always cutting and does not have a 'stop' set for 30-30 WCF.

As an experiment, I took one of my 30-30 brass that had reached 2.040

Trimmed and kept turning, the brass is now at 1.998 and it still wants to keep on trimming. Surely that's too much cut already ?

Is this right? I have the knurled Spacer Collar that came with the Cutter assembly in place, and I adjusted the black rotating collar that has the 10-clicks of adjustment to make the minimum trim.

What the heck am I doing wrong?

[Motard]

lucly my collar whent south fast. being only a spacer i swapp it with nylon washers (may be i am wrong but think they are from a Cd box) and have brass leveled from spacers



Sent from my C6903 using Forum Fiend v1.3.3.

[SniderBoomer]

I tried the already over-trimmed 30-30 case and see if the Lee QT was nearing bottoming-out.

Nope, a few more kranks and we're at 1.985" and it STILL wants to trim the neck down even more.

At this rate, I'll be making pistol brass....

??

[Motard]

need revisibg the die height? the die is shaped as the reference cartridge. impossible trimming if brass not protrude. havent tried it myself but I think that if you fit on shell holder a propper trimmed brass and adjust the dies height so that mouth is flush with the hole in the die you should have same height brass, except the one wich was jet undersized







Sent from my C6903 using Forum Fiend v1.3.3.

[SniderBoomer]

Motard - thanks for helping. The Instruction leaflet supplied doesn't make it clear to do this at all. In fact, I followed the Leaflet instructions and also the Lee Precision Website video on setting up the QT perfectly. It seems it could never actually work if setup as instructed...

Your idea makes more sense, but then, how is the human eye to judge the mouth of the brass neck being at the right height into the die, and if it was set level, how could the female chamfer blades possibly work?

I'm completely perplexed.

[Motard]

setting height with a dummy rounds can help. thought the femal chamferring ney not work but you can remove it and the have pass tge brass with a fast wipe in a second moment
or tou nay try to shimm the tool so that it stooos cutting

Sent from my C6903 using Forum Fiend v1.3.3.

[SniderBoomer]

Yes, I think your method might work.

I pulled the Cutter out with the Chamfer Blade trio in, held a case against it, the Chamfer Trio are cutting, not just chamfering. Wonder if the spring pressure that pushed the Chamfer Trio ahead of the main Cutter Blade face, is too strong?

Will investigate more tomorrow.

[SniderBoomer]

Done investigating, the Chamfer blades do trim down..and down...and down...

I no longer own it.

Returning to the old Lyman Trimmer, slow, but I get brass all the same and the length I want.

[MT Chambers]

I like the Lee "Zip trim", you pull the string and the case gets trimmed, magic, okay everyone together now: "Bring back the Zip trim, bring back the zip trim!!

[kryogen]

What the heck am I doing wrong?

What you are doing wrong is expecting too much from a value item
I have stopped using lee tools. I only have a few items left.
They offer good value, but you cannot have good value and top notch quality at the same time. You have to decide.

[Handloader109]

I've been converting. 223 cases to 22tcm. Did about 300 using the old Lee trimmer with the pin that I had altered to correct length. Not satisfied as pin moves and wears and the holder isn't strong enough as I'm trimming 10 to 30 thou off each case. Couldn't afford to spring for the *** trimmer, I'm not doing thousands. Got the Lee qt ,expensive for this caliber. And my first gripe is that it trims about 7 thousandths too short at the supposed longest setting. Yes, I adjusted and sacrificed several cases to make sure. So I found some 5thousanths brass shim and made a couple of shims. Cuts good, accurate and consistent. I do check each case as it. Is hard to insure by look. But it won't just keep trimming. I should send back, but not worth the trip

[r1kk1]

I like the Lee "Zip trim", you pull the string and the case gets trimmed, magic, okay everyone together now: "Bring back the Zip trim, bring back the zip trim!!

Lol!

you crack me up MT!

r1kk1