Case trimming on lathe

[Doc1]

I have two lathes I'd like to use for case trimming duty: A 10x36 Atlas and a 7x10 Chinese mini lathe.

Have any of you ever used a real lathe for case trimming? What cutter or collets do you recommend? I can hold the case in either the headstock or in a jacobs chuck in the tailstock. Thanks in advance.


Edited to add: Upon re-reading my post, I realized I probably wasn't very clear. Here's what I'm doing now: I machined a .308 mandrel for most of my .30s and the same mandrel has a .323 step for my 8mm Mausers. I chuck this mandrel into a jacobs chuck in the tailstock and chuck the case into the three jaw chuck on the headstock. Then I slide the mandrel into the case mouth to stabilize it and cut the case conventionally with a HSS tool. This works just fine, but it's too slow.

Are there special cutters or accessories designed to be used for case trimming in a regular lathe that would speed up the process? In the various catalogues, I see different cutters and collets for proprietary case trimmers, but am not sure how they'd work on my lathes and I can't afford to blow a lot of money buying stuff to experiment with that might not work.

I hope this clears thing up.


Best regards
Doc

[JerryW]

I've had pretty good luck using a trimmer head in a drill press. Set the stop to get your length. Jerry W

[Echo]

I use the Lee system in a drill press. fast, and accurate. Knock off the burrs on a wire wheel. Can do 4 or 5 per minute.

[SwedeNelson]

Doc

Have done the same thing with my lathe as you.
Used a LEE Universal 3 Jaw Chuck
http://www.midwayusa.com/Search/?search_keywords=352653&category_selector=#352653____-_1-2-4_8-16-32
and a LEE Case Spindle
http://www.midwayusa.com/Search/?search_keywords=174316&category_selector=#174316____-_1-2-4_8-16-32
Had about a 10% to 15% loss with it.

Have gone to a Harber Freight Mini Cut-Off Saw
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=42307
0 loss and about 10 times as fast.

http://i69.photobucket.com/albums/i80/swedenelson/Picture052-1.jpg

Had to make a stop for it but it works great.

http://i69.photobucket.com/albums/i80/swedenelson/Picture053-1.jpg

This would be for cutting cases down to form somthing else.

To just trim - the LEE Case Length Gage and Shellholder is hard to beat.
[http://www.leeprecision.com/cgi/catalog/browse.cgi?1228686641.463=/html/catalog/casecon.html

Swede Nelson

[Morgan Astorbilt]

Doc,
The only case trimming I've ever done on a lathe, has been on the base of the case, rebating or reducing the diameter of the rims or web area. Cutting extraction grooves, etc. I use a method I to submitted to Brownells, and they published in their Gunsmith Kinks #4 book, under my real name. It basically uses a case sizing die held in a three jaw chuck or collet, as a tapered socket to hold the case.
One of these dies COULD be cut down and reversed, so the case neck would protrude, using the lock ring as a stop against the chuck jaws, so you could remove the die to change cases. This would allow setting up the machine for multiple pieces, but care would have to be used to prevent pushing the case out of the die. For accuracy, when doing multiple parts, the cases have to be inserted in the die the same distance (with the same pressure).
Morgan

[garandsrus]

Doc,

Have you ever checked out the Wilson trimmer and case holders? They could probably be adapted to a lathe pretty easily. The trimmer base could be mounted to the tool rest and the cutter in the headstock. The case holders work very well and are similar in design to what Morgan mentioned.

Here's a link to the Wilson trimmer (http://www.sinclairintl.com/cgi-bin/category.cgi?category=RECTACWI&item=WTR&type=store) and the case holder (http://www.sinclairintl.com/cgi-bin/category.cgi?category=RECTACWI&item=WXCHTWO&type=store), which is caliber family specific. The brass base and throat each stick out of the case holder. You simply "tap" the base of the case on a block of wood to lock the case in the holder and then tap the nose to release it.

There is also a powered option with the trimmer that lets you use a cordless drill, which is what I use.

John

[1hole]

Do as you wish of course but I think using a lathe for cases is more trouble than it's worth. I have done some neck turning on mine (9" S.B., Mod. A) and don't even to that anymore!

My bench mounted trimmer (Lyman Universal) does my trimming and a Forster HOT-100 turns my necks quite well.

[Morgan Astorbilt]

I should have mentioned, that I now do most of my case trimming(necks), on my drill press with the Lyman Universal Drill Press Trimmer. Have they stopped making them? I don't see them listed in the catalogs. Still see the Forster one, though. Still have my Redding bench top, but it's too slow to for jobs like making up a batch of 9mm Makarovs from para brass, or .38S&W's from .38spl..
Morgan

[PatMarlin]

Clausing should do the job like Morgan's.. ...:mrgreen:

[TAWILDCATT]

You lathe operators should know what a counterbore is add th right pilot and run it in the drill press.using the lyman holder.thats what I used to do before the minisaw.harborfreight $27.:coffee:[smilie=1: