Lee zip trim

roadie · 07-20-2008, 06:28 PM

I have one of these things, and although I am for the most part happy with it, I am wondering if there is a faster way to trim cases. I don't go shooting as often as I'd like, so I have a lot of .223 cases, thousands of them. I usually do small batches of about 100 or so, resize, tumble then trim to be ready to load. And trimming is the most time consuming and laborious part of the process. I know rcbs makes an electric case prep station, but it doesn't trim, and it's expensive. I was wondering if there is a faster cheaper one.

Blackrock · 07-20-2008, 07:18 PM

I use the standard Lee case trimmer and shell holder chucked into a cordless drill. I can juggle the trimmer, I/O chamfer and a wad of steel wool for a fast polish. Now for pure just plain fast trimming I use my Lyman trimmer with the fast collet chuck. I only tumble the brass whenever I get a whole bunch of at once.

billy · 07-20-2008, 07:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Blackrock

I use the standard Lee case trimmer and shell holder chucked into a cordless drill. I can juggle the trimmer, I/O chamfer and a wad of steel wool for a fast polish. Now for pure just plain fast trimming I use my Lyman trimmer with the fast collet chuck. I only tumble the brass whenever I get a whole bunch of at once.

me too.
it's the only way to fly.
i can go through a bunch of cases real quick.
and the trimmer is dirt cheap!
i put the hand held part in vicegrips so i have a nice big handle.

wily1 · 07-20-2008, 08:06 PM

I agree and approve of the methods above lol. I also give the cases a quick going over with steel wool before I tumble them as well, seems to cut the time in the tumbler almost in half.

samuel · 07-20-2008, 08:24 PM

Sounds ok.The lee trimmers work good. sam.

Pumpkinheaver · 07-20-2008, 08:43 PM

+1 on the cordless drill/lee trimmer combo. It works great.

JOEGUN94 · 07-20-2008, 09:09 PM

the lee works good for me also, , nothing fast, but do you really need to trim everytime??

Blackrock · 07-20-2008, 11:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JOEGUN94

the lee works good for me also, , nothing fast, but do you really need to trim everytime??

No. I don't trim every time. Some calibers do seem to grow a little more than others with repeated firings. Invest in a good dial caliper to check for case lenght varaition.

I do have a Rem 788 in 6mm that has a tight throat and I need to trim an extra .01 or more off of occasionaly. With the Lee trimmer it trims to spec only with no adjustment short of grinding the stud.

samuel · 07-21-2008, 08:22 AM

It doesnt take me that long to zip through rifle cases and be sure,and most handgun cases only need periotic checking. sam.

runfiverun · 07-21-2008, 04:07 PM

you want speed for 223 and 308 look at dillons trimmer ,it sizes and trims at the same time, if i had an ar it is what i would use.

roadie · 07-21-2008, 06:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by runfiverun

you want speed for 223 and 308 look at dillons trimmer ,it sizes and trims at the same time, if i had an ar it is what i would use.

Looks like a great product, but I guess it's just too much to spend to save a little time. I had been doing marathon trim sessions, but maybe I'll cut that down to an hour each time. I can usually trim about 100 cases in an hour.
It's just a bummer when you have thousands of cases to prep.

07-20-2008, 06:28 PM	#1
roadie Senior Member Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Las Vegas Posts: 625 Images: 10 Blog Entries: 1	Lee zip trim I have one of these things, and although I am for the most part happy with it, I am wondering if there is a faster way to trim cases. I don't go shooting as often as I'd like, so I have a lot of .223 cases, thousands of them. I usually do small batches of about 100 or so, resize, tumble then trim to be ready to load. And trimming is the most time consuming and laborious part of the process. I know rcbs makes an electric case prep station, but it doesn't trim, and it's expensive. I was wondering if there is a faster cheaper one. __________________ Blaming guns for violent acts is like blaming the keyboard for your poor spelling.

07-20-2008, 07:18 PM	#2
Blackrock Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: SE Arizona's Gila Valley Posts: 254	I use the standard Lee case trimmer and shell holder chucked into a cordless drill. I can juggle the trimmer, I/O chamfer and a wad of steel wool for a fast polish. Now for pure just plain fast trimming I use my Lyman trimmer with the fast collet chuck. I only tumble the brass whenever I get a whole bunch of at once. __________________ "I only use my gun whenever kindness fails" Forbidden fruits create many jams

07-20-2008, 08:43 PM	#6
Pumpkinheaver Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Missouri Posts: 1,336	+1 on the cordless drill/lee trimmer combo. It works great. __________________ Just because your paranoid doesn't mean they aren't out to get you!

07-20-2008, 08:06 PM	#4
wily1 Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Brandon, Manitoba Posts: 191	I agree and approve of the methods above lol. I also give the cases a quick going over with steel wool before I tumble them as well, seems to cut the time in the tumbler almost in half.

07-20-2008, 08:24 PM	#5
samuel Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2006 Posts: 5,087	Sounds ok.The lee trimmers work good. sam.

07-20-2008, 09:09 PM	#7
JOEGUN94 Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: MARSHALL Posts: 159	the lee works good for me also, , nothing fast, but do you really need to trim everytime??

07-21-2008, 08:22 AM	#9
samuel Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2006 Posts: 5,087	It doesnt take me that long to zip through rifle cases and be sure,and most handgun cases only need periotic checking. sam.

07-21-2008, 04:07 PM	#10
runfiverun Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: soda springs idaho Posts: 272	you want speed for 223 and 308 look at dillons trimmer ,it sizes and trims at the same time, if i had an ar it is what i would use.