Case trimming - no luck with Lee Quick Trim

[JonMorganHill]

Hopefully I'll be able to start contributing info and not just seek it!

I'm pretty new with reloading, and completely new with .223. I bought the Lee trim die, and have the Lee Quick Trim with the manual crank.
No matter what I try, I cannot get my cases below 1.76, and I have a few dozen that I can't get that far - it's possible the ones that are under were that way to start. The best I have is 1.758.
I'm sure they're all fine to load, but being new I don't want to start relaxing on my standards.

So, the main questions are this:
1. Could I be using the Quick Trim wrong? It seems like it should be fool proof, in which case I'm a qualified fool.
2. Any other recommendations for trimmers? I've looked at the WFT and the RCBS. I'm hoping to keep it under $100, but I'll go over that for good results

Thanks!

 

[AJC1]

If your using the rod that goes inside the case to guage trim length, clean and debur the inside of the flash hole.

 

[JonMorganHill]

This is the one I'm using. The black ring is adjustable in thousands, I've tried them all. It really seems like the cutter is not quite touching the cases. Some of them have a very slight burr, so they may have been longer and cut down. It just seems like I should be able to get down around 1.756 or so consistently

 

[AJC1]

Shim out the cutter head with a washer.

 

[CptnAwesome]

Are you using Lee shell holders?

 

[JonMorganHill]

Thanks - I am using the Lee shell holder. The quick trim die doesn't have any adjustment to it, it's screwed all the way in and the shell holder is touching when I raise the ram. I've also emailed Lee to see if they have suggestions

 

[AJC1]

Thanks - I am using the Lee shell holder. The quick trim die doesn't have any adjustment to it, it's screwed all the way in and the shell holder is touching when I raise the ram. I've also emailed Lee to see if they have suggestions

That's why I said shim the cutter head which will lower it and give you more of a cut

 

[JonMorganHill]

That's why I said shim the cutter head which will lower it and give you more of a cut

I’m going to give that a try, thanks for the suggestion, never would have thought to try that

 

[buba68]

Rcbs Trim Pro 2. You can get a cutting head that will trim and deburr the outside of the case in the same operation. I have one and use it all the time for 223 cases. Consistent length every time and no need to deburr the case mouth. Makes trimming 223 a piece a piece of cake.

 

[jonb32248]

Lee case trimmer on Amazon. I got one for my 22-250 and I attach it to my cordless drill and zip thru case after case. Way less than $300. case trimmer.Ck it out. Case trimmer and lock stud by Lee.

 

[mmb617]

When I first started loading .223 I used the Lee Quick Trim but soon got tired of hand cranking it. I bought the attachment that allows you to chuck it into a cordless drill but I had a high percentage of cases getting the case mouth chewed up even after replacing the cutter head with a new one.

I then bought the WFT and wish I'd have done that in the first place. Much easier, faster, and it's been very consistent for me. I bought a couple spare cutters for it figuring they'd wear out fast but I'm still using the original one after trimming thousands of cases. I highly recommend it.