Dillon case trimmer

Status
Not open for further replies.

bubbacrabb

Member
Joined
Dec 3, 2010
Messages
353
Location
in the rain... OR
I'm looking at purchasing a dillon case trimmer, and swage. It is a lot of money though. The only reason I'm thinking its the way to go is that I'm going to be using it for 223/556 brass. I've loaded tons of straight wall pistol cases and havent messed with rifle stuff yet. Is this the best way to go for high volume trimming? I'll be using my 550, I dont have a case feeder so it'll be one at a time. I plan on starting to load for my 30.06, 30/30 also, but I may get a possum hollow trimmer for them since it will be a much lower volume. I've noticed rifle is going to cost me a lot more to load than pistol ammo. Just need to make some purchases to get rolling. Thanks for any help.
 
I really like the Dillon case trimmer, it makes short work of things, not a fan of the swagger , if I had to do it separate from trimming I'd use the Hornady reamer with a adapter on a motor
 
I just think with the amount of brass I'll be doing the 400 dollar investment will be worth it. Right now I have about 10,000 pieces of LC brass that I need to process. I'm not a big AR guru, but I do enjoy shooting it every now and then. I'm more of a load it and let it sit for a rainy day kind of guy. Time and money are not that much of a concern so I just want to make the right purchase.
 
Milling over something similar to myself where as too a dillon or giraud is worth it. I will start another thread so I don't hijack this one.
 
I am in the same boat. I have processed probably 5,000 .223 and 2,000 .308 cases over the last year on a Lyman manuel trimmer. I need an upgrade to say the least.

I like the idea of the Dillon on a progressive press but $350 for two calibers. The Giraud looks great but expensive at a little over $500 for two calibers.

I am also looking at the Forster trimmer with a three in one cutter and a power adapter. I like how GWStaar modded his Forster to work on the bench.
 
There are lots of ways to trim cases fast. But only a few of the pricier options will trim and chamfer at the same time. And you'll need a unique, pricey cutting head for each caliber.

OTOH, one of the cheapest options will facilitate motorized trimmer, chamfering, and even case polishing. The Lee Zip trim chuck takes longer to put each case in than using something like a Possum Hollow, for instance. But because it rotates the case, you don't have to hold each cartridge with a death grip, like with the Possum Hollow type tools. And after you trim, you can stick the chamfer tool on the neck and give another quick spin and even polish the case before you chuck up the next one. (With a Possum Hollow, you'd either batch process trim and chamfer in separate steps, or you'd have two drills setup, or you'd chamfer each one manually after trimming.)

I plan on starting to load for my 30.06, 30/30 also, but I may get a possum hollow trimmer for them since it will be a much lower volume.
That's one of the great things about the Lee trim setup. For each different caliber, all you need is a 5.00 guide. The same cutter, chuck, and chamfer tool will work for all your calibers. So until you get up to the trim/chamfer combo tools, the Lee system has some unique benefits that partially offset the time spent on chucking up the brass. I like it. I also like not having to readjust the depth stop each time I change calibers. Just screw in the appropriate guide, and you're ready to go. Extra cutters are only 5-6 bucks each, so you could even lock tite the guide in there and have one for each caliber. I imagine I'll always have a Lee cutter, no matter what other brand I own, such as my Wilson. It's cheap to buy a Lee guide when you want to play around with a new caliber.
 
Last edited:
If you have the coin for one or process a high number of brass then the Dillon case trimmer is great. I don't fill either of those requirements and make due with a Possum Hollow and a drill.
 
This trimmer works I tried the possum hollow (the gage created a lot of friction and took a very firm grip to use it. it also marked the shoulder my brass) and went back to my lyman with power driver ... I will do all my 223's with this WFT - World's Finest Trimmer from now on ... watch the video it works just like it shows..

http://www.littlecrowgunworks.com/wft.html
 
I highly recommend the Dillon. You size and trim as fast as you can push the brass into the machine. All you need is another die and you can do 30-06 as well.

Personally, I prefer to size/trim on a single stage Rockchucker press to eliminate any flexing of the press. I have to swage anyway so there's really no point in using it on the Dillon press. I loaded probably 30,000 rounds of 5.56 last year. I had about 15,000 rounds of brass processed by Custom Brass Processing until Danny quit the business, and the rest I did myself. I can assure you there's absolutely NO WAY I would have even thought about doing that with a hand trimmer. Get the Dillon.

Hey, if you need to, process the brass and then resell the trimmer on evilbay for what you paid for it. Net cost zero. I'd keep it myself.
 
+1 on the Dillon. Very fast and accurate and have it setup on my Rockchucker press as well. Leaves little or no burrs on the case neck. I sort my .223 brass for OAL case length first then run the ones >1.750" through the trimmer.
 
Heck I just run 'em ALL through the trimmer since it sizes and trims with no more effort, and everything is all trimmed every time. No reason not to.
 
Heck I just run 'em ALL through the trimmer since it sizes and trims with no more effort, and everything is all trimmed every time. No reason not to.

Thats what I found was easiest run them through , that way any pick ups get swagged and everything is uniformed
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top