Newbie question about case trimming .44 Mag

[dlzigjr]

Hi All,

I am new to reloading. "Inherited" a few things from my wife's grandfather. Using his Lee Classic handloader for .44 Mag and his shell casings, I reloaded my first small batch of rounds using 7.0 gr Red Dot with a Speer 240 gr jacketed soft point bullet and Remington large pistol primer. What a thrill to handle your own handloaded ammo!

Anyway, my question is in regard to case trimming. Bought some dial calipers last night and started measuring cases....they are ALL different lengths! Picking 5 up at random I got 1.272, 1.270, 1.280, 1.277, & 1.278. So obviously I need a case trimmer, BUT these lengths are all UNDER the length of 1.285 specified in my Lee Modern Reloading manual for the .44 Mag cartridge. So will a case trimmer trim to any length I choose? (looking at the Lee trimmer it appears that it trims each shell to a standard length by a spacer inserted in each case. Would my cases even get trimmed at all since they are all under 1.285?)

I also got curious about the case length and measured the case lengths on a box of factory new rounds I have......1.274, 1.278, 1.276, 1.278, & 1.276 on the first 5 rounds pulled. All within 4 thousandth's of each other, but definitely under-length to the case standard 1.285 listed in the LEE manual. Would love to see folks weigh in on this and describe your process of case trimming and what equipment you use.

David

 

[buck460XVR]

David....the 1.285 is probably max length. I believe "trim to" length in .44 mag is 1.275. Altho the trimming of straight-walled handgun cases is not necessary(as COL keeps the space between powder and bullet consistent) I do it to keep my crimps uniform. You can also do this without trimming by separating your brass by length and loading accordingly. A coupla thousandths of an inch won't matter a whole lot unless you are match shooting....and more than likely you'll never notice the difference even if you don't do this. My trimmer can be adjusted to trim to any length......and I'll start at the "trim to" length. Anything shorter than that, I'll set aside and load separately and adjust my crimp accordingly..... after a few firings and resizings they are right up there with the rest.

 

[GP100man]

dlzigjr
welcome to THR
i use lees set up & RCBS pro trimm

trimming cases ,it`s standard procedure to trimm .010 " under specs.
straight walled pevolver rounds are more forgiving as long as they don`t bind in the throat of the cyl all is ok , but i trimm mine (usually once is enuff ) to get consistent crimps on a press set up .

if i`m trimming & hit upon a case thats short i put it in the "plinkerss" box because too short a case causes pressures to go up , that`s why most reloaders load "mid" range loads so any inconsistentcies fall within safe limits .
also let me say the higher the pressures the more i pay attention to details in case prep & powder dropping, for example 44 plinkers 100 in an hour is no problem but 44 hunting 20 rnds. maybe.

i still use my classic loaders , i prep cases to the point of dropping powder & seating , go to the range & shoot my starting rnds, & work from there!!!
i have a three legged peice of plywood to get the scales level on my shooting bench.

hope this rambling helps some!!

GP100man

 

[mkl]

Most of us don't worry about case length on straight wall revolver cartridges. As long as you can get a decent roll crimp on the cartridge, you are okay.

I do not believe you can control the trim length on the Lee trimmers (at least you can't on the two I have). You would not remove any brass if your cases are already shorter than what the trimmer is set for.

To control trim lengths, you need one of the lathe style trimmers that can be infinitely adjusted. We use them a lot on bottle neck cases, because those stretch after several reloadings. Revolver cases seldom, if ever, do.

 

[dlzigjr]

Thanks guys for the input,

I'll get a trimmer at some point to standardize my cases as much as possible, but until then will sort cases to similar lengths (for seating depth consistency) and reload away!

 

[rcmodel]

Case length has no bearing at all on seating depth consistancy, or OAL of a finished round.

The only thing it has any effect on is the amount of crimp applied.

rc

 

[loadedround]

Straight wall revolver cases do not need to be trimmed. You will wear them out before then. Usually just bottleneck rifle cases need trimming after several firings.

 

[mija]

A trim die makes it a simple operation. $10-15 from RCBS. Place it in your press insert case run a file over the top 2-3 times and you are done.
If you are using a bullet with a canalure this is the simplest way to get consistant case lengths and good looking finished product. If not your case length does not really matter.

 

[Floppy_D]

I've never trimmed pistol brass.

 

[Walkalong]

I do not trim auto brass, but I do trim my revolver brass once at the beginning. It is important for a consistent crimp. Some brass can vary more than .010 in length, sometimes much more. I trim my .357 to 1.280 and I had some Hornady brass that untrimmed was at 1.272 and I had some other brass at over 1.290. That is a big difference when trying to crimp into a cannelure.

I know some very experienced reloaders who do not trim their revolver brass, so who knows.

 

[Ranger J]

I don't think I have ever had a .44 mag case stretch enough that my Lee trimming tool would cut any off it.

RJ