Product Review: Lee Quick Trim Deluxe

[AFJuvat]

I have been using the Lee case length gauge to trim cases with the shellholder chucked in a cordless drill. It works well, but it is slow - put the brass in the shell holder, tighten it down, insert the gauge and cutter into the brass, trim, remove, then chamfer the case mouth inside and out.

Picked up a Lee Quick Trim Deluxe

http://leeprecision.com/deluxe-quick...e-trimmer.html

and a Quick Trim Power Adapter:

http://leeprecision.com/power-quick-trim.html

(Side note, they sell a power only version, but I wanted the option to use power or manual, so I bought both pieces.)

This trimming setup requires a "quick trim die" which is caliber specific. The individual dies run $10 - $18 each, depending on caliber.

The trimmer, power adapter, and the Quick trim die in 30 Carbine set me back $50 through Amazon.

I installed the 30 Carbine trim die in my Lee Reloader Press per the instructions - run the lock nut all the way to the top of the die, then screw the die into the press until it is finger tight.

Installed the normal shellholder in the press, loaded a piece of resized brass, chucked the Quick Trim in a cordless drill and inserted it in the die, ran the brass up.

While putting light pressure on the press arm to keep the ram up, I started the drill. After about 5 seconds, I could tell by the sound that the cutter was no longer cutting brass.

Removed the trimmed and chamfered brass from the shell holder and measured - Case length went from 1.292" (0.002" over max case length) to 1.2815 (0.015 above minimum case length)

Trimmed 24 more pieces, measuring each one. After trimming, all cases were within 0.0003" of each other.

I then banged out 100 pieces of brass in just over 15 minutes. I would have gone faster, but I was measuring every 10th piece of brass. Also, after about 50 cases, I dumped the tray that collects brass shavings.

I've since ordered trim dies for 30-06, .308, 8x57, and .223

NOTE: The trim dies assume that you are using Lee Shellholders. Other holders will work, but your cases may be longer or shorter than intended due to the differences in shellholder height between manufacturers.

If you reload calibers that you have to trim on a regular basis, particularly if you have to trim a lot of them, the Lee Quick Trim Deluxe is definitely worth a look.