Trimming 204 brass

Theshedhunter

Theshedhunter

Active member
For those that use the electric drill and Lee Case Length Guage to trim brass, what are you using to trim your 204 brass, since Lee does not offer a 204 guage. They claim it is too small. I really didnt want to buy a new trim set up just for one cartridge. Would like to know what others are using. Thanks!
 
Originally Posted By: TheshedhunterFor those that use the electric drill and Lee Case Length Guage to trim brass, what are you using to trim your 204 brass, since Lee does not offer a 204 guage. They claim it is too small. I really didnt want to buy a new trim set up just for one cartridge. Would like to know what others are using. Thanks!

I don't think you have much choice unfortunately. My buddy ran into the same situation, and I had an old Hdy lathe type trimmer to give him to use. I use a RCBS Trim Pro, powered up. I can trim any cartridge with simple shell plate and pilot changes, plus turn necks with it if I want. There are lots of newer style trimmers also which I'm sure work great.
 
modified lee quick trim with power adapter.

on thiner brass cases i remove the large ball bearing and replace it with an airsoft bb to take some of the spring tension off the chamfer/deburring parts. for heavy stuff like 308 nato brass, i use the OEM ball bearing to tension the inner springs.


the possom hollow worked pretty well too for 204, but i moved away from that system when the quick trim came out due to the requirement of holding the case with your bare hands while the cutter rotates. doing repetitive grasping tasks like that is difficult for me after getting read ended and injuring my upper back.
 
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Originally Posted By: TheshedhunterFor those that use the electric drill and Lee Case Length Guage to trim brass, what are you using to trim your 204 brass, since Lee does not offer a 204 guage. They claim it is too small. I really didnt want to buy a new trim set up just for one cartridge. Would like to know what others are using. Thanks!

Right before I ordered my Frankford case trim center I did find and ordered a lyman trimmer similar to the lee case gauge.. It does have a 204 case length gauge..

Lyman E-ZEE trim

And the 204 case gauge for it also..

204 ruger case trimmer gauge

If you got different calibers, the Frankford case trim center is the way to go.. Very reasonable priced..
 
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I only use the Lee trimmer with the shaft, cutter and shell holder for very low volume modern rounds like the 35 Whelen and others that I do't shoot often.

I am liking the Lee Quick trim with the economy cutter as you can go from round to round without having to adjust the chamfer part and it comes in 204. It is very accurate and much faster than chucking up each piece of brass. I use it with my 22-250 and 222 Rem target guns. It seems to work just as well as a Wilson at much lower cost and just as fast, still have to see how long the cutter and friction ring lasts.

For most of my shooting I have a C&H and Wilson trimmers, one is set up permanent for 204, 22-204, 6mm-204 and 25-204, the other for 20 Practical, 223, 6x45mm.

For others that they don't make dedicated trimmers for like the 22 HP, 6.5x58R and 9.3x72R and all of other odd balls I have a couple of older Redding and Forester collet trimmers, while not real accurate as they depend on consistent rim diameter to be accurate they are close enough.

Most of my stuff has been picked up on ebay cheap, garage sales and the "get it out of here shelf" at the LGS's I stop at on my travels. I picked up the C&H at a little dumpy shop in Las Cruces for $10 with a 250-3000 shell holder. C&H makes every shell holder imaginable and they also fit the Wilson at less cost than the Wilson

I hate adjusting things, I'd rather have three trimmers all set up than to adjust for thee different round. All mine are manual as I don't load in huge batches and trim every loading so very little comes off if at all. So I have four bench trimmers and a handfull of the Lee's with the shaft and two Qwick trims. Never having to adjust mean everything is always consistent.
 
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I use the .223 Lee shaft but turn it down in a drill chuck and file. It was easy and works well. I did the same thing to trim .40/65 brass. A 45/70 shaft was filed down to .40.
 
Originally Posted By: Pack_WolfI use the .223 Lee shaft but turn it down in a drill chuck and file. It was easy and works well. I did the same thing to trim .40/65 brass. A 45/70 shaft was filed down to .40.

Same, here.
 
how is it possible to turn down a 223 shaft on the basic lee trimming system's case length gauge and use it on .204 brass?


223 max case length is 1.760" and the lee case length gauge trims to 1.750" if memory serves correctly

the 204 ruger has a max case length of 1.850" and the recommended trim length according to hornady is 1.840"

so how exactly do you stretch the extra the extra 0.080"-0.090" onto the case length gauge that you've milled the diameter on to fit inside the case neck on the 204 to get the proper case trim dimension and not shorten the neck up well below the SAAMI minimum case length of 1.830?

you're starting with a neck that's only around 0.192" long when the case is trimmed to 1.840" so you'd be nearly cutting the neck length on the cartridge in half and making it 0.102" if my math is correct.



or am i way off the mark here and that would be withing the bounds of being a safe minimum amount of neck on a cartridge of this dimension?





 
Originally Posted By: Plant.Onehow is it possible to turn down a 223 shaft on the basic lee trimming system's case length gauge and use it on .204 brass?


223 max case length is 1.760" and the lee case length gauge trims to 1.750" if memory serves correctly

the 204 ruger has a max case length of 1.850" and the recommended trim length according to hornady is 1.840"

so how exactly do you stretch the extra the extra 0.080"-0.090" onto the case length gauge that you've milled the diameter on to fit inside the case neck on the 204 to get the proper case trim dimension and not shorten the neck up well below the SAAMI minimum case length of 1.830?

you're starting with a neck that's only around 0.192" long when the case is trimmed to 1.840" so you'd be nearly cutting the neck length on the cartridge in half and making it 0.102" if my math is correct.



or am i way off the mark here and that would be withing the bounds of being a safe minimum amount of neck on a cartridge of this dimension?



My bad. Locked on to the concept but not the caliber. I use a .22/250 and spin it down to fit the neck and then file down the pin to proper length.
 
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My bad also. I must have used a 22/250 spindle too. I did mine 15 years ago,..just forgot about the difference in neck size. I hope it is correct for you now.

Good on you for correcting the situation.

Pack
 
Not a thing. If the Little Crow does what you want, there's no reason to change. Some of us just prefer a cutter that indexes off the base of the case. Price sometimes plays a factor, as well.
 
Originally Posted By: crow sniperI use a redding trim die,works perfect

Same here, but I have several calibers so it is worth it. But it
would be a bit expensive investment for just one or two.

It's nice to be able to vary the cartridge length to match the
length of the chamber, i.e., a .25-06 chamber in a Sav 112 is very
looooong, so it takes a few reloadings to even come close to the
end of the chamber, and they can be trimmed accordingly.
 
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