Trimming Brass
 

How often should you trim/deburr brass?

RE: Trimming Brass
 

As soon as it reaches max case length. Do not shoot brass that is over. It can cause extremely high pressures.

RE: Trimming Brass
 

BC is right - you must trim when your cases reach max length.
I trim my cases each time, even if its just to square up the case mouth. It isn't necessary but reloading is a pass time for me so I almost always trim as part of my case preparation.

RE: Trimming Brass
 

I trim to chamber. Some of my rifles have a longer chamber than spec. so, book don't really apply for me.Also, some cartridges stretch more than others. I find that the cases start to get a little longer after 3 full power loadings. I then knock .004 off of them and load them. Follow the book specs and you won't have any problems with length. Check them with a caliper, and keep a trimmed to specs case around for setting up your trimmer. You should find that your accuracy will be enhanced if the case fills the chamber to as close tolerences as is possible. Be careful if it is overly long, as your pressures will rocket if you are crimping your neck by forcing the case into the lead. I am a Ruger #1 fan, so, if it is a little long, they won't fit. The power that you can get when chambering a bolt action is incredible, and you could easily force the neck of an overly long case into the lead unknowingly, creating pressures that are extremely dangerous or fatal. Have fun! I do. :D

RE: Trimming Brass
 

I've lived a wicked and sinful life when it comes to case trimming. I'd rather go to the dentist than sit down and trim cases.[:@] Most of my misguided life I haven't even worried about the subject and happily I have never had any trouble with brass, pressure or all the other evils things we are promised if we don't constantly measure and adjust our brass.

Fortunately I haven't owned many rifles that were famous for stretching their cases.

Bottom line is I think this whole subject is somewhat overrated. I know I'll be stoned at the city gates for saying such a thing.[&o]

But don't let my post be construed to mean I never do it or check it. I do and I do........just not every time. Usually not every other time. More like every 4th time and I hardly ever find anything shocking. Nor have I ever suffered catastrophic case failure in anything. Allah be praised.

Proper case length is something a guy needs to be conversant with and keep a general eye on. But IMHO it's not the boogey man some think or preach.

Oh, and when I trim...I never trim to standard case length. I always trim a few thousands shorter than the specs so I can ignore the subject a bit longer next time.:D It's worked for me over a few zillion rounds.

RE: Trimming Brass
 

Most reloading guidelines were developed based on avoiding dangerous or potentially dangerous situations. I would advise that you follow the guidelines established by people with extensive and varied experience over the one or two folks that suggest otherwise.

What's the saying about old reloaders vs. bold reloaders???

RE: Trimming Brass
 

I don't know, Kel. I'm mighty old.:D

RE: Trimming Brass
 

Yeah. Ithink the general gist of it means that if you tend to be a BOLD reloader, you may not be around long enough to become an OLD reloader..........
Doesn't exactly take a MENSA candidate to figure that one out, now, does it??

RE: Trimming Brass
 

I've been called a lot of things Paw but never a MENSA candidate.:D Not that you were calling me one.:D

But I hear what you guys are saying and I don't want anyone to think I'm the guy who just blows off every caution about reloading in the book. I'm not. I've done a lot of wild and crazy things but always done them "cautiously" and always with a pretty good knowledge of what sort of dangers I was running. So I have always done them very carefully and worked up to things and read all the signs along the trail so I could abandon my idea at the first sign of trouble.

What I am saying is many reloaders get so "anal" about all the do's and dont's of reloading that they never realize most of these "don'ts are really generalized cautions rather than hard fast NEVER/NEVERS.

You will NOT die if your brass gets .001's over factory specs. I doubt seriously if anyone will know any difference if their brass gets .005's over factory specs. I have checked my brass before trimming and discovered some cases were .007's over "trim to length." No big deal. I never knew it. My rifles never knew it and zero pressure increases.

I think a guy will start FEELING in when he closes the bolt when he's getting dangerously long cases. I don't suggest anyone go that long. Anytime my ammo gives me the slightest sensation it doesn't want to fit or resists chambering in any way, I stop and figure out why. But I don't lie awake at night worrying about the Reloader Boogie Man.

Everyone should have some general concept of what their case lengths are reaching...and I do. But measuring and trimming and jicking with the brass each time is just silliness in my book. The best I can say is it does no harm. If a guy enjoys such exercises, by all means do it. But I don't want any young reloader to get the impression that they are venturing into a world where one transgression and they die. That's just BS or all of us would be dead.

RE: Trimming Brass
 

I have actually read that you should only trim your brass 3 times and then you disgard them. I can shoot mine about 4 times before I have to trim and then I trimto specs, but I am not a bold reloader. I came into this world with two eyes and ears and I am planning on leaving this world with two eyes and ears:DI figure why watse money on my manuals if I ain't going to believe them. JMHO.

RE: Trimming Brass
 

Depends all on the cartridge,brass, sizing die, and how hot you load it. My 44 mag with super hot loads have to be trimmed every other time. My plinking 44mag loads, you might not have to trim ever 5 shots. Some cartridgesquit growing.

RE: Trimming Brass
 

The reasoning they gave for disgarding brass after 3 trimmings is that the case neck thickness will be getting pretty thin by then. I would have to check again but I think I read this in my Lyman's 48 edition.

RE: Trimming Brass
 

You can check that believe it or not. But I too like to just toss most magnum loads after 5 firings. And standard rifle loads like 7. After a person has a ruptured case, they think twice before pushing thier brass to the distance.

If you don't knock back the headspace, you will not have case wall thinning like you will if you FL size everytime. Thats the reason I generally try to use collet dies or bushing dies.

RE: Trimming Brass
 

Exactly. This is all I'm saying SJA. Trimming brass after every firing is total silliness.

RE: Trimming Brass
 

You know at one time, I loved it. Thats been about a decade or more. It was theropudic, (not sure of spelling). But I too loathe the task. I have considered a motor for my trimmer.

RE: Trimming Brass
 

Well, here goes! I like to shoot competition, in those guns I use for matches consistancy is everything to me. I have a trimmer for each comp. gun and trim after every firing. Sometimes I don't believe I'm even taking off .0005" But at least I know everything is exactly the same. I wont have one case that is .002 longer than another and I'll also know each one is sqared off to the best of my ability. Does it make a difference? Probably not one that you will see in a 100 yards and maybe not one you'll see in a 1000 yards. But this way I know I have done everthing possible for consistancy.

Hunting rifles, different story. Just so they are within specs I'm satisfied. I don't believe the gun is accurate enough to spend the time in case prep you do for a Custom rig.

I was at a match last summer and one of the other guys said ".001 here and .0005 there and one little puff of wind and its all out the window" How true it is!

RE: Trimming Brass
 

Yea, I don't trim mine everytime either. I only trim mine when they are out of spec and that usually takes about 3-5 firings for mine and I am shooting a magnum so I am not getting much more out them anyway than 5 loadings.

RE: Trimming Brass
 

BC, I built up a wildcat ages ago based on a 1 1/2" case. Trimming down the brass to make the cases for that broke me of EVER enjoying using a case trimmer again. I used to crank on that SOB till my fingers bled. Thank the Lord RCBS invented File Trim dies.

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Gunner - I can appreciate fully all the case trimming and diddling benchrest shooters do. But as you point out, it doesn't have much place in the real world of shooters and hunters.

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SJ - I think you and I are on the same page of music here.:)

RE: Trimming Brass
 

That case trimmer is the most hated thing on my bench. That being said, I still trim right after I size the cases. For rifles. Shoot, size, trim and tumble.

I can't remember the last time I trimmed a straight walled revolver case....

RE: Trimming Brass
 

There's no doubt if I was a competing bench rest shooter I would trim each case, each time. I wouldn't want the thoughts of different sized anything maybe flinging a shot even 1/4" off alwaysgnawing at my confidense. That way when everything mechanical is the same all you have to worry about is yourself, so trimming each case exactly the same each time in bench shooting makes a lot of sense to me.

RE: Trimming Brass
 

You guys might think this is funny. I first started reloading for pistol shooting. I started on 44mag. But I wanted 44spl cases. That night, I tried to trim them like 1/4". Yea, that crap stopped after about the 2nd case.

RE: Trimming Brass
 

Some folk learn fast, don't they? :D

RE: Trimming Brass
 

Every time I load. Good luck.