Trimmer?

[fallfornoone]

Hey guys
i got an old RCBS reloading set from my dad. Right now im reading some of the books and doing some research. The set came with what looks like to be everything you need to reload. The manual looks like its from 1973. I do not have is a case trimmer, but i do have a burring tool, which i dont think is the same think. Also the manual talks nothing about case trimming. So i am wondering if trimming is a new thing and if its a must have and also shoudl i get some calipers? Do you guys recommend getting some newer updated reloading books.

thanks guys

[rksimple]

Get a couple more manuals. Trimming is not a new thing. Get some calipers and do some research on what kind of trimmer setup you want. They can get a little expensive depending on what you want.

[Sheldon]

Trimming is mainly for rifle cases, but a small minority of loaders also bother with pistol cases.....small minority. Most of the trimmers trim a flat cut that requires deburring with the deburring tool.

[Beelzy]

You should have the calipers. They will let you check the case length to
monitor case "growth".

IMO, if you only load handgun ammo and have a good supply of cases AND
rotate them out when they get too long, you can get by without the trimmer
for a while.

[rayra]

I've been reloading bottlenecked rifle cartridges for nearly 20yrs and have never trimmed any. That inlcudes .223, .30-06, .308, .270 and .243. I also only load to a moderate charge levels and typically use case gauges to check the 'growth' of my brass. I also am not a benchrest shooter. Hitting a 6"dia pipe or a 1' sq gong at 125-400yds is sufficient accuracy for me.
I'll lose about 5-10% of my brass from my semi-autos each outdoor shooting trip, and even with picking up others' brass at teh range I frequent I very rarely get a case that becomes long enough to fail the gage and require trimming. And I ****can those.
I also regularly full-length resize, due to my brass habits.
I've never had a cartridge fail or fail to chamber due to headspace issues.

Trimming's for the folks trying to put all their hits in a single hole, or for the anal retentive. That includes the folks that do it just because somebody else said they should.

And I have no understanding of why on earth a straightwalled handgun cartridge would ever need to be trimmed.

[anyracoon]

Lee makes a very inexpensive trimmer. It comes in two parts. A cutter/shell holder and a caliber specfic shell holder/case length gauge. Great if you are not trimming a large amount of brass. I use one with a cordless drill so it is better than the RCBS case trimmer I have but falls way short of my Giraud that I use on 223!

[22popnsplat]

I have used the lee trimmer and while it does work pretty easy you must monitor the length of the brass as it comes out as the brass will become shorter and shorter as the tool wears , of course were talking about doing alot of brass .
I have done alot of brass using a forester hooked up to a cordless drill and It will hold +/- .002 with a little care . I may not be the worlds greatest shot but I try for the best handloads I can provide myself , ya can learn much with crap reloads

[fallfornoone]

thanks for the comments. going to start looking for a decent priced trimmer.
also i was wondering what new updated manuals u guys are using, right now i have two but they are both 30 yrs old, one is a lyman and one is hornady. Some of the powder they reference seems to be unavailable. and both do not have 40s&w loading data.
thanks

[rksimple]

A new speer manual would be good. Lyman and sierra are great as well.