Inconsistent Case Length with Wilson/Sincalir Trimmer

[bdubb]

I have noticed that when trimming brass I am not getting as exact trim lengths, case to case, as I expect when using a micrometer style trimmer which is locked into a set position. There could be a lot of variables to this including measuring technique, pressure on the handle to trim the brass, sizing die, etc. I am using a Whidden FL die and just bumping the shoulder back slightly on fired brass. In theory this should have all case bodies the same. I also have the correct unfired and fired case holders from Wilson.


Anyone come across this in your reloading process with the wilson trimmer? I am going to see if I can cover all my bases to try and remove any issues from my doing. Eventually I may get a Giraud Trimmer but for the rest of this year I'll likely stick with what I have, so I need to make some improvement.

 

[ksthomas]

Bdubb,
Bit of an unusual one here, as the Wilson's are probably the most consistent trimmers on the market. You don't mention just how much variation you're seeing, but I'm guessing it's nothing more than a few thou? If so, you may have some squarness issues with the case heads; small rises left during extraction, slight burrs, any thing that might cause the cases to stand slightly off kilter when your pushing the case back against the stop to start trimming. I seriously doubt that it'll be enough to make any difference in shooting.

You mention the Giraud, and that, too, is an outstanding trimmer. I use one myself (along with a Wilson), and it tends to show a bit more variation than the Wilson does. What your paying for here isn't the absolute dead-nuts precision that guarantees each and every case will be within +/- .0005" of every other. They'll vary a couple thou pretty routinely. It's not enough to make any difference at all. What you will appreciate with the Giraud is when you're looking at a couple thousand 223 cases that need to be trimmed within a short time frame. It's fast, it's more than precise enough to turn out match grade ammo, and it will save you TONS of time. Yeah, I recommend them strongly if you've got a lot of trimming to be done.

 

[leadbullet]

couldn't have said it better or nicer

 

[bdubb]

Thank you Kevin. It's been a while since I hand loaded last so I don't remember the actual value of the lengths. I should be able to find it in my notes though and add it to this thread. It is also very possible that I'm being overly anal about the accuracy from case to case just by my nature when I'm trying to make or build anything. I should also add I'm still new to reloading/handloading so I'm learning more and more each time.

Thank you for the thoughts on the Giraud. I ordered an annealer last week from them so I'll wait until I can go pick it up to see about adding a trimmer as well.

 

[dddoo7]

If you are getting inconsistencies, it is probably not the Wilson trimmer.

Also, I put pressure on the handle the same every time and they all come out within .001. I have 4 Wilson trimmers each set up for different oal's and they are all consistent...even the ones I bought used for under $20


--Daniel

 

[wildfowler]

I had a custom Wilson case holder made for a wildcat cartridge.

This worked fine until I started using a different sizing die than what I used to size the brass that I sent to Wilson to make the case holder for. Started getting some inconsistencies.

Evidently, the case is now not being held perfectly square in the holder to the cutting edge.

I simply rotate the case holder a full revolution while trimming, rotating the case holder about 20% at a time until it's come full circle. Doing this cured my inconsistent trim length.

This simple technique might help you?