Chamfer tools

Gunsforfun

Gunsforfun

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Outaouais, QC
I just finished cleaning up 100 .223 cases and trimming some of them. I chamfered the ends after by hand and didn't really enjoy that part to much so my question is about electric case prep trio machines like the Hornady lock & load case prep trio as an example. Do any of you use these types of tools and is there one brand that is a better than the other? I plan on loading lots of .223 in the future and don't feel like spending so much time chamfering by hand. Thanks!
 
I just got a three way cutter for my RCBS case trimmer. Between that, and the cordless drill turning the trimmer, trimming a bunch of 223 Remington brass was a piece of cake.
 
I have the Hornady lock & load case prep trio and it works OK, but for some jobs you need to hold the unit to keep it from moving.

With a unit like the Lyman case prep center you can use one hand as you press "downward" and the unit remains rock solid.

Below when removing the primer crimp on military cases you must hold the Hornady unit or else it slides across the loading bench. I highly recommend the VLD deburring tool to ease bullet seating and reducing runout.

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It works very well. If you're doing large quantities of brass--this is where this machine excels. It only takes a couple of minutes to set the proper length you want your cases trimmed to; but once your set, your off to the races! If you only prep 20 cases of any one caliber at a time -- this isn't for you. Its geared for production.
 
I run the Hornady Case Prep Center, and am currently plowing through around 20K of 223. I picked up chamfer and deburr tools that fit into the case trimmer location to make the job a little bit easier on my fingers. Case prep is a thankless job.
 
Non-power option that will prevent some finger cramps is this Forster tool.
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The RCBS 3-way trimmer mounted in either a manual or powered trimmer
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My current favorite is this Lyman unit. 5 different tools can be mounted such as the primer pocket brush, inside & outside case neck chamfer cutters, flash hole deburring tool, and primer pocked uniformer.
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I went from a small combo hand tool to a Lyman prep center. The Lyman was the least costly of the options and frankly I would not have paid more for a center. While I certainly do enough case prep on new brass to justify using a power tool for the job (I sure did wear out my fingers with that double ended small hand too learning that one simple fact :d ) if I'd had to pay more than what the Lyman cost I'd have gone with a couple of cheap cordless screw drivers and the deburring tips to put into them as the next option. I'd have mounted them on some sort of holding board that could be clamped down or simply mount them vertically so the chips fall down

Why cordless screw drivers? Because they turn at a better speed for the job. Too fast and you risk removing enough metal to start reducing the length if you hold it on for a fraction of a second too long. And even on the slower of the two speeds a hand drill is going to be too fast if the trigger isn't held "just so".

The Hornady center was just priced way out of line with what the job calls for. I also didn't like the fact that it's basically a hand held unit or needs to be clamped down to something else.

Also while it didn't seem important at the time I was shocked at how much brass there was in the tray on the Lyman after doing even a couple of hundred case mouths. Brass that would have been all over my lap, the floor and the bench if I was using a setup such as the Hornady. So the Lyman not only is cheaper but it's more stable a tool and confines the mess it creates. And at the same time by forcing you to hold the casings to the cutters head up it ensures that there is a minimum or no amount of brass shavings left in the casings.
 
KODIAK BEAR said:
If you have lots of 223 to process, nothing compares with the Giraud which trims, chamfers and bevels all in one operation. It is not cheap but makes trimming etc easy and a pleasure.
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I have this same tool that I attached to a drill press and it is the best tool I have found for doing large amounts of brass in a very short order, the only draw back is that they are caliber specific, but I still love it
 
I decided I'm going to try the Frankford Arsenal. I like the fact that it also has a case trimmer so I don't have to manually trim the cases either. I have about 1500 .223 cases waiting so I will give some feedback once I get the unit. Thanks for all the replies!
 
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