RCBS Trim Pro-2 Manual case Trimmer Kit

Case trimming can be a laborious and time-consuming job but it really does make a difference to the consistency of your ammunition and the longevity of your brass. It is therefore well worth investing in a good quality case trimming tool, particularly if you can find one that makes the process quicker, easier and very precise. The RCBS Trim Pro-2 Manual Case Trimmer Kit includes everything you need to trim your brass consistently and accurately and has features that speed the process up.

What’s in the box?

The kit includes a heavy and well-made base that holds the cutter and the shell holder, plus nine pilots that centre cases on the cutter (pilots included for .22, .24, .25, .27, .28, .30, .35, .44 and .45). There is even a set of instructions which, for a change, are very clear and detailed. The lever that operates the spring-loaded shell holder needs to be attached and the base requires fitting to a secure work surface.

Setting up and trimming

The first step is to fit the correct calibre of pilot to the centre of the cutter head and secure it with the grub screw. This ensures the correct alignment of the case with the cutter face. To insert a case into the trimmer, you press and hold down the lever while you push the case head into the spring-loaded universal shell holder. The lever is then released and the shell holder grips and centres the case. This very clever design has replaced the need for calibre-specific shell holders and it will hold case head diameters from 0.250” to 0.625”. You do need to check that the case is properly aligned, especially with larger diameter brass, because it sometimes needs a push to make it click into place. Unlike case trimmers that include a pre-set calibre-specific pilot, that is set at a predetermined case length and cannot be adjusted, you set the trim length yourself by following the supplied instructions closely. The trimmer is designed to give 0.001” accuracy and this is easily achieved by using the coarse and fine adjustment rings. Once the trim length is set, both adjustment bushings are locked in place with an Allen key and you are ready to trim. With a case in the shell holder, the cutter head is moved forward until it touches the case’s mouth. A couple of turns on the handle and the case is trimmed very neatly to the desired length and there are no burrs or marks on the exposed face of the brass.

Results

Once you get into a routine, cases can be trimmed very quickly and the results are very good. Cases are trimmed to a very consistent length and the cut face is very neat and even. If you are going to trim cases of more than one calibre, then you can keep one trimmed case of each calibre as this speeds up the process of resetting the trimmer each time. If you only trim one calibre then, once set, the cutter never needs resetting again.