Need best way to trim brass 10 ga shells to length

[Trooper Ozzy]

My 1887 has been safety checked out by Lassiter and is ready to go. I just need to feed it. 

The action works without jamming on a 2 1/2" length brass shell. I have 25 2 5/8" length new brass from Track of the Wolf. (7.25 each ouch!)  No band saw, hack saw too coarse. I do have a simple Dremel.  Do I need to make a trip to Harbor Freight? Any tips or tricks. 

[Warden Callaway]

Larry Potterfield can show you how he does it.

 

 

A fine cut hacksaw blade should be easy to find in a hardware store. 

 

Maybe find a length of pipe the right diameter to use as a length and square guide? 

 

I've never had to trim any brass hulls. 

[Warden Callaway]

If you go to HF,  look at this mini cut off saw.  May have to experiment with blade.  I'd say the finest cut would work best.

 

https://www.harborfreight.com/2-in-mini-bench-top-cut-off-saw-62136.html

 

P.S.  Don't forget your coupons!   Memorial day they have a 25% off coupon! 

 

 

 

[Trooper Ozzy]

You are on the right track.  This might be it. Under $40 with 6" cutting wheels. 

[John E.B. Rawton]

What about a tubing cutter? Leaves a nice clean cut. All you might need is to ream the inner edge. 

I got 12g brass from midway which is longer than the stack of components I put in it but with a SXS I don’t need to worry about the extra. 

[Three Foot Johnson]

I use a lathe myself, but most folks don't have access to one. A Dremel with cutoff wheels will work fine, just time-consuming, but you're only doing it once per shell, so... The little cutoff saw above looks like the ticket, but if you have no other use for it, it's just taking up space on a shelf when you're done. A tubing cutter will crush the thin wall "A" brass.

$7.25 ea sounds like a lot, but if they're used in the same chambers, they don't need to be resized every time, and will last a LONG time if nobody steps on them. An old Winchester ad claimed "up to 500 reloads" or somesuch.

[Kid Rich]

I use a pipe cutter. I take a piece of pipe or a socket that will just fit in the brass then use the pipe cutter on it. Works great.

kR

[Chief Rick]

A wood dowel inside the shell and pipe cutter on the outside is cheaper than the chop saw.

[Trooper Ozzy]

Well looks like a success. That little chop saw did the trick. A little 400 sandpaper smoothed the ends. Primed with an antique primer tool, just under a 100 gr ffg, wads, 1 3/8 oz 7.5's, hot glue gun the overshot wad. I'll try it from the 16 yard line tomorrow. 

[Warden Callaway]

I want to see the video. 

[Major BS Walker Regulator]

I look forward to seeing the results in person

[Chantry]

On 5/18/2019 at 9:32 AM, Trooper Ozzy said:

My 1887 has been safety checked out by Lassiter and is ready to go. I just need to feed it. 

The action works without jamming on a 2 1/2" length brass shell. I have 25 2 5/8" length new brass from Track of the Wolf. (7.25 each ouch!)  No band saw, hack saw too coarse. I do have a simple Dremel.  Do I need to make a trip to Harbor Freight? Any tips or tricks. 

I'll ask a stupid question, have you tried the 2 5/8" hulls to see if they chamber?   If wikipedia* is correct, 2 7/8" is the standard length for the 10 gauge 1887 Winchester shotgun.

 

2 7/8" matches what I have read for other makes of 10 gauge for that time period.

[Trooper Ozzy]

Yes.

FYI measure your 12 ga shell when crimped. 2 3/8" probably, then expands to 2 3/4" after firing. Standard is measuring open empty hull.  Bought the 2 5/8" thinking along those lines, no go when running through action inserting into chamber.  Happily 2 1/2 cycles smoothly. 

Glad I'm 6'2" and used to 3 dram handicap loads.  This is a 4 dram load. 

 

Video not as good as Warden Callaway...but ok for a smart phone I think. 

 

 

[Warden Callaway]

I was expecting a lot more smoke and boom.   

 

Was the video shot with a GoPro?  Seems like a GoPro records so all gunshots sound like slamming a book shut. 

[Trooper Ozzy]

Big echos.  Just an iPhone. 10 mph breeze, big 25 acre field holds 8 traps. If I shot on the enclosed pistol range...We'll see next week in Damascus and Singing Hills, tight stages no breeze. 

 

[Abilene Slim SASS 81783]

That's pretty cool, Trooper. Have you tried loading 2 at a time from the top? How do they feed from the magazine? I winced when hearing the empties hit the concrete pad. Doesn't that ding up the case mouth?

 

[Trooper Ozzy]

Nothing major, but it makes a nice ring sound.  I'm going to be more concerned with boots during brass pickup.

It runs 2 at a time now no problem. 

The minor dings are rolled smooth with an A-Zoom 12 gauge snap cap that inserts perfectly. 

The same snap cap I use to ram/compress the wads over the powder.  

 

[Warden Callaway]

I actually have a 10 gauge 87.  But I need a 10 gauge barrel for it.