Doyle Gracey Cartridge Trimmer

[Colohunter]

Anybody here have any experience using the Doyle Gracey cartridge trimmers? I heard about them in the Sierra manual. They operate similar to a pencil sharpener and trim and chamfer the brass at the same time. The price seems similar to many of the other power trimmers.

Does it work as well as it is supposed to? The Sierra manual spoke pretty high of it. I would love to speed up trimming 223 brass, I loathe trimming several hundred with the Lee trimmer. I also would like a faster way of trimming down the 300/221 Fireball brass I am making.

[dksd39]

I have a Gracey and used it for several thousand cases before I purchased a Giraud trimmer. It works---better than doing it by hand but it is far from the best and does not come close to the Giraud. Then again there is a huge price difference between the two.
The Gracey is lacking a little power - 1/2 the power of the Giraud.
The Gracey jammes easily and unless they made a change- it does not have an off/on switch. You have to plug it in to turn it on and unplug it to turn off. So you are left having to put in your own switch.
The Gracey is a little messy and having to oil it regularly is a pain.
If money is tight then the Gracey will get the job done. If you ever get to use a Giraud you will kick yourself for not buying it instead.
Also, the Giraud does not list 300 whisper but he has it if you ask.
Good luck with your decision

[Colohunter]

So am I right in assuming the Giraud operates similar to the Gracey? It looks like they are similar. How many have you done with the Giraud, does it last?

[dksd39]

Actually they are very different- the giraud is very easy to clean and you never have to deal with oil so there is NO mess. The giraud will I am sure last damn near forever. I have done many thousands on the giraud and it has never jammed or had a single problem. Give him a call and he can explain everything much better than I can. I really can not stress how much nicer it is.

[Colohunter]

I will have to follow up, I may try to have Lee make me some custom trimmers. I have an idea that I want to try out and if it works it would be a lot cheaper. Though the Girauds sure look nice.