Dillon RT1500 Trimmer - Air Flow through Vacuum Manifold

[Oso]

I have been doing some case forming using the RT1500 Trimmer. Even with gradual downward movement of toolhead that is interrupted by some upward jigging of the handle to break up longer shavings, I still encounter some bird nesting around the cutter head/shaft. I don’t have any blockage in my vac hose and the shop vac is more than adequate for the job.

I keep coming back to the culprit is the amount, or lack of, airflow that is being drawn through the Dillon vacuum manifold. There are three small slits at top of manifold directly opposite of the vacuum hose attachment. These “intake ports” are only a fraction of the size hose/air volume that vacuum will draw. I would think that more air being drawn across or around the trim die would improve the amount of suction of the chips and shavings.

My caveman brain tells me that this is a balancing act - some volume of additional airflow is beneficial, but too much reduces the effectiveness of the vacuum suction. I have searched for threads or videos on modifications to the vacuum manifold with little success.

Thoughts, suggestions or sharing DIY experiments would be appreciated!!!

 

[Doug Beach]

A non answer:
I run it with no manifold, make a big mess, and use the shop vac to clean up afterward. 2 minutes of vacuum noise, vs. however long it took me to process the cases. Much nicer.

 

[Oso]

Doug - I was flirting with doing this but I have a lot of cases to form and my reloading room is inside. Moving the 1050 around isn’t an option.. too heavy and bulky.

Another potential option: In a YouTube video the camera panned across the top of the toolhead with a RT1500 attached. The rear half of the vacuum manifold had been replaced by what appeared to be a custom metal shroud that featured a large window/port in the rear. The profile of this portion of the manifold was more streamline (rectangular), and not the other half of a circle. Maybe this narrower profile provided enough clearance so that the die stations on either side of the trimmer station are still useable. This might be a fantasy…. If only I were a machinist! I have not had any luck getting in touch with the guy who built it.

 

[rwj]

Have you contacted Dillon to ask if they offer a “chip breaker” cutter/tooling for their trimmer? It would inhibit the formation of long strings that nest together and clog the hose.

 

[Hoser]

I use an aftermarket carbide chip breaker cutter. No issues at all. And I am normally going from 223 to 300 in one pass.

Just the two regular ports opposite the vacuum attachment. Plenty of air movement to keep the tooling cool and chips moving.

Dillon Carbide Replacement Cutting Blade for Rapid Trim 1200 and 1500

Dillon Carbide Replacement Cutting Blade for Rapid Trim 1200 and 1500

ballistictools.com

 

[Oso]

My shop vac moves 150cfm, which is a significantly greater volume then the air intakes ports on chip manifold can allow to pull through them. I use a U-shaped shim between the chip manifold and router body to secure the manifold so that it doesn’t get jerked around by the weight of the shop vac hose. There is a wide gap in this shim directly over the air intake ports so that air inflow is not further restricted. Otherwise, there isn’t a lot of slop for significant volume of additional air inflow from gaps…

As my kid would say, “I may have to do some science.” This usually involves busting rocks open with a hammer…. I’ll use a drill or dremel and see if there is any improvement with the addition of more air inflow.

 

[Oso]

I wanted to circle back on this item and give an update for anyone who might be interested.

I didn't modify the Dillon factory vacuum manifold for the Dillon RT1500 Case Trimmer. Instead, I came across a 3D printed replacement (sold on EBay) that already has additional air intake ports designed/incorporated into the manifold that increases air flow. Impressed with the construction.

EBay - Vacuum Chip Manifold for Dillon Case Trimmer (link)



The result is a huge improvement and significant reduction of bird nesting around the cutter head/shaft inside the trim die.

 

[Oso]

There were a couple of things that significantly improved use of the Dillon Case Trimmer.
1) Increasing amount of airflow through the vacuum manifold (previous post)

2) Adequate clearance between the cutter head and the top of the lower portion of the trim die body ( cutting deck) - if the cutter head is almost touching the top of the die then it will increase bird nesting as the shavings are pinched between the top of die and cutter head. Shavings tend to spiral up the trimmer's shaft and not get thrown free. If your case trim die doesn't have adequate free space then take it to a machinist and they can easily bore out some additional material (lowering the cutting deck).
> I took a trim die to Porter Precision (Porter Precision - Link) and had them bore out an additional 0.100", which made all the difference. No more bird nesting or brass shavings pinned between cutter and die.
The Factory Original - Lyman Pro 300BO Trim Die

The Trim Die after being modified (cutting deck lowered).


3) Vacuum - a quality vacuum makes a big difference both in Suction power and also Noise levels. I upgraded my Rigid Shop Vacuum to a Fein Shop Vacuum. My other hobby is wood working so justifying a shop vacuum upgrade took no effort. I added a Oneida Dust Buddy Separator to the setup (dust collection for power tools). The Fein is strong enough to collapse the sides of a 5gal paint bucket if you cover the end of the hose. I have seen reviews talking about how quiet this vacuum is, but it is hard to imagine.... no need for ear muffs or plugs. I can use it inside the house and my wife doesn't care. The house vacuum is now deafening by comparison.

 

[DDRanch]

Any suggestions for manifold vacuum hose on a Super 1050? Looks there is to much up and down flex on the exhaust manifold for the hose that I have. What are you guys using/doing?

 

[TANDERS587]

Any suggestions for manifold vacuum hose on a Super 1050? Looks there is to much up and down flex on the exhaust manifold for the hose that I have. What are you guys using/doing?

Apologies, I'm new to this forum, but I noticed you're seeking a solution for the 1050. I've designed one for the rt1500, which you can find at https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:4801414. Feel free to reach out, and I might be able to assist you in developing a solution for your needs.

 

[DDRanch]

So are you selling these?

 

[TANDERS587]

So are you selling th

So are you selling these?

After years of trying to get to where I could. Many people sell my designs over several platforms,but I finally opened up a store very limited stuff for now. I do not have a solution for a 1050 as I do not have one to test items on but I am more than willing to work with you for a solution. If you do not have a printer to print test parts I can print and send you something and with some notes from you, make the appropriate tweaks to get it to work.

 

[DDRanch]

PM sent

 

[426nut]

There were a couple of things that significantly improved use of the Dillon Case Trimmer.
1) Increasing amount of airflow through the vacuum manifold (previous post)

2) Adequate clearance between the cutter head and the top of the lower portion of the trim die body ( cutting deck) - if the cutter head is almost touching the top of the die then it will increase bird nesting as the shavings are pinched between the top of die and cutter head. Shavings tend to spiral up the trimmer's shaft and not get thrown free. If your case trim die doesn't have adequate free space then take it to a machinist and they can easily bore out some additional material (lowering the cutting deck).
> I took a trim die to Porter Precision (Porter Precision - Link) and had them bore out an additional 0.100", which made all the difference. No more bird nesting or brass shavings pinned between cutter and die.
The Factory Original - Lyman Pro 300BO Trim Die
View attachment 1354961
The Trim Die after being modified (cutting deck lowered).
View attachment 1354962

3) Vacuum - a quality vacuum makes a big difference both in Suction power and also Noise levels. I upgraded my Rigid Shop Vacuum to a Fein Shop Vacuum. My other hobby is wood working so justifying a shop vacuum upgrade took no effort. I added a Oneida Dust Buddy Separator to the setup (dust collection for power tools). The Fein is strong enough to collapse the sides of a 5gal paint bucket if you cover the end of the hose. I have seen reviews talking about how quiet this vacuum is, but it is hard to imagine.... no need for ear muffs or plugs. I can use it inside the house and my wife doesn't care. The house vacuum is now deafening by comparison.
View attachment 1354975

Hey Oso, how about one one of these? E.

 

[TANDERS587]

Hey Oso, how about one one of these? E. View attachment 1531310

I have a dust collection system in my garage. Same model just a HF brand and i have it plumbed thru the garage. It does not seem to work well with the brass shaving collection. I think it has something do with a dust collector pulls volume as opposed to having velocity like a shop vac.