Digital Scale and Accuracy

[TracySes23]

one more time for the masses! Nobody in this country that does precision weight measuring uses a beam scale anymore.

I do! I'd never trust a digital scale that reads in only in .1 grain increments I then check to see if no weight in the pan reads zero & it always does. If the ones that read .01 grains weren't so damned expensive, I'd trust one of them. My beam scale, a Lyman Ohaus 115 is always kept clean & covered when not being used & I check the knife edges regularly once a year with an eye loupe. It has never failed to repeat using the weight standard that came with my beam scale.

 

[coop2564]

I use a frankford only $28 and reads when I trickle just one or two pieces of powder into it. It measures actually what my beam measures thus I dont use my beam anymore. Its sensitive enough that a very small breeze will change the reading.

 

[Topgun 30-06]

IMHO using a $28 scale for doing any weighing, other than in the kitchen, is a joke and especially for reloading, LOL!

 

[TracySes23]

I use a frankford only $28 and reads when I trickle just one or two pieces of powder into it. It measures actually what my beam measures thus I dont use my beam anymore. Its sensitive enough that a very small breeze will change the reading.

Since I'm retired, I just wait until the furnace fan stops blowing for heat or air-conditioning. I've got plenty of time!
I think you should use what works for you. I'm always looking for ways to save money & still get the results I want.
I recently bought one of those new Frankfort adjustable primer seaters & I love it! If I call correctly, it's adjustable in .001" increments. It comes with 12 shell holders & they're interchangeable with Lee's shell holders.

 

[wildcat455]

Maybe electronic scales have come a way since this thread back in 2012... I have 2 Hornady electronic scales. One is a Lock and Load bench scale, the other is a Lock and Load Autocharge. Right in between them sits an old Redding model 1, PRE oil bath beam scale. Yeah. No dampening on that old timer... it's probably In the neighborhood of 70 years old... It is still dead nuts on for powder weights, but somewhere above 134.3 gr, it weighs .2 gr light all the way out to 300 gr. That's ok with me, I don't use it for that anyway.
When accuracy for 1K yards and further matter, where 6 fps equates to one inch, I'm all for taking out every variable I possibly can by controlling the things I can control... and pretending not to worry about the things I can't, while trying to find ways to at least make things consistent.

Sure, the electronics scales drift .1 gr or so, but if I'm loading something that isn't .1 gr critical, I don't worry about it. They work, and they speed things up.

One of the points I want to make is If I can hold less than 10 FPS ES, and 5 SD Regularly, trying to maintain single digit ES 9 and SD 3 and Even hit as low as ES 4 and SD 1 a couple times here and there with what I'm running... you won't catch me judging someone else for doing their thing the way they want to do their thing, or doing it the way they can afford it!
I've found for every finger I point, there's at least 3 more pointing back at me.

BTW, I got that same hand primer TracySes23.

 

[coop2564]

IMHO using a $28 scale for doing any weighing, other than in the kitchen, is a joke and especially for reloading, LOL!

You can think what ever you want doesn't change the fact its accurate.

 

[Topgun 30-06]

Whatever lights your fire dude! They advertise it for the "budget minded reloader". I don't know why they just don't say "cheap" because you get what you pay for and at $28 you'll understand what that means when it conks out!

 

[Dgd6mm]

I just bought an AD FX120i, going to test it against a Scott Parker tuned beam scale.

 

[rscottb]

I will also back the RCBS. I have checked it many times against a beam and has been dead on every time.

Ditto here, bought a used reconditioned RCBS 10 10 beam scale supposed to be a legendary guy named Scott Parker piece, it verified my Chargemaster every time. Also gave me a bit more confidence in its accuracy.
I have been thru a few cheap electronic and analog beam scales that sucked. I decided that life has progressed since college and did not want to use another analog measuring devices that all had parallax issues. I also have not used a analog VOM meter in over thirty years, so I was reluctant to regress.
So I tried a RCBS 1500 Chargemater. I bought a better analog scale, the used RCBS 10 10 to try against and then decided these were equally accurate and both had tricks to use better, the the Chargemaster was easier to use, less affected for any air movement and faster.

 

[TracySes23]

Ditto here, bought a used reconditioned RCBS 10 10 beam scale supposed to be a legendary guy named Scott Parker piece, it verified my Chargemaster every time. Also gave me a bit more confidence in its accuracy.
I have been thru a few cheap electronic and analog beam scales that sucked. I decided that life has progressed since college and did not want to use another analog measuring devices that all had parallax issues. I also have not used a analog VOM meter in over thirty years, so I was reluctant to regress.
So I tried a RCBS 1500 Chargemater. I bought a better analog scale, the used RCBS 10 10 to try against and then decided these were equally accurate and both had tricks to use better, the the Chargemaster was easier to use, less affected for any air movement and faster.

You're 100 % correct about parallax issues. I built a stand for mine to insure it's exactly at my eye height when sitting to insure I don't have that problem. A similar problem exists on a scope if you don't adjust the objective lens properly.

 

[ScottH]

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