Powder Scale

[ishootkittens]

Looking to upgrade my old Lee scale and I was wondering what you guys used! I was wondering whether it would be better to get a digital scale or the regular beam scale. I reload for accuracy and do not need to crank out a round a minute. I have heard great things about RCBS digital scales but i hear that they putter out after a year or so. What scales are you guys using. Thanks a bunch!

 

[BuckyFan69]

RCBS 505 or 1010. Cant go wrong with either. I personally wouldn't trust a digital scale any further than I could throw it. Just my 2 cents.

 

[savagelover]

RCBS 505 or 1010. Cant go wrong with either. I personally wouldn't trust a digital scale any further than I could throw it. Just my 2 cents.

second the 505....but I also have a RCBS electric scale which I have had 4 or 5 years and still works great..The one I have is 110 only...I had a Hornady battery one once and sent it back 3 times..Finally trashed it...

 

[johnnyk]

Digital.....into the 21st century....fulfill your destiny you must!...............and do not look back!

I have a RCBS Chargemaster that I bought in 2007 and it's still going strong. I have modified mine with sturdier feet from another digital scale. The CM comes with 8 leveling feet. I took the middle four completely out and used screws, washers and nuts to hold the dispenser and scale together tightly. I also did the McDonald's straw trick and put a bubble level on top of the powder reservoir.

The only problem I have had with mine is the keypad/overlay went out, rendering the dispenser useless. I called RCBS and they said pack it up and send it in and they would fix it. I am a scale technician by trade and after I convinced them I could fix it, they sent me a keypad - no charge. It took four days to arrive and I had the new one installed and the unit back up and running in 30 minutes.

In addition to the CM, I am using another digital lab balance to fine tune my loads. It is a Mettler Toledo AB104-S and measures out to the .002 in grains. I have a Omega 2 Speed Electric Powder Trickler on the way to use in conjunction with this balance.

I loaded two loads the other day for my 6.5-284 using the CM & AB104. I did the final dispense using a RCBS traditional manual trickler.

The two loads were 48.5 and 49.0 gns of H4831SC, BR2's and 130gn Berger Hunting VLD's in Lapua brass. The 48.5 load measured out at 48.522, 48.518 and 48.526gn, while the 49.0 measured out at 49.030, 49.028 and 49.030gn. There's no doubt in my mind that they are as close as they can get, right down to the grain. Looking forward to shooting those and waiting for the right conditions.

Great accuracy for shooting kittens! JohnnyK.

 

[blipelt]

I have had two digital(Lyman and Scheels) and went back to a balance beam. The new stuff(balance beams) isn't as good as the old balance beams. Ohaus made them years back and you can't go wrong with one of them. The new stuff is outsourced, my 505 was made in Mexico. I just spent $165 for a old Lyman D5 made by Ohaus that Scott Parker tuned up and it will show beam deflection on a half a kernel of RL15. If you want the electronic thing a ma jig you can go to dandy products and get one of these for you balance beam. Dandy Products Omega Auto Powder Trickler

Here is a writeup on Accurateshooter about his scales.

Tuning Balance Beam Scales for Precision and Repeatability « Daily Bulletin

Hope this helps
Brent

 

[varmintH8R]

I had a cheap electronic scale that I knew would measure the same thing differently over the course of an hour or two. I started doing resesrch on high quality digital scales and pretty much found that quality = $$$. I bought a 505 as an interim and slowly stopped looking at digital scale info. Like you, I do not load volumes where the auto charge has that much value - I keep my old crappy digital on the bench to weight source brass and to spot-check loads occasionally for safety. For me, an old fashioned beam does the trick.

 

[John Galt]

I have used a cheap MTM scale for a year and it works just fine.

If you need more than +- .1 or .2 grain accuracy you may not want to use one.

My question is who needs that much accuracy?

Can you see the difference in your groups.

I think not.............

 

[savagelover]

Iknow afew longrange shooter who throw their charges so it works for them..I also ask some of the shooters at the 1000 yard range and was surprised when they said they weight a couple and throw the best... But I still weigh all mine...

 

[kermodie]

I have to agree, the 505 is hard to beat.
I've had mine for 30 + years and don't need anything else

 

[savagelover]

:d

i have to agree, the 505 is hard to beat.
I've had mine for 30 + years and don't need anything else

amen to that:d

 

[ishootkittens]

Whats different about the 505? Why is it any different than the rest of the beam scales?

 

[varmintH8R]

Whats different about the 505? Why is it any different than the rest of the beam scales?

That's great question. The reason for me is that I have one. Before I chose it, I did a lot of reading on this forum and others, and found similar opinions to what you have gotten here. You never know if those opinions are based on the same critera as mine - because they have one.

I will say that my 505 is simple to set up and read, reliable, sensitive, and to the best of my ability to test it accurate. I am certainly no scale pro with a bunch of calibration tools... But the results on the range have been good.

 

[boogsy]

I agree with the other majority here about the beam scale.

I started reloading with a lee scale and it always worked we'll never had any issues. Bought a pact digital and this also works very we'll, but for measuring powder i don't care for it. They are very delicate and take for ever to zero. if you are weight sorting brass, bullets this is the way to go. Then i bought a rcbs10-10 love it very accurate and fast. But keep in mind not more accurate than my lee. My only input would be make sure the magnetic dampener works good this will make your life a whole lot easier.

 

[veeman]

I purchased a Redding no 2 powder scale and I like it a lot. Had it for about 2 years and I like the fact that it has over/under graduations on it in 1/10 grain increments. Very handy for weight-sorting brass and bullets. Just my two cents.