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Digital Scales / Powder Throwers.. do you trust yours?

Ammunition reloading for centerfire or shotgun
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Do you trust your digital scales...??

Poll ended at Wed Jul 23, 2008 11:24 pm

Yes, and I never check the powder weights against anything else
5
63%
Yes, but I check every 50 rounds
0
No votes
Yes, but should it do what it's supposed to do for the price you have to pay for it...!!
0
No votes
No.. don't see the point in them
3
38%
 
Total votes : 8

Digital Scales / Powder Throwers.. do you trust yours?

Postby Tommo » Fri Jul 18, 2008 11:24 pm

I have a Chargemaster and trust it totally, it's not let me down once. But what about others? do you trust yours? or do you check it against another type of scale..??
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Re: Digital Scales / Powder Throwers.. do you trust yours?

Postby hungryrob » Fri Jul 18, 2008 11:58 pm

I used to check mine regularly until I realised it was absolutely spot on every time and there was no point. Now I limit myself to the odd bit of calibration every month or so. Mine is a Chargemaser as well and I have total faith in it. I no longer own any other scales.
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Re: Digital Scales / Powder Throwers.. do you trust yours?

Postby Keef » Sat Jul 19, 2008 9:29 am

I'm a relative novice to reloading and only began to do it when I started gallery rifle shooting with 38/357 under lever.

I started with a beam balance, the one that came with the Lyman reloading kit. I was working up a load for .38 with Vit N340. I'd started quite low, loading ten rounds with one one load and increasing it by .2grains each time.

Out to the range and all was going well until the last batch of ten rounds. The first round gave an almighty bang and the rifle rattled, a second round was enough to call off the whole test.

That batch was the last I had reloaded. When I checked the beam balance at home the 5gr weight was in the wrong slot on the beam. The initial 40 rounds I had loaded were fine but the last batch of ten had 9.6gr instead of the 4.6 I had intended. I know I dropped something when I was reloading and I have to assume that this causewd to weight to jump.

The next morning I ordered a Lyman 1500 electronic scale.

I use a Lee disc powder dispenser fitted with an adjustable charge bar instead of the disc plate. The bar is accurate to =/- 0.1gr which for gallery rifle at 25m gives sufficient accuracy. I check every tenth round on the scales and I calibrate the scale regularly when in use.

The scale is on a separate bench to the press and the only operation I do on that bench when reloading a batch is weighing.

I'm still working on a load for my Savage/223 and it's the electronic scale I use for that.

Would I go back to a beam scale? No, not given the option. Do I trust it? Yes, with checks/calibration.

As soon as I can afford it I will be getting an electronic dispenser.
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Re: Digital Scales / Powder Throwers.. do you trust yours?

Postby davo601 » Sat Jul 19, 2008 1:31 pm

I've got the chargemaster as well, I calibrate it every time before I use it, probably not necessary but part of the routine now, I occasionally check the thrown weight with the set of Lee balance scales I've got and it's always spot on, so yes I trust it completely.
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Re: Digital Scales / Powder Throwers.. do you trust yours?

Postby Moonraker » Mon Jul 21, 2008 10:21 am

I voted no but that doesn't tell the whole story, I use mostly Extruded powders and they do not always work as well as ball in powder throwers. For instance I've used H380 once and it was spot on every time when check against my digital scales. But Varget on the other hand I set up the powder thrower just below the required powder charge and then weigh on the scale and top up with a trickler. I also found that disc type powders such as Bullseye are OK in powder throwers with only around a .1 variation which I find exceptable with pistol ammo.
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Re: Digital Scales / Powder Throwers.. do you trust yours?

Postby SPARTON » Mon Aug 25, 2008 3:34 pm

I only use normal powder scales tom, but check them every 10 rounds mate :) but we both know someone who just uses the lee dippers ;) so is a case of whats best for your self mate and wether you need to tip up the range in kevlar :grin: :grin:
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Re: Digital Scales / Powder Throwers.. do you trust yours?

Postby SST » Sat Oct 18, 2008 8:52 am

I trust it within certain parameters. I turn it on about 30 minutes before calibrating it and weighing anything, and I keep the scales away from flourescent lights and air movement.
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Re: Digital Scales / Powder Throwers.. do you trust yours?

Postby flutedchamber » Fri Oct 24, 2008 2:08 am

About two years ago I bought a Dillon digital scale. It worked fine for the two or three times I used it. After sitting on a shelf in it's little storage box for six months I tried to use it. Fresh batteries were put in and when I turned the scale on only parts of the numerals appeared...and a different part of the numeral each time I turned it on. So I removed the batteries and used the supplied power converter...same results. I gave up and went back to my 36 year old RCBS beam scale.

An email was sent to Dillon and the reply was that the scale was either dropped or allowed to freeze. Neither was true. For JUST $80 (plus shipping) Dillon would send me another scale. Notice that the word "new" isn't before the word "scale". I told Dillon that they make great reloading presses, but their scales are crap.

For less than I paid for a Dillon scale I can buy a Pact scale. The Pact comes with a lifetime guarantee, versus Dillons six month warranty on electronic goods.

I would trust a digital scale but only after it is cross checked with a reliable beam scale.
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Re: Digital Scales / Powder Throwers.. do you trust yours?

Postby Oaken » Sun Nov 02, 2008 12:52 pm

I use a cheap Accura scale that I bought for about 30quid years ago for weighing airgun pellets and find it to be reliable and accurate. It came with a 10g test weight which it can be calibrated to, if needed, though being cheap I had to sand a bit off to reduce it by 0.2g :roll: I have also made test weights at 25gr and 45gr to check further down the sensitivity range. It is always spot on so don’t tend to check it often nowadays.
I was lucky to have a regularly calibrated industrial scale to check it against at work.
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Re: Digital Scales / Powder Throwers.. do you trust yours?

Postby niko » Thu Nov 06, 2008 9:49 am

i have a Chargemaster dont check it anymore its always spot on :thup:
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Re: Digital Scales / Powder Throwers.. do you trust yours?

Postby foxshooter » Wed Dec 10, 2008 3:39 pm

I sold my 10-10 scales after a while. My chargemaster has never let me down yet

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Re: Digital Scales / Powder Throwers.. do you trust yours?

Postby bonylam » Thu Apr 27, 2017 8:10 am

Last edited by bonylam on Wed May 03, 2017 7:42 am, edited 2 times in total.
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Re: Digital Scales / Powder Throwers.. do you trust yours?

Postby Deallad » Thu Apr 27, 2017 2:12 pm

I use the Hornaday version of the same

I find that it works superb on some powders but not so well on others, until I found the YOUTUBE FIX yes the trusty McDonalds straw did the trick.

Regards to trusting it, I used to check it regularly against an RCBS balance scale and it was spot on every time.

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Re: Digital Scales / Powder Throwers.. do you trust yours?

Postby flintlok » Thu Apr 27, 2017 3:38 pm

Deallad wrote:I use the Hornaday version of the same

I find that it works superb on some powders but not so well on others, until I found the YOUTUBE FIX yes the trusty McDonalds straw did the trick.

Regards to trusting it, I used to check it regularly against an RCBS balance scale and it was spot on every time.

Mike


Yeah, I using the Chargemaster and I check it regularly with calibrated weight. It's on the money. I've also used the balance beam scales and they work great too. It's important to ensure that the scales are leveled. Once that done they work like a top. My Lyman balance beam scale need replacing as the beam has become "sticky" and sometimes will not exhibit the sensitivity that it should. The scale is 25 years old and owes me nothing.
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Re: Digital Scales / Powder Throwers.. do you trust yours?

Postby Tommo » Thu Apr 27, 2017 4:42 pm

Judging by all the responses it's a thumbs up :thumbs: for the Chargemaster.. (I didn't realise this thread is soooo old..!! [bit like me] )
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