Powder scales

Does anyone know of an accurate digital powder scale? I have a Lyman Accutouch 2000 I can't get a consistent reading. I bought the scale about 5 years ago and couldn't get it work right so I put it back in the box and went back to my cheap Frankford pocket scale I should have sent it back but I figured I would mess it hit later. At the time I was shooting service rifle and just never got around to it. Do to three rotator cuff surgery's I can't shoot off hand so I decided to shoot benchrest and f-class so I got the Lyman out to try and get it work properly I have tried everything I would put my powder in 50 rounds at a time then go back and spot check a few. The ones I checked at random came out over by 3-4 tenths so I checked them all got them to where they should be and spot checked again some where still off but not as many after going back and forth a few times I finally had them all the same. So I want to know if anyone knows of a more reliable and accurate scale. I spoke with Lyman they offered to sell me a different one at a discount price they never said how much of a discount. After all the trouble the Accutouch is giving me I don't think I want to get another from them if there's a better one.

A&D Fx120i!

Remmy700 said:

A&D Fx120i!

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Second that.

I'm another happy A&D fx120i user .

Lots of things can put electrical scales off!

Is it close to any other electrical items that might have any magnetic fields around it?
Stereo speaker/radio etc??
Lighting??

Other things can also influence a digital scales performance-
https://thebloke.co.nz/digital-powder-scales/

I have a RCBS CM 1500 & never has an issue with it, plus I also cross check loads every now & then with my manual 505 beam scale.

Not sure if this helps, but every time you take the pan off, a number shows up. That number should always be the same. I have a GemPro 500 that does this. It also weighs to .00, not just.0; but I have to make sure the "bare" number stays the same each time I remove the scale pan. It also came with a block that attaches to the power cord to help eliminate interference. They all are sensitive to the slightest air movement,too. aushunter1 has a great plan: have a back up beam scale, which I need to get!

woodnut said:

Not sure if this helps, but every time you take the pan off, a number shows up. That number should always be the same. I have a GemPro 500 that does this. It also weighs to .00, not just.0; but I have to make sure the "bare" number stays the same each time I remove the scale pan. It also came with a block that attaches to the power cord to help eliminate interference. They all are sensitive to the slightest air movement,too. aushunter1 has a great plan: have a back up beam scale, which I need to get!

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Wi-Fi signal's cell phone Bluetooth and fluorescent lighting can cause interference also I run mine through a power supply surge protector that conditions electricity and has a battery back up in case of power outages

Another thing to pay attention to, it's summer so if u have central air the vents can play tricks on your scale! The more expensive typically the more resolution so all of the previously mentioned things are amplified with making scale fluctuate.

I use an Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS) (expanding on Bill Cauley Jr's comment) which converts your Alternating Current (AC) from the wall to Direct Current (DC) to charge the backup battery, and the DC then proceeds to an inverter circuit that converts the DC back to AC, and out of the UPS to whatever you plug it into it. IF the AC goes out, the battery continues to provide the DC to the inverter so you have AC from the unit. That route also filters and smooths the AC to make it "pure" so there are no little fluctuations in the ac power. It also has a surge suppressor within it to provide that protection. The units usually have two sets of plugs - one for battery backup with the conditioned AC output, and the other for surge suppression. Your critical equipment goes to the battery backup row for maximum protection. Whew! An added benefit is if your unit requires an extended warmup period (mine takes 30 minutes) you don't lose power and have to "start" over if the power goes out. No fans or other varying air currents you can prevent! And don't exhale forcefully in the direction of the pan (don't ask how I know that). Once I have the first charge weighed, I then check it against an ACCURATE beam balance scale - I repeat three times, proceeding when they agree, to load the cases. I double-check the weighs every tenth charge. If they agree, I continue. If they are different, I back up, checking cases until I find where it varied, return incorrectly powder measured to the container, and then recheck the zero on BOTH scales and proceed from there. I also log the charge weigh tin my Reloading Checklist for future reference.
Only sounds time consuming and nit-picky, but it goes quickly and I know my powder in the case is exactly what I intended to load.

A & D EJ-123 scale. Weights to .000

I've used a RCBS Charge Master 1500 for years. Even with a UPS, I unplug it and take the pan holder (little black part that goes into the scale) off after every use. I also make sure to store it empty and drop a dryer sheet into the hopper to prevent any static buildup.

Once I'm ready to fill some brass, I use the calibration weights and calibrate before every use. I like the CM1500 because it's got a "stable" indicator and a beep with every powder load, I wait for the beep and the stable indicator after every charge and 7 times out of 10 it's off by a couple tenths of a grain. I employ a set of tweezers and add/subtract powder as necessary.
Gravity, atmosphere and the human element all play a factor, but I try to eliminate the human part and get really consistent results. Short of operating in a negative pressure chamber, this method has worked well for a long time.

I went with a US Solid analytical balance. It's capable of 0.001gn accuracy. I use a Hornady auto-charge set to throw 0.2 grains short then trickle up. I'm actually very surprised at how accurate the Hornady actually is.
With this set-up I can consistently keep my charges within 0.02gn of each other.

Digital scales all hunt (jump up and 1-3 digits) on the last digit at their highest resolution. Many will hunt on the smallest digit no matter the scale. The hunting is noise Thad causes the scales to read over and under when the weight is between a value that falls on a point that solidly holds that last digit. No matter how good the electon ice there is some noise.

To test if it's a electronic noise problem put a fresh 9 volt battery in it go out in the country 3-4 miles away from any large power lines drive out in the middle of the feild ans set up and level a ltable put the scales inked a wind screen (cardboard box) add test it there.

The middle of fielded is as good for electronic noise testing as Million dollar Anechoic chamber and lot easier to find. A lot of gun ranges are quite enough to test radio gear. Your scales may be fine and sitting to close to your WiFi router, a power supply, a neighbor with a really noisy motor or appliance or a problem on the power line. The uninterruptible pore supply with it's not quite sine wave AC could be the prob,em. Those things have given me lots of grief most of it a long time ago.