Dropped powder scale - recommend replacement?

[Miller Outdoors]

This morning I dropped my Frankford Arsenal DS-750 powder scale. For $30 it was a pretty decent scale, but it had its drawbacks - namely it didn't register all weights - 43.1 grains for example, it'd go from 43.0 to 43.2 with one extra fleck of powder.

I don't really care if it's digital or the beam type - I just want accuracy to within .1 grains and be reliable.

Any recommendations under $75?

 

[J E Custom]

This morning I dropped my Frankford Arsenal DS-750 powder scale. For $30 it was a pretty decent scale, but it had its drawbacks - namely it didn't register all weights - 43.1 grains for example, it'd go from 43.0 to 43.2 with one extra fleck of powder.

I don't really care if it's digital or the beam type - I just want accuracy to within .1 grains and be reliable.

Any recommendations under $75?

Cabelas makes/sells a good digital one that is under $75.00.

J E CUSTOM

 

[Miller Outdoors]

Cabelas makes/sells a good digital one that is under $75.00.

J E CUSTOM

Thanks for the info. Just went and searched online for it. Do you have any personal experience with it? The reviews are pretty bad with only 3.5 stars out of 5 and only 75 out of 112 customers would recommend the product to a friend.

 

[boomtube]

I'm an old electronix instruments tech, I don't "recommend" ANY electonic scale if it costs less than perhaps $7-8 hundred. Cheap digitals are first of all, CHEAP! They are made to be "throw-away" devices, not worth fixin'.

Any current beam scale will be just as accurate, more sensitive and MUCH longer lasting than any electronic gimmick sold for measuring powder. My 45 year old beam scale is as accurate and sensisitive now as the day I bought and it will likely last at least that much longer. (Try that with a digital anything!)

Pay whatever makes you comfortable for a new beam from Redding or RCBS, they all work VERY WELL. Then make a sturdy shelf, or box, to support it about chin high for easy/fast reading; seems most folks who grip about beams being slow and hard to read have them setting on the bench top and that's a poor location.

But, no sensitive scale is likely to survive the ol' "ricochet test" off the floor.

 

[winmag]

I really like my RCBS 5-0-5 beam sacle. Its simple and accurate, and I dont have to mess with calibration wt.'s in the garage where the temp swings too much to trust a digital. I dont have personal proof of not trusting digitals in large temp swing environments, but Ive been warned by enough people that I think the theory has merrit. Ill stick with a beam scale.

 

[royinidaho]

I've had a Lyman Ohaus M5 for hundreds of years. It has all of the features of the day. Some kind of fancy pivot and a magnetic damper.

It weighs a bit different than the RCBS Charge Master 1500 but both are consistent. I follow winmags advice.

I would suppose the Lyman current offering would be just a good or better.

Just a tho't.

 

[J E Custom]

Thanks for the info. Just went and searched online for it. Do you have any personal experience with it? The reviews are pretty bad with only 3.5 stars out of 5 and only 75 out of 112 customers would recommend the product to a friend.

I have had very good luck with mine .

The last one that I had was a Pact and it was very finicky and did not last very long.

I have a Ohas 10 10 beam scale that is my standard go to scale because most of my old
loads were developed using this scale. I use it to verify the accuracy of the electronic
scales and the RCBs Charge master when loading ammo in volume.

I use the digital scales for weight comparisons of brass and bullets because they are very
fast compared to the beam scale.

They each have there use and I would recomend having both, but if you can only afford one
start with a GOOD beam scale. and then expand when you can.

The beam scales are more dependable (No batteries or electronics) and can be calibrated
easy and as often as you like, but they are slower.

Just my opinion

J E CUSTOM

 

[Miller Outdoors]

Yesterday I was down at the local sporting goods store and in the reloading section they had just taken in trade toward a gun a RCBS Chargemaster 2 piece set - the scale and the powder dispenser. They had the set for $179 and I just couldn't resist. Today I loaded some .223 and some .308 and it may just be the best purchase I ever made. I can't believe how much faster and easier it is. I also picked up a cheap Lyman beam scale for a backup.

The only thing I haven't figured out yet is why I have to type in a charge weight 6 grains higher than I want the dispenser to pour out in order to get the right charge - for instance, I wanted 27.1gr of H4895 and had to put in 33.1gr to get it to dispense the 27.1 grains. Same for Varget for the .308 - had to type in 49gr in order for it to pour 43.3gr. And yes, I did calibrate it for each powder according to the instructions.

 

[J E Custom]

Yesterday I was down at the local sporting goods store and in the reloading section they had just taken in trade toward a gun a RCBS Chargemaster 2 piece set - the scale and the powder dispenser. They had the set for $179 and I just couldn't resist. Today I loaded some .223 and some .308 and it may just be the best purchase I ever made. I can't believe how much faster and easier it is. I also picked up a cheap Lyman beam scale for a backup.

The only thing I haven't figured out yet is why I have to type in a charge weight 6 grains higher than I want the dispenser to pour out in order to get the right charge - for instance, I wanted 27.1gr of H4895 and had to put in 33.1gr to get it to dispense the 27.1 grains. Same for Varget for the .308 - had to type in 49gr in order for it to pour 43.3gr. And yes, I did calibrate it for each powder according to the instructions.

I would recomend that you zero both the chargemaster and the powder scales with the
calibrated weights provided to find which one is off.

They should both read the same with the weights (50 grains and 100 grains).

Also wait for the charge master to beep and confirm the actual weight of the charge. (it will
beep when it stops dispensing and then beep again to give the actual charge weight.

J E CUSTOM

 

[royinidaho]

J E is spot on.

Be aware that the Chargemaster can be reprogrammed via the front panel. I have restrained myself from doing a web search and even snooping at the process. If someone messed with it ??????

The durn thing compensates its process for 222 size charges and RUM size charges. Its pretty much the cat's meow the way it came from RCBS.

 

[Miller Outdoors]

My unit doesn't beep. I think I have the older model because it doesn't look like the 1500 model I see advertised currently and doesn't have any number on the manual after "Chargemaster". My dispenser is shaped differently with raised buttons.

I saw one just like mine sell on ebay yesterday and I'll go get the link. Here it is: RCBS digital powder scale and powder dispenser - eBay (item 300430752361 end time May-31-10 19:05:34 PDT)

By the way - I apparently did something right by accident the second time I plugged it all in and calibrated everything because it was dropping very accurate charges into the scale yesterday. I loaded 40 rounds of .308 in no time. It was great. Couldn't be happier.