RCBS Chargemaster vs Chargemaster Lite... Which?

[CB11WYO]

Never had either of them... only $50 difference on Amazon.
Any first hand experience?
Possibly interested in other brands...
TIA.

 

[parshal]

I have the original which I've tweaked and it works great. I've since bought an FX120 and don't use the CM.

The CM Lite doesn't look to have a windscreen which I've found useful with the older model when at the range. I've set up my CM to run off batteries which, I assume, you can also do with the Lite version. I suspect it runs off DC as well. Other than the screen and form factor I'm not sure what the differences are.

 

[Biggs300]

Parshal, the CM Lite does have a windscreen but it is fully removable rather than being hinged like the windscreen on the CM. I've thrown just over 90 charges with my new CM Lite and have not had an over charge or undercharge. The powder tested was H4831 long kernel which has never metered particularly well in my powder measure or when using Omega auto trickier with my old GemPro.

I have used check weights on the Lite and it is spot on. I also have a new RCBS Rangemaster 2000 which replaced a malfunctioning GemPro 250. Most of my throws check the same on the Rangemaster, but did have a couple that were .1 grains under. I recently sent back my GemPro for warranty work (or replacement) and I'm anxious to check out the accuracy of the CM Lite when I get back my GemPro.

 

[parshal]

None of the pictures I've seen have a windscreen so that's great news. My buddy was looking at one but that was holding him back.

 

[Biggs300]

The windscreen is really transparent and doesn't show up well in some photos.

 

[ntg]

I just got the Lite CM. Natchez SS had them for $199... And then the $25 rebate. I couldn't resist. So far so good. It's within .05 grains according to my balance beam scale. That should be accurate enough, but I've honestly played with it very little as of yet.

 

[FNA3G]

I have the 1500 and love it. 17000 rounds and going strong. I wanted another so i bought the lite version and the one i received was defective wandering 0. Never stopped wandering actually, 15 min later and its up to 100gr just sitting there. Im sure it was just defective, **** happens. Everything i read on them says the general experience is very positive.

 

[ntg]

I have the 1500 and love it. 17000 rounds and going strong. I wanted another so i bought the lite version and the one i received was defective wandering 0. Never stopped wandering actually, 15 min later and its up to 100gr just sitting there. Im sure it was just defective, **** happens. Everything i read on them says the general experience is very positive.

So did RCBS replace it for you?

 

[FNA3G]

So did RCBS replace it for you?

It was an amazon purchase so i just sent it back as defective. Planned on going with another 1500 after that. But the biggest complaint i seen about the lite version was the LCD issues not wandering 0 so i wouldnt give much thought to my experience.

 

[Biggs300]

Just a quick update on my new CM Lite. Today, I set it up to test Varget and Ramshot TAC, both of which I use for several different rifles. The test loads I used were from 45 to 50 grains for each powder. And I threw 40 additional throws (now over 130 total). For the first time, I checked the throws on both my RCBS Rangemaster 2000 and my older RCBS 10-10. Happy to report that all 3 scales agreed every single time, including on my first .1 grain over-load. It was hard to see but, the beam on 10-10 was just above the balance line. I did have another over-load, when I bumped the dispensing tube with the pan when I removed it. It too showed up on the check scales.

For those of you who use digital scales more often than I do, this is probably not a big deal, but I was sure happy with the results. Sure helps to build confidence in the CM Lite.