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any ideas which scale is good to use as a reloading bench scale
digital reloading scale
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me personally use a cheap Franklin Arsenal scale and its been good for me but I hear this one is also very nice
http://www.brianenos.com/store/be.scale_be.html
http://www.brianenos.com/store/be.scale_be.html
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I think just about any of them that repeat well will be fine.
Use a beam scale or standard to check the calibration.
Work your load up from light and look for consistency and you'll be all good.
^ This will account for any calibration variance you might see to the standard.
Keep new batteries around. If the scale starts to get screwy in any way, new batteries and recheck to your standard.
Most of the electronic scales will come with a standard.
I use this one with good success.
http://www.midwayusa.com/product/713049/mtm-mini-digital-reloading-scale-750-grain-capacity
Use a beam scale or standard to check the calibration.
Work your load up from light and look for consistency and you'll be all good.
^ This will account for any calibration variance you might see to the standard.
Keep new batteries around. If the scale starts to get screwy in any way, new batteries and recheck to your standard.
Most of the electronic scales will come with a standard.
I use this one with good success.
http://www.midwayusa.com/product/713049/mtm-mini-digital-reloading-scale-750-grain-capacity
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21,608 Posts
most scales and measurers are made in China, but a Pact isn't. I own three different Pacts right now, and have had a fourth in the past. Now I'm just getting ready to start with an electronic measurer, and it will be American made.
Check weights are a joke! I've checked a lot of them on lab scales, and never found one that was all that close. I've seen then out by as much as seven grains, but have seen them as close as one and one half grains. You can buy certified check weights, but they are expensive.
electronic measurers are great as long as your only using one powder type. When you switch powders you gotta clean the thing out, and that RCBS don't clean easy (Chinamen don't clean much of anything anyway). The Lyman and Hornaday are no better as well, but the RCBS is better (not by much). They also seem to be prone to problems with fine grained powders, but that's not a problem for me as my Harrell will throw that stuff within a tenth of a grain all day long (My Lyman #55 is far off that mark either). I happen to use a dozen different types of powder, so that's kinda importat to me.
a word on reviewers: Pay zero attention to them! They don't give a good review, and they don't get another freebe from jakes reloading outfit. Every month somebody comes out with a new item that will be the saviour of the planet. We all run out an buy it only to see little if any benifits (they got me a few times). My all time favorite is the Redding bullet seater that was supposed to save the planet. It turned out tobe no better than the design they stole in the first place (Forster), but was 50% higher in price. So much for making a profit! If you simply loading revolver and pistol ammo, then buy a good thrower and be done with it. But if you doing very long grained powders (4350 and up), you might want to seriously invest in a good measurer.
gary
Check weights are a joke! I've checked a lot of them on lab scales, and never found one that was all that close. I've seen then out by as much as seven grains, but have seen them as close as one and one half grains. You can buy certified check weights, but they are expensive.
electronic measurers are great as long as your only using one powder type. When you switch powders you gotta clean the thing out, and that RCBS don't clean easy (Chinamen don't clean much of anything anyway). The Lyman and Hornaday are no better as well, but the RCBS is better (not by much). They also seem to be prone to problems with fine grained powders, but that's not a problem for me as my Harrell will throw that stuff within a tenth of a grain all day long (My Lyman #55 is far off that mark either). I happen to use a dozen different types of powder, so that's kinda importat to me.
a word on reviewers: Pay zero attention to them! They don't give a good review, and they don't get another freebe from jakes reloading outfit. Every month somebody comes out with a new item that will be the saviour of the planet. We all run out an buy it only to see little if any benifits (they got me a few times). My all time favorite is the Redding bullet seater that was supposed to save the planet. It turned out tobe no better than the design they stole in the first place (Forster), but was 50% higher in price. So much for making a profit! If you simply loading revolver and pistol ammo, then buy a good thrower and be done with it. But if you doing very long grained powders (4350 and up), you might want to seriously invest in a good measurer.
gary
I've always read that digital scales are influenced by UV lighting, and are subject to "drift".
I have the same unit that Mark linked.
I've experienced this drift when separating projectiles by weight many times...so i stick with a beam for powder measure.
I use the lee dippers for the bulk of a charge, then trickle and tweezers to come up to spec.
Slow, but accurate.
I have the same unit that Mark linked.
I've experienced this drift when separating projectiles by weight many times...so i stick with a beam for powder measure.
I use the lee dippers for the bulk of a charge, then trickle and tweezers to come up to spec.
Slow, but accurate.
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i have been using the cheap hornady digital scale for my last 1500 rds and havent had any issues. i verified the weight with the traditional rcbs beam scale as well.
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I have not used a digital scale but I did run into a competition shooter and spoke to him on reloading. He told me he was having trouble with his
loads (rifle) he asked another national champion to review his system and the first thing he was told to do is get rid of the digital scale.
Again I have no experience with them.
loads (rifle) he asked another national champion to review his system and the first thing he was told to do is get rid of the digital scale.
Again I have no experience with them.
a good scale isn't. I use mine under three flouresent lights all the time. I more wor less worry about house current fluctuations and a hot or cold draft than the lights.
gary
usually folks that say go this way or that way have little idea why they are really saying to do that. If you think the balance beam scale is accurate, then so be it, but trust me they ain't all that hot. You just bring up other issues into the equation. If you check the readings on a good beam scale with a lab grade scale you'll send it to the flea market. The rely on knife edged bearings that are very fragile and cannot stand up to a constant vibration (if you use it indoors your pushing a 60Hz vibration thru it wether your using it or not). They also have a friction factor that cannot be adjusted out of it.
I used to make calibration weights to balance gas turbines and other high speed items all the time. Always checked them with an Ohaus #304 (a very good balance beam scale), and would get 75% of them rejected when it went to the lab for certification (they used a pair of $10K digital scales). We went to a digital scale and cut the scrap rate to 20%, and then was about to halve that with a box and a slab of granit. Later I brought in my digital scale to see just how good it really was compaied to the masters, and maybe a chance to compair it to a third master that was pretty much off limits to everyone. The error was about .003 of a grain on all three scales. Later I bring in another brand new one, and the error was similar if not slightly less. Now considering the fact that the case volume varied far more than the window the scale operated in; I never looked back! Now I don't even have a beam scale in my house, and probably never will again
gary
I used to make calibration weights to balance gas turbines and other high speed items all the time. Always checked them with an Ohaus #304 (a very good balance beam scale), and would get 75% of them rejected when it went to the lab for certification (they used a pair of $10K digital scales). We went to a digital scale and cut the scrap rate to 20%, and then was about to halve that with a box and a slab of granit. Later I brought in my digital scale to see just how good it really was compaied to the masters, and maybe a chance to compair it to a third master that was pretty much off limits to everyone. The error was about .003 of a grain on all three scales. Later I bring in another brand new one, and the error was similar if not slightly less. Now considering the fact that the case volume varied far more than the window the scale operated in; I never looked back! Now I don't even have a beam scale in my house, and probably never will again
gary
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