Electric trickler adjusting

[normmatzen]

The thread about an aluminum insert for manual tricklers encouraged me to start this one.
I use one of the popular battery powered tricklers along with a precision lab balance for one granule accuracy.
Problem is, by using the HI and LO speeds, the thing isn't too accurate in single granule dropping.

Anyone found a modification to the drop tube shape to improve both HI and LO speed?

 

[Erik Cortina]

[youtube]http://youtu.be/vkU0MLBUDzc[/youtube]

 

[michaelnel]

I tried your method, Erik. Plugging the tube and priming it by tilting it over gets WAY too much powder into the tube and makes it clump badly.

I have much more success just tapping the fast button a few times until the kernels are all lined up in a row in the bottom of the tube, then I can dispense single kernels very easily without ever dropping a clump.

 

[ridgeway]

I squeezed the tube together at the tip so the kernels are forced to line up in single file.

 

[normmatzen]

Eric,
I have seen your videos, matter of fact all I could find and they are great!

I have tried raising and lowering the hopper, light fill and heavy fills of the hopper. tube weight out and in as well as rotating the stand. The problem I have is that I typically dispense from a power dispenser to within about 0.5 gr (yes, I weigh in grams as my balance is somewhat more accurate on the gram range!) and then go to the LO button for the last 0.05 gr. While doing HI adjustments, the tube fills more than when doing LO adjustments and when I get to single granule dropping, the powder is in clumps and I often get two granules.
Michaelel seems to not have that problem. When I first got the trickler, I squeezed the opening of the dispenser tube to modify the trickling a bit and maybe I never got it back to the original shape? Any idea what shape I should strive for?

By the way, I think my skill has been the limiting factor since way back in my learning curve!

 

[normmatzen]

Thanks Chuck, That's what I'm looking for.

 

[ridgeway]

I used a small rod that is about .058" in diameter for a mandrel and used needle nosed pliers to form the tip. The rod was actually from a K&M VLD chamfer tool.

 

[/VH]

I generally have good results by mashing both the high and low buttons at the same time until I need to drop the last few granules, then just use the low speed button.

 

[willbas]

may be sending mine back the low speed does not move any powder at all.

 

[Tempest]

Get one w/ the electronic eye for the beam. You will love it.

 

[BCoates]

may be sending mine back the low speed does not move any powder at all.

Try moving the weight on the tube close to the hopper and put fresh batteries in it.

 

[SEM]

some where I saw someone using a short piece of a plastic drinking straw in the end of the tube, works on the RCBS charge combo... haven't tried it yet maybe tonight

 

[michaelnel]

If the powder won't move with the black button, feel the yellow hopper while you press the button. You should be able to feel the motor vibrating. If it is not vibrating, then give a couple light taps to the bottom area of the yellow hopper with a pencil or chopstick. Sometimes the little motor will stop at a particular spot in its rotation where it cannot start up again.

Try it, it works!

 

[jonbearman]

Where do you get one with an electric eye?

 

[Tempest]

Midway has them.

http://www.midwayusa.com/product/838135/dandy-products-omega-auto-powder-trickler

 

[dixieppc]

Get one w/ the electronic eye for the beam. You will love it.

I have the Omega 2 Powder Trickler and have never had a problem with having it trickle one granule at a time when properly set up. I would love to have the one with the beam but I need to direct that cost to other areas in the loading room right now.

Anyway, I don't trust digital scales that are the ones in my price range. I've seen accurate digital scales but they are way out of my price range. So I sent my vintage American made Ohaus 10-10 scales off to Scott Parker and had him tune them up. Now I have a set of scales that are sensitive to 1 granule of powder and have a powder trickler that will provide that one granule on demand. My digital scales are used only for sorting brass and bullets to a realistic plus or minus .2 of a grain depending on if the digital scales feel like being that close that day.

I can throw and trickle, to the granule, my desired load on the Ohaus beam scales as quickly as I can on a set of digital scales and do it with remarkable repeatability and accuracy which is more than I can say about my $170 set of digital scales.

 

[memilanuk]

may be sending mine back the low speed does not move any powder at all.

Are you holding the button down, or tapping it?

 

[willbas]

Omega 2 called yesterday and gave me some tips to try. At low speed for some reason my base vibrates more than the hopper, by adding some weight on to it the low speed is working just the way I want it. I am going to call them later today and thank them for great customer service ;D

 

[Deleted old_dood]

re: powder bunching up. what I do is get my load to within 5-10 granules and then use a dental pick to move the required number of granules onto the scale. faster than using the "slow" button.