electronic scale ??

[Texas Solo]

I need a new scale and I'm considering an electronic. I've never used an electronic before, so I have a couple questions/concerns.

First, how accurate are they? I'm only loading 25.0grs, which is at the much lower end of most scales capability.
Second, how consistent are they? Do I need to recalibrate every 20 rounds, or just every time I use it? I generally load 50 rounds at a time, 100 at most.

Also need advice on a good unit. I've read reviews on Midway for both the RCBS and the Hornady products, both of which get dismal reviews. I don't care to use something that either doesn't work at all, or something I can't trust.

Thanks.

 

[ar10ar15man]

most, not all, reloading electronic scales are no more accurate than a $25 beam scale from lee.
they are typically plus or minus 0.1..the problem is that with a beam scale you can see when you are off"just a little" and electronic scales move in steps..so you do not see that "just a little" error.
if plus or minus .1 is acceptable, just buy the lee...save your money.

if you want better..the gempro 250 seems to get good reviews..as does the mx123 and its replacements..but they cost a bunch more

 

[Shynloco]

If you are sure you won't be loading BIG loads in the future, I'd recommend an RCBS 750 Rangemaster Scale that Midway sells for $117.00 Other places sells them also and I've seen them on sale for under $100. I've got two of them and have been using them for several years. I find both to be very accurate and dependable. RCBS guarantees them and they'll repair or replace broken scales. The only problem I ever had was the electrical plug in unit broke a wire and RCBS replaced it FREE. Now some people will complain that electronic scales drift, aren't accurate, etc, etc. The problem is, you must know how to set them up because they are EXTREMELY sensitive to several factors. The slightest disturbacne in air, radio frequency emissions from cycling things like refrigerator motors, over head ballasts being too close, radios that emit a strong RF radio wave, etc, can evoke a response. So simply, plug in your unit to a an SURGE PROTECTOR unit (not a cheap one) and ONLY have the scale plugged into the unit. Next, close doors, no overhead ceiling fans and any other devices that cause air to be moved across the scale. Even a sneeze will cause the numbers on the digital screen to jump. I have my overhead lights with ballasts 40" above my reloading table so the ballast won't cause a disturbance. I've conducted extensive tests just searching for causes of interference and have them down pretty well as my digital readout doesn't move one bit unless I trickle gunpowder into the small pan. As for calibration, I calibrate only once each day I reload. And even if there is some sort of interference that could momentarily exist, the unit has a button to depress to re-zero the scale. This ain't rocket science and I can certainly assist you if you have further questions. BTW, you can use a beam scale to double check the accuracy of the electronic scale occasionally just in case you have concerns.

Bottom line for me...works and is dependable. It is good up to 750 grs which is something I've never come even close too. Hope that helps some.

 

[ar10ar15man]

tricling into an electronic scalle is not a good practice...
as i mentined, they move in steps..and you willnot get consistant results trickling.
instaed add powder, lift the pan and put it back on the scale...

i still say a $25 lee is a better investment than a 100 electrionic...

If you are sure you won't be loading BIG loads in the future, I'd recommend an RCBS 750 Rangemaster Scale that Midway sells for $117.00 Other places sells them also and I've seen them on sale for under $100. I've got two of them and have been using them for several years. I find both to be very accurate and dependable. RCBS guarantees them and they'll repair or replace broken scales. The only problem I ever had was the electrical plug in unit broke a wire and RCBS replaced it FREE. Now some people will complain that electronic scales drift, aren't accurate, etc, etc. The problem is, you must know how to set them up because they are EXTREMELY sensitive to several factors. The slightest disturbacne in air, radio frequency emissions from cycling things like refrigerator motors, over head ballasts being too close, radios that emit a strong RF radio wave, etc, can evoke a response. So simply, plug in your unit to a an SURGE PROTECTOR unit (not a cheap one) and ONLY have the scale plugged into the unit. Next, close doors, no overhead ceiling fans and any other devices that cause air to be moved across the scale. Even a sneeze will cause the numbers on the digital screen to jump. I have my overhead lights with ballasts 40" above my reloading table so the ballast won't cause a disturbance. I've conducted extensive tests just searching for causes of interference and have them down pretty well as my digital readout doesn't move one bit unless I trickle gunpowder into the small pan. As for calibration, I calibrate only once each day I reload. And even if there is some sort of interference that could momentarily exist, the unit has a button to depress to re-zero the scale. This ain't rocket science and I can certainly assist you if you have further questions. BTW, you can use a beam scale to double check the accuracy of the electronic scale occasionally just in case you have concerns.

Bottom line for me...works and is dependable. It is good up to 750 grs which is something I've never come even close too. Hope that helps some.

 

[Shynloco]

tricling into an electronic scalle is not a good practice...
as i mentined, they move in steps..and you willnot get consistant results trickling.
instaed add powder, lift the pan and put it back on the scale...

i still say a $25 lee is a better investment than a 100 electrionic...

Yes I know to lift the pan after adding or removing powder. And the man asked for opinions and that what I gave. And I've given Lee equipment away because it turned out to be JUNK. Thats simply my opinion and I am as entitled to it as you are to yours.

 

[BoydAllen]

I managed to tune up my RCBS 10-10 and it seems to do a much better job now than most of the affordable electronic scales that I have tried. On the other hand, before I worked on it, comparing it to a decent electronic scale that reads to .02 gr., I was just fooling myself, believing what it was telling me. Later on, I had a chance to play with a Gem Pro 250 and found it to be an excellent value, although the wind cover is cheaply constructed, the scale performed at least as well as one that cost well over $300. If you do some searching on this site, I think that you will find that there is some good information available on various scale options.

 

[ridgeway]

I've been having very pleasing results with a gempro 250. I trickle up with a Omega and my results are extremely consistent. Good enough for single digit SD and ES. I've been a a lone time beam user and quite impressed with the gem pro. I've had several electronic scales prior and this is the best I used. I'd love to have a GD503, but $1400 is not in the budget right now, lol.

 

[Turbulent Turtle]

tricling into an electronic scalle is not a good practice...
as i mentined, they move in steps..and you willnot get consistant results trickling.
instaed add powder, lift the pan and put it back on the scale...

i still say a $25 lee is a better investment than a 100 electrionic...

Really? You are aware that is the principle of operation for the RCBS Chargemaster 1500 and several others.

The scale weighs the contents at set intervals and controls the dispensing (trickler) unit to reach the target weight. The last thing you want to do is lift the pan several times during that operation.

The stepping that you talk about is merely the threshold of sensitivity, which is .1 grain. This represents about 5 kernels of Varget in my experience. Once it has reached a weight, it will take about 5 additional grains to get it to jump to the next digit.

I have been using my Chargemaster for over 6 years now and the results on the 1000 yard F-class target show that while elevation is pretty much controlled, I still have issues with deciphering wind and that's definitely not something I can blame on the CM1500.

 

[ar10ar15man]

stay on topic...
low dollar inexpensive entry electronic scales..the guy wants to weigh 25 grains...
so we are not talking top end dispensers...
the charge master is well liked..even in benchrest...but it is a bit over kill for this guy....yes ??

tricling into an electronic scalle is not a good practice...
as i mentined, they move in steps..and you willnot get consistant results trickling.
instaed add powder, lift the pan and put it back on the scale...

i still say a $25 lee is a better investment than a 100 electrionic...

Really? You are aware that is the principle of operation for the RCBS Chargemaster 1500 and several others.

The scale weighs the contents at set intervals and controls the dispensing (trickler) unit to reach the target weight. The last thing you want to do is lift the pan several times during that operation.

The stepping that you talk about is merely the threshold of sensitivity, which is .1 grain. This represents about 5 kernels of Varget in my experience. Once it has reached a weight, it will take about 5 additional grains to get it to jump to the next digit.

I have been using my Chargemaster for over 6 years now and the results on the 1000 yard F-class target show that while elevation is pretty much controlled, I still have issues with deciphering wind and that's definitely not something I can blame on the CM1500.

 

[ridgeway]

stay on topic...
low dollar inexpensive entry electronic scales..the guy wants to weigh 25 grains...
so we are not talking top end dispensers...
the charge master is well liked..even in benchrest...but it is a bit over kill for this guy....yes ??

tricling into an electronic scalle is not a good practice...
as i mentined, they move in steps..and you willnot get consistant results trickling.
instaed add powder, lift the pan and put it back on the scale...

i still say a $25 lee is a better investment than a 100 electrionic...

Really? You are aware that is the principle of operation for the RCBS Chargemaster 1500 and several others.

The scale weighs the contents at set intervals and controls the dispensing (trickler) unit to reach the target weight. The last thing you want to do is lift the pan several times during that operation.

The stepping that you talk about is merely the threshold of sensitivity, which is .1 grain. This represents about 5 kernels of Varget in my experience. Once it has reached a weight, it will take about 5 additional grains to get it to jump to the next digit.

I have been using my Chargemaster for over 6 years now and the results on the 1000 yard F-class target show that while elevation is pretty much controlled, I still have issues with deciphering wind and that's definitely not something I can blame on the CM1500.

I think he means on lower end of case capacity. The Chargemaster would be an excellent choice with what he wants to do. I had one and wish I still had it.

 

[Turbulent Turtle]

Nope. I was just addressing the fallacy of the off-topic statement made about trickling into an electronic scale.

I was not recommending a Chargemaster 1500, just explaining that's hot it worked. The same thing can be done with a lower cost electronic scale without an attached dispenser.

 

[ridgeway]

tricling into an electronic scalle is not a good practice...
as i mentined, they move in steps..and you willnot get consistant results trickling.
instaed add powder, lift the pan and put it back on the scale...

Everyone I know and everyone I've ever seen trickles on to the scale...

And never seen or heard of anyone lifting the pan up and down to add more powder.

Donovan

Same here....I always trickle up. Once registered, I never lift off the scale. If I have an over trickle, I remove enough that requires me to trickle up.

 

[Turbulent Turtle]

tricling into an electronic scalle is not a good practice...
as i mentined, they move in steps..and you willnot get consistant results trickling.
instaed add powder, lift the pan and put it back on the scale...

Everyone I know and everyone I've ever seen trickles on to the scale...

And never seen or heard of anyone lifting the pan up and down to add more powder.

Donovan

Same here....I always trickle up. Once registered, I never lift off the scale. If I have an over trickle, I remove enough that requires me to trickle up.

Exactly. Another myth exploded.

 

[Texas Solo]

Thanks for all the opinions. If I go electronic, it will probably be the RCBS Rangemaster 750.

I should have mentioned why I need a new scale, and possibly someone can help me straighten out my RCBS 1010. I've been using this scale for about 10 years with no problems until now.

here's the issue: after I zero the scale, I drop 24.5 grs Varget from my Uniflow measure, then trickle up to 25.0
I dropped the weighed charge into a .223 case and it almost overflowed it. ?????? I dumped the charge back into the Uniflow and started again. This time, all is well.
A few loads later I noticed that as I trickled up, the scale WAS NOT MOVING. Again, ??????
I bumped the beam by hand a bit and it jumped way up beyond the 25.0 it was set for. The problem is intermittent. I can easily see if the charge is too hot just by looking at how much the case is filled, but if it's 1/2 or 1.0 gr short, I may not see it. So much for 500 meter F class consistency.
So, evidently the beam is hanging up somehow. It's not touching anything and I completely cleaned the axle area that the beam pivots on. It's beyond me how a beam scale can not work. RCBS has not answered my e-mail question in over a week, and I gotta load 50 rounds in the next 2 weeks for a match.

maybe someone here can give me guidance on fixing the 1010, otherwise, I'll weigh the pros/cons to an electronic and make a decision.

Thanks again for the replies, I appreciate the help.

 

[Turbulent Turtle]

I had a similar issue with my RCBS 505 several years ago. I cleaned the crap out of the fulcrum and it got a lot better. I still use the 505 in concert with my old powder measure when I do pistol loads. All my rifle loads go through the CM1500 now.

The RM 750 should do a very good job for you and if ever you get the itch to upgrade later, you can add the dispenser and end up with a CM1500.

 

[ridgeway]

There is a guy named Scott Parker that tunes beam scales. Should be able to work on your 1010.

The RM 750 is a decent scale. I had one...keep it plugged in all the time and you should be good.

bayou...I don't think you can add the dispenser to the RM 750, only the 1500 scale.

 

[Erik Cortina]

I trickle up on my scale.
It works all day every day and I trust it. Most reliable scale I have ever owned. It's a Sortorious GD-503. Cry once.

 

[Turbulent Turtle]

bayou...I don't think you can add the dispenser to the RM 750, only the 1500 scale.

You are totally correct.

And there is a $65 difference in price between the two scales at Sinclair.

 

[ar10ar15man]

bingo...whe have a winner in the "reasons to not trickle without bumping/moving the pan"
first
boyd will give you tips on getting your scale back in order.....they seldom break, but do get dirty.

second, for the unlearned, that do not bump or move the pan after adding powder.....
if your beam scale is magnetically dampened...learn to bump the pan after every add...
look up this word........
hysteresis......
a retardation of an effect when the forces acting upon a body are changed
the tendancy of the beam to NOT move due to the magnetic field .........
solo just learned a lesson...

Thanks for all the opinions. If I go electronic, it will probably be the RCBS Rangemaster 750.

I should have mentioned why I need a new scale, and possibly someone can help me straighten out my RCBS 1010. I've been using this scale for about 10 years with no problems until now.

here's the issue: after I zero the scale, I drop 24.5 grs Varget from my Uniflow measure, then trickle up to 25.0
I dropped the weighed charge into a .223 case and it almost overflowed it. ?????? I dumped the charge back into the Uniflow and started again. This time, all is well.
A few loads later I noticed that as I trickled up, the scale WAS NOT MOVING. Again, ??????
I bumped the beam by hand a bit and it jumped way up beyond the 25.0 it was set for. The problem is intermittent. I can easily see if the charge is too hot just by looking at how much the case is filled, but if it's 1/2 or 1.0 gr short, I may not see it. So much for 500 meter F class consistency.
So, evidently the beam is hanging up somehow. It's not touching anything and I completely cleaned the axle area that the beam pivots on. It's beyond me how a beam scale can not work. RCBS has not answered my e-mail question in over a week, and I gotta load 50 rounds in the next 2 weeks for a match.

maybe someone here can give me guidance on fixing the 1010, otherwise, I'll weigh the pros/cons to an electronic and make a decision.

Thanks again for the replies, I appreciate the help.

 

[Turbulent Turtle]

I trickle up on my scale.
It works all day every day and I trust it. Most reliable scale I have ever owned. It's a Sortorious GD-503. Cry once.

At $1,500 that's "cry a lot."