My RCBS Chargemaster Combo quit yesterday.

[Steve Wilson]

I've had this unit for 3 years or so and absolutely love it. I turned it on yesterday morning while I was sizing and repriming some brass; it came alive, went through it's start up sequence and then flashed that it was ready and zeroed. When it came time to start charging some cases I looked over at it and the screen had gone blank. The AC adapter has been plugged in for about a month but the unit turned off. Now it won't do anything. Either the adapter or something in the unit itself has given up the ghost. I need to go out to Graf's later today to pick up a 4 pound jug of Varget and will drag the unit with me and plug it into their adapter. If it works, then my adapter is shot and I will order another from RCBS. If it doesn't then I will pack the unit up and send it to RCBS for repair.

Just curious if anyone else has ever had this issue and what the fix was. This is not a bashing thread, as I said, I love the thing.

Many thanks,

 

[Shynloco]

Steve,
This might be a lame suggestion, but have you tried taking the unit and plugging into another socket somewhere else in the house? And something I've always done with mine is that it is on "Surge Protector." And I'm not talking some $15 cheap surge unit either. I think the one I've got cost me like $37.50 but has a very high lumes protection value to cover just about any spike that could occur in any housing circuit. And perhaps I'm overly paranoid, but I unplug that adapter anytime I'm not using my unit. I just don't think those little things are of real high quality and a healthy electrical spike could probably fry one in a heatbeat. Hope it's not the unit, but RCBS is good about taking care of their units when they go south. Good luck and hope you get her fixed quickly. Hate any downtime which is why I have a 750 Rangemaster as backup.

 

[tome]

the good news is ..RCBS customer service..call them...mine died after 2-3 yrs use..they told me to send the unit back w/ a check ( if i remember correctly for $35 ) and they would repair or replace the unit.. sent me a new unit..the old unit was long out of warranty..the new unit is under a new warranty

 

[bythebook]

My Lyman did something similar after an extended period of being plugged in. It would not do anything, I unplugged it for about a minute and plugged it back in and it worked fine.

 

[gunsandgunsmithing]

Recently sold one new, to a customer. It didn't work right from the start. I didn't have one in stock to replace it with and asked the customer to send it back to RCBS, and assured him of their good service. Their response was for $150 they would fix it . This was just the other day. Still trying to get it worked out. I'll try to update when I hear more. I sure hope they haven't changed their warranty procedures with them. I love the chargemasters and have sold several with confidence...til now.

 

[Steve Wilson]

I just got off the phone with the very nice folks at RCBS. I explained the issue and that I have owned this unit for about 3 years, I also told him of my plan to take mine to Graf's and see if it would power up with their AC adapter. He said that was a very good plan, to isolate the problem to the adapter or the unit itself. If it is the adapter, they will replace it free of charge. If Graf's adapter doesn't make it work, I need to ship my unit back to them, along with a note with my phone number and/or email address. Then they will charge me $45 and send me a brand new unit with a 1 year warranty.

It doesn't get much better than that. I will post back with the final resolution.

 

[amlevin]

Every household should have a small, inexpensive Volt/Ohm meter in the tool box. One capable of reading DC and AC voltages. I can't count the number of times mine (less than $10 from Radio Shack) has solved problems for me.

AC adapters that have failed, appliances that quit working only because the GFCI in the garage tripped and shut off several inside outlets, etc.

Why send the machine back with a check for their "flat rate fee" when a replacement AC adapter can often be purchased locally for less than 1/2. Only way to know if that's all it is is with a VOM or driving to a store and using their adapter.

 

[tome]

Like i said..their great to deal with..mine wouldn't hold zero..but I've found most all of the reloading companies to have top notch customer service

 

[Thorbird]

Just sent mine back to them after it stopped working. It cost me $15 to ship it insured to them, and then $45 for a replacement unit due any day to arrive. That works for me.

 

[Steve Wilson]

Well, I took it out to Graf's and plugged it into their adapter. No Go. Just to be on the safe side, I will also send my adapter back with the unit. Hats off to RCBS for making this so easy and customer friendly. Especially since we are talking about an out of warranty product.