RCBS Beam Scale. Vintage.

[Chilly807]

It's quite the device... I think the loop that the pan hangs from is upside down at the moment, it's just to the left of where the pan is currently attached. That threaded portion where the loop is provides a coarse adjustment, and I think the one on the left end of the beam is for fine tuning your zero. I might have that backwards.

It looks like it would be fine for weighing fixed powder charges, but adjusting from one weight to another would be a bit tedious. And adjusting the main poise to find the weight of an unknown item would be a pain.

You'd definitely want some test weights, because setting the scale to check zero every session would drive you to drink.

It might be accurate as all get out, but if I'm right about the inconvenience of making adjustments, that's probably why RCBS moved to a different design.

 

[JRanum]

This is a cute little scale. It also is probably the reason Fred Huntington picked up the telephone and called OHaus and asked if they would paint some scales green and mark them RCBS

 

[Rocketvapor]

The two adjustment nuts change calibration and should be set and locked down with the set screws. Changing the distance from the pivot to the hanger ring changes scale factor. Zero is set with the level screw in the base.

 

[Bc'z]

The two adjustment nuts change calibration and should be set and locked down with the set screws. Changing the distance from the pivot to the hanger ring changes scale factor. Zero is set with the level screw in the base.

The zero on main poise looked like a set screw to me, probably why you had to bet it into me it's .25gn increments. Lol

 

[Rocketvapor]

5 grains per revolution.
Maybe 0 to 1 is 72 degrees?
0-1-2-3-4-0 = 360 degrees.

 

[joshb]

Neat old scale! I bet it never made it into mass production because guys found it hard to use, as exhibited by the posts you’ve gotten. Any directions in the box?

 

[JRanum]

Its a damn shame that thing is like new and in its like new box but theres no instruction sheet. And RCBS typically dated their written material too.

 

[RegionRat]

 

[Rocketvapor]

It would be interesting to test this unit against good weights, and Varget sensitivity

 

[RCE1]

This is really interesting. There was no documentation in the box, but it may have been lost to time. RCBS didn't have anything when I asked. I feel like I should re-do the photo, now that I have learned a little more about the scale. It seems the aluminum lever at the top allows the user to return the beam to "zero" quickly. Its also interesting learning about the auxiliary weight. I couldn't figure out what that was for. Thanks!

I've always used a digital scale for weighing powder charges. There were the triple beam balances in the labs in high school, but I never had one myself.

 

[RegionRat]

If I am not mistaken, this one and the one for Redding were nearly identical. Neither stayed in production long as they were fussy to build and to use. They went to other models very quickly and they tended to add some form of damping to them from then on.

 

[Will Henry]

What a beautiful scale! Great find. WH

 

[Cecil S.]

Very cool piece of history and the box it came in is in great condition.