Auto Powder measurer?

**duqjeep2010** · February 4th, 2015, 01:15 PM

So I am in the market for an auto powder measurer. I am looking between the Hornady, RCBS and Lyman Gen6. What does everyone use and what would you recommend if you aren't satisfied with what you use?

**Twoboxer** · February 4th, 2015, 04:01 PM

The dispenser/scale most frequently praised on reloading forums is the RCBS unit. I have no experience with the other units you have mentioned.

My first unit was a Pact. It did a below average job of being consistent, did it slowly, and broke after ~18 months.

Bought an RCBS and it is much better. But rest assured it is not perfect. people will tell you about "the straw mod" to minimize overthrows. It does improve things, but that is not the main issue with the unit.

The problem is in the scale. It suffers from the same issues that all scales <$500 (standard strain gauge scales) do . . . they are not consistent and do not respond well to trickling. In order to improve performance, a mag force restoration scale would likely be required, and that would probably bring the dispenser/scale price to ~$700.

For pistol and 223 plinking ammo, I prefer to use a standard PM mostly on a progressive press. It's just as consistent as a dispenser when using spherical powders.

For stick powders and precision rifle I currently use the RCBS unit to throw low, and then trickle up using a mag force digital scale. Since I weigh every charge the RCBS throws, I can tell you that about 80% of mine are +/-0.1gr from the target. The rest are not.

YMMV.

**DucatiRon** · February 4th, 2015, 04:33 PM

Been using the RCBS Chargemaster combo for 6 or 7 years now. Has loaded 10's of thousands of rounds and hasn't failed yet. My biggest complaint was the speed at which it trickled the powder. Well there is a hack for that and now it works even better.

Just one warning.

Don't ever store or leave powder in it. I had left some Unique in it ( I think) for a week or two and dam near melted it so bad it was unusable.

**theunrulychef** · February 4th, 2015, 04:37 PM

Interested in this as well. I've been looking to speed up my current process of pull a throw, measure, trickle in or out depending on weight & go through a funnel into the case. It's painstaking, but looking at what Twoboxer is saying, I'd probably be doing the same thing anyways. I guess they're quicker than adjusting a manual throw with the plunger / set screw type.

**Twoboxer** · February 5th, 2015, 02:30 AM

Originally Posted by theunrulychef

Interested in this as well. I've been looking to speed up my current process of pull a throw, measure, trickle in or out depending on weight & go through a funnel into the case. It's painstaking, but looking at what Twoboxer is saying, I'd probably be doing the same thing anyways. I guess they're quicker than adjusting a manual throw with the plunger / set screw type.

Yes they are quicker (eg) during load development where the charge is changed frequently, when using stick powders, and when you can overlap the auto-throw with, say, bullet seating.

Frankly, with stick powders it's the best option I've found at reasonable cost, whether you weigh and adjust on a better scale or not.

**RobW** · February 5th, 2015, 09:27 AM

I have the Lyman unit. I set the weight 0.3gr lower than my target charge and trickle to weight. Works fine and the Lyman is FAST. When I am loading rifle cartridges it is ready for trickle-up at just about the same pace that I seat the bullet and crimp. Makes for a very comfortable workflow.

I would recommend you keep an eye out for a good used unit of any make (people give up on them all the time ;->) and buy a trickler for $10 to go with it. The one caveat is to give yourself a chance to get the full performance - you'll need a level spot to put the scale that you aren't bumping around when operating your press and you need to let it warm up properly, recalibrate as directed, clean power, etc. or it will drive you a little batty.

**duqjeep2010** · February 5th, 2015, 01:27 PM

Originally Posted by RobW

The one caveat is to give yourself a chance to get the full performance - you'll need a level spot to put the scale that you aren't bumping around when operating your press and you need to let it warm up properly, recalibrate as directed, clean power, etc. or it will drive you a little batty.

That is no problem. I can just put it on the bench I have my progressive press set up on.

**noylj** · February 8th, 2015, 05:18 PM

I love my RCBS ChargeMaster. Look up reviews on the units using Google.

**duqjeep2010** · February 14th, 2015, 12:43 AM

Well I went with the Lyman Gen 6. I loaded 100 match .223 and 50 match .308. The .223 the pace was a little faster with the machine waiting on me. For .308 I was doing some waiting on the machine.

I definitely like it. I think it is well worth the money. It you are going to spend the time and money to get the most out of every shot this will really help.

**Mike3888** · February 14th, 2015, 07:12 AM

I've been using the lyman also, I do like it. Set it on light side and trickle the rest. Just like any powder measure works better with ball of flake. Clean up or powder change is slow.