Electronic (digital) scales. I've given up on them.

[R L Suehr]

I've had good luck with my Franklin armory digital. I do reverify it often with a beam scale though. If I want quick pistol loads, I use the Lee dippers.

[Twoboxer]

LOL....yeah..pretty bad, huh? ^^ Oh God, take me....I'm getting dangerous.

Let me attempt to fix it. First, I gotta find it again. BRB.

(Meanwhile....prolly a nickel weighs 5 grams?)

Back. Yep. Here's additional discussion:

https://www.bing.com/search?q=what+d...e1762531cff12f

Like the other US coins, nickels aren't all *exactly* (in this case) 5g when made . . . they wear in use . . . and they pick up grime. But once you clean your nickel, it will weigh the same from weighing to weighing . . . just like (eg) RCBS check weights. That's certainly useful.

Personally I've never worried whether my digital scales were a tad off . . . as long as they weighed the same object the same weight time after time. And that the scale looked sure of itself while doing that lol.

The strain gauge scales just don't.

The GemPro 250 at about $130 is one example of a scale that works well under many circumstances though it has some issues due to its programming. The A&D FX120i at ~$500 is probably the least expensive non-strain-gauge scale, and it puts digital weighing problems to rest.

[fritz1919]

Just so you know, you can't really trust the balance beam type scale either. Those counter weights can lose mass over time.

https://www.sciencedaily.com/release...0921110735.htm

No hijack intended.


I find this very interesting but have a question. If Le Gran K is the was the unit by which the "preciseness" of measuring devices was determined, what was used to determine that it had in fact lost 50 micrograms of weight?

[Brick]

I have an Ohaus 5-0-5 that has been in use since I started reloading sometime in the early 1970s. Not long ago I thought I'd give digitals a try and got and RCBS something (I forgot what model) anyhow it hit the shit-can pretty quickly. I then acquired a Hornady Lock-N-Load Bench Scale which didn't please me all that much, but I still have it. Then I bought an RCBS 5-0-2 which I used for a time and noticed that the front to back movement of the beam would sometimes throw the weights out of whack, there was too much play in the way the knife edges rode in the bearings. So that has now been retired in favor of an RCBS M500 mechanical scale (as they call it). So far it seems OK. I also have a set of check weights. So now I'll zero out the scale. Then verify the zero within 0.5 grs of my proposed charge weight, then set the charge weight and continue to march. If I'm doing load development and every charge is weighed out, I'll balance the charge out on the beam scale the check it on the digital.

BUT! I got very bored a few days ago and sat down with the check weight set and the digital scale and went through the numbers. The digital is ALWAYS set in a location where it is the ONLY device on a particular outlet, no where near any drafts or subject to the shaking of my reloading bench. BUT the damn thing will vary = or - 0.1 gr.! Using the check weights I found that the readings would be correct only if the tare was correctly shown as -152.4 grs. when the pan was removed.

[bogey1]

I had/ have two 20dollar digitals, one just stopped working after 25lbs of chemicals,
the other is still working great.

For guns I use the 505.

[Bang]

....an RCBS 5-0-2 which I used for a time and noticed that the front to back movement of the beam would sometimes throw the weights out of whack, there was too much play in the way the knife edges rode in the bearings.

My Lyman Ohaus M5 has knife edges riding in V-block shaped agate bearings which float. That can make the beam jut out, away from, its best relationship to the card. I patiently push it inward so it rides where it should. It has never moved violently enough to jostle the adjustment weights out of their positions. You might consider finding a way to keep the bearings from moving so far that they gain enough speed to upset the adjustments when they reach their limits of travel.

I had tried limiting the sliding travel of the agate bearings to keep the beam where it ideally should be, but didn't like the way it was acting, and freed it up back to stock. Examining everything with a jeweler's loupe, all is in perfect condition at the fulcrum. I just check it for cleanliness occasionally.

[Brick]

Well Bang, thanks for the suggestion but the 5-0-2 is "hors de combat". Used the new M500 for some heavy rifle loads, it performed perfectly.

[hooknladder]

I bought a PACT digital scale back in the 1990's. Back then they were like $150. Well taken care of. Placed in the original box with foam when not in use. Still works great today. Very similar to this one. https://pact.com/product/digital-pre...v=47e5dceea252

[Emptymag]

I'll have to reference this thread the next time the "Why Don't You Reload" thread comes up.

LOL!

[SgtRecon]

A very interesting discussion, maybe I'm the polar opposite, I have found that if it wasn't for digital I would have probably given up reloading all together. I've tried to use beam scales and found them painfully slow, although it was an older Pacific unit. I used an economy smart reloader digital to verify the volume drops from my lee progressive and have had good luck with it. I have since upgraded to a Hornady unit

I now use the Lyman Gen 6 digital powder dispenser system for my single stage work and will never look back on "old tech" only one BIG glitch, the manual states it does not like electronic interference from Fluorescent ballasts, It gave me fits at first trying to calibrate it to the point I was ready to tape it to a brick and throw it back through Cabela's window on a drive by. I have converted the reloading room to LED fixtures and all is good. I often double check the scales against each other and check weights, only on occasion will a charge be .01 gr off, and a trickle of a few granules does the trick. they are a bit pricey but boy do they work and I can crank out some nice ammo quickly with it. Another nice perk is the counter for charges dispensed, I load lots of 50 and tough to do a primer only squib or double charge, when the counter beeps 50 and the tray is full, your good.