I need some help on powder measures

[Soybomb]

I think i'm going to start with some small scale reloading of 5.56 and 10mm and will probably just start a lee hand press. I'd like to speed things up a little bit though and have a powder measure to clamp to the table to load batches. The lee pro autodisc sounds decent but it looks like it is only meant to be used on a die. What would you recommend for an affordable powder measure?

How practical is it do get a set of lee dippers and a scale and just use them to come up with a scoop or combination of scoops that gets you the load you want? It seems like once you did the work of finding out what scoop(s) gave you the weight you wanted with a particular powder that it might not be too slow for a 50-100 round batch.

 

[Sagetown]

The LEE Perfect Powder Measure may be what you're looking for. I'm fixing to use one for the first time. You can mount it on a steel plate, as I have done here, or a block of wood. I've been measuring powder to get the hang of it, as the instructions say you need to run a hopper of powder thru it to give it a good coating. That is supposed to help it drop the same charge each time.

 

[CBS220]

While some will disagree, the Lee PPM is not a bad powder measure. It does leak a little with some powders, and it can be inconsistent if there is bad static electricity around, but if you can deal with that it's a great buy for the price.

 

[cpttango30]

It does leak a little with some powders, and it can be inconsistent if there is bad static electricity around, but if you can deal with that it's a great buy for the price.

That is asking for an accident. I myself would get a RCBS Uniflow II, Hornady, or Redding.

My first choice would be a RCBS Uniflow. Mine is 50+ years old and still throws charges with any powder withen +-.1gr of eachother. Plus RCBS carries a lifetime warrenty. Lee carries a 2 year warrenty. My powder measure sat in a box for close to 6 years and ended up rusted in place. I boxed it up and sent it back to RCBS. It was returned withen 4 days fixed and good as new. They even replaced parts that I did not care got replaced. Like the Hopper The one on it was still good but they replaced it with a brand new one all this for the cost to ship it to them. which was about $5 for postage and insurance.

Leaking and inaccurate powder measures are a blantent danger to anyone useing them or using ammo loaded with them.

Check ebay is funds are tight you may find some on there going slightly chaper than NIB Price.

 

[Wildfire]

Me too.

Hey There.
While Lee makes soem decent products I will stick with My RCBS. The Uni-Flow works flawless.
There are a lot of Lee people on here so I will be out voted soon.
The Lee will cost less. RCBS is top notch.

 

[Elza]

Another vote for the Uni-Flow. Had mine for going on 30 years.

 

[qajaq59]

Most anything made from plastic can be a pain when it comes to static electricity. However, if you wipe a little detergent on the outside of the bottle the problem will go away. That works on plastic funnels real well too.

 

[dagger dog]

The Lee plastic measure is great with extruded powders Varget Re 15 etc., but it leaks flake and spherical powder and you can not tighten the drum screw far enough to stop it. The static problem goes away with use, just don't wipe with a rag.

You can't go wrong with the RCBS it's a hoss, they'll be digging those things up 10,000 yrs from now and wondering what the %# is it.!

I use powder mica or graphite to speed up the curing process on a new measure also make sure to disassemble and clean any new measure!

I'm wondering since Lee has"seen the light" and has been producing the Classic series of presses if they are going to produce a top line measure to go along with the new and excellent quality presses?

 

[DaveInFloweryBranchGA]

If you want the most versatility and quality, buy a USED RCBS Uniflow for the situation you describe. I had a Redding I gave to my son and when I needed another measure of that type, I picked up a used Uniflow for a whopping 30 bucks. Works great and I don't have much or any significant money invested in it. Ironically, I needed a couple small parts to replace older ones with worn finish. I called RCBS and tried to buy them. They refused to sell, but sent them to me for free.

Dave

 

[cracked butt]

If you are going to use very finely granulated powders, the LPPM is not the way to go- a RCBS Uniflow is much better. If you are going to use extruded rifle powders, the LPPM will work a lot better than the uniflow.

I would reccomend a lee auto disc- can be set up on a single stage press with a case activated die along with a LPPM to cover all of the bases for powder charging.

 

[Seafarer12]

Another vote for the uniflow, the extra money is well spent. Get a small cylinder for it too.

 

[specops]

Soybomb,

If you are going to use a Lee hand loader why not use a set of Lee dippers as well. They have been proven to be very accurate time and again in the trade rags. Scoop, scrape and dump can be done just as fast a using a measure and lots cheaper. As you stated you plan is to use a hand press then volume and speed can't be a motivating factor in loading the ammo anyway.

If cpttango30 truly does have an RCBS that will hold +/- .1 gr with any powder then he has one of the most accurate on the planet. I've never seen any rotary measure that would do that especially with large extruded powders that need to be sheared. The bigger issue is how accurate do you really have to be? Unless you are shooting 1000 yard matches then it isn't worth worrying about. A couple of pieces of teflon tape fixed the occasional leak of ball powder in my Lee. My RCBS and Lyman will normally stay within .5 grain with most powders as will the new Franklin Arsenal. The Lee AutoDisk also works within those same parameters on both my Lyman and Lee turret presses and my Lee Progressive. If you want to really get serious you could plunk down a couple hundred and get a Bell & Mullen or a Harrell or Carter. If you are only trying to feed an AR plinker or make practice rounds for that 10mm then any of these will more than meet the need, let your wallet be the motivating factor.