New reloader - scale question

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I'm a new reloader and have learned so much from the helpful folks here, so THANKS for that. I thought that I was all set with the digital scale that I have, as I had been using it to weigh gold with and it was extremely accurate. The issue I discovered last night when trying to get my Lee Classic Turret press set up with the proper disc for the amount of powder that my load called for was that even though the scale measures in grains, it's only in FULL grains. That's not going to work when you're needing 4.3 grains of powder! So I need to buy a new scale for reloading.

It seems to me the choices are the Lee safety powder scale, which might be adequate but seems that setup can be a little trying and the scale itself seems a little quirky in operation. I would PREFER a digital scale....just easier. What it seems on the digital scale side of the fence is that you either get a cheaply made (Chinese made) digital scale that MIGHT be accurate to 1/10th grain, or a big dollar digital scale that's PROBABLY accurate to 1/10th grain. I really don't want to spend $100 or more on a scale.....so what would you guys recommend?

Thanks in advance,

Warner
 
You might get a different answer from each poster on this one.

I am not a fan of cheap electric scales, but I am not a fan of that Lee beam either(It is as accurate as any, but can be frustrating to use.).

If I had to pick an electric and money was an issue I'd probably go with uniquetek's $64 scale, it has a 20 year warranty. It requires batteries, and that means they always need to be fairly fresh to operate with any reliability.

If you decide to get a beam the Dillon one or RCBS 505 are pretty much the same thing and quite adequate(Around $80). The Lyman Pro 500 can be had for a few dollars less($55) and will do as well(needs weight added to the base because it is light weight). I have the Lyman and it works fine, it agrees with an old M5 Ohaus scale I picked up recently and also my check weights(A set of known weights for piece of mind isn't a bad thing to have.)
 
GT1 said:
You might get a different answer from each poster on this one.

I am not a fan of cheap electric scales, but I am not a fan of that Lee beam either(It is as accurate as any, but can be frustrating to use.).

If I had to pick an electric and money was an issue I'd probably go with uniquetek's $64 scale, it has a 20 year warranty. It requires batteries, and that means they always need to be fairly fresh to operate with any reliability.

If you decide to get a beam the Dillon one or RCBS 505 are pretty much the same thing and quite adequate(Around $80). The Lyman Pro 500 can be had for a few dollars less($55) and will do as well(needs weight added to the base because it is light weight). I have the Lyman and it works fine, it agrees with an old M5 Ohaus scale I picked up recently and also my check weights(A set of known weights for piece of mind isn't a bad thing to have.)
Click to expand...
Great response...thanks GT1.

Warner
 
The Lee scale is not for everyone. If you are far sighted, have ham hocks for fingers or were not brought up with vernier calipers, it is a total pain to use. If you are near sighted, don't mind taking apart a camera lens and reassembling it, or learned to do calculations with a slide rule, you can do as well with this scale as you can with any $100 beam scale.

If you decide to use it, learn to use the little plastic lock button to set a weight, then adjust your measure to drop the powder that will put the pointer right on the line. You will easily be within 0.1g on your weights.

Also remember to zero the scale before each session.

Beware of the sub $100 electronic scales, especially anything under $30 or so. Electronic scales are prone to voltage fluctuations in the AC lines, battery droop, fluorescent lights, RF interference, air currents and other variables. Other than that, their fine :)
 
I had been using it to weigh gold with and it was extremely accurate. That's not going to work when you're needing 4.3 grains of powder!
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Thats not going to work when gold is $1,711.99 and ounce either!!
Thats $3.91 a grain! Or .39 cents for 0.1 grain.

If I dabbled in gold, and reloading?

I'd spring for the best scale I could buy.

In digital, this new scale from Berry sounds tempting.
http://www.berrysmfg.com/product-i14859-c107-g8-b0-p0-ACC_2000_Digital_Scale.aspx

You probably already blew off more then the price weighing gold with your old scale.

rc
 
rsrocket1 said:
The Lee scale is not for everyone. If you are far sighted, have ham hocks for fingers or were not brought up with vernier calipers, it is a total pain to use. If you are near sighted, don't mind taking apart a camera lens and reassembling it, or learned to do calculations with a slide rule, you can do as well with this scale as you can with any $100 beam scale.

If you decide to use it, learn to use the little plastic lock button to set a weight, then adjust your measure to drop the powder that will put the pointer right on the line. You will easily be within 0.1g on your weights.

Also remember to zero the scale before each session.

Beware of the sub $100 electronic scales, especially anything under $30 or so. Electronic scales are prone to voltage fluctuations in the AC lines, battery droop, fluorescent lights, RF interference, air currents and other variables. Other than that, their fine :)
Click to expand...
Hahaha.....thanks rsrocket. Maybe I'll start with the Lee scale, learn how to use it, and if I end up throwing it against the wall, at least it wasn't very expensive.

Warner
 
rcmodel said:
Thats not going to work when gold is $1,711.99 and ounce either!!
Thats $3.91 a grain! Or .39 cents for 0.1 grain.

If I dabbled in gold, and reloading?

I'd spring for the best scale I could buy.

In digital, this new scale from Berry sounds tempting.
http://www.berrysmfg.com/product-i14859-c107-g8-b0-p0-ACC_2000_Digital_Scale.aspx

rc
Click to expand...
Actually the scale that I was using for buying and selling gold (Jennings JSV-Dually) was EXTREMELY accurate. It was always RIGHT ON when compared to the big dollar scale that the refiner weighed my pieces on. I could not have been happier with it....just wish it went down to the tenth of a grain. I trust it COMPLETELY for grams and troy ounces, though.

Warner
 
I think rsrocket is right on the money. Take a look at the RCBS Range Master 750, just a bit over $100 last time I looked. I test it against a Lee scale occasionally and it stacks up well. Been using it about four years now without a problem.
 
Correct me if I'm wrong but isn't powder measured in avodoupis (sp?) pounds and gold is measured in troy pounds? If you measure in troy grains you will be underthrowing your charge. I'm an engineer and I couldn't stand the Lee Safety scale. I tried it once and put it up on eBay. Until I recently purchased a RCBS Charge Master I was using either a Lyman 500 scale or the $30 Frankford Arsenal digital scale. With the Lee Auto Disc measure you have a couple choices:

1. Use the disc setting just under your desired load
2. Buy the double disk kit and you can stack the discs to get the charges in between what you can get with a single disk
3. There is also an adjustable charge bar thing that lee sells that goes in place of the disc that uses a screw adjustment.

Currently I'm using option 1 with my Deluxe Turret press for reloading 9mm, 45acp, 38/357 and I'm getting decent accuracy. My variations in technique are going to far over shadow variations in powder charges.
 
soloban said:
Correct me if I'm wrong but isn't powder measured in avodoupis (sp?) pounds and gold is measured in troy pounds? If you measure in troy grains you will be underthrowing your charge. I'm an engineer and I couldn't stand the Lee Safety scale. I tried it once and put it up on eBay. Until I recently purchased a RCBS Charge Master I was using either a Lyman 500 scale or the $30 Frankford Arsenal digital scale. With the Lee Auto Disc measure you have a couple choices:

1. Use the disc setting just under your desired load
2. Buy the double disk kit and you can stack the discs to get the charges in between what you can get with a single disk
3. There is also an adjustable charge bar thing that lee sells that goes in place of the disc that uses a screw adjustment.

Currently I'm using option 1 with my Deluxe Turret press for reloading 9mm, 45acp, 38/357 and I'm getting decent accuracy. My variations in technique are going to far over shadow variations in powder charges.
Click to expand...
First off....you are correct....gold is measured in troy ounces which are different from the ounces that folks are used to here in the USA. The scale that I have doesn't measure in "troy grains" (if there even IS such a measurement)....it measures in grains, but just doesn't measure down the the tenth of a grain so I can't use it.

I do have the double disc kit and may experiment with that. What I was doing last night, just to check the charge the press is throwing was to put 10 charges on the scale and divide by 10 to see if the individual charge was correct. I would NOT load ammo using this method, though. Nor do I trust the scale that I have to measure precisely enough.



Warner
 
If you get an electronic scale you will need a manual scale such as Ohaus to check it with...jmho
 
I used the Lee safety scale the first day I reloaded. It's back in it's box on a shelf somewhere. calling it a PITA isn't really enough. After that first use I immediately drove to Sportsman's warehouse and bought a Redding balance beam scale.
For my needs, I haven't felt the need for a digital scale. I am skeptical about their long term reliability. It seems to me that any trustworthy scale is going to cost real money. The $25-$35 scales full of cheap chinese built electronics strike me as false economy.
Good quality measuring equipment is seldom a bad investment. Like so many things in life, you don't have to spend a lot, but spend enough.
Whatever you end up with, order check weights for it (if they're not included).
 
The troy ounce is 480 grains.
The avoirdupois ounce is 437-1/2 grains.

Grains are the same, and exactly 0.06479891 gram
 
Whether you go with a digital or beam scale, you'll need a set of reloading check weights to verify it's accuracy.
I use the Lyman deluxe set. It showed me that my RCBS 505 wasn't as accurate as I had thought.
 
I would rather trust a bottom of the line balance beam scale over the most expensive digitial scale hands down.
Click to expand...

I think a beam is a beam and gravity doesn't change much, so I agree.

But if one is going to get an electronic scale they might as well get a decent one with a warranty for years, or lifetime.
I like this one: http://www.brianenos.com/store/be.scale_hp.html
 
I would rather trust a bottom of the line balance beam scale over the most expensive digitial scale hands down.
Click to expand...

If you're taking meds you're putting your trust in an electronic scale. Folks used to say the same about the hand held calculator.
 
After 3 years my RCBS 750 has started wandering. Can't trust it now for anything, it's just another paper weight. I bought a Dillon from Brian Enos. I find the beam scale to be just as quick as the digital and more trustworthy. To set zero, I use check weights nearest the charge I intend to be throwing.

I suggest you don't waste time and money on the Lee. I suspect that the number of people who are happy with it pale in comparison to those who are not. And yes I have one.
 
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I was around during the slide-rule to scientific calculator transition. The early ones had LED displays and battery life was terrible. With LCD's, calculators instantly had a useful endurance and could be run on watch batteries. So the change to calculators wasn't smooth, and it didn't happen overnight.

I don't know why "low cost digital scale" and "reliable digital scale" seem to be mutually exclusive terms. I suspect it is an attempt to sell something for the lowest possible production cost, at a price that people are willing to pay. The problems with stray EMF, power supply voltage fluctuations, etc. aren't immediately apparent, so they continue to sell.

Like the calculator example, digital scales may improve. A field-rugged, accurate digital scale may be marketed at a reasonable price. The problem is, IMO, people keep buying the cheap scales. (!) As long as that continues, there isn't really any pressure on the manufacturers to quit trying to sell junk.

I had a digital scale, and it gave steady readings for a few years. Then it started to drift. Fresh batteries, no fluorescent lights, no air currents. It seems the strain gauges are bedded in epoxy and this can harden or fail in time, and then you have wonky behavior. And you can't do anything about it.

Mechanical scales aren't perfect, either. You still have to watch air currents. They have to be leveled. But if you keep the agates clean and don't nick up the knife edges, they will just keep on running.

I got a RCBS 10-10 and, for what I use it for, I'm not sure I'd go back to using an electronic scale. If I had to start weighing cases to segregate them, or any other application where I was doing hundreds of weighings instead of a dozen or so in a session, I'd steel my nerve and invest in a quality digital scale.

But I'm never going to buy another cheap one.
 
After the RCBS 10-10, their slightly smaller version, the 5-10, s a great scale - mine has been in use for 35 years with perfect results every time and no need for batteries or worrying about the fluorescent lights causing a misread
 
I purchased a cheap digital, it wasn't consistent and now it resides in the back of the closet. Check eBay for a used RCBS or ohaus beam scale That's what I did and love the RCBS.
 
I guess I'm one of the few who has no issues with the Lee scale just be sure it is on a level surface and zero it each time you use it. Set it for the weight you want to throw and set the lock. For small batches I use a dipper close to the weight I want and trickle up from there.
T
 
I used the Lee scale, Did not like it and sold it.
Bought a RCBS 5-0-5 and never looked back. Think it was about $70 W/Shipping.
I know you mentioned electric scale but the only advice I can offer on that is don't get the little Chinese cheap ones. There nothing but a waste of money in my personal experience.
 
Blue68f100 said:
Now If I had to buy again I would look at this one 0.02gr.
Click to expand...
Only thing is that most powder measure will drop within .1 gr and the OP is using a Lee Auto Disk (I hope it is the Pro Auto Disk model).

I am surprised that NO ONE has mentioned the importance of using check weights! :eek: IMO, regardless of scale type (beam or digital), use of check weights in the powder charge range to verify the accuracy of scale readings is crucial. $27 is cheap insurance if you are pushing near max/max load data. ;)
212586.jpg

I have used Lee Safety Scale and although it is accurate, I almost threw it against the wall several times when my patience wore thin (I still have it to calm me down when I get frustrated while reloading ... for some reason, looking at it and then looking at the Ohaus/RCBS 10-10 puts a smile on my face and calms me down :rolleyes::D). I have used other reloaders' Ohaus/RCBS 5-0-5s and Dillon Eliminators and highly recommend them for accuracy/consistency and ease of use. I haven't used the RCBS 5-0-2 (also with magnetic dampening) and looks like a viable beam scale option at $61.

As to digital scales, I can only speak of the cheap $20 MidwayUSA DS 750 models I have used (The model I have has been replaced by a new model). It is accurate to .1 gr but compared to my Ohaus 10-10 and Lee Safety Scale, it is more like .2 gr (can I remind everyone on the use of check weights? :D). I use the digital scale for faster sorting of rifle cases and bullets. Some complain about the "speed" of beam scales, but I can check the zero on the Ohaus 10-10 scale and be weighing powder charges before the digital scale even turns on and tare with the powder pan (seriously, it just takes a few seconds but calibrating the digital scale with the calibration weight will take a few minutes).

BTW, digital scales are sensitive to temperature. Mine came with (59F-95F / 15C-35C) temperature range and I use it indoors. Some reloaders who used the same scale in the hot/cold garage reported having issues but not since they started using them indoors. Also, keep a spare battery handy when your digital scale starts to act funny. ;):D

If you are looking to buy USA made digital scale in the sea of Made-in-China digital scales, I would take a look at Berry's scale - https://www.berrysmfg.com/product-i14859-c107-g8-b0-p0-ACC_2000_Digital_Scale.aspx
 
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