I decided I could speed things up a bit if I had matching powder pans. That way, after my ChargeMaster Lite finished dropping powder, I could swap in an empty pan and it could start while I charged the cartridges.
I ordered in these powder pans (https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B09KY7ZNM2/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1) from Amazon due to their sterling qualities (there were 3 of them and they were cheap). I thought because they were all made by the same company and possibly from the same lot, they would be close in weight. I was wrong. That makes sense, no reason for QC in that regard.
Initially I decide to file down one of the tabs on the heaviest pan to equal the lightest pan. Good plan in theory, but in reality, a lot of material was going to need to be removed. Maybe I should have relocated my scale to the workbench in the garage and gone to work on it with the belt sander, but I decided to take a different path.
I cut up an aluminum can, zeroed my scale to the heaviest pan, then proceeded to put my donor aluminum sheet metal in the lightest pan and trimmed and weighed and trimmed and weighed until the scale zeroed out (matching the heaviest pan). I did the same with the middle weight pan.
A savvy reader will already see the problem looming over the project at this point. How to attach the aluminum tabs to the pans? I didn't want them inside the pan, added to every powder charge. I could glue them to the bottom of the pans, but the weight of the glue would throw them off. What to do? I decided to tape the tabs to the bottom of the pans and I would add tape to the third pan of equal mass so that all three pans would weigh the same exact amount. I cut three pieces of packing tape to fit the bottom of the pans, weighed and trimmed them until all three weighed the same, then applied the tape+tabs (just tape to the heavy pan) to the bottom of the pans.
I would say the project was an unmitigated success. The pans weigh exactly the same as measured on my Creedmoor TRX-925. I've checked them multiple times now and they still match. There has been no powder accumulation under the tape. The pans are flat enough that they work fine on both the ChargeMaster and on the scale.
A friend was over a few weeks ago for a loading session. I weighed powder charges, dropping powder with a RCBS Uniflow, trickled up, then handed the powder charge off to him to charge the case while I got busy with the next powder charge. Worked great. BTW, it is definitely faster to drop powder with the Uniflow than for the ChargeMaster to do the job when working in this fashion. Working by myself, I'll let the ChargeMaster do the work.
I ordered in these powder pans (https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B09KY7ZNM2/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1) from Amazon due to their sterling qualities (there were 3 of them and they were cheap). I thought because they were all made by the same company and possibly from the same lot, they would be close in weight. I was wrong. That makes sense, no reason for QC in that regard.
Initially I decide to file down one of the tabs on the heaviest pan to equal the lightest pan. Good plan in theory, but in reality, a lot of material was going to need to be removed. Maybe I should have relocated my scale to the workbench in the garage and gone to work on it with the belt sander, but I decided to take a different path.
I cut up an aluminum can, zeroed my scale to the heaviest pan, then proceeded to put my donor aluminum sheet metal in the lightest pan and trimmed and weighed and trimmed and weighed until the scale zeroed out (matching the heaviest pan). I did the same with the middle weight pan.
A savvy reader will already see the problem looming over the project at this point. How to attach the aluminum tabs to the pans? I didn't want them inside the pan, added to every powder charge. I could glue them to the bottom of the pans, but the weight of the glue would throw them off. What to do? I decided to tape the tabs to the bottom of the pans and I would add tape to the third pan of equal mass so that all three pans would weigh the same exact amount. I cut three pieces of packing tape to fit the bottom of the pans, weighed and trimmed them until all three weighed the same, then applied the tape+tabs (just tape to the heavy pan) to the bottom of the pans.
I would say the project was an unmitigated success. The pans weigh exactly the same as measured on my Creedmoor TRX-925. I've checked them multiple times now and they still match. There has been no powder accumulation under the tape. The pans are flat enough that they work fine on both the ChargeMaster and on the scale.
A friend was over a few weeks ago for a loading session. I weighed powder charges, dropping powder with a RCBS Uniflow, trickled up, then handed the powder charge off to him to charge the case while I got busy with the next powder charge. Worked great. BTW, it is definitely faster to drop powder with the Uniflow than for the ChargeMaster to do the job when working in this fashion. Working by myself, I'll let the ChargeMaster do the work.
