Frankford Arsenal Intelidroper use report

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fingers284

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a couple of the boys expressed an interest in a report on my new Intelidroper powder scale/dispenser so, after three sessions totaling 550 rounds I have a fairly solid opinion on the machine. 550 rounds isn't a big sample compared to what a lifetime length of usage will provide so "longevity' isn't a viable consideration yet.

I will base most of my opinions on a comparison to my old Lyman DPSll powder distributor that has served me well, with a few idiosyncrasies from time to time, for more than 15 yrs. "Why didn't you purchase another Lyman" is a valid question...short answer is that some of the features of the Frankford seemed to address those idiosyncrasies...and the price point, the new Lyman appears to have the same operational functions of the old one and is, landed at my door, $170 more.

First the "pro's" of the new machine...so far has proven to be super accurate in powder dispensing the powder I use, in those 550 rounds I had a total of 3 "overs" and no "unders" as the trickler automatically and very precisely brings it to the target weight. The 3 overs were very inconsequential to me as only one of them was a solid scale reading of 0.1 gr over, the other two bounced back & forth a couple times between target weight & 0.1 before settling on the "Over" message on screen. With my old Lyman I would have, on average, 3 or 4 "overs" in every 50 rounds or so.

That scale on the new machine is super sensitive compared to the old one. The old one, you had to directly blow on the platen to get it to go off balance but not this one, if you are directing regular breathing to the platen from a short distance will knock it off balance by 0.i g, a hard breath will make it jump 0.5 g. Once you are aware of this it is easy to guard against any air current interference. There is a plastic platen cover that comes with the machine but it is a pain to use for multiple powder throws so just sitting back a ways works for me.
There is one feature that this new machine has that I think is the reason it's throw ratio is so much better than my old machine is the "powder calibration" feature. This operation regulates the speed that the machine drops different powders at different speeds...it is forewarned of how fast different kernel configurations fall from the tube so trickle speed is timing is better initiated. My old scale (and the new Lymans as well from what I can see) has one speed of dispersal and cant differentiate between course from fine granulations. With my old scale. using some course stick type powders, I had to target 0.5 gr under what I wanted and manual operate the trickle button for the rest... so far the new machine does it all every time, other than the 3 overs mentioned.
Like the scale, the touch screen is super sensitive to touch, no hard tap required here, just a slight, light touch. There are a few operational issues that arise from this. There seems to be a "safety lockout" that is triggered if you happen to touch a task button accidentally that isn't recognized by the machine as a relevant operation to what it expects...the touch screen will stop accepting orders until you cancel previous load & go through the scale balance procedure again and re-enter your target again.
Another feature I really like is the "auto pour" function. Just pour the charge out of the pan and replace on the scale platen...soon as it "0's" itself it pours the next charge. My old scale had to be "entered" manually every charge, The new one can be operation this was as well but the option for automatic is sure nice.
Frankford advertised this unit as "the fastest powder dispenser available" but I'm not sure this is true in one sense. My old scale definitely delivered a charge slightly faster than the new one but when you take into account the amount of "overs" that need to be re-done with the old one, the new one, over a given time frame will deliver as many accurate loads I think. With the new machine I averaged, a solid just under 30 seconds per charge over all 550 rounds. Balance beam scales aren't even in the same ball park as far as time management is concerned and so far this machine has proven to take the accuracy lever to a new level .
 
I was concerned about timing out with the first post so will offer up my "cons" in this one.

Operationally, I don't have much concerns for the new machine other than the touch screen lock-out will shut you down for a couple minutes doing a re-calibration & powder calibration over again.

The sensitivity of this scale isn't a concern but it needs some consideration when setting up for use, your scale stand has to be separate from your loading bench (my old one did too) and the bench has to be rock solid...no bounce to the base...not even a vibration possibility or it wont stay zeroed...Quite frankly, if you don't want to provide a solid base, your better off with a balance beam set-up. Also your base must be level to the world so the machine sits level from the start. There is a built in level bubble indicator but the four screw out base screws dont provide much adjustment if your base is out of plumb to begin with.

There are two cons with this machine that have come up, one bugs me a lot, the other is inconsequential to me but might be a big thing to others.
The one that bugs me is the clean out spout on the machine . The spout open& close cap is a joke and on my machine is very hard to manipulate ( could be very easily remedied by manufacturer adding a couple of butterfly wings to the rubber cap), very hard to manipulate to open while trying to hold a jar under the spout, and when you do get it open the powder bridges inside the drain tube continually. When you do get the drain open and powder running the hopper inside the machine isn't designed or formed to run powder completely out without a lot of brushing to get al the powder to run down the spout and because of the bridging that happens you never really know if the drain tube is empty of all powder. An inconvenience to say the least but not insurmountable to the point that i would condemn the machine totally ....I just got a wide mouth funnel from the shop and tip the entire machine up to drain all the powder from the hopper.

The second "con I have isn't with the machine at all and is more or less inconsequential to me but if the advertised free "app" that is offered is your reason to buy an Intelidroper....save your money. If the App is your "hucklberry" read all the "opinions" you can find first.
The app didnt interest me at first but then I thought if i could do the requisite warm up by turning the machine on while still upstairs would be a convenience i would like.
From the opinions I read after trying to download indicate that if you use an Android phone , you are in for a frustrating adventure, I-phone users have an easier time to connect but once connected most folks are dismally impressed with the app itself. It took my Android 4 days to actually connect. After the app downloaded it just remained dormant for the 4 days and then miraculously connected .
I discovered that the app has no function to turn the machine on from a distance...only the hard wired on-off switch on the machine will turn on for warm up.
Even the parts of the app that work are a disappointing failure to me. there is no operation provided to enter custom load items such as bullet weight or design . The app is loaded with very vanilla parameters that manufacturers provided to the app producer. I shoot 99% cast bullets and i cant custom enter a single one of them....nor can you enter loads for a non-standard caliber that they don't list in the menu provided...wildcats or obsolete calibers don't exist in their world...they even neglected to offer probably the most used caliber overall in North America, the 30-06 is missing from the menu!!

All in all, the app not withstanding, i can see no reason not to recommend the Intelidroper as an alternative to the much more expensive competitors on the market.
 
The cap is easier to open when you pull on it while turning anti-clockwise. A brush is supplied to clean from inside the dropper but I use a longer painting one instead. Finally lift the dropper from the back while the pan is still in place. This will entirely remove the powder from the dropper.
 
oldrodder said:
Fingers:
Where did you buy this?
Thanks.
Click to expand...

Amazon.ca Ordered Aug 6 and shipping was estimated to be until Aug 22-26 but it was at the door within 4 days of order date.

E-bay has them listed cheaper but all US shippers and adding exchange it worked out more in the long run. We paid just under $400 Can to the door.

These distributers are a bit costy but with factory loads $3 each more than our reloads and a time savings of most of an hour per 50 rounds over balance beam method...the first 550 rounds in the first week & a half, i consider it already amortized down to "0" already.
 
GunsNotPuns said:
Is there any programmability to the unit (i.e. being able to adjust parameters like throw speed)? Have you had any issues with certain powders in it?
Click to expand...

It has a powder Cal function, which when used, will give the optimal speed for a given powder. No problem with any powder for me.
 
^^^this^^^

I have used the thing to load the 550 rounds with the same powder (5744) but did a short "throw test " with 4064, a powder that my old Lyman was prone to throw "overs" using and this machine was as accurate with it as it was with the 5744...albeit a very small test.

Guns' from my research if you want to be able to custom set your powder feed speed, the Hornady machine is your huckleberry....but at over a $200 premium over my machine I didn't think it worthwhile.
 
Mine runs flawlessly with RL-7, RL-15, RL-19, H-4198, H-4831, Varget, IMR-4064, IMR-4451, IMR-4831, VV N-140, VV N-540, TrailBoss,

Very fast and I use it for powder charges from 12 grains for 45/70 to 106 grains for 470 Nitro Express with maybe 3 over charges (0.1gr) for the last 1000 loads.

I do not have any problems with the scale staying zeroed although I always let it warm up for 15 minutes before using. I do not have any problems emptying it. Move it to the edge of my workbench. Empty the powder through the side. Run the dispensor to get the last bit out of the feed tube.

I paid less than $300 for it from Amazon and if it goes tits up I'll buy another in a flash.
 
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I got mine a little over a year ago for just a hair over $200. Overall, its been great. I have a precision scale (0.01gr accuracy) and I use the frankford to throw the charge, then trickle on the precision scale.

The scale is throwing repeatable charges. I'm uusally only trickling a couple kernels. I calibrated it using the same weights as my precision scale but it still throws charges about 0.04 light. Doesn't really bother me because I trickle up anyway and its a very consistent 0.04.
For a large case capacity (like 300wsm, etc.) I wouldn't even worry about trickling, Id just dump and go. For smaller cases (.17rem, etc.) it's not quite good enough and you'll see some vertical in your loads.

Cons:
I probably get an 'over" once every 100 rounds or so.
App is non-functioning for me (android).

Overall, good bang for your buck. At $400 it is a little on the high side, but that goes for just about everything these days.
 
A little update;

So the machine continues to work very satisfactorily and I am pleased with it....but that damn phone app...

I think this needs to be addressed by the company because it can be a dangerous situation developing by just erroneously hitting the wrong button. As I said in the original post, the app contains no vehicle to turn the machine on from a remote location (so it can be warming up while I'm still upstairs)...yesterday I discovered that that is not entirely true. The "scale" does not turn on remotely, nor does the touchscreen activate...but the rest of the machine is entirely operational from afar. This might seem innocuous on the surface but with the scale not operational and you accidently hit one of the action buttons on your phone that action is activated and without a scale reading to shut it down it just keeps augering powder out the tube if powder is in the hopper. I was sitting beside the machine when I discovered this so no harm but I discovered after starting the machine by the app, the 'cancel" button is still dead....the only way to kill the action is to unplug the power supply. With my phone i could start the machine with all 3 action buttons, load, trickle, and powder calibrate but could not stop any of them. The powder calibrate would unload a full hopper in a couple minutes if you weren't there to physically shut the power off as once it hits the "high speed" it stays on that speed until the power is killed.

Also, I was playing with it the other day and for the life of me I cant find any way to delete a load once it has been entered .

Like I said, the machine itself seem very good but that damn app will be removed from my phone soon as the granddaughter comes to visit after kindergarten.
 
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