Lee Scales and powder measures.. your chance to reccomend or not.

07blackwater said:
I don't know what he's got so far but Henry at Budget shooter supply has a pretty decent lee classic turret press kit in right now. It's $50 cheaper than regular retail. If I was just starting out it's what I'd buy and it has everything to get him going for $250 except for dies. http://www.budgetshootersupply.ca/frame.cfm?ItemID=477&CategoryID=19

I'm using the lee scale right now and I kinda hate it. I can get it to weigh 'somewhat' accurately but it's a process that goes like this:

1) Pour powder into scale
2) Wait forever for scale to settle
3) Add more powder/remove powder as required, tap scale
4) Wait forever for scale to settle
5) Scale says too little powder
6) Trickle powder into scale, scale doesn't move. Tap scale, scale reads too much powder.
7) Remove some powder, tap scale
8) Wait forever for scale to settle
9) Scale says add powder
10) Trickle in some powder, tap scale
11) Wait forever for scale to settle
12) Say F@$k it, that's good enough and dump charge into case.
13) Repeat
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unless you weigh each bullet and determine the amount of powder needed on a per-custom-cartridge basis, that kind of process is WAY excessive and pointless. for handguns which use a low "grains" charge, that level of precision is irrelevant, and for match-grade rifle which uses a larger "grains" charge you can probably tolerate a 0.2% (or 0.1 grain) deviation from "perfect" which is all the resolution the scales will give anyways.


I haven't used my lee balance scale for a while - I do bring it out from time to time just to see if it agrees with my digital scale, but since they're both good to 0.1gn without any fuss, it tends to stay in the box.

also, if you're feeling industrious, you could always rig up a 10x lever onto your digital scale if you want it to read to 0.01gn instead of 0.1gn (but of course it'll read 45.1gn instead of 4.51gn so you just gotta move that decimal point over a bit in your head). probably overkill in light of that first point above. or cough up a few bucks for a 0.01gn-resolution digital scale that tops out at 50grains or 100grains capacity, like they use for weighing diamonds.

can you say anal?
 
My balance beam will read individual kernels of powder, not only extruded, but ball as well.

Not all scales are +/- 1 grain resolution or accuracy. With a little fine tuning, almost all balance beam scales can read this fine.
 
I used Scott Parker's method to tune my Pacific Model M, he tunes almost any scale, but works mainly on 10-10's or 505s, along with some redding scales.

They are actually very easy to tune!
 
Didital scale is so much easier and faster......Auto disk for the turret press is excellent but I could never get a consistant charge from the perfect powder measure.
 
"...and powder measures..." If you mean the scoops, throw 'em away and use the scale only. The scoops can vary the powder charge plus or minus a full grain. There are no loads anywhere, in any manual, from any company, in cc's either.
 
Thanks guys, yes, I was thinking of sending him to Henry, I had a look at the press they are putting in the kits now and it is much more press than they used to.
 
sunray said:
"...and powder measures..." If you mean the scoops, throw 'em away and use the scale only. The scoops can vary the powder charge plus or minus a full grain. There are no loads anywhere, in any manual, from any company, in cc's either.
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My lee reloading manual has starting grains in cc's so you can pick the right auto disk combination. Also, I use the scoops and have had very good results loading with them. For instance my Mosin likes 43 grains of 4895 and my 3.1 cc scoop (would have to check my notes) is perfect for that. I've scooped and weighed dozens of scoops and if you fill the scoop right up I've found it to be more then adequate for accurate loads. Might I add that using the scoop method is pretty quick once you get started.

There's a whole section in Richard Lee's modern reloading book on loading by volume vs. weight and it was an interesting read that's for sure.

Anyhow to each their own I guess. Scoops seem to be working for me and might I add that I am a bench rest shooter mostly.
 
Tinman204 said:
My lee reloading manual has starting grains in cc's so you can pick the right auto disk combination. Also, I use the scoops and have had very good results loading with them. For instance my Mosin likes 43 grains of 4895 and my 3.1 cc scoop (would have to check my notes) is perfect for that. I've scooped and weighed dozens of scoops and if you fill the scoop right up I've found it to be more then adequate for accurate loads. Might I add that using the scoop method is pretty quick once you get started.

There's a whole section in Richard Lee's modern reloading book on loading by volume vs. weight and it was an interesting read that's for sure.

Anyhow to each their own I guess. Scoops seem to be working for me and might I add that I am a bench rest shooter mostly.
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I have just thrown away the scoops I have bought with the lee die sets I have, but if a powder works at that volume it is a powder measure you never have to set... I have a bunch of lee stuff. A melter for casting, a few moulds, a few die sets, a couple chamfer tools, the lee zip trim kit and the lee auto prime, as well as bullet sizer and collet dies. All of it works. I use bullets as check weights for my scale.. If a 55 and a 90 gr bullet check out on the scale it is ok for me...
 
07blackwater said:
Just make sure he gets the 'classic' turret. It's a lot beefier than the regular one. It's steel /iron as opposed to cast aluminum.
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I'm running a classic turret press right now and am very pleased with it. I've only loaded probably 1000 rounds on it in 5 different rifle calibers and but it's worked great for all of them so far. I'm very happy with my Lee products but I'm also running some RCBS and Lyman stuff to. But for the money you really can't beat Lee.
 
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