Measuring powder with Lee Powder Measures

gobrob

gobrob

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Hi there, newbie question, i just picked up some equipment to begin reloading, and i'm a bit confused and want to clear up before i add powder to my cartridges....
I have the Lee powder measures, they are measured in c.c's, i have Unique powder, which the chart in the book and the reloading chart show that i put in 6.0 start grains for .45ACP with 230 Grain Jacketed bullet. Under the Lee dipper row it shows NA for the measure.
How do i figure this out?
Thanks, Rob
 
Get a scale quickly. Then go buy a powder measure. Even the inexpensive Lee powder measures are pretty accurate. But you need a scale first.
 
This sounds like pre-school kids measuring out playdoh.....these are fast burning pistol powders, don't take chances get a proper powder measure and a good scale! Why would anyone sell any reloading products that measure in cc???
 
If you're talking about the Lee Auto Disk, you need a conversion chart for cc's to grains. It's on Lee's page under Instructions/Auto Disk Powder Measure. Here's the link >http://www.leeprecision.com/cgi-data/instruct/AD2302.pdf<

Simply look for the powder you're using, follow it across to the grains you want (or closest to it) and go up to see the Auto Disk cavity you'll need. I throw a bunch of waste loads to get everything cycling and then check a load on the scale to see where I'm at, grain wise.

If you're using the dippers, use a similar method with the dipper chart. The dipper's don't have the in between choices like the cavities. The steps to the next sizes are rather large.

Here's the dipper cavity conversion chart.
>http://www.leeprecision.com/cgi-data/instruct/DIPPERS.pdf<

(E) :cool:
 
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ben hunchak said:
Why would anyone sell any reloading products that measure in cc???
Click to expand...

Because they work fine and are cheap. I reloaded .243 with scoops for years.

The load data that Lee provides is conservative, and the capacity of the scoops is conservative. With normal care, the load that results will be safe.

Now I have a fancy-schmancy progressive press and a whole lot more toys, because I can afford them.
 
The Lee dippers measure by volume, just as mechanical powder measures do. If the Lee table doesn't list a measure that gives a Unique charge of 6.0 grains, that's it, they don't make a measure for that charge.
You could use a powder and measure combination which appears in their table which would give the ballistics that you want. If you had a scale, you could make a measure to dip 6.0 grains of Unique.
There is a trick to using dippers to give uniform charges.
As Maynard suggested, get a scale. Then you can confirm the charges you are measuring, and check your measuring technique, to insure that it gives consistant charges.
 
THAT UNIQUE IS SMOKEY OLD stuff- try something else for everyone else's sake if you're on an indoor range- it's about as bad as shooting black powder
 
Wow, i think i'm more confused than before i asked......but i think i have my answer......
So, just to make sure, is it correct that i 'NEED' a scale, i can't measure my unique powder into my casings with the 'Lee powder measure kit' that i bought with 15 little scoops from .3 cc's to 4.3 cc's?
And thanks for the heads up t-star, i won't buy unique next time, it was recommended at the local sporting goods store, but they don't really sell much handgun re-loading equip, mostly just long gun stuff.......
 
The Lee dippers give you a good general amount, but it's not an absolute guarantee of the weight. Even with the auto disk cavities, I've noticed differences in what they say I'll get to what I actually get.

Do you need a scale? That depends on you. How confident are you of the accuracy of the charts? Has the manufacturers powder changed a bit, throwing off calculations? Are the grains you need equal to a scoop amount? If you're using multiple scoops, there'd be nothing worse than losing where you were in the reload sequence. "Did I already add that one in?"

A scale would allow you to get the 6 grains that you need, not 5.5 or 6.4. Personally, get a good scale and a powder trickler as well. A scoop to get you close and trickle the rest. It sucks trying to tap the final .2 grains from a scoop (been there, done that :rolleyes: )

My $.02

(E) :cool:
 
I use the Lee dippers and I have never had good luck with consistency.
I don't load for any pistol rounds and I weigh every charge for my rifles.
You should ask who uses what brand of powder measures for your application.
I would think that a consistent technique is also very important as I have found with the Lee dippers. I did have a Lyman powder measurer but it went in a trade for some other equipment.
I would like to know what the GunNutz feel is a good powder measurer.
And yes you do need a good scale.
257 Roberts
 
I've been using a Lee perfect powder measure for years, cheap about $30. and see no reason to upgrade. Beam scales are cheap and a must for reloading. I've never used those dippers that come with Lee die sets, I'm sure they'd work and the scale would verify.
 
gobrob said:
Hi there, newbie question, i just picked up some equipment to begin reloading, and i'm a bit confused and want to clear up before i add powder to my cartridges....
I have the Lee powder measures, they are measured in c.c's, i have Unique powder, which the chart in the book and the reloading chart show that i put in 6.0 start grains for .45ACP with 230 Grain Jacketed bullet. Under the Lee dipper row it shows NA for the measure.
How do i figure this out?
Thanks, Rob
Click to expand...

gobrob, I have a Lee Powder measure, and I can tell you from first hand experiance that you must ignore the numbers on the powder measure and what Lee tells you about the numbers on there loading data. Here is how I do it. Get a good quality powder scale, I use a Lyman 500, I bought it used but in excellent shape for $50, and it is right on the money. Although Lee produces some pretty good reloading equipment for the price, I find the Lee powder scales leave much to be desired. Next find the loading data for the calibre that you are loading, and if you haven't used that load data before, reduce it by 10%, unless the data tells you not to. Some powders list a minimum by which you can reduce there loads, but the 10% rule applies everywhere else. You can always work up to the maximum while checking for signs of pressure later on. Once you have the load data in grains, proceed to fill your powder measure hopper with selected powder. If you are loading handgun, then you will not need much powder, so you can screw your metering rod in most of the way. Set your powder scale to the desired weight for that load and drop a metered amount of powder from your powder measure. If the load is heavy or light, simply keep adjusting the metering rod on your measure until the load is just right. After that I like to drop at least 5 more charges onto my scale just to verify that the measure is set up correctly, and you're set to go. The problem with powder measures is this. 5 grains of extruded powder, meters differently than 5 grains of flake powder, and that in turn meters differently than 5 grains of ball powder. I often find that ball powders meter the best in my powder measure. One more quick note, try to keep the hopper near full, or you may find that the charges tend to lighten up a bit on the Lee measures, I don't know if the same applies to other types of measures. This system may seem like a bit much, but I can set my powder measure up in about 2 to 5 min. I also like to check the powder measure againts the scale every so often just to confirm that the measure is still droping good charges. I used to be a bit nervous and weigh every single charge, but I've come to trust my powder measure a bit more. Good luck, and have fun reloading.:)

Edit to post: sorry gobrob, I didn't realize that you don't have a powder measure. I would highly recommend a good quality scale and a powder measure. I don't recommend dippers, depending on how hard you force the dipper into the powder you may compact the powder and get inconsistent loads. The dippers are probably not dangerous, but I don't think you will get great accuracy from them. If you can only afford one thing for now, just get a powder scale. I loaded for my first 2 or 3 years with just a scale. That is the most accurate way to load!
 
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I use the dippers, a scale and trickler and measure every load. Works for me, but I don't load 100'a at a time.
 
The charge from a dipper can vary plus or minus a full grain. They're ok to get close, but not for consistently accurate powder charges.
 
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