Most accurate scale in the $300-400 range?

dastt

dastt

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Right now my scale is my weakest link in my reloading, I have just a cheap $50 hornady scale. It consistantly reads the same, but I know there is a big internal error on it, which I think is giving me some inconsistent rounds that are showing up at the range.

Any ideas on a decent scale for that price range? Just looking for something with a little less error
 
I have a bunch of scales,electronic and manual...and to me,it is the operator and very rarely the scale..

Just some quick notes on scales,the lee is a good scale,but that dampening feature they use drives me nuts,it seems to take forever to settle...most of the mechanical beam type you have to be extra careful how you set the weight.It doesnt take much to move the 1/10 scale
My electronic scales are good,Dillion and MTM....I find I always have to zero them??..but accurate when the batteries are fresh

Buy some check weights and make sure it is doing what it is suppose too


Just my 2 cents
 
I have a beam, a Mac 20 and a Chargemaster Combo.

I use one to confirm the other and have had no issues with any and as others have said some check weights are a dandy investment.

Price wise, you will not have to go over your budget to get quality and consistency.
 
oops said:
I have a bunch of scales,electronic and manual...and to me,it is the operator and very rarely the scale..

Just some quick notes on scales,the lee is a good scale,but that dampening feature they use drives me nuts,it seems to take forever to settle...most of the mechanical beam type you have to be extra careful how you set the weight.It doesnt take much to move the 1/10 scale
My electronic scales are good,Dillion and MTM....I find I always have to zero them??..but accurate when the batteries are fresh

Buy some check weights and make sure it is doing what it is suppose too


Just my 2 cents
Click to expand...


I know what you're saying, I always let the scale warm up, do the calibration check, weigh the pan, tare it, and I get the same results, but it seems as if sometimes I trickle a lot and it moves 0.1gr, and other times I trickle a tiny bit and it moves 0.2gr, or I trickle what SEEMS like 0.1gr and it doesnt even move.

I think it's time for something with a little more accuracy, that's for the website I'll check it out
 
I have a 35$ ebay scale that reads accurately to .02 grains, confirmd with the lee scale.
I keep mine plugged to prevent low battery issues.

"It consistantly reads the same, but I know there is a big internal error on it,"
? How do you know it has an internal error? Have you been checking weights on another scale? How can you tell?
Because if you can't tell, the scale might not be to blame.

That gempro 250 sure looks fine. Right now I just cant justify it because my 35$ scale works fine....
next move is probably going to be a chargemaster.
 
I can't rembember where it was but there was an article about internal error on scales. It may read 22.0gr but say it has an accuracy range of +/- 0.2gr it could be anywhere from 22.2-21.8gr

And the inconsistency can be seen when trickling powder onto the scale, it doesn't ever seem to move consistantly with the amount of powder being dispensed, I.e I trickle until it just turns over to the next 0.1gr increment, then trickle to the next as accurately as I can, then it seems like 4 individual grains fll out and it goes to the next 0.1 grain increment. There is no uniform mount of powder in relation to the weight shown on the scale.

Why else would someone pay over $1000 for a "more accurate" scale?
 
I find that electronic scales can have a hard time detecting individual kernels. What I do is trickle to close to my desired weight, then I'll lift the pan off the scale. The scale will then read the weight of the pan negative, -59.08gr in my case. I then replace the pan and get the true instantaneous reading of the charge. Then I add or subtract individual kernels to get the right weight. I use N140 and individual kernels are .0.02gr. Then do the lift-check-replace again to confirm.
 
What I do is weigh the pan, tare it, in my case it's 131.2, so I'm at -131.2 with the pan off, fill the pan with the rcbs powder thrower, set to 0.3gr under what I want and trickle the rest?


Is this not a reliable method, if I take the pan off and put it back on it still always reads the same
 
If it always reads the same and you haven't added or removed any powder, that is a good thing. Repeatability.
If you have a test weight, you can do a test. Turn on the scale, let it warm up, and then every 2 minutes weight the test weight and record the result. Do this 2 dozen or so times and it will give you a good picture of your scale.
Kernels do vary in weight, look at a pile of powder and you will see bigger and smaller kernels.
 
I still don't see the issue, but I am sure that somehow, that gempro 200$ scale has to be better than my ebay scale.

I hope it is.
 
The point is that without a set of check weights you do not know if the scale is accurate and repeatable at your actual desired weight.

For example I have the RCBS Deluxe check weight set.
It can go from 0.5 grains all the way to 510.5 grains in 0.5 grain incriments.

If I'm loading 42.5gr of Varget for my .308 for example.
I'll take 42.5gr of weight and put it in the pan of my scale to be sure the scale is accurate at that weight.
Every 10 rounds I put the weight in the pan and confirm that I'm still calibrated.
If for some reason the scale drifts you will know it.

Some of the most important points to remember when working with scales are temperature fluctuations, air currents, electronic interference for electronic scales (fluorescent lighting, cellular phones, magnetic fields) drift due to battery voltage which is why I refuse to use any scale which does not have an AC adapter.
 
AND FX-120i from cambridge enviromental, $400, + a bit of shipping/tax, magnetic restoration scale it is.
 
Huntsman said:
I bought the RCBS scale/dispenser from Natchez for $289. With duty and shipping it was under $350
Click to expand...

I have the same scale at the same place and rate it number 1, the scale automatically dispenses powder when you place the pan back on the scale. While you are seating the bullet the RCBS unit is dispensing your next charge. No more straining your eyes, trickling powder into a balance beam scale and much faster reloading times.
 
bigedp51 said:
I have the same scale at the same place and rate it number 1, the scale automatically dispenses powder when you place the pan back on the scale. While you are seating the bullet the RCBS unit is dispensing your next charge. No more straining your eyes, trickling powder into a balance beam scale and much faster reloading times.
Click to expand...

Yeah, but does it weigh individual kernels?;)
 
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