Most accurate scale in the $300-400 range?
- Thread starter dastt
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I use a 20 dollar scale from eBay.
Supposedly a jewelers scale. Measures within. 01 grains. No problem.
I would say it's pretty Damn accurate measuring random stuff. All I know is the 5 gram weight it came with measures exactly 5.0 grams.
Verified five grams from another scale. Bless both are wrong.
Supposedly a jewelers scale. Measures within. 01 grains. No problem.
I would say it's pretty Damn accurate measuring random stuff. All I know is the 5 gram weight it came with measures exactly 5.0 grams.
Verified five grams from another scale. Bless both are wrong.
Yeah, but does it weigh individual kernels?
yes, provided that the kernels are heavy enough
yes, it does.Yeah, but does it weigh individual kernels?
Honestly, my 35$ ebay scale weights every kernel I throw at it.... it works fine, really. Every time I dump a kernel, it adjusts the weight.
But it's precise to .02, not .1
Chargemaster is next for precision bolt though.
Volume dumping is good for pistol or ar15 only.... boom boom ammo.
I bought one a few months ago after Jefferson mentioned them. I had been thinking of ordering one from the US where they're almost double that price to bring in. No idea how they got such a good deal on them in Canada when we usually pay more for everything.
It's a real scale, fairly heavy cast AL body, built in level which is important, frankly a lot more than I was expecting for $400. Does require some care with air movement as it is very sensitive, what I've been doing is only removing 1 side of the shield to get the pan in/out. With this scale I no longer ask myself " what if I had a better one ", though as it turned out the Winstead peters scale I was using was surprisingly accurate for its low cost so long as I calibrated it regularly and watched for any sign of drift, as in within +/-3 kernels which would be the rounding point for a .1gr scale.
Note: It does not come with a calibration weight and if a person was to use one to calibrate to a standard(not very relevant for what we do with them, nor does it need to be recalibrated every few rounds or everytime its turned on like a cheaper scale) it needs to be a ASTM class 1 or 2 weight, not the usually class 7 inaccurate ones that come with cheaper scales. You can use a cheap weight to see that it always reads the same weight for it going from its initial zero(say 100.234grams), but do not use it to calibrate this scale.
Don't get me wrong, because I'm all for accurate equipment but if you need to weigh individual kernels then you have done your load development incorrectly.Yeah, but does it weigh individual kernels?
If you are on an accuracy node then even +/- 0.1 grain shouldn't make any difference in POI.
I am feeling really deprived now. My RCBS scale cost less than $100, and only weighs charge accurately to tenths of a grain.
Ted
Well the gem pro I have weighs to .02gr but I've learned to ignore that last digit after tiring of cutting kernels in half to get that EXACT measurement..........
We are talking about a difference of 0.2% on a 25gr load and 0.1% on a 50gr load.
Are your cases sorted by water weight (internal volume) to within 0.2%?
So is the chargemaster worth it at .1 grains or would you go freak to still weight to .02?
Or volume dump 1 grain under and trickle the rest?
When I used to shoot 300 win mag, I just dumped the powder with the lee volume dumper, and I was getting some serious POI changes.
Weighted the charges and I was sometimes throwing 1 grain under or 1 grain over. Sick, almost 2 grains off.
IMR4350 mostly.
Or volume dump 1 grain under and trickle the rest?
When I used to shoot 300 win mag, I just dumped the powder with the lee volume dumper, and I was getting some serious POI changes.
Weighted the charges and I was sometimes throwing 1 grain under or 1 grain over. Sick, almost 2 grains off.
IMR4350 mostly.
While I am not sure about the accuracy of the RCBS Chargemaster when it comes to dumping exact charges, this is a little experiment I did with the RCBS digital scale.
I threw 10 charges and trickled them up to exactly 46.0 gr according to the RCBS scale. I then reweighed them on my Acculab VIC123 scale
1st batch 46.0, 46.06, 46.08, 46.02, 46.04, 46.06, 46.10, 46.08, 46.04, 46.06
So I waited a couple hours and ran the same test, thrown charges trickled up to 46.0 on the RCBS digital scale and reweighed on my Acculab
2nd batch 46.18, 46.08, 46.20, 46.10, 46.12, 46.14, 46.12, 46.08, 46.08, 46.12.
The target weight I am looking for is 46.0 but I will accept 46.02 gr because I am not cutting kernals of Varget. While the RCBS scale said all the charges were right on the money at 46.0 only 2 charges from the 20 where in my acceptable range.
If this was hunting ammo, I wouldn't have a problem seating a bullet and shooting it, it would be accurate enough. However I am loading this for long range competition and trying to make it as exact as possible.
I threw 10 charges and trickled them up to exactly 46.0 gr according to the RCBS scale. I then reweighed them on my Acculab VIC123 scale
1st batch 46.0, 46.06, 46.08, 46.02, 46.04, 46.06, 46.10, 46.08, 46.04, 46.06
So I waited a couple hours and ran the same test, thrown charges trickled up to 46.0 on the RCBS digital scale and reweighed on my Acculab
2nd batch 46.18, 46.08, 46.20, 46.10, 46.12, 46.14, 46.12, 46.08, 46.08, 46.12.
The target weight I am looking for is 46.0 but I will accept 46.02 gr because I am not cutting kernals of Varget. While the RCBS scale said all the charges were right on the money at 46.0 only 2 charges from the 20 where in my acceptable range.
If this was hunting ammo, I wouldn't have a problem seating a bullet and shooting it, it would be accurate enough. However I am loading this for long range competition and trying to make it as exact as possible.
Far be it to tell someone what the should or should not do, but .02gr is neither here nor there. Prove it to youself (and me as well! ;.)). Load 2 batches, one at 46.0 and 46.02.... heck why not go all out and make the second batch 46.04, and shoot them at whatever distance you want and see if you can notice any difference between the two.
Coffee or beer is on me if you can show where .02gr or .04gr makes a noticable difference.
Coffee or beer is on me if you can show where .02gr or .04gr makes a noticable difference.
THIS!!!! I cannot comprehend the anal approach to powder weight, the least significant factor in accuracy.
Many BR shooters simply shoot thrown charges [not weighed] and shoot 1 hole 10 shot groups on a regular basis at 100, 200 & 300 yards.
I shoot 1000 yards, and cannot detect a difference in elevation between a 48.2 grain load and a 48.3 grain load at 1000.
Cheers, Eagleye.
You were reading my mind!!!
.02 gr won't make a difference. .2 gr might. My little experiment above shows that the RCBS scale will drift and will show that you have 46.0 gr but when weighed on a better scale the 46.0 is really anywhere from .08 to .2 gr heavier.
When reloading for long range shooting I like to take out as many variables as I can (or that I can stand to take out) I don't batch my cases by volume, only by case weight. I have 2400 Lapua cases, so batching by volume would be a career. I guess the other thing is that I have the tools (scale) to weigh charges this close, so why not? It it the same reason I use Redding dies and competition seater dies. No reason I couldn't use LEE dies but I find the Redding dies make more concentric ammo.
Maybe one of the most important things about this whole exercise is that mentally, my ammo it better than yours. Not saying it is, but in my mind it is. It's all part of the mental preparation of shooting, knowing that you have done everything you can to make the best ammo for the match.
When I tested the Acculab next to the certified analytical balance at work, I found that it drifted as much as ~0.05gr. from what it was displaying. So, I wouldn't rely on it as an accurate way of quantifying another scale's accuracy. Scales like the Acculab use the same technology as the cheaper reloading scales, and in many cases, they are no more accurate. The analog-to-digital converter measuring the load cell has the same resolution. The more expensive scales often just have an LCD display that shows more decimal places.
Any instrument has the capability to be more accurate than the smallest number it displays if the operator is up to the task. While a cheaper scale may not be able to display the weight of a single kernel of powder, a single kernel of powder will consistently cause the display to change at the same point +/- the scale's drift (which may be the same or not much worse than that of the scale displaying more decimal places).
If you want to be anal about charge weights, go the length and get a good magnetic restoration scale...
Any instrument has the capability to be more accurate than the smallest number it displays if the operator is up to the task. While a cheaper scale may not be able to display the weight of a single kernel of powder, a single kernel of powder will consistently cause the display to change at the same point +/- the scale's drift (which may be the same or not much worse than that of the scale displaying more decimal places).
If you want to be anal about charge weights, go the length and get a good magnetic restoration scale...
