RCBS Chargemaster Link review

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gunlaker

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I bought one to replace my Lyman DPS 1200 that died.

Short story... Save your money and buy something else. The Chargemaster Link is worse in almost every way. RCBS tries so hard to be the fastest dispenser that they completely screwed it up.

With Varget it dispenses too much powder about 1 out of every 4 or 5 charges so the charge has to be dumped back in the hopper and re-dispensed.

With ball powders it shoots the powder all over my reloading bench as it bounces out of the pan.

I've had to disable the auto dispense feature as it has, several times, started dispensing powder at high speed all by itself before the pan is back in place. If you let it, it would them empty the whole hopper onto the floor.

Piece of sXit :).

If it dispensed at 3/4 the speed, and if the auto dispense feature was disabled it would be a great scale, but it's not. I'd way rather have my old Lyman.

Chris.
 
I have the Hornady auto charge pro and I really like it, not perfect and with some stick powders like varget it does over through but you can change the dispense speed and slow it down , overall great unit and I got it for a good price .
The Rcbs has 3 models and apparently the top match master is good but have also heard the link is trash but I guess you get what you pay for
 
I've found that when I level the unit so it is sitting slightly nose up, the issues of overcharging with Varget or other stick powders largely go away. I might get one in 20 that go 0.1gr over asking.
 
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Oh, as a not so funny aside, I lost 1/2lb of H4350 because I tried to pop the reservoir cover off one handed and accidentally lifted the whole plexiglass tube out of the unit. What a disaster.
 
gunlaker said:
I bought one to replace my Lyman DPS 1200 that died.

Short story... Save your money and buy something else. The Chargemaster Link is worse in almost every way. RCBS tries so hard to be the fastest dispenser that they completely screwed it up.

With Varget it dispenses too much powder about 1 out of every 4 or 5 charges so the charge has to be dumped back in the hopper and re-dispensed.

With ball powders it shoots the powder all over my reloading bench as it bounces out of the pan.

I've had to disable the auto dispense feature as it has, several times, started dispensing powder at high speed all by itself before the pan is back in place. If you let it, it would them empty the whole hopper onto the floor.

Piece of sXit :).

If it dispensed at 3/4 the speed, and if the auto dispense feature was disabled it would be a great scale, but it's not. I'd way rather have my old Lyman.

Chris.
Click to expand...
Hopefully, you can take it back?
 
I used the Chargemaster lite for a few months to dispense varget and h4350, didn't experience that extreme situation you described, maybe 2-3 times overthrow in a row the most.
But I found even I dispense using AutoTrickler v4, I still see the same thing happens all the time.
 
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gunlaker said:
I bought one to replace my Lyman DPS 1200 that died.

Short story... Save your money and buy something else. The Chargemaster Link is worse in almost every way. RCBS tries so hard to be the fastest dispenser that they completely screwed it up.

With Varget it dispenses too much powder about 1 out of every 4 or 5 charges so the charge has to be dumped back in the hopper and re-dispensed.

With ball powders it shoots the powder all over my reloading bench as it bounces out of the pan.

I've had to disable the auto dispense feature as it has, several times, started dispensing powder at high speed all by itself before the pan is back in place. If you let it, it would them empty the whole hopper onto the floor.

Piece of sXit :).

If it dispensed at 3/4 the speed, and if the auto dispense feature was disabled it would be a great scale, but it's not. I'd way rather have my old Lyman.

Chris.
Click to expand...
RCBS has great support. The 1-800-533-5000 and email will be on the back of the instruction pamphlet. Pacific time.
If there are issues with the unit not level, unstable or air drafts, they can contribute to function issues. Over-under charges are often caused by air drafts and vibrations of the work surface.
 
Are there programming speed hacks for the Link like there are for the original Chargemaster 1500?

I know I did some reprogramming on my old 1500 and it had way better speed and accuracy afterwards.

Rather than a straw in the tube hack I made an endpiece out of brass on my lathe. Great for extruded powders. I see the Link no longer has the threaded inside tube so I doubt the straw hack is required,
 
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gunlaker said:
I bought one to replace my Lyman DPS 1200 that died.

Short story... Save your money and buy something else. The Chargemaster Link is worse in almost every way. RCBS tries so hard to be the fastest dispenser that they completely screwed it up.

With Varget it dispenses too much powder about 1 out of every 4 or 5 charges so the charge has to be dumped back in the hopper and re-dispensed.

With ball powders it shoots the powder all over my reloading bench as it bounces out of the pan.

I've had to disable the auto dispense feature as it has, several times, started dispensing powder at high speed all by itself before the pan is back in place. If you let it, it would them empty the whole hopper onto the floor.

Piece of sXit :).

If it dispensed at 3/4 the speed, and if the auto dispense feature was disabled it would be a great scale, but it's not. I'd way rather have my old Lyman.

Chris.
Click to expand...
Contact RCBS, their warranty is second to none.

I've been using RCBS products for over 45 years now, I wouldn't use any other brand. I have two RCBS 1500 Chargemaster Combo powder dispensers. Never an issue like you have described. They've always worked perfectly with no issues.

Sorry to hear yours isn't working properly, get RCBS to make it right. These units can run $750.00 a piece, and up.

RCBS has treated me very well when the odd warranty issue came up. I think twice in over 45 years. They sent me new parts, no charge, and no shipping fees.

Unfortunately in todays world, people experience good, bad, poor and great customer warranty service from various manufacturers. It depends on that manufacturer and the person you get on the phone, email or otherwise. Some cranky folks out there........:(

I wish you luck!.......:)
 
I second Thunderhog's sentiment. I run the dual tube Matchmaster. I failed to read the instructions and the corrosive nature of some flake pistol powder started to melt the clear plastic hopper. They sent me a new one for free. I was only trying to purchase a new one and was honest that it was my mistake. It was in my mailbox one week later at zero cost just the time to call. I wish all companies had that kind of product backing and support. I called them earlier this month because the app stopped working on my Iphone. Turns out apple isn't providing updates/support for my old i7. I know it's time would be up soon with the new ai stuff happening it kinda turned into a dinosaur overnight as the apps have to stay current to the new teck. I'm sure they will get you sorted out. Cheers
 
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I have the rcbs supreme, not the really expensive one, its around 700$. Used to have the rcbs 1500 one, and i would say this one is somewhat faster, and usually more accurate. The odd time with really big extruded powder, it will go 0.1 over. Not even really varget, more like imr 4198. I reloaded a few batches of h4831sc lately, and it was bang on. With small ball powder its even better.
 
I have and still use a RCBS Chargemaster 1500 for quite a few Years . A Buddy made me a Brass screw in discharge nozzle which helped the throw accuracy a lot - I pretty much use it for all my Hunting rifle ammo .
I bought a NEW AT V4 system last year for my Match ammo - its is EXCELLENT ! I dont think it can get any Better ! RJ
 
gunlaker said:
I bought one to replace my Lyman DPS 1200 that died.

Short story... Save your money and buy something else. The Chargemaster Link is worse in almost every way. RCBS tries so hard to be the fastest dispenser that they completely screwed it up.

With Varget it dispenses too much powder about 1 out of every 4 or 5 charges so the charge has to be dumped back in the hopper and re-dispensed.

With ball powders it shoots the powder all over my reloading bench as it bounces out of the pan.

I've had to disable the auto dispense feature as it has, several times, started dispensing powder at high speed all by itself before the pan is back in place. If you let it, it would them empty the whole hopper onto the floor.

Piece of sXit :).

If it dispensed at 3/4 the speed, and if the auto dispense feature was disabled it would be a great scale, but it's not. I'd way rather have my old Lyman.

Chris.
Click to expand...
Better trade it in on this one ! šŸ‘šŸ˜€RJ

https://shop.rcbs.com/matchmaster-powder-dispenser/
 
Knock on wood but my Lite is running good, max of 3 drops discrepancies plus/ minus every 50 drops, warned up for 20-30 mins before dispensing
 
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