Digital electronic scale vs. balance beam report.

bakerboy

bakerboy

New member
I hand weigh all my loads. Purchased an electronic scale to weigh/sort brass. After studying several models, they all seem to weigh to 0.1 gr. Then I decide to start weighing powder as well. Heck, 0.1 gr ain't gonna make any difference......right? Wrong! Wrong! Wrong! My accuracy is off I'm guessing about 0.5 to 0.75 moa. Now if it were a single gun, I'd be unsure, but it's .223, 25-06 and .308 in different guns. I never had a good feeling when using the digital. Add a lot of powder and nothing happens, then add a fleck and it changes 0.3 or remove and reweigh and get a different number. It's back to the beam for me.
Now if somebody made one that measured to 0.01, that might be a different story.
 
Thanks for the report. I am in the process of buying scales & other things right now, so this is good info. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/bowingsmilie.gif

I was looking at the digitals.......now I wonder..... /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/confused1.gif
 
I have two digital scales.

I use them to weigh cases. I use a beam ballance to weigh powder charges and to set the measure.

.
 
I have two digital scales.

I use one of them to weigh cases. I use the other to work up charges at the range (it works on batteries).

I use a beam ballance to weigh powder charges and to set the measure.

.
 
I must have gotten lucky. I have tested my Cabela's Digital,
and once it warms up, and I calibrate it, it has been
consistent to within +\- .1 grain. If I don't let it
"warm up" before I calibrate it, then I have had problems
with zero shifting and maybe a +/- .3 gr varience. I just
watch for this, and if it happens, I re-do every charge
that was weighed. As a matter of fact, I am so happy with
this digital, even with it's quirks, I put my mechanical
scale in me wife's rummage sale, last Spring.

Mechanical scales are not without their issues, too.

Squeeze
 
I have found if you are weighing a known amount (such as a 43.7gr powder charge) balance are quicker and less finicky. If you are weighing changing mass (such as Remington made cases /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif[I couldn't help that one]) a digital is much quicker.
 
Since I bought the RCBS Chargemaster I have sped things up 10 fold. I'm not too terribly worried about a tenth of a grain since I'm not shooting competitively, and I'm still getting .40 groups.
 
I have the balance beam RCBS and the Pact Digital. I use the digital for weighing bullets and cases but prefer the balance beam for powder . I trust BB more than the Digital. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/confused1.gif
 
All electronic digital scales are not created equal! I have been reloading for more than 40 years and now use the RCBS Chargemaster and wouldn't go back to weighing each charge on a balance beam. I have checked mine regularly versus a balance beam and another electronic scale and never have I found it off.

There could be many reasons why your accuracy is off. A + or - .1 or.2 grains will not effect accuracy. Outside temperature, powder lot, bad day at the range, etc. etc. ... is more likely.
 
Been using digital scales for years to weigh powder charges and everything else. The potential for problems with a beam scale are every bit as present as with a digital.
My Dillon Dterminator will weigh consistently with my RCBS 10-5-10 everytime.
If .1 gr. is making some kind of distinquishable difference at 100 yd.......that would borderline incredible. The cases would vary much more than that in capacity and resulting pressures.
 
I've been using the Pact scales since 1993, that's 13 yrs and NOT ONE SINGLE PROBLEM with them! I recaliber it once a year and that's it.

They weight right on with my RCBS twin beam scales.
 
I gotta agree with Sam, skb and coyote,

I been at this for about 34yrs. or so, and I've always used the balance beam.
Yep, it's been a pain in the butt, and I can surely remember weighing each and every charge. That took forever on those big loading session.

Then after reading numerous articles and books on powder charges and books on loading for matches, etc., I found that many of the guys shooting long range matches were using "thrown charges". Many of them load their match ammo on a Dillon progressive.

Geeze, how could that be ? Weighing has got to be more accurate than a thrown charge, right ? No, not necessarily.
The main difference is the comparison...volume vs. weight.

Well, I thought, what the hell, that doesn't make sense, a volume has to be the same if the weight's equal.
It was always hard for me to perceive it otherwise, but volume loaders, weigh every few charges at first, then spread those checkpoints out a given distance. They make a visual check on the cartridge, and that's it.

Mostly this is used in handgun loads, or small rifle loads where a lot of ammo is used. I still load my large rifle calibers one at a time, because I don't shoot a great quantity of them.

I finally broke down and bought one of the Lyman DPS1200 powder scales, and like the RCBS ChargeMaster, it's a downright dream.
Every once in awhile, I cross check it with the old Lyman balance beam I've got, and bingo.....she's right on the money.

If accurately cross checked and verified, a digital scale is far more consistent than a balance beam. I say that with the added comment that the digital scales, unless used steadily, have to be checked more often. Somehow, sitting idly, my scale will beep to be re-calibrated, and once done, it'll be fine as long as I'm using it. If I stop, and let it sit idle for 10mins or so, it'll beep to be calibrated again.

I'll say one thing, I've spent many years with that balance beam, and it's accurate. But I never realized how much time I spent with the powder weighing and all that, until I bought that digital powder scale.

As you get older, powder tools just make life a whole lot easier......

Take care,
Bob
 
I have the RCBS Chargemaster and could not be more pleased.It sure speeds up the process and like everyone else I was checking it against my balance beam scale i have had since 1978 and it seems to be very accurate.
 
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