Frankford Arsenal....

[JEBar]

we have and still use the manual RCBS powder measurer that came with our Rock Crucker back in the mid 60's .... after throwing untold tens of thousands of charges of powder, it still performs flawlessly .... more recently we purchased a RCBS chargemaster combo .... it is extremely accurate .... its only negative is with some powders it can be a bit slow .... that said, it isn't slower than having to trickle a few grains of powder into the pan .... all things considered, its now our go-to method of loading powder

[Hatchdog]

Yeah the RCBS one is on my Christmas list. I might hold out for it.

I recommend holding out for the RCBS. I bought the Lyman version at the local Sportsman’s Warehouse and found it to be very inaccurate so returned it for a refund. Earlier this year I ordered the RCBS from Natchez Shooters Supply for $329.00 and so far it’s been wonderful. I’ve loaded ball powder, med spherical powder like Varget and light spherical powder like 2400 and it had dispensed all with great accuracy. They are a bit slow but not as slow as my previous method of dispensing a few tenths light with a Uniflow, dumping onto a platform scale, trickling up to the load and then pouring into the case. I enjoy the few seconds it takes to bring the charge up to the charge dialed in, I can take a swig off my coffee cup or just enjoy the moment.

[JEBar]

I recommend holding out for the RCBS.

agree

[Headhog]

The gentleman in that video (GunBlue490) has forgotten more about shooting, reloading and hunting than most people will ever know. What is important is the technique. You must operate that powder cylinder in a positive manner. That way you will slice cylindrical powder evenly. If you hesitate and have to use more pressure on the handle, you will over or under charge the case. It's a very quick motion of the handle - from stop to stop.

I usually charge 50 rifle cases at once and they will not vary more the + or - 0.1 gr. I've been using this GunBlue490's technique for 40 years and it works for me. From the way I see it, I don't like spending money on equipment I don't need - when I can achieve the same results with what I have.

Paul

[Kissmybrass]

Well anything is better than what I'm doing now. I don't mind slow though. I do small runs of 45-70 and .357 so time will tell.

[Rifletom]

Good video on the Uniflow. Using a baffle with the small drum helps also.

[clovishound]

The nice thing about the old school mechanical powder measures and balance scales is that, if well made, they will continue to deliver consistent, accurate results for decades to come. The digital products are suspect of doing that. I have a small Frankford Arsenal digital scale. It is very convenient and easy to use. I also have a quality balance scale to use when I suspect the digital scale is not giving me correct results, which it does from time to time. Double checking the digital scale is part of my routine, and the balance scale is the last word when making critical measurements.

For loading rifle ammo, I use a bench mounted powder measure and weigh each throw. Throwing and measuring powder is the least time consuming aspect of rifle ammo loading. I doubt that the high dollar digital powder measures are any more accurate than a good, properly used balance scale. I also doubt that accuracy to more than .1 of a grain makes enough difference to anyone not engaged in high level competition measuring groups with a caliper.

I'm not throwing stones at the digital measures, as many use and enjoy them. I'm sure many of them do a great job for their owners. There are other ways to skin that cat for less money, and potentially more long term reliability.

[Hatchdog]

As I have progressed thru various powder measures and scales I always keep the old one for the reasons you brought up. I still have my RCBS 505 beam scale I got in the early 80’s. But, while it’s been several years since I have used it I think doing a visual look at the beam indicator against the scale has to be not as accurate as a digital scale which is properly calibrated and zeroed. For me, when I load rifle ammo it’s usually around 100 rounds at a time so the speed of the electronic dispensing scale is helpful. I’m loading for the bench not for hunting, using any scale for loading the quantity most load for a hunting application should be just fine.

[John E Davies]

I agree with Hatchdog, I use the two calibration weights to zero/ calibrate the digital scale after letting it run for an hour to stabilize, and I never move it once calibrated. I think I still have my old beam scale, but I haven’t seen it in a looooong time.

John Davies
Spokane WA