I'm wanting to upgrade from Lee's powder scale to maybe RCBS 1500 digital scale and dispenser. First of all do I need both the scale and dispenser or just the scale? Also is there another digital scale that I should be looking into? Lyman has a really nice looking setup. The Lee scale is accurate but if you happen to move the scale it changes the zero setting and this can cause inaccurate loads. Any advice is appreciated, just don't say not to move the Lee .

You can use the scale seperately but would need it to use the dispensor. They use an infarred signal to communicate between each other (older model) whereas the new models plug into each other. I have an old model that I use for load development. Its just too slow for regular reloading for my use. PACT used to make RCBS's old model and there newer model is made in China. I read a product review some years ago just after Lyman introduced there setup and there was some accuracy concerns with it. Very vague but seems was something to do with operating temperature or along those lines affecting accuracy of dispense.

Actually Lee's powder scale is one of the most accurate I've used and Like hailstone I have the older RCBS electronic scale and dispenser made by PACT. I've also got an RCBS 10-10 and it's not near as accurate as the Lee.

http://i136.photobucket.com/albums/q172/faucettb/Reloading/RCBSdispandscale.jpg

Some folks just use an electronic scale and throw a charge near the right weight and use a trickler to trickle to the correct charge. You can do that with a standard scale and mine is set up to work that way if I need to.

http://i136.photobucket.com/albums/q172/faucettb/Reloading/LeeSafetyscaleoncustomholder.jpg

My Lee scale is set up on a steel bracket at eye level and can't be moved around easily which solves a lot of problems. You may find that helps with any scale.

I just got an RCBS Chargemaster, and I also used a lee for years. I loaded 50 different rounds two weeks ago (10 .308's, 10 .45-70's, etc) and ALL the charges were DEAD on!! I checked the first five (all of them) then every fifth one after and they were all on the money. Most enjoyable reloading experience I've had in EONs.

My .02 worth. :D

Thanks, until I get a Chargemaster I will make a spot like Bob did for the Lee scale. If it isn't moved it stays zeroed but things get a little crowded and cluttered at times.

I guess it was about a decade ago that I purchased the RCBS powder scale and dispenser. It required calibration for each powder, and it was somewhat slow, but it was accurate and it has measured a lot of powder charges for me thru the years.

Now with dividing the year between Gainesville Florida and the U.P. I had to duplicate a lot of my reloading gear. I purchased Lyman's 1200 DPS II and it had a lot of newer features that made it superior to my old RCBS unit; namely, it was all-in-one, no more problems with the cord getting in the way of the lazer light port, no more calibration proceedure, and it was faster than the old RCBS scale & dispenser. Last year I upgraded to the III version and it is faster yet. The down side with the Lyman unit is that they recommend a 30 minute "warm-up" before using (you can by-pass this if you wish), and the clean-up is more complex than with the old RCBS unit.

I'm still using both the RCBS and Lyman 1200 DPS III, as I am satisfied with their performance. It is important to note that these scale & dispenser units are labatory quality instruments. They need to be placed on a solid, level surface, away from stray air currents, vibration, and wide temperature ranges. these issues are the major reason why some re-loaders do not get satisfactory performance.

8iowa is right about protecting the electronic units, and I'll add one more item to his nearly-complete list: stray radio waves.

Mine is (or was) extremely sensitive to my neighbor's amateur radio. When he hit his transmit key, my RCBS digital scale de-calibrated itself. Every time. He finally moved away (whew!) but I still get stray events when it needs to be re-zeroed if a major appliance kicks on. The clothes dryer is one.

But if you keep them level, clean and free from air, vibration, temp swings and radio transmissions, you'll love them. BTW, balance beam scales can be just as finicky about air, temps, dust and static electricity, so they aren't trouble-free, either.

I have the more recent version of the PACT. They made it several times faster than the old version, and while it has to learn each powder, once it does, it is as accurate as the scale, and quick. Their web site has a chart comparing its speed with the old one mentioned above. Scroll down on this page (http://www.pact.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=14&Itemid=126) to see it. The main advantage I see to units like the RCBS is the integral draft shield. The PACT scale, despite asking you to do a 20 minute warm up, is not drift free, so you will need to do some zeroing regularly.

If you want the best scale alone, it is going to be a genuine lab grade scale (http://www.sinclairintl.com/cgi-bin/category.cgi?category=search&item=10-1230&type=store), which none of the above actually are. That scale and the CED pocket scale (http://www.cedhk.com/show.php/Object145) are the only two I am aware of that use real lab 4-point load cells to elimenate all position sensitivity and mitigate drift. The Dillon Terminator is now made by CED, and may well be the same style? I don't have one, so I can't vouch for it. The Acculab scale linked to above actually keeps its load cell powered on 24/7 to avoid the warm-up issue. It resolves 0.02 grains, instead of the usual 0.1 grains. That makes it air and static charge (on the user) sensitive, despite its two wind screens. I recommend you go to Radio Shack and get a static dissipating wrist strap to wear while using these units if you can.

The CED Pocket Scale drifts the least of the 0.1 grain resolution scales I've owned. Better than the PACT or Lyman, for sure. At the range, the CED seems least sensitive to the environment. The PACT and the Acculab I have mounted on a $15 cheap Chinese 9"×12" granite surface plate with filtered power to both. I have been monkeying around with Faraday shields for these devices, but haven't yet come up with a convenient combination shield and wind screen, which is what I really want. Meanwhile, I keep them well away from flourescent and compact flourescent lamps. Incandescent only sharing the same breaker line and/or within 25 feet. Radio transmitters, likewise. The Faraday shield would stop all that RFI.

The Lyman dispenser combo seems to have fewer issues than the RCBS combo and it’s almost $100.00 less expensive.<o:p></o:p>

This review helped me make up my mind. I purchased the RCBS 1500 Chargemaster combo and like it a lot.

http://www.6mmbr.com/powderdispensers01.html

Thanks to everyone who replied. I just bought a RCBS 1500 Chargemaster combo on Ebay. I will see how this turns out and will post the results after I use it some.

Got my RCBS Chargemaster in yesterday. I can't wait to try it out.

Hey, doctor duck, can you elaborate on what you mean about the Lee scale changing its zero if you move it? I've not had this issue with mine (that I know of) but would like to prepare for something I wasn't expecting?

MZ5,

Any beam balance scale will change zero if you change the level of the surface it is on. If you move it between two identically leveled surfaces and place it in identical orientation with respect to the slope of those surfaces, it should not change zero. That said, I have a couple of beam scales that, when they were new would hit the same zero every time, but that developed a hysteresis over time, such that they will be off about a tenth of a grain depending whether the beam settles from above zero or below it. I thought that might be due to oil and grease getting into the knife edge through the air, and tried cleaning them, to no avail. It is apparently the result of microscopic loss of sharpness. If the knife edge wears into its fulcrum notch, it gains friction due to the greater contact area.

Ahh. I was thinking in terms of a bump as opposed to moving it from place to place, and I was thinking of some potential issue with the scale itself. Certainly a balance beam scale will 'lose its zero' if its base is tilted from one measurement to the next, but that doesn't fit in with my assumption of there being a repeatability problem with the scale. Thanks for clarifying.

Just meant if it is moved from one spot on a table to another, it must be recalibrated. The same would go for any scale.

Finally, I had time to use the new Chargemaster combo. Let me just say this about it, SWEET! Boy, you set your desired load, pour it in your case, reset powder pan on the scale and before you get the bullet seated it has another charge of powder waiting for you. I posted on another thread about RCBS customer service, as I had to send back the one I purchased on Ebay. RCBS will take care of any problem you have with their equipment. Like I said SWEET!