I have a variety of loading scales. all non digital. In fact i collect scales . For Loading I have several Ohaus 314& 315
I also Use an analitical balance Voland and son and Christian Becker. Both of these will Weigh in 1/100 of milligram or 1/10000 of grain. Very impractical for loading but looks very professional on the bench. I have enclosed some photo

 

Wow. That Ohaus 314 is an impressive looking piece of equipment. My next scale will be non-digital. Other than that I don't know. I would like something a step up from the 505. It is getting now hard to tell what is quality and what is just expensive. Will have to do a lot of research before buying. I am in no hurry.

 

you really can't go wrong with any beam scale. Lyman , rcbs, hornady & others. I fine the older the scale the better it is. You can pick up an older herters or so for about $40 and will last forever with care.. I still have my first scale i purchased in the 1960's.
Ohaus still makes the best. you can still send it back to them in New jersey to repair or calibrate. most of the older ones like the one I posted have no springs or magnets just balance against a counterweight
Hope this helps
Sal

 

I have been using the replacement scale sent to me by RCBS. It is a big improvement over the one it replaced. I discovered something, though. The weight that is used to set the 1/10 grain increments on the beam will "walk" up the beam. The normal up and down motion of the beam from weighing and dumping charges is sufficient to bump the weight out of its the indention that it is setting in. It will go up and I have found myself loading an extra 1/10 grain. I am continuously moving that weight back into its slot. Now that I am aware of it I can keep an eye on that. I may send the scale back to RCBS, but I really need it right now.

Since I blew up the 41 Mag. Ruger a while back I have been revamping my methods. I now have a dowel rod marked so that I can check the depth to which a given load of powder is in the case. I check every case with that dowel before I seat the bullet. It is not meant to be an exact measure, just another check to avoid a double charge or a missing charge that I did not otherwise observe. Got this idea from another poster on this or some other forum and thought it a good one.

In checking charged cases for my 45 Colt, 9 grains of Unique, I noticed that after the 1st 15 cases I checked, there appeared to be more powder in the cases. I started weighing the charges and found the cases contained 10 grains of powder instead of 9. Sure enough, the scale was set to weight 10 grains. I know I did not bump the scale. How it got from 9 grains on case 15 to 10 grains on case 16 I do not know unless that weight is "walking" also.. I never left the bench. In fact, never left my seat. The scale error occurred early in the charging process after the 1st 15 rounds. That extra grain would not have blown up my Vaquero, but it certainly have been a problem in the right situation.

The moral here is to never let down your guard. I am going to watch this scale very closely going forward for "walking" weights on the beam. I am not yet convinced that the 1 gram weight was walking like the 1/10 grain weight, but if it is, I will find out.

 

This is the first I've heard of a drifting weight on the RCBS or any other powder scale. You have me wondering how you are weighing? Something should have to shake the scale for the adjustment to move.

 

Looking for new scale



I am using a Herters balance beam scale but it gets kind of messy with the oil getting all over it from capillary action. It appears none of the new scales use oil for dampening. Money is an object so it appears the Lee is in line. I found one comment on it, something about being hard to see the markings I believe, but it sure must be better than the black markings on mine. The Herters is dead on, I have compared to other scales to make sure. Any comments on the Lee are appreciated.

 

RCBS 304, love it. But because of all the different loads I'm testing, I got a Lyman gen 6 and I do like it once I got used to using it.

 

Since I blew up the 41 Mag. Ruger a while back I have been revamping my methods. I now have a dowel rod marked so that I can check the depth to which a given load of powder is in the case. I check every case with that dowel before I seat the bullet. It is not meant to be an exact measure, just another check to avoid a double charge or a missing charge that I did not otherwise observe. Got this idea from another poster on this or some other forum and thought it a good one.

I will not load on a progressive press without a lock-out die or a powder die. Back when the RCBS Piggy back had 5 stations, I still have two but went with the Dillon 550 B for longer cases with 4 stations. If crimping is necessary I crimp after seating on one of my single stage presses.

Scales: I have scales, I have check weights, the check weights cost more than two scales. I have gone to gun shows I have found enough parts to build a scale.

F. Guffey

 

Scales: I have scales, I have check weights, the check weights cost more than two scales. F. Guffey

So true. It's hard to put a price on the confidence they give you, though.

 

Good deal! RCBS is famous for that kind of customer support. Still, I wish he'd figured it out to satisfy our curiosity.

Figure it out? In the small group of reloaders that talk to each other share their problems with equipment. I have one foot levels that are graduated in .001" per foot and lay out tables. For micro adjust I use note pads. When it comes to drift on non electronic scales I have enough scales and spare parts to trouble shoot. Problem, when a part is needed to repair the manufacturer/distributors will not furnish/supply parts.

The scale must be returned, again, I do not know where the scales are manufactured now, I do not want to return a scale that was made here and risk swapping for a scale that is made out of the country. I spend time at gun shows looking for parts for just about everything. returning the tool back to the box it came it results in scattered parts. When someone comes in to settle an estate, they have no ideal what part goes with each tool.

F. Guffey

 

I have now had my old balance scale for nearly 40yrs. I say nearly 40 because I really cannot remember when I purchased it but know it was a very long time ago. Make, well all I can see on the frame is a large C with and H inside the C. That's it. About fifteen years ago I did buy a digital and used it for a while but to be honest it is far slower than my old balance, linked with a trickler and all of the loads resulting seem to do the job, which is all I ask.
I did make a little raised block and clip to hold the trickler over the pan which helps and I have a selection of scoops which I can choose to drop almost the required amount in the pan, then a couple of deft twists of the trickler and he!presto! job done. The digital is gathering dust.
I do occasionally , very occasionally tip a load onto the digital to see what it thinks. Always been spot on. There is a need to be pretty deft with the trickler just adding at the point the beam reaches the top of its movement stops any up and down movement. Cannot see the point in anything fancier just to load maybe a string of 50 shells.

 

I have been happy with my Lee beam scale for years. Had a Herter's once and it was OK, but no improvement over the Lee. I have a digital that I use primarily for weighing and sorting cast bullets, as the Lee only goes up to 100 grains. But then, last week, I was in my gun shop of choice, and this used Lyman D7 seemed to be calling my name from the display cabinet. I walked out with it after a bit of dealing. After setting it up and zeroing it, I started using it to work up a load with a new powder for my 9mm. Wow! It is so much easier and quicker than the Lee. Much less swinging of the beam. And it will go up to 505 grains. I checked it against the Lee and the digital I have with check weights and it is right on. I think the Lee will be downgraded to second team now. The Lyman is my new starting scale.

 

SusScrofa, your technique with the scoops and the trickler is pretty much the same as mine. I have a few pistol powders that meter precisely from my old RCBS Uniflow measure, but for everything else I use the scoops and the trickler. I tried using the large barrel on my Uniflow to measure to take the place of the scoops for stick powders that do not meter well, but the stick powder hangs on up the barrel movement and not really and advangage over the scoops. I bought those scopes in 1971 when I was a starving graduate student in Baton Rouge, LA. I lived across the highway from a prominent gun shop and was trying to shoot and reload with few resources. I came to know the owner very well. When he sold me the scoops he offered to buy them back from me at what I paid if I would exchange them for a scale. Generous, but I could never afford to do that. Glad now that I still have every scoop still in the box. I am spelling it incorrectly, but the name of the shop was pronounced Norkiour. I just checked the box. Lee powder measures for $3.95, about a dozen of them.

Regarding the walking weight on the beam, yes it does walk with use. When it moves I go back and weigh the previous charges in order until I get find all of the heavy ones. Now, I only have to go back a couple of charges, because I do watch it very close. I am careful not to bump the scale. If I bump the scale I have to re-zero.

 

The same scoop set as I have although the box et al have long gone and I think I only have three scoops left now.
This old CH balance I have doesn't move a jot. Once set everything stays there. I usually build my loads up to the maximum tied in with accuracy, so I really only need to know a starting load, whether it is precisely 34.2 grns or whatever is irrelevant to me as long as the load is consistent in weight and I do not start to see pressure signs and the group stays more or less moa.
Been pouring powder for close to 40yrs with this balance and still hitting most everything I shoot at.

 

I have been using lee safety scale since I started to reload about 15-18 yrs ago. I bought one of those frankford arsenal electronics that will do 750 grains but it drifts around way too much. Found that out by weighing charges on the frankford then hanging them on the lee some were not even close. Pretty much just use the lee now as I usually don't load more than 50 at a time.