duct tape Posted January 22, 2011 Share Posted January 22, 2011 (edited) What are other's experience with the way N320 meters? I've read it's a pretty good metering powder but while working up a starting load for a new .40 limited gun, I've had weighed charges ranging from 4.3 - 4.8 grs, with most averaging around my starting load of 4.5 gr. This is surprising to me since on my 550 my open load with 7625 meters within +/- .1 grain pretty much for an entire load batch. Thx. Edited January 23, 2011 by duct tape Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott Steele Posted January 22, 2011 Share Posted January 22, 2011 (edited) I have good experience with N320, started using it last year. At first I weighed every 25th round to make sure it was right, now I weigh every 100th and it is consistently 4.4 - 4.5 for 180gr .40 major. Edited January 22, 2011 by Scott Steele Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott Steele Posted January 22, 2011 Share Posted January 22, 2011 I,m using Dillon 650. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wooddog Posted January 22, 2011 Share Posted January 22, 2011 I have had the same experience with it being very consistent. Check your powder measure. I had an issue with n133 and ended up polishing the funnel. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarge Posted January 22, 2011 Share Posted January 22, 2011 Yeah something else is going on. 320 meters great for me. Never off more than .05 for me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alpha-charlie Posted January 22, 2011 Share Posted January 22, 2011 +1 on good consistency. I'm usually only off by .1 I just adjust for .1 over and after a few dozen rounds it levels down to my desired charge weight. 650 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob DuBois Posted January 22, 2011 Share Posted January 22, 2011 Try polishing the funnel, I used Simicrome polish purchased at a motorcycle parts store and a wad of Q tips. Had a hard time with Solo 1000 bridging in 9mm till I did the funnel polish. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G-ManBart Posted January 22, 2011 Share Posted January 22, 2011 I've weighed a lot of N320 charges thrown from Dillon measures (four of them), and they tend to be within .1gr. It's not the shortest stick powder, so it's never going to be perfect, but it's pretty good. Something to consider is that most scales only go to one decimal place, so if your measure is set at 4.5gr and it throws one that is 4.55gr, it's going to round up and show 4.6gr. The other thing is that technique does make a difference with powder measures...smoothly, consistently operating the press will work best. After setting the measure, I like to run off ten or twenty charges, dump them all back in the hopper, then throw ten, weigh and average all ten to get an accurate average (usually do this three or four times, so it's really an average of 30-40 charges). Using that method, I've gotten SD numbers on the chrono under 5 a number of times. R, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jrb06 Posted January 22, 2011 Share Posted January 22, 2011 Have used it on a Lee auto disk, Dillon 650 and 550 all with very good results and very little variation. Use it to load 40 and 45 I weigh about every 50th or so and have always seen no more than .1-.2 between them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gng4life Posted January 22, 2011 Share Posted January 22, 2011 I just switched over to N320 (mostly due to G-Man's recommendation) and I'm loving it! I have 8lbs of it (about 7.5 left) and so far, I have never been off more than +/-.1 grain in my 550B. I have three powder measures and my brand new one is the one throwing the N320. Except for the price, I'm loving the feel, the response in my STI/M&P/CZ guns. I can't believe how clean it is - the cleanest of any powder I've ever used and it smells good In short, no problems here with my 550B and N320! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ncboiler Posted January 22, 2011 Share Posted January 22, 2011 N320 meters great for me but I also use the Unique-tek micrometer powder bar. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gng4life Posted January 22, 2011 Share Posted January 22, 2011 N320 meters great for me but I also use the Unique-tek micrometer powder bar. Technically, it's an Arredondo powder bar and they add on the micrometer. I have one of them too, they are great, going to get my others converted soon... N320 is also fine in that one for me, I just tried it out a few minutes ago... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CocoBolo Posted January 22, 2011 Share Posted January 22, 2011 Oil in the drop tube cause the power to clump up in there and cause problems. Clean the measure and the drop tube. N320 meters great in the 650 and he LNL. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duct tape Posted January 23, 2011 Author Share Posted January 23, 2011 Thx for replies and advice. The powder funnel is new, in fact the entire caliber conversion kit is new, fresh out of the box and now on my 550 with the .38 SC on on the stand. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duct tape Posted January 23, 2011 Author Share Posted January 23, 2011 (edited) Also, I live in Colorado where in the dry, cold winter there's lots of static electricity. Could static be an issue? I've noticed several residual grains in both the powder cup and brass when I weigh individual loads, which I try to get completely out. I've never noticed any powder stuck to the side walls of the powder container but maybe in the tube or powder bar? If so, any solutions? I could wipe the inside of the powder container with a laundry Bounce but that wouldn't affect the drop tube. Thx. Edited January 23, 2011 by duct tape Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duct tape Posted January 23, 2011 Author Share Posted January 23, 2011 (edited) I caught up here at work and had some time to do some searches and found these which seems to answer my question. I'll keep looking for some more search results if more time opens up. My apologies for not doing so from the outset. Thx for all help. http://www.brianenos.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=111680&st=0&p=1274083&hl=static%20electricity&fromsearch=1entry1274083 http://www.brianenos.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=56169&st=0&p=651592&hl=static%20electricity&fromsearch=1entry651592 http://www.brianenos.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=39810&st=0&p=453696&hl=static%20electricity&fromsearch=1entry453696 And Tom Freeman's (fellow Coloradoan) post about polishing powder measure and ant-static: http://www.brianenos.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=41727&hl= Edited January 23, 2011 by duct tape Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duct tape Posted January 23, 2011 Author Share Posted January 23, 2011 (edited) G man, I have a question about the logistics of how you run of 10 or 20 charges and measure them. For discussion, assume I'm talking about the 550 set up here: Do you run each brass through stations 1 and 2, and (with the locater pin removed) remove them from the powder station 2 after each charge? Or do you go to 3 (obviously adding no bullet) and check them there, or all the way around the cycle and out to the bin? The latter would perhaps be the easiest but catching the shell before it drops down the slide spilling the powder into the collection bin seems problematic. I expect the answer is to check them at station 2 after the powder drop, but I have the hardest time getting my hand into that location to remove and/or replace brass. Thx. Edited January 23, 2011 by duct tape Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A63111 Posted January 23, 2011 Share Posted January 23, 2011 I do the same thing with 10 drops. For me before I start loading I remove the pin from station 2. Then using an old case with a spent primer drop 10 charges, usually poring them into a RCBS powder funnel 2 at a time. FWIW with 320 in a 550B with the fart knocker powder system there is usually less than .2 variation from 2 groups of 10. I have not moved my charge for some time and never see any larger variation. I do occasionally check drop weights during the course of loading but never find a large variation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blaster113 Posted February 4, 2011 Share Posted February 4, 2011 N320 metered well for me in my 550 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Graham Smith Posted February 4, 2011 Share Posted February 4, 2011 Don't go to fast. Check the powder bar and make sure that it is smoothly moving completely front to back when you charge. Are you using a standard or undersized sizing die? In either case, make sure that you are getting a full stroke. Rezize and prime a case and move it to station two. Put another case in station one and resize and but don't prime, that will charge the case in station two under the load of resizing. Remove the charged case and weigh the powder. Repeat this with a new case in station one, nine more times. Repeat the whole process with no case in station one. If you are getting a lot of variation in the first test but not the second, then you are not getting a full stroke. If you are getting a lot of variation in both tests, then something is wrong with the powder measure. If you are getting a lot of variation in the second test but not the first, then I have no idea what's wrong. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harmon Posted February 4, 2011 Share Posted February 4, 2011 you need to make sure you take the backlash in the charge bar out by opening it up past the desired charge weight, then adjusting the volume of the charge bar down to your desired charge weight. this will take out the backlash in the threads. if you do not do this, the bar will just "float" back and forth in the slack that is in the threads. the floating bar would cause varying volume thus varying charge weight. it should throw powder charges within 1/10 a grain. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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