DougCarden Posted December 4, 2004 Share Posted December 4, 2004 Wow, I broke down and bought a Dillon D-terminator electronic scale to replace the Pact BBK that recently went down. It has faithfully served me for many years and will use is as an emergency spare when I get it back from rebuild. I have to say, the Dillon scale kicks it's ass, easier to calibrate, larger platen for the powder scoop, and it worked right out of the box, and I know if it doesnt I make one phone call. There is a reason almost all of my reloading stuff is Dillon Blue, the stuff works, period. If you have been trying to talk yourself out of buying an electronic scale because of the price, let me tell you the time you save from a Balance beam scale is enormous, and it makes up for the money spent in the time saved. I dont know about you, but since my second child my time is precious! My .02$ DougC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chp5 Posted December 26, 2004 Share Posted December 26, 2004 Thanks for the review Doug. I was thinking about upgrading from my beam scale, but wasn't sure I wanted to replace something that wasn't broken. I got a Christmas gift card to Cabelas (which carries the Dillon) and I think I'll give it a try. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gm iprod Posted December 26, 2004 Share Posted December 26, 2004 I sell Dillon, and more and more people are buying the Electronic Scale. We only stock the Dillon in our shop, nothing else made the grade. Go buy it you will not be unhappy, THEY guarantee it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zorba Posted December 27, 2004 Share Posted December 27, 2004 Go buy it, my loving wife was tired of watching me get fustrated using the balance beam GUESS WHAT I GOT FOR CHRISTMAS now i have the confidence to change my load as required and know i can bring it back to my competition load using the electronic scale Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChuckS Posted December 29, 2004 Share Posted December 29, 2004 Hi, My name is Chuck and I am an ex-BBK2 user. Santa just brought me a 650 to replace my aging 550. He was nice enough to include a D-Terminator. Damn, the thing was within 0.1 gr right out of the box, no calibration required! Let me explain, in using the BBK I noticed there was zero drift and a strong response to temp changes. In addition to the normal check weight(s) that are used for cal, I have a collection of objects (buttons, washers, etc) that weigh close to the charge weight that I am throwing (vrified by balance beam scale). I leave them on the scale as I work so when it is time to weigh a charge, I know the scale has not drifted. Well, with the "D" it gets pretty boring when the scale reads correctly almost every time! I do a cal each session after about 10 min warm up but I am not sure if this is necessary. Being an engineer in my day job makes me do stuff like that! One other issue with the BBK is the single point mount for the platten. The reading is somewhat position dependent and I found you really have to get things centered for an accurate reading. The "D" has a 4 point mount that seems to eliminate that sort of effect. In all, the "D" is the way to go! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kevin Spencer Posted January 3, 2005 Share Posted January 3, 2005 I received a D-Terminator for Christmas and was very exicited. However, when I went to use it, I found that it would not calibrate. So I thought no problem, Dillion is known for the warranty and customer service they will take care of it. So I call them Monday after Christmas and I they tell me they don't warrant this scale. I am told to send it back to the manufacturer. When I call the manufacture, I get a recording telling me that they will be closed until January 10, 2005. Needless to say, I am not happy with Dillion at all. I have a complete reloading room full of their products and I will have to re-evaluate if I am going to continue using their products. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gm iprod Posted January 3, 2005 Share Posted January 3, 2005 What you have had happen to your scales is unusuall with Dillon scales but being an electrical device, things can go wrong. I have had nothing but good things from Dillon over Warrantee, even the little things, this is what they usually do best. I suspect that this will be resolved. Ring Dillon again and explain the situation regarding the scale. Let them know that you are returning the scale to them for replacement. Get the persons name you are speaking to and address the problem to them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vluc Posted January 3, 2005 Share Posted January 3, 2005 I had the first version of the d-terminator, which served me well for a few years. When it no longer took a calibration, I called dillon, sent it in, and they sent me the newer version, informing me that the older one was phased out. Nothing but praise for the blue.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jasonub Posted January 4, 2005 Share Posted January 4, 2005 now i dont need one since i still use the blue scale. but the posts here are tempting me to buy one Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doggorloader Posted January 4, 2005 Share Posted January 4, 2005 I did have problems with my D-Terminator scale drifting and it is true you have to send the scale back to the manufacturer which is CED in Pensylvania for repair/warranty work. It makes sense that Dillon can't really work on the stuff they don't make. Everything else I've "broken" was sent to me no questions asked quickly and it's a beautiful thing they do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Putty Posted January 4, 2005 Share Posted January 4, 2005 Just ordered one. I have an OLD rcbs balance scale that was my Dads bought 30 years ago. Still works, but I'm with getting more speed and hopefully more accurate measurements. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
F6Hawk Posted January 24, 2005 Share Posted January 24, 2005 I received a D-Terminator for Christmas and was very exicited. However, when I went to use it, I found that it would not calibrate. So I thought no problem, Dillion is known for the warranty and customer service they will take care of it. So I call them Monday after Christmas and I they tell me they don't warrant this scale. I am told to send it back to the manufacturer. When I call the manufacture, I get a recording telling me that they will be closed until January 10, 2005. Needless to say, I am not happy with Dillion at all. I have a complete reloading room full of their products and I will have to re-evaluate if I am going to continue using their products. From a website I found... Calibration All digital scales work best when their internal temperature have stabilized to operating temperature. Any temperature change will cause the scale to drift slightly. Temperature changes may produce either a failure to re zero when an object is removed or drift in weight readings. When a scale is moved to a different location always allow time for it's temperature to adjust to the surrounding environment. It is best to turn the scale on and let it warm up for at least 20 minutes before use. Once the scale has warmed up, then run the calibration routine and the scale should not need to be rezeroed or calibrated again. Note: It has been reported some CED scales prefer to be calibrated with the powder pan in place. If your scale will not fully "zero" after following the factory instructions, try the same routine with the powder pan in place. Do not rush the calibration routine, especially the last step. Air Currents Air movement is a definite problem for sensitive digital scales. Any air currents over the platter will change readings. Try to avoid using a digital scale near heating and air conditioning ducts. If this cannot be avoided and the scale is equipped with a wind screen use the wind screen to reduce the affect of air currents. Static Electricity We have noticed that static electricity can build in the plastic housing of digital scales and change HTH!! F6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rising Sight Posted January 24, 2005 Share Posted January 24, 2005 I did have problems with my D-Terminator scale drifting and it is true you have to send the scale back to the manufacturer which is CED in Pensylvania for repair/warranty work. It makes sense that Dillon can't really work on the stuff they don't make.Everything else I've "broken" was sent to me no questions asked quickly and it's a beautiful thing they do. Mine has a little sticker on the bottom that reads "made in China". Maybe the newer ones are made in Pennsylvania. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
F6Hawk Posted January 24, 2005 Share Posted January 24, 2005 I did have problems with my D-Terminator scale drifting and it is true you have to send the scale back to the manufacturer which is CED in Pensylvania for repair/warranty work. It makes sense that Dillon can't really work on the stuff they don't make.Everything else I've "broken" was sent to me no questions asked quickly and it's a beautiful thing they do. Mine has a little sticker on the bottom that reads "made in China". Maybe the newer ones are made in Pennsylvania. No, they are ALL made in China, but CED only sells them under their name overseas. They only sell them under the name Dillon here in the USA. As with many companies practices, it is cheaper to make them overseas then import them to the US. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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