Damaged the Load Cell on my RCBS Chargemaster 1500?

[Endyo]

I was loading the hopper to my RCBS Chargemaster 1500 last night. The Powder H380 (a fine ball powder) overflowed from the measuring spout and powder spilled all over the unit.

I carefully dusted the unit off and went to zero my scale. It was reading .4th a grain high...I lifted up the little metal rest/table that the scale pan sits on. Sure enough several grains of ball powder found it's way onto the measuring arm or "load cell". Well stupid me decided to turn the unit upside down and blow on it...at this point I figured the powder just blew into the electrical housing unit...ok well I've heard powder is corrosive and the nitroglycerin will eat away at the plastic body of the unit. The unit's brand new less than a month. Now I'm worried about the electronics and the powder sitting inside of the unit.

At this point I decided to take the housing apart..."Sure I can disassemble and clean it myself." I'm stopped by a sticker that says it'll void my warranty. "Well no big deal. I've never had to use a warranty and I doubt RCBS wants to take a unit back that may or may not have a few kernels of powder in it. I've worked on computers, guns, voided warranties before... How big of a deal can this be?"

WRONG!

I take the sticker off and take apart the housing. Sure enough there are a few grains of powder in the unit...I carefully remove the powder and promptly reassemble the unit. I now notice the measuring arm or "load cell" is loose fitted...it's not actually mounted to anything. "Ok well no big deal that's just how it sits." I put it back together and power it on...now the scale is drifting sporadically from 36 grains to 170 grains without any weight on it whatsoever.

Well crap, I write an email to RCBS and fess up to how I voided my own warranty and asking what to do. Well it's the weekend so no response...I start researching more and find out that "load cells" are easily damaged and just even knocking the unit around can cause serious damage...UNWARRANTIED damage.

Don't know what options I have at this point. (Don't even know if I damaged the load cell, but unsure what else it could be) Hoping to see if there are more knowledgeable folks out there.

At this point I'm not blaming anyone but myself. If I had to do it over again I guess I would have just left the powder in the unit and written and email to RCBS first, unsure if it would have caused damage which leaves me uncomfortable, and unable to use the unit as I would not be able to trust it's accuracy. At least I wouldn't have left myself out on a limb and possibly out $200.

I also found out that RCBS does not warranty their load cell so a small consolation is that the voided warranty is a moot point.

(http://www.rcbs.com/downloads/instructions/PartnerElectronicPowderScaleInstructions.pdf)

[tohm]

I have had great luck with RCBS customer service. Try giving them a call.

[The_Vigilante]

Can the Load Cell be replaced?

[Endyo]

I'm assuming it can. I'd heard that RCBS will "replace" the unit with a new one for $200.

I'm not sure if that refers to the entire chargemaster or just the scale. The scale new is less than $200.

I've heard they have great customer service. I'll be calling them at 8am tomorrow morning.

Just wondering if there was any input.

[noylj]

Just the scale...

[Endyo]

Well here's to hoping they can service and replace the actual part that's broken.

I guess I'll be down and out for a while. Good thing I have a manual powder measure and scale.

Edited January 20, 2014 by Endyo

[Endyo]

I made a phone call earlier this morning.

Simply put I was told to send in my unit with no questions asked.

[Endyo]

A few days ago I recieved a package from RCBS. A brand new Chargemaster and an invoice stating I DID NOT OWE as per the Warranty.

TOP NOTCH RCBS. As many others before have proven time and time again flawless customer service. You have a life customer.

Hope this thread finds a user help in the future. These electronic scales are delicate equipment. You can't baby them enough, but they will work very well.

1. Empty the powder hopper after you're done reloading or the powder will damage the hopper

2. Don't jostle the unit around or you can easily damage the load cell

3. Don't work on the product yourself

4. Call RCBS and send it in.

5. There's the McDonald's straw trick, and ways to program it to make it faster. Plenty of threads detailing all this info.: )

Thanks for the input guys.

[johncdonovan]

Perhaps RCBS is not what it used to be.  They have been extremely un-helpful other than, "Wipe your unit with a clothes dryer sheet to dispel static electricity and that should solve your problem."  Told the young lady that would not work.  I have two (2) Chargemaster 1500's and swapped things and the digital scale starts flipping numbers on the display screen when I turn it on, no matter what.  Tough nuggies, we don't repair, don't replace units beyond 12 months, and we are not even planning to sell the 1500 anymore ... instead they will only sell the cheaper Chargemaster Lite with fewer features.

 

I am an electrical engineer, and I have concluded the problem is with the weight transducer, but cannot find the component anywhere.  I think RCBS customer service sucks in 2018.

Edited March 6, 2018 by johncdonovan