IGOTGLOCKED Posted November 17, 2016 Share Posted November 17, 2016 I have learned so much in the short time I have been reloading and am now beginning to consider upgrading my equipment. I have the Frankfort Arsenal scales, the small one that has the clear plastic cover that closes over the scales. I guess it was about $20. I have not had any issues with them however I am beginning to question if I should have scales of better quality? I am a pretty big Dillon fan, and I do my work on a Dillon 650XL. Dillon's scales are about $145, pretty pricey... I am wondering what other scales out there I should consider and would appreciate your opinions. Thanks in advance from IGG! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SCTaylor Posted November 17, 2016 Share Posted November 17, 2016 I've been using the FA scale, same as yours, for 5 years without issue. I do have a beam scale that is used once in a blue moon to double check the FA, but it is never off. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IGOTGLOCKED Posted November 17, 2016 Author Share Posted November 17, 2016 1 hour ago, SCTaylor said: I've been using the FA scale, same as yours, for 5 years without issue. I do have a beam scale that is used once in a blue moon to double check the FA, but it is never off. Awesome, makes me feel better! And I might have misquoted, perhaps they were closer to$30... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MemphisMechanic Posted November 23, 2016 Share Posted November 23, 2016 (edited) I think most of us have seen no need to spend that kind of money on a Dillon scale. I've use a cheap digital Lyman scale for 8 years and it's never let me down. Side note: no matter the brand of scale, I drop five or ten cases worth of powder on the scale and take an average. Much more precise. Your powder measure won't drop exactly precisely the same amount of powder on each cycle of the press, and I trust the scale more, with a bit more weight on it, as well. Edited November 23, 2016 by MemphisMechanic Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kraj Posted November 23, 2016 Share Posted November 23, 2016 I've used the same scale for 4 years and the only time I had an issue is when the battery was dieing. Got weird fluctuations, changed the battery and it works good again. When I'm setting a new charge weight I drop 10 and take the average and then I just check 1 charge if I want to verify for whatever reason Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IGOTGLOCKED Posted November 23, 2016 Author Share Posted November 23, 2016 (edited) 2 hours ago, MemphisMechanic said: I think most of us have seen no need to spend that kind of money on a Dillon scale. I've use a cheap digital Lyman scale for 8 years and it's never let me down. Side note: no matter the brand of scale, I drop five or ten cases worth of powder on the scale and take an average. Much more precise. Your powder measure won't drop exactly precisely the same amount of powder on each cycle of the press, and I trust the scale more, with a bit more weight on it, as well. Thanks Memphis, the Dillon is a lot of money... And I will use the 5-10 cases of powder average from now on too! Edited November 23, 2016 by IGOTGLOCKED Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IGOTGLOCKED Posted November 23, 2016 Author Share Posted November 23, 2016 1 hour ago, Kraj said: I've used the same scale for 4 years and the only time I had an issue is when the battery was dieing. Got weird fluctuations, changed the battery and it works good again. When I'm setting a new charge weight I drop 10 and take the average and then I just check 1 charge if I want to verify for whatever reason This is a great idea, Memphis mentioned the same and I will begin to do so as well - thx Kraj! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
warpspeed Posted November 23, 2016 Share Posted November 23, 2016 For a digital scale that will work for pistol / shotgun loads, I think that any of the Jennings brand with a 0.1 gr resolution will work fine and can be found for about $25. If you plan on using a scale for rifle rounds and especially to work up a load, having a scale with a higher resolution, like 0.01 gr, is very helpful. This is where you leave the scale market ad are now looking at a balance. Price for something in that resolution like a GemPro 250 is $ 125. But electronic balances and scales are not as precise nor as accurate as a beam scale, especially a tuned beam scale. Personally, I have all three and use the right tool for the right job. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IGOTGLOCKED Posted November 23, 2016 Author Share Posted November 23, 2016 5 hours ago, warpspeed said: For a digital scale that will work for pistol / shotgun loads, I think that any of the Jennings brand with a 0.1 gr resolution will work fine and can be found for about $25. If you plan on using a scale for rifle rounds and especially to work up a load, having a scale with a higher resolution, like 0.01 gr, is very helpful. This is where you leave the scale market ad are now looking at a balance. Price for something in that resolution like a GemPro 250 is $ 125. But electronic balances and scales are not as precise nor as accurate as a beam scale, especially a tuned beam scale. Personally, I have all three and use the right tool for the right job. Very cool, thanks for the detailed information. I should have guessed this is it's own subject as everything else is regarding reloading! Cheers! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
warpspeed Posted November 24, 2016 Share Posted November 24, 2016 6 hours ago, IGOTGLOCKED said: Very cool, thanks for the detailed information. I should have guessed this is it's own subject as everything else is regarding reloading! Cheers! No problem - Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cecil Posted November 24, 2016 Share Posted November 24, 2016 I tried Gem Pro scale..... when I left a measured amount of powder on the scale for about 30 seconds... the scale started reading downwards... the longer I left that amount on the scale the more the scale kept reading downwards.. so I sent it back .. Gem Pro replaced the scale and the replacement did the same thing.. I sent it back for a refund... bought a RCBS Charge Master 1500 ... this scale-dispenser is spot on... quick to dispense ... very accurate.... you can't go wrong with RCBS loading equipment... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
400driver Posted November 25, 2016 Share Posted November 25, 2016 I have been using an AWS scale from Amazon for about 25$. The main thing is confidence in its consistency. After it has warmed up I put the same air pistol pellet on it that weighs in at 8.48 Grains. Before each use I put it on to make sure that I am starting from the same level of accuracy as before. The little pellet sits next to the scale and is quick way to calibrate the scale without going through the official process. If its out i just hit ' Tare' again. If you can find some object that weighs about the same as your target load...even better! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IGOTGLOCKED Posted November 26, 2016 Author Share Posted November 26, 2016 12 hours ago, 400driver said: I have been using an AWS scale from Amazon for about 25$. The main thing is confidence in its consistency. After it has warmed up I put the same air pistol pellet on it that weighs in at 8.48 Grains. Before each use I put it on to make sure that I am starting from the same level of accuracy as before. The little pellet sits next to the scale and is quick way to calibrate the scale without going through the official process. If its out i just hit ' Tare' again. If you can find some object that weighs about the same as your target load...even better! Great idea thx! I'll find something close and begin using this suggestion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IGOTGLOCKED Posted November 26, 2016 Author Share Posted November 26, 2016 It seems the industry standard guarantee for scales is 1/10th of a grain, guess it's safe to assume this is acceptable? If this is so should one also assume the higher quality scales benefit is primarily less drift? Thx! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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