Disappointed In Dillon

[Egor]

Mine was bought in 2003 and now just displays 'E' and continuous beeps.

Tech support says that they can just go bad, as if to imply that we should plan on buying them every so often. I wish I could claim abuse of the scale but it's just been sitting in my loading room. Four years seems like a short amount of time for a $140 scale life-span.

TimE

[glooooock]

Four years seems like a short amount of time for a $140 scale life-span.

TimE

****************************************

I agree , did you run it on batteries or AC adapter ?

I have mine on battery only , so far so good . You would think they could change the $5

circuit board in that $135 plastic box , for $20 . Thats the first one I have heard of dieing on the bench.

I am sure you tried all possible fixes , recalibrates , battery changes.

[Egor]

Four years seems like a short amount of time for a $140 scale life-span.

TimE

****************************************

I agree , did you run it on batteries or AC adapter ?

I have mine on battery only , so far so good . You would think they could change the $5

circuit board in that $135 plastic box , for $20 . Thats the first one I have heard of dieing on the bench.

I am sure you tried all possible fixes , recalibrates , battery changes.

Yeah, never ran it on the a/c until trying to trouble shoot it.

I guess biggest insult is that Dillon's service is so good for so many of their products

that when you come across an instance where their lifetime no-bs warrantee doesn't apply, it is kinda a bigger shock, than if i'd have bought the scale at walmart and then found it bad after a day or two.

[mscott]

I wouldn't necessarily blame Dillon. I had a Pact replaced under warranty after just a couple of months and now a friend has an RCBS that died after 2 years. Electronic stuff sucks sometimes.

[Flexmoney]

Send it in to them regardless...let them have a look at it. They may find something little. And, they may fix it for little.

[moverfive]

You know, I have heard more "horror" stories relating to electronic scales....and no manufacturer seems to be immune. And because I still hear about them, I am sticking with my manual scale......until gravity changes, I know the measurement is accurate.

[ChuckS]

You know, I have heard more "horror" stories relating to electronic scales....and no manufacturer seems to be immune. And because I still hear about them, I am sticking with my manual scale......until gravity changes, I know the measurement is accurate.

I concur to a point. I am an electrical engineer (well used to be, now I do PowerPoint) by trade and have a healty distrust for anything electronic. That said, a balance beam is a PITA. So, I use an electonic scale cuz it is so much quicker than a BB. When I am not actually weighing a powder charge, I have an object (button, washer, etc) in the powder pan on the scale so I can see if anything has drifted. I select the test object to be near the charge weight that I am throwing. That object is weighed on a BB scale and used as a "transfer standard" for the electronic scale. I can check a load in about 3 seconds this way so I usually do the check more often than with a BB. That said, the Dillon powder measure is usually right on after the first charge! I usually only have to re-zero if there has been a noticeable temp change in my garage. Hardly a "horror".

Later,

Chuck

PS: The Dillon scale I have is about 5 years old.

Edited March 5, 2007 by ChuckS

[Scooter]

Manual scales are measuring mass which won't change regardless of gravity. Though it is near impossible to use in zero gravity. Electronic scales are measuring weight/force which can change depending on gravity which happens to vary a little tiny bit depending on where you are.

Send it back and see what they want to do. Dillon has always been good even on out of warranty electrical items.

[ihatepickles]

Not to drift the thread too much, but regarding balance beams scales and their utility, there are some good scales out there with .5 +/- grain indicators graduated in .1 grain increments. My personal favorite is the Redding Model 2 scale. If my charge is within .5 grains of my target value, I can see how high or low the charge is. The magnetic dampening makes getting a reading quick and stable, how many of us have had to wait 15 seconds while using an electronic scale for the whole thing to settle down? I still have an electronic scale, but rarely use it.

I think the lack of this feature is a serious oversight for many otherwise high quality balance beam scales (like the Dillon and RCBS 1010).

[ChuckS]

Manual scales are measuring mass which won't change regardless of gravity. Though it is near impossible to use in zero gravity. Electronic scales are measuring weight/force which can change depending on gravity which happens to vary a little tiny bit depending on where you are.

Send it back and see what they want to do. Dillon has always been good even on out of warranty electrical items.

Not to get in a geek match but isn't a balance beam used to indicate a null between the force of gravity acting on the thing being weighed and the poise? As long as g is consistant along the beam, you should be good to go.

Later,

Chuck

(OK, this is a geek match. )

I have a RCBS 5-0-5 with magnetic damping. The scale is fine but it always seems like I bump it putting the powder tray on it or something. My Dillon electronic scale settles in a second or so. I have never had to wait anything near 15 seconds! They both work fine but electronic is much faster for me.

Later,

Chuck

PS: And I have a substantial shelf for the BB that is not coupled to my bench. I am also in a corner of my garage that has no significant air circulation (unless I turn on the fan )

Edited March 5, 2007 by ChuckS

[kmca]

I wouldn't necessarily blame Dillon. I had a Pact replaced under warranty after just a couple of months and now a friend has an RCBS that died after 2 years. Electronic stuff sucks sometimes.

Tell your friend not to throw it away. My RCBS quit working about 2 years ago. The warranty card says 1 year, but the factory rep said they would cover it for life. Can't hurt to give them a call.

[Allgoodhits]

Manual scales are measuring mass which won't change regardless of gravity. Though it is near impossible to use in zero gravity. Electronic scales are measuring weight/force which can change depending on gravity which happens to vary a little tiny bit depending on where you are.

Send it back and see what they want to do. Dillon has always been good even on out of warranty electrical items.

If by manual scale you are referring to a "balance beam" scale, then they measure weight, not volume. Powder measures measure volume which is then weighed. That volume setting "may" be able to duplicate weight of same powder at a later date, and it may not.

MJ

[dillon]

Usually "Cal E" indicates that one of the load cells in the scale has been damaged. The most common cause for load cell damage is excessive weight on the platform, usually accidently. We don't do any electronic repair work to the DT scales. They are made for us by CED. The warranty period for free replacement is one year from date of purchase. After one year, we will replace a broken scale for $85.00 plus the old scale in trade.

[al503]

After one year, we will replace a broken scale for $85.00 plus the old scale in trade.

Well that's good to know. I've had mine for almost 2 years now and I would have probably chucked it and paid for another one if it went bad.

[JFD]

Keep in mind that all the reloading electronic scales are pretty low-end to begin with and can't begin to take any abuse.

My standard for a decent scale is a $500 Ohaus with a metal housing. I've been playing with these things for 20+ years and so far, anything with a plastic housing (including Ohaus) has been crap. I'd rather use a beam balance than get a lesser scale.

Right now I'm using a nice Ohaus and have a really nice $5K Mettler as backup. The Mettler is cool, but dealing with the sliding doors is a pain when weighing often, such as setting the powdere measure for a new load.

The main thing with the reloading scales is treat them gently. They also do better when left on all the time.

[Anthony Lombardo]

$5K Mettler

You have a $5,000 scale?

Do you have 14k gold faucets too ?

Edited March 6, 2007 by Anthony Lombardo

[charliez]

$5K Mettler

You have a $5,000 scale?

Do you have 14k gold faucets too ?

They go well with the gold latrine

[Egor]

Usually "Cal E" indicates that one of the load cells in the scale has been damaged. The most common cause for load cell damage is excessive weight on the platform, usually accidently. We don't do any electronic repair work to the DT scales. They are made for us by CED. The warranty period for free replacement is one year from date of purchase. After one year, we will replace a broken scale for $85.00 plus the old scale in trade.

Well, its a little late for that kind of feedback. Your tech support told me that I was out of luck. No mention of an offer to replace for $85. Just told me "They do that" and theres nothing Dillon can do. I'll spend my $85 elsewhere.

For sale complete 1050 RL with changeovers in 9mm, .40, .45 and .223; 550B with 8 caliber changes including 7.62x39, .2506, .270, .308, 9mm, .38sp, 10mm, .45; all dies and powder measures, tumbler & media separator, and lots of other stuff. (not really for sale)

I'd have liked to know the information you told me above in my phone call to tech support. Maybe the guy was just having a monday. As I said before, its just a bit of a shock when compared to your policy for stuff that Dillon manufactures.

TimE

[clem]

I sent you an email about this, but I'll post it too.

I know there's been different versions of the Dillon scale, but mine went bad and when I called they ran me through a 'reset procedure', for lack of a better term, and it fixed mine. Call Dillon back and talk to someone else, you may have just gotten the wrong guy.

I have an older Dillon scale, and it is a dandy. The newest version that I've had my hands on, sucks, big time. I work in a research lab, so I know what to expect from a scale, and I'm not a fanatic when it comes to weighing powder, it really doesn't require all that much in the way of manufacturing to get the accuracy needed. CED makes the Dillon, I believe, and the latest one cannot, and according to Dillon, is not designed to be dribbled into the weigh pan. what I mean to say, is the scale is designed to drop a powder charge in the pan and weigh it without adding anything while on the scale. I was able to dribble 2 full grains of powder into the pan from an RCBS dribbler, without the display changing at all. I stopped at 2 grains, I could have gone on for quite a while. I also didn't just do it slow either, I did it at the normal speed you would load at, and the display only changed minimally. A call to Dillon informed me the scale was not designed for dribbling, it was designed to set a powder measure. I promptly sent the scale on it's way.

The older Dillon is probably the best electronic scale I've ever used for reloading, and why they changed is a mystery to me, except I'm smart enough it has to do with money.

I use dillon stuff a lot, almost exclusively, but not the new scale.

In my opinion, from what I've seen, and used of the new electronic reloading scales, I'd stick with a balance beam. You don't save all that much time, and you don't have to worry about the scale. I find myself using an old Ohaus M5, (kind of looks like an RCBS 10-10) more often than not.

If I'm somehow mislead by my conversation with Dillon over the current scale, I'd love for them to set the record straight, because I feel the current scale is dangerous.

Edited March 6, 2007 by clem

[al503]

Since this isn't in the 'what I hate' sub forum...

Either

1. a buyer knows of the limited warranty and still decides to purchase the scale, or

2. a buyer didn't know of the warranty, because they didn't do their due diligence, or

3. a buyer was mislead as to the terms of the warranty by the seller.

Since there hasn't been any mention of Dillon making false representations, we're left with alternatives 1 and 2.

In either case, the scale in question here lasted 4 years, which is 4 times longer than the warranty. If your car has a 3 year limited warranty and blows up in the 12th year of ownership...

I understand the disappointment of the OP, which is understandable. However, if I get 4 years out of my Dillon scale, I'll consider the $140 well spent, considering the overall cost of playing this game in general.

[Egor]

Since this isn't in the 'what I hate' sub forum...

2. a buyer didn't know of the warranty, because they didn't do their due diligence, or

In either case, the scale in question here lasted 4 years, which is 4 times longer than the warranty. If your car has a 3 year limited warranty and blows up in the 12th year of ownership...

I understand the disappointment of the OP, which is understandable. However, if I get 4 years out of my Dillon scale, I'll consider the $140 well spent, considering the overall cost of playing this game in general.

I didnt read carefully - assumed the lifetime no bs applied until I called dillon.

My mistake in thinking all of their products were as good as their loaders. Incidentally, their 1050 has a one year warrantee too - and yet they've replaced parts that were not under warrantee.

Also a one year warrantee is quite common in America as a method of proving your product is good. Most products with a one year warrantee last substantially longer. Take stereo or computer equipment for example. In my experience, electronics that I've had fail, usually have failed within a short time of first putting them into service, or many years later.

So considering the cost of playing this game overall, the price of one scale every four years is somewhat acceptable. Glad it didnt die just out of warrantee, that would be unacceptable.

[al503]

Glad it didnt die just out of warrantee, that would be unacceptable.

Yeah. That would really suck.

As someone else mentioned above, I've gotten some inconsistent (none that could be classified as less than good) service in regards to ordering/warranty issues with Dillon. It does seem to matter who answers the phone in general.

If Dillon does have the $85 replacement option, there is very little excuse (that I can think of) that you weren't informed of it when you called in.

[Flexmoney]

This thread is a minor example of why we don't allow customer service issues on the Brian Enos Forums.

Often we see good guys get upset and wonder where they might go to make the most noise. This forum isn't a soapbox.

If you are posting here for any other reason than to improve your shooting...or help others improve theirs...then you are posting for the wrong reasons.

(And, I don't mean to pick on the thread starter...who sounds like a good guy...this is just an example of what the this shooting forum is NOT about.)

Kyle F.

Forum Administrator

CLOSED