Digital reloading scales recommendations

[charlieboy-shooter]

Hi Guys,
As my digital scales have decided to have a breakdown. So as the title please.
Not a massive quantity reloader. Rather not spend a fortune but equally if it’s a false economy on <£100 with drifting and repeatability issues then please advise.
Thanks

 

[stumac]

I purchased a Lyman 1200 dps about 4 years ago and found it a great bit of kit but unless you are loading large quantities of ammo, which I don't now, it is false economy. I found the box the other day and it was over £400 and as I never use it now it was defiantly a waste of money for me.

 

[Chris J]

Appreciate you said digital, but it's worth annoying you slightly by suggesting that you just go with traditional manual balance scales. I have both, in fact I have the full RCBS Chargemaster 1500 set up.
This evening as it happens, I was doing some stuff around load development and weighed out 65gr of powder into my old Hornady scales. I've had them maybe 30 years? As the digital scales were on the bench I thought I'd just run the charge over those too. Well guess what. 65.0 gr. Dead on. Why spend money on digital scales when they're no more accurate, prone to failures, non user serviceable and as you've already found - they fail. I have loaded tens of thousands of rounds over those scales (used to shoot pistol) and I still use them to check the digital ones! How mad is that? But I trust them more than the RCBS electronic ones. There's a few sets of scales for sale on here at the moment.

 

[NP435]

I have PACT unit. I do not know if they still exist. Once the static was cured it works fine, for now. Everything I own made by PACT has back to the factory at least once. Be warned.

 

[Dogtra UK]

Gempro

 

[stoker150]

Rcbs load master

 

[charlieboy-shooter]

Appreciate you said digital, but it's worth annoying you slightly by suggesting that you just go with traditional manual balance scales. I have both, in fact I have the full RCBS Chargemaster 1500 set up.
This evening as it happens, I was doing some stuff around load development and weighed out 65gr of powder into my old Hornady scales. I've had them maybe 30 years? As the digital scales were on the bench I thought I'd just run the charge over those too. Well guess what. 65.0 gr. Dead on. Why spend money on digital scales when they're no more accurate, prone to failures, non user serviceable and as you've already found - they fail. I have loaded tens of thousands of rounds over those scales (used to shoot pistol) and I still use them to check the digital ones! How mad is that? But I trust them more than the RCBS electronic ones. There's a few sets of scales for sale on here at the moment.

Hi,
I have 3 balance scales, Lyman and Lee, although one of the Lyman’s is a D5 undamped.
Which I trust a lot more than the cheap digital ones which broke. However it’s easier to measure cases and case capacity with digital and I often get a almost charge on the digital and then trickle on the lyman’s.
Yes, I noticed the scales for sale but would rather new purely for the initial return option if issues.

 

[Stalker62]

I still use them to check the digital ones! How mad is that?

And I think that pretty much sums up why I have never taken the plunge into digital...

 

[Robs]

+1 for Gempro, still use a Lee beam scale as a check but never had any problems.

 

[Cooter]

I used a Smartweigh gem50 scale for about ten years and it weighed down to 0.01 Grn consistently.

They used to be on Amazon for about £40, but you can only get them from the US now or on the auction site.
In use I regularly checked it against a beam scale, and my chargemaster and it was always spot on.

If you are just loading small batches of up to 50 loads at a time then most of the small digital scales on Amazon which go up to 50g (or even 100g) will be ok, and there are a few on Henry Kranks from well known reloading manufacturers for not much money.

 

[Muir]

Get a low end beam scale that measures in grains. RCBS 505 is a great scale. I have the Ohaus version as well as the Ohaus Dial o Grain which is was their top end scale. I have borrowed laboratory grade scale check weights and both are too close to measure. No batteries. No cell phone interference. No warm up time. No posts on SD asking for help....~Muir

 

[Glevum]

I have a RCBS beam scale and a Targetmaster automatic trickler.

The two work well together and produce consistent loads.