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Powder Measure - Which One?

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Chief Sackscratch

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    Posted: April/20/2012 at 16:14

Been looking over several.  Forster Benchrest, Redding BR, Lyman 55, and others.... all very similar and will probably all do the exact same thing.  Anyone use a measure like this (volume) and have a suggestion as to the best one as far as user friendlyness? 

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Roy Finn Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: April/20/2012 at 16:23
Redding BR.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote SVT_Tactical Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: April/20/2012 at 16:29
I was leaning towards that one but then found the Forsters and it has an equal following but I've never used any of their stuff.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote jselsor Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: April/21/2012 at 18:41
I cant complain about my hornady. It is very consistent
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Mike McDonald Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: April/22/2012 at 11:17
Had all of them.
In order of performance ( for me );
RCBS
Hornady ...very close second
Forster
Lyman...ball powders only, kinda niche market but a nice conversation piece for the loading bench.
Redding.
 
RCBS seems most consistant, Redding to my surprise had the widest swings in charge weight and inconsistancy.
Hornady right after RCBS, but with a bit more slop in the mechanics.
Lyman, a cool, old school sliding scale unit that loves spherical powders.
 
One not mentioned is the Harrells.  Lynnwood has been making the premier volumetric charge dispenser for decades.  Worth whatever you have to pay for one. It's like trading your yugo for a Rolls Royce.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote tahqua Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: April/22/2012 at 11:24
I have only used the RCBS. I have had it for thirty years and it throws charges of H4831 reliably. I still weigh every fifth round of the long cut powders, regardless.
Doug
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote RifleDude Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: April/22/2012 at 15:57
I have RCBS, Hornady, and Redding.  All get the job done.  Don't know which is my favorite, and haven't seen any noticeable difference in charge consistency between brands.  All seem to provide about +/- 0.2 gr fluctuation between charges with ball and short cut powders measuring the most consistently.  A friend of mine has the Lyman measure Mike refers to, and I've used it during mass loading sessions for pd shooting trips.  It seems to work about as well as the others I've used. 

Just recently bought the Hornady "Lock-N-Load" auto charge measure a couple weeks ago, but haven't even opened the box yet. 
Ted


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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote SVT_Tactical Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: April/23/2012 at 06:37
Thanks for the info all.  Ted, why do you have so many? Different uses?
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote RifleDude Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: April/23/2012 at 13:54
Because I've broken/lost parts on a couple of them during moves, my father-in-law gave me one, I inherited one from my dad's reloading gear, and I bought the L-N-L auto charge because I usually load up 2000 - 4000 rounds every time I go shoot pd's.  I've got multiples of half my reloading tools -- presses, scales, dies, measures, calipers...


Ted


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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote jonoMT Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: April/23/2012 at 16:46
If I had a bunch of money to spare on one I'd get one of those fancy ones, but have found my RCBS works fine, esp. after adding one of those powder baffles.
Reaction time is a factor...
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Alan Robertson Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: April/23/2012 at 22:23
Some expensive models will thread right onto a factory powder canister (like a 1 lb container of IMR4831) which is handy and repeatable micro adjusters can also be handy, but all measures seem to throw with about the same amount of precision, if they have a powder baffle.
A powder baffle effectively re- creates the old B&M 2nd powder chamber and isolates a consistent volume of powder from the varying weight of the column of powder in the hopper, making for precise, consistent throws.
Whatever you get, make sure to get a baffle with it, or make your own.
A plastic flip- up lid from a Kraft Mayo jar is a perfect drop- in fit on a Lee Pro Auto Disc measure, for instance.

My old beaten RCBS Uniflow is almost 40 yrs old and with baffle in place, it never varies as much as 1/10th grain and most throws are exact, once it settles in after a few throws... provided I don't let the hopper get too empty.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Alan Robertson Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: April/23/2012 at 22:27
If you  want to get something trick, find an old Belding & Mull that's in good shape... they can be spendy, but not as much as many benchrest models.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Crosswire Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: April/25/2012 at 20:41
"...all very similar and will probably all do the exact same thing."
 
I think that's true, there's very little practical difference in application, IMHO.  They all do well with ball powder, all are squirrely with stick powder, all tend to bind on flake powder; just the nature of a rotary volume dispensing tool with different powder forms.  I have an old Redding Master, forerunner to today's Redding models, and have used most others.  I really fell there is no marked advantage to any one of them after the user develops a 'feel' for operating with the powder he's using; that takes experimentation for the best method and practice for highest consistancy of operation. 
 
That said, the Lyman 55 is potentially the most versatile because of it's three sliding chamber adjustments.  Adjust the slides to make a small chamber for light charges and a big one for large charges, etc.  The 'knocker' device works for some but doesn't for others; we each have to learn what technique we need to obtain the most consistant drops for ourselves.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote RifleDude Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: April/25/2012 at 22:54
Originally posted by Crosswire Crosswire wrote:

I think that's true, there's very little practical difference in application, IMHO.  They all do well with ball powder, all are squirrely with stick powder, all tend to bind on flake powder; just the nature of a rotary volume dispensing tool with different powder forms.  I have an old Redding Master, forerunner to today's Redding models, and have used most others.  I really fell there is no marked advantage to any one of them after the user develops a 'feel' for operating with the powder he's using; that takes experimentation for the best method and practice for highest consistancy of operation. 
 


I agree. 

I've adopted my own technique that I believe has improved charge consistency with all powders, especially the more problematic stick powders.  On the "up" (fill) stroke of the handle, I bump the handle a couple times against the stop to "jolt" the powder down into the fill chamber, then again on the down (dispense) stroke, I tap the handle against the stop again a couple times to ensure all grains exit.  I'm essentially duplicating (or attempting to duplicate) the same function that Lyman's "knocker" is intended to perform.  After 1000's of repetitions of this, I've managed to do the same thing pretty consistently, and get essentially the same results regardless of which manual measure I'm using at the time.
Ted


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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote DANNY-L Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: April/27/2012 at 15:26

I started reloading about 10yrs ago and bought the rcbs and have had no complaint with it.

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