Scale, Beam vs Digital

[35WhelenAI]

Double darn, it looks like the beam scale that I like so much is not so bad after all...

 

[Sinistram]

You've clearly stumbled on another of those "Ford v. Chevy" debates among gun people! Personally, I'll never use a digital scale to reload. I have no patience for dealing with batteries, electronic interference, and finnicky China quality. I realize that sounds like an old man rant (I'm not old), but it's based on me trying the digital stuff as a new reloader about a decade ago. My RCBS 505 (made by Ohaus) is a thing of beauty and precision. I have loaded ammo that would shoot so well as to embarrass others who thought they had the smallest group, never once questioning whether it was 45.1 or 45.15 grains...

If you go balance beam, my biggest tip would be to build a riser for it about 10" tall so it sits above your bench and you can look at it at eye level. Eliminates fatigue and potential parallax errors. Make sure to make it large enough to fit your trickler, too.

 

[Wapiti1]

Get check weights. Regardless of the type of scale. Get check weights. Digital should be checked more often Get check weights. Temp swings, and humidity swings will affect measurements. Get check weights.

I matters not what scale you have, but you really should have check weights so you know it is accurate. My Redding from the 1960's is as accurate as my A&D digital, but only after I dialed it in with check weights. The Redding was off by almost a grain for probably 50 years. Not super important if that is the only scale ever used, but add a scale and they need to be reading the same.

Jeremy

 

[Coyote conquest]

I found it to be unreliable and inconsistent. It would never read the same weight the same twice. The beam scales three glowing attributes for me are: slow, inconsistent, and unreliable. You won’t ever catch another one on my bench again. Lesson learned the hard way, unfortunately.

I can say unless you had a really cheap scale or it wasn't maintained or cleaned well that it should absolutely read the same every time. I have 4 along with a RCBS Chargemaster Supreme and a stand alone FA scale. My beam scales are always right and are the standard which my electronic ones are judged by. Not saying I don't believe you but if it's clean then physics says it should work

 

[HuntHarder]

I use a Beam scale to randomly check my RCBS chargemaster. To date, my charge master has been really consistent. The beam is yet to tell me it has an accuracy issue, but I still randomly check maybe every 5-10 rounds.

 

[N2TRKYS]

I can say unless you had a really cheap scale or it wasn't maintained or cleaned well that it should absolutely read the same every time. I have 4 along with a RCBS Chargemaster Supreme and a stand alone FA scale. My beam scales are always right and are the standard which my electronic ones are judged by. Not saying I don't believe you but if it's clean then physics says it should work

It was a RCBS beam scale and it was clean and maintained. I don’t care if you or anyone else, for that matter, believes it or not. The beam scales I’ve used have been insanely slow and very inconsistent. I’ll never use a beam scale again. Luckily, I learned that lesson very early on. I switched to a Chargemaster combo and everything has been vastly better.

 

[35WhelenAI]

It was a RCBS beam scale and it was clean and maintained. I don’t care if you or anyone else, for that matter, believes it or not. The beam scales I’ve used have been insanely slow and very inconsistent. I’ll never use a beam scale again. Luckily, I learned that lesson very early on. I switched to a Chargemaster combo and everything has been vastly better.

"Beam scales" is plural, how many did you try? However "It was a RCBS beam scale" is one scale, not plural. Unfortunately seems all the bad ones ended up on your loading bench if you did have more than one.

 

[N2TRKYS]

"Beam scales" is plural, how many did you try? However "It was a RCBS beam scale" is one scale, not plural. Unfortunately seems all the bad ones ended up on your loading bench if you did have more than one.

Congrats, you can read. I’ve only owned the one. A reloading buddy of mine has a beam scale that was the same way. He too switched to a more consistent electric scale.

You can keep those finicky, slow, inconsistent things on your bench. They’ll just never sit on mine again.

 

[35WhelenAI]

Thanks for the affirmation that I was able to read what was written rather unclearly.

You've shared experience ("inconsistent things") that has been put in question by physics. Set up, adjusted and used properly they are as repeatable as gravity. It is factually correct they are a slower.

 

[TKP1991]

I know im adding extra time but I do t load high volumes of ammo but I regularly use a beam and a digital scale. I also weight every charge though so it seems I’m in the minority.

 

[35WhelenAI]

I know im adding extra time but I do t load high volumes of ammo but I regularly use a beam and a digital scale. I also weight every charge though so it seems I’m in the minority.

I'll weigh every charge for hunting rifles, I enjoy the time in the reloading room and a few hours here and there can put together a good amount with a beam scale.

 

[Ishootgunssometimes]

I stopped using my beam scale. I bought an old Pact powder dispenser on eBay, think OG Chargemaster. It’s awesome. I use little weights to check the electronic scale every 10-20 loads, I stack the weights to add up to roughly the weight I’m loading. I have never had to recalibrate in the middle of a load session.

 

[EdP]

Bench rest shooters were shooting tiny groups decades before load cells were readily available, let alone used in scales for accurate measurement of very low weights. Those BR shooters were using beam scales so the folks that can't make a good beam scale work are doing something wrong. Quality beam scales are simple mechanical devices that are reliable and accurate when used properly. Regardless, electronic digital scales are the way of the future. I just don't see checking every 5th digital scale charge on a beam scale as a practical process, but this is apparently what a number of folks do. If a beam scale isn't accurate, as some claim, what sense is there in checking a digital measured charge on a beam scale? I will stick with my RCBS beam scale. It works just fine for what I need, but I am not shooting high volumes. I just shoot for practice and hunting. If I was shooting competition level volumes, I might see a digital scale being worth the high cost. Some day digital scale cost wll go down and reliability and accuracy will go up. I suspect I will have aged out of shooting by that time.