BR scale recommendations

B

Bro.D

Member
At the end of last season I smoked by RCBS 1500 scale. I like it and it served me well for several years but this time around I'd like to upgrade a bit. I am considering the A&D EJ-123. This scale seems to me a somewhat middle of the road, price wise, scale that would fit my needs. I will use this scale to weigh bullets, powder and lube for my bullet making. I do all my measuring in grains and this scale is supposed to able to get down to .02 grains. I'm seeing it priced at $395.00 I want to reach out to those who have a little more experience on these matters. Would you recommend this scale or would you look at something different? If you recommend a different scale please put down where you purchased it and the price point. Thanks, Bro.D
 
does it have magnetic damping ?
i would spend more just for that...speeds up the process
fx120i user
 
RCBS has one of the best guarantees on ther products. but i dont realy know what guarantee they have on ther 1500 chargemaster scales. have you called them to find out?. 1800-379-1732 if they ask you to send it in,make shur if you have altered the scale that you put it back to factory specks, befor you send it back. a friend sent his back to them and it was a couple of years old and they fixed it for him,no charge
gabe
 
I have a FX120i and a Chargemaster with an Omega trickler. Used right, both set ups do an adequate job. The Chargemaster is also easy to set up for 12 volt battery operation.

Bob
 
fx120i is "adequate"....LOL
rkittine said:
I have a FX120i and a Chargemaster with an Omega trickler. Used right, both set ups do an adequate job. The Chargemaster is also easy to set up for 12 volt battery operation.

Bob
Click to expand...
 
Bro. D, several years ago I tested a Chargemaster by zeroing the pan on a A&D FX 120i. I weighed 20 charges and recorded them on a spread sheet. That was when I first got the Chargemaster. It had a SD of .03 grains. This was done without calibrating the Chargemaster scale. Last Saturday Paul came down and picked up his rifles. We dumped a few charges with the Chargemaster after calibrating it and weighed them on the A&D. Every charge thown was either on or within .02 grain from the 30.0 grains that the Chargemaster was set. It just shows the importance of calibrating the Chargemaster every time you use it. I'll have to redo the test again and see what SD it has after calibrating the Chargemaster. I've had problems using a Chargemaster at matches even with it inside a box to protect it from the wind if it gets very windy even with the box sitting on the concrete loading benches that they have at Phoenix. It works great at Raton in the loading barn. The biggest downside is carrying it to the range as it's bulky. RCBS has a good warranty on everything except electronic scales. If you fry a Chargemaster, they will not fix it. Reverse the polarity on the power going to it and you'll fry it as quickly as you turn the power switch on.

I redid the test the other day on the Chargemaster with the same results I had a few years ago. The Chargemaster was set to dump 30.0 gr. of 133 and it read 30.0 gr everytime after it beeped and counted the charge.

Test # Weighed on A&D
1 30.06
2 29.96
3 29.94
4 29.98
5 30.02
6 29.98
7 30.00
8 29.96
9 30.06
10 30.04
11 29.98
12 29.98
13 29.98
14 29.94
16 29.94
17 29.98
18 30.02
19 30.02
20 29.98

Variance 0.001394152
Mean 29.98
SD 0.037338346
Average 29.99052632
High 30.06
Low 29.94

Will this difference make any difference? It certainly didn't affect Charles when he set the new 100 yard agg record in the Sporter class last year at Midland as he was using a Chargemaster. I have a small Tanita scale and had built a plexiglass box to go over it so I could use it outside. When I put the box over the top of the scale, the scale would change weights due to the air pressure contained within the box. I'll just keep using my powder measure and checking weights on a scale.

I think a lot of what we do is grasping at straws especially in the winter time when a little better job of reading wind flags would probably help our aggs more than anything.
 
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Mike Bryant said:
Bro. D, several years ago I tested a Chargemaster by zeroing the pan on a A&D FX 120i. I weighed 20 charges and recorded them on a spread sheet. That was when I first got the Chargemaster. It had a SD of .03 grains. This was done without calibrating the Chargemaster scale. Last Saturday Paul came down and picked up his rifles. We dumped a few charges with the Chargemaster after calibrating it and weighed them on the A&D. Every charge thown was either on or within .02 grain from the 30.0 grains that the Chargemaster was set. It just shows the importance of calibrating the Chargemaster every time you use it. I'll have to redo the test again and see what SD it has after calibrating the Chargemaster. I've had problems using a Chargemaster at matches even with it inside a box to protect it from the wind if it gets very windy even with the box sitting on the concrete loading benches that they have at Phoenix. It works great at Raton in the loading barn. The biggest downside is carrying it to the range as it's bulky. RCBS has a good warranty on everything except electronic scales. If you fry a Chargemaster, they will not fix it. Reverse the polarity on the power going to it and you'll fry it as quickly as you turn the power switch on.
Click to expand...

Mike, here is my range setup. I use this because I think you should use the power head that comes with the unit. The little inverter is from Best Buy. As you can see, the wind guard on the small Charge Master is superior to the big unit with the swing out cover.

http://benchrest.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=22000&stc=1&d=1549672469

You are right about the calibration. I have checked mine against my Denver Instruments scale, and the tolerance is about .2 grain. That’s about the resolution of any of these scales.
 

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Small CM

jackie schmidt said:
Mike, here is my range setup. I use this because I think you should use the power head that comes with the unit. The little inverter is from Best Buy. As you can see, the wind guard on the small Charge Master is superior to the big unit with the swing out cover.

http://benchrest.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=22000&stc=1&d=1549672469

You are right about the calibration. I have checked mine against my Denver Instruments scale, and the tolerance is about .2 grain. That’s about the resolution of any of these scales.
Click to expand...





Jackie,do you use the little cap, that fits over the trickler, that came with the small charge master, to prevent kernels of powder from trickling down onto the platen.

It has been a real pain in the butt for me. Trying to keep powder off the platen, when using the CM,outside,at the range.

Just Curious.

Glenn
 
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Scale prices

Do not neglect to look at electronic scales used for jewelry. Sometimes you can get a quality scale that meets your requirements cheaper simply because it is not attached to the firearms industry or named as such. Look at scientific supply houses as well. I learned this several years ago while searching for an adjustable pneumatic shooting stool. Shooting stools sold with that name by various shooting sports suppliers were much higher in cost than an Alvin adjustable drafting stool. There was virtually no difference between the two stools in function except the drafting stool was approx. $40.00 cheaper than the 'shooting stool'.
 
Or Drummers "Thrones" - I have a Gemtech 250 which is surprisingly accurate against my FX, but is a little more difficult to get stabilized and weight checked.
 
The FX is extremely easy to run off a 12v battery as well. Just look at the adapter to make sure if its the outer or inner barrel that is positive. I seem to think its opposite to most connectors.
 
Chism G said:
Jackie,do you use the little cap, that fits over the trickler, that came with the small charge master, to prevent kernels of powder from trickling down onto the platen.

It has been a real pain in the butt for me. Trying to keep powder off the platen, when using the CM,outside,at the range.

Just Curious.

Glenn
Click to expand...

Glenn, I use it just like it came out of the box. I'm not sure what you are referring to.
 
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Rubber Cap

Thanks for the photo Kyle. I misplaced mine. That little cap prevents powder from tricking down on the platen, while you're away.
I don't know if it was the intent of RCBS to include that little cap, for that purpose, but that's what I've used it for.


Glenn
 
Bro.D the chargemaster lite is a nice unit to get. I have the chargemaster 1500 and just bought the chargemaster lite, I carry it in my loading trailer when I go to my shoots, its more convenient to carry around than my 1500. If you decide to get one call brownells they are on sale right now $219 with free shipping
 

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Just to add to Gabe's Comments

$219 for the Lite is a very good price. I was able to get mine for $199 on sale at Natchez last September. Their current price is $245 and they are out of stock so if you need something immediately, the Brownells deal is your best option.

Also, just so you are aware, you may find the older Chargemaster 1500 on closeout pricing here and there. RCBS has discontinued that unit. Repair options, even during the warranty period, would be uncertain. So, if you decide to purchase anything, the Lite, which is a fine unit, would be your best investment. Good luck.
 
hmmmmmmmmmmmmm
a lite to feed my a&d fx120i
that would be a setup!

ok the good news is the code on the site
is 10% and free shipping.

and you guys put me in debt again!
 
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retired said:
hmmmmmmmmmmmmm
a lite to feed my a&d fx120i
that would be a setup!

ok the good news is the code on the site
is 10% and free shipping.

and you guys put me in debt again!
Click to expand...

I think that the first time we all shot a bench gun and shot that amazing small group we put all ourselves in debt,Is that an addiction or an obsession?
 
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