Talking about scales

100 grains?
Never saw one that didn’t weigh at least that much.

All the balance scales I've seen go from 0 to ~500gr and go up from there. I bought a Ohaus 10-10 on ebay that went from 0 to 1500gr.

RCBS, Lyman, Redding, Hornady... just off the top of my head.

deadeye dick said:

I need a balance scale to measure bullet weights and such.

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In addition to Lee Safety Scale, I use 2 Ohaus 10-10 and RCBS 5-0-5 beam scales with .1 gr resolution. 5-0-5 has capacity of 511 grains but for weighing bullets, I prefer to use digital scales because they are faster.

All of my digital scales can weigh bullets with resolution of .1 gr or better as verified by check weights (Frankford Arsenal DS-750, American Weigh Gemini-20, WAOAW digital scales). And I highly recommend the use of check weights to verify the accuracy of your scales.

If you are buying digital scale, you want to be sure the resolution of scale is .1 grain (gr) or better and not .1 gram (g). BTW, .1 grain = .006 gram

Here are current versions of digital scales I have (Both have resolution of .1 gr):

FA DS-750 - $19.99 and free shipping on $49+ orders - https://www.midwayusa.com/product/1012713364

Zilink - $16.99 and prime shipping - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B075Q44TC9/ref=psdc_678508011_t1_B071WTJNYG

Lee ain’t cuttin it huh..

Well than try a Bald Eagle digital from Grizzly
Good scale fair price , weigh Bullets no problem .01 gr to whatever I need

The Lee Precision Safety Powder Scale is limited to 105 grains. It is a balance beam scale. It is set up with larger 'gaps' so one can be more accurate weighing. Per advertising, it is accurate to 1/20th grain (half a tenth).

The Dillion D-terminator has a maximum load of 1500 grains, precision to 0.1 grains according to the advertising. It is a electronic scale type. Dillon also makes the Eliminator balance beam scale which goes up to 511 grains.

A web search will find more.

My experience is precision in weighing the powder charge to microscopic amounts is important only AFTER sorting cases and bullets, determining how deep to seat the bullet, uniforming and de-burring cases and making sure the sights are secure and tight. Being precise with powder weight only is pointless.

Archie said:

The Lee Precision Safety Powder Scale is limited to 105 grains. It is a balance beam scale. It is set up with larger 'gaps' so one can be more accurate weighing. Per advertising, it is accurate to 1/20th grain (half a tenth).

The Dillion D-terminator has a maximum load of 1500 grains, precision to 0.1 grains according to the advertising. It is a electronic scale type. Dillon also makes the Eliminator balance beam scale which goes up to 511 grains.

A web search will find more.

My experience is precision in weighing the powder charge to microscopic amounts is important only AFTER sorting cases and bullets, determining how deep to seat the bullet, uniforming and de-burring cases and making sure the sights are secure and tight. Being precise with powder weight only is pointless.

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Well ya gotta start somewhere, might as well be with quality tools.
My little D-5 scale only goes to 500 grains but it’s tuned to resolve 1 kernel of Varget powder. The bald eagle is close but drifts.

deadeye dick said:

Read the post about e scales and was wondering who makes a scale to measure over 100 grains. I hate e scales for their overcomplication. I need a balance scale to measure bullet weights and such. who sells such a scale. Thanks

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The "five-oh-five" design is excellent for your needs, deadeye dick. RCBS, Lyman, Redding, Hornady, Ohaus and many others make them. The two poise models are the more simple to use than three poise. Expect to pay at least $50, but you can get a good deal on a used one, too.

LiveLife said:

Zilink - $16.99 and prime shipping

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Just ordered one.
I currently have 1 beam and 1 digital scale as well as a Chargemaster Lite.
So why this one?
Simplicity, small footprint, fast set up / take down.

Skgreen said:

Just ordered one.

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When we did myth busting of digital scales, even cheap sub $20 digital scales could verify .1 gr or less repeatedly.

My version of scale you ordered has been reading consistently down to .1 gr (Yes, I have check weights that go below .5 gr) with hardly any drifting.

And with any other battery powered scales, when readings start getting inconsistent, check battery life and/or replace with fresh batteries.

I have an RCBS M1000 scale I bought a couple years ago,and for most of my reloading,it works very well.But when it comes to more precise weighing,I still like my RCBS 505.The fine line on it is much more precise than the larger,newer scale.I have weighed out powder charges on the M1000 and put them on the 505 and had more variation than I would like.Unless you get something high dollar or custom tuned,I don't know if you can beat the 505.I don't know why I thought it would be a great idea to have a scale that could weigh to 1,000 grains.Nothing wrong with the bigger scale,and I learned that the smaller one was working just fine.The main reason I wanted to upgrade is because the 505 got sticky-sometimes when I put a pan of powder on it,the beam wouldn't move until I tapped the bench lightly with my finger.An old reloading partner said his did the same thing,and it didn't bother the way it weighed,but I didn't trust it.Should have listened and saved some money.

WVRJ said:

The main reason I wanted to upgrade is because the 505 got sticky-sometimes when I put a pan of powder on it, the beam wouldn't move until I tapped the bench lightly with my finger.

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Beam scales like RCBS 5-0-5 and Ohaus 10-10 work on agate stone bearings that must be clean and free float on posts.

How to clean, tune and zero your 5-0-5/10-10 beam scales - https://www.thehighroad.org/index.php?attachments/rcbs5-0-5bare-jpg.172819/

If the balance beam doesn't move freely and repeat zero, remove the covers and inspect/clean the stones and posts along with checking the knife edges on the beam. Once knife edges and agate stone bearings are free floating, the beam scale should detect addition of 1/4"x1/4" piece of 20 lb copy paper which weighs about 0.05 gr and definitely 2 pieces weighing about 0.1 gr (This is what I used to check scales before I bought Ohaus Class 6 check weights that went down to 1 mg = 0.015 gr).

My Ohaus 10-10 beam scale showing sensitivity to 2 pieces of 1/4"x1/4" copy paper pieces, 10 mg/0.15 gr and 20 mg/0.3 gr check weights (BTW, vertical lines at pointers are in 0.2 gr increments) - https://www.thehighroad.org/index.p...-busting-digital-scales.821449/#post-10551544

Ohaus 10-10 agate stone bearings



RCBS posts under agate stone bearing

deadeye dick said:

My Lee powder scale only goes to 100 grains

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Consider what it sells for.
The Lee scale is okay if you're on a tight budget, or if it came with a Reloader Kit, but I think that most reloaders would want to upgrade sooner rather than later.

Old Stumpy said:

The Lee scale is okay if you're on a tight budget

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Lee Safety scale, like my Ohaus 10-10, is sensitive enough to detect one piece of 1/4"x1/4" cut 20 lb copy paper (around 0.05 gr) and has consistently checked accurate with my Ohaus Class 6 check weights.

Lee Safety scale is good for trickling powder charges - Set your weight, lock the sliding poise and trickle until pointer zeros.

LiveLife said:

Lee Safety scale, like my Ohaus 10-10, is sensitive enough to detect one piece of 1/4"x1/4" cut 20 lb copy paper (around 0.05 gr) and has consistently checked accurate with my Ohaus Class 6 check weights.

Lee Safety scale is good for trickling powder charges - Set your weight, lock the sliding poise and trickle until pointer zeros.

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Accurate enough, okay.
But most hand loaders want to upgrade to a scale with a better build quality.

No you really don’t need to weigh Bullets unless of course you’ve somehow mixed them up with others or purchased a lot that are grossly different from one another.
Measuring base to Ogive is far more results driven with regards to consistency.
J

If you are buying digital scale, you want to be sure the resolution of scale is .1 grain (gr) or better

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I’d go one step further and say you want accuracy of .1gn or better and view the manufacturers claims skeptically or verify then trust.

I have a cheap Gem 20 that says it’s accurate to .001 grams right on the box, has a resolution of .02 grains. That said, after using it a little bit, I trust my old 505 more.

South Prairie Jim said:

No you really don’t need to weigh Bullets unless of course you’ve somehow mixed them up with others or purchased a lot that are grossly different from one another.

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RMR (and other vendors) on a regular basis offer mixed weight plated/jacketed bullets. (Pulled or mixed weight "oops" during manufacturing/processing, etc.)

I teach/share defensive point shooting as my retirement "Pay It Forward" and supply all the ammunition needed for training sessions without charge that often run 3-4 hours with multiple people. Buying these lower cost bullets will push the per 1000 price down below $65 for mixed 115/124/147 gr bullets for me to reload 50 rounds for around $5 using other bulk components I have stocked up for retirement.

While I use 5-0-5/10-10 beam scales with .1 gr resolution (and .05 gr sensitivity), I have 5 low to mid range cost digital scales with .02 gr to .1 gr resolution (and actual .04 gr to .1 gr sensitivity - Yes, I have check weights that go down to .015 gr) and even cheaper $20 scales has accurately and repeatedly verified my Ohaus Class 6 check weights for years (They are all battery powered and I use rechargeable AAA Eneloop batteries).

FA DS-750 has the least amount of sensitivity at .1 gr but has accurately and repeatedly verified my check weights for years but is durable and has been my primary bench scale (along with Ohaus 10-10) I use the most often and kept on bench as other more sensitive digital scales are stored off bench so as to not damage them (Those that complain about digital scales drifting and not keeping zero, try using fresh batteries and within typical normal operating temperature range of 59F to 95F specified by the manufacturers - Yes, use digital scales outside of these temperature ranges and they will act weird ). While beam scales are great for trickling powder, they are too slow for weighing bullets and digital scales allow me to separate thousands of 115/124/147 gr bullets fast.

And if you are looking to reduce reloading variables further, I have found average jacketed bullet weight to vary by around 1.0 gr, plated bullets by 1.0+ gr and lead/coated lead bullets by few grains and my bullseye match shooting mentor taught me to sort bullets by exact weight.

BTW, RMR in-house manufactured jacketed bullet weight variance is less than 0.5 gr (0.3 gr actual), smallest I have seen even compared to many other match grade and premium bullets (like Hornady HAP, Montana Gold, Zero, Speer Gold Dot, Remington Golden Saber, etc.) and is one of many reasons why ELEY chose RMR bullets for their new line of match ammunition - https://www.thehighroad.org/index.p...ine-of-match-ammunition.854750/#post-11202091