Are there any accurate digital scales n the $200 range

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Texson

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I have been looking for an accurate digital scale and find one person says they are good and then others say they would not trust them. I suppose if money were no object they are available, but what about some that are affordable? What do you good people recommend? I would appreciate some feed back.
Thanks
Texson
 
I have a Dillon D'Terminator. It's about $140.

It's perfect.

Settles quickly, is accurate (I have check weights so I know), can respond to a trickle of a tenth-grain at a time.

I have no interest in any other scale. Yeah, it's not cheap, but you get what you pay for.
 
PACT's Digital Precision Powder Scale. I've been using one for several years now, and it is extremely accurate. It settles fast, reads out to a tenth of a grain and comes with a set of calibration weights, so you don't have to buy extras.

I also have their electronic powder dispenser that communicates with the scale through a built in infrared port. It's not the fastest but it is accurate and repeatable. Wife gave it to me for an anniversary present a year after I bought the scale. I also have an RCBS 5-0-2 mechanical scale and it has always agreed with the PACT. Electronic scales are nice to have, but you should also have a good beam scale on hand in case the power fails, or the more expensive electronic one quits working. (They do that sometimes - :D )

Current cost (www.pact.com) I believe is $129.95.

One thing to remember about ALL scales, not just the electronic ones, is they need to be sitting on a stand-alone table that is as free from vibration as possible. Not a good idea to set it on the same bench as the press or it will take much longer to settle and may get knocked out of calibration from the operation of the reloading press. I've had it happen on both the PACT and 5-0-2.
 
"I have been looking for an accurate digital scale and find one person says they are good and then others say they would not trust them."

Like anything else electonic, those who get good ones love and recommend 'em, those who don't get good ones disagree. I'm a retired space/defence electronic instruments tech and I don't trust 'em.

At any price, digital scales are quirky. It puzzles me why reloaders are attracted to them when beams are deadly accurate and dependable, always ready and easy to use, just as fast, and less costly for any kind of quality and long service life.

What many people do to their beams should be against the law; sitting them on the bench top. The only worse place would be under the bench! Beam scales should sit on a steady box or shelf at about chin level to allow us to read them easily. They should be in close proximity to the powder measure (and fer pete's sake, don't put a measure IN a single stage press or on the bench edge!) and press so they can all be used without walking around and reachng up and down to get to each tool the way most posted photos of benches show. Those who think they can load faster with digital scales usually have their powder handling things poorly placed!
 
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I too have the Dillon and am very pleased with it. My friends use both the Pact and the RCBS balances and they are plesed with those also.
 
I bought a cheap digital scale from harbor freight for about 15 bucks. It works well. I match it up against the beam scale I have, and it is consistant. But I still use my beam for the most part.
 
One thing to remember about ALL scales, not just the electronic ones, is they need to be sitting on a stand-alone table that is as free from vibration as possible. Not a good idea to set it on the same bench as the press or it will take much longer to settle and may get knocked out of calibration from the operation of the reloading press. I've had it happen on both the PACT and 5-0-2.
Click to expand...

If you`re bouncing your bench bad enough to knock a beam scale of kilter you need a bigger bench. I`ve had my dads old bench walk away from the wall when full sizing some over expanded rifle brass and the scale didn`t vary even though the legs of the bench were rising .5" off the floor. His bench was ~ 5' long and 30" deep,4X4 legs and 2X4 frame but not large or heavy by any measure. Because of this I built mine twice as big and 5Xs the weight. It don`t move without a struggle!
I`d never expect a digital to accept this treatment.

As for digital scales, I`ve got a Pact and use it to find the "unknown" wt of object, not to weight powder charges. I toss my charges and weight every 10 so verify the measure is still on and don`t see any advantage in the digital over the beam for this. Others think differently....
 
Thanks for all the replies. I have beam scales just looking for a good way to quickly verify my powder throwers and have a backup. I think after this info I will just stick with the beams scales. I appreciate all the courteous help and wiah God's blessings on all.
Thanks
Texson :)
 
Otto said:
There are two that come to mind, the GemPro 250 and the Jennings 20.
They cost $154 and $69 respectively. Both measure in 0.02 grain increments.
http://www.oldwillknottscales.com/my-weigh-gempro-250.aspx
http://www.oldwillknottscales.com/jennings-jscale-mack-20.aspx

Personally, I prefer a RCBS beam scale for it's simplicity and reliability.
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I have the GemPro 250 and am extremely satisfied. Have been using it for about 15 months. The display reads in .02 grain increments, but I think the accuracy was advertised as +/- .05 grains when I bought mine.
 
30 YEAR MANUFACTURER'S WARRANTY!
If ya have a problem with this digital scale, just send it to My Weigh's warranty center in Phoenix, Arizona. They'll fix it or replace it, and send it on its way back to ya within two working days.
Click to expand...

That's impressive, just as the resolution of 0.02 grains is totally impressive. I suppose jewelers have to be very accurate in their weights; my RCBS 10-10 beam balance is very accurate, but only to +/-0.1 grain. This GemPro 250 sounds like the one I would buy, if I were buying one. I am totally accustomed to the 10-10, it is accurate and if I use it as designed it is just as fast weighing out charges (with a trickler). What it can't do is weigh unknown quantities quickly, which any electronic scale does. All things considered, it's whatever tickles your fanny... :p

My 2dwts... :cool:
 
ranger335v said:
Like anything else electonic, those who get good ones love and recommend 'em, those who don't get good ones disagree. I'm a retired space/defence electronic instruments tech and I don't trust 'em.
Click to expand...

Trusting your electronic scale comes from the knowledge that it ACCURATELY weighs a KNOWN mass. We have a $10,000 Mettler lab-grade electronic scale at work that is vastly superior to anything any reloader could afford. I weighed my set of Lyman check weights with the following results:

0.5gr > 0.0325g = 0.50gr
1gr > 0.0666g = 1.03gr
2gr > 0.1290g = 1.99gr
2gr > 0.1293g = 2.00gr
5gr > 0.3237g = 5.00gr
10gr > 0.6486g = 10.01gr
20gr > 1.2968g = 20.01gr
20gr > 1.2964g = 20.01gr
50gr > 3.2376g = 49.96gr
100gr > 6.4797g = 100.00gr

I simply calibrate the CM1500 scale with the supplied 50 gram weights, then I weigh three combinations of check weights. Two of the chosen weights
"bracket" the desired load range and the third is half way between the two. I record the values and once I've finished dispensing powder, I weigh the three combinations again to see if there has been any drift ... and there isn't. I absolutely trust my CM1500 ... both of them!!

P.S. I have no use for a stand-alone digital scale (other than to weigh cases perhaps). I need an automatic powder dispenser such as the CM1500 Combo. I have an RCBS 750 just sitting around ... it's accurate but I have no interest in trickling powder into a pan by hand ... I reload/shoot way too much for that.

:)
 
"Trusting your electronic scale comes from the knowledge that it ACCURATELY weighs a KNOWN mass. We have a $10,000 Mettler lab-grade electronic scale at work that is vastly superior to anything any reloader could afford."

Granted. And, for every reloader who gets one of your Mettler scales and contracts for the routine calibration and maintinance it requires I will make an exception for them. Otherwise, my observation stands as stated. ;)
 
I use the Dillon digital and find to be accurate and repeatable. I believe the claimed accuracty is +/- 0.10 gr, and have no reason not to believe that. I have a set of check-weights starting at half a grain, and its spot on up to at least 50 grains.

It needs to be used, however, with the AC adapter. It is not stable with battery power--something that took me a while to figure out. I'd buy another.
 
ranger335v said:
Granted. And, for every reloader who gets one of your Mettler scales and contracts for the routine calibration and maintinance it requires I will make an exception for them. Otherwise, my observation stands as stated.
Click to expand...

Good one!! :D I'm sticking with my digital scales though since I'm getting excellent results where it counts ... on the target!! I'll revert to using a balance beam scale once all of the electricity has run out!

:)
 
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