BrainOnSigs
Member
GemPro-250 review (partially mine/partially paraphrased from Sniper's Hide)
Product specs:
Precision: .001g/005ct
Capacity: 50g/250ct
Modes: g, ct, oz, ozt, dwt, gn
Power Options: AAA Battery, AC Adaptor
Colors Available: Black
Weighting Platform Size: 6.8cm x 6.8cm/2.75in x 2.75in
Included Accessories: AC adaptor, forceps, vibration pad, weighing cup, removable tray
Warranty: 30 years
Background on the scale-
$199 normal price, but I bought it on sale for $169. I wasn't sure about spending $200 on a scale when a balance beam appeared to be fine but a bit cumbersome and slow.
First Impressions-
The packaging the scale arrives in was excellent. It comes in a good plastic case. The scale comes with a weighing tray (that needs to be a bit deeper for use with powder...of course the original design is to hold gems, gold, etc), an ASTM Class F2 20 gram check weight, a set of tweezers, and an anti-vibration pad.
Though I purchased mine from Old Will Knott Scales, I saw this tidbit on the "Sniper's Hide" forum: "In addition to the factory instructions explaining the features and programming options, the owner of Uniquetek includes a supplemental sheet that has some FAQ's and some tips regarding scale accuracy. Also, the owner of Uniquetek includes his own calibration test, where he weighs the included 20gr check weight 14 times over 4 hours. I was impressed by this. Him checking that the scale was working properly before it ships definitely adds a degree of confidence in my book. One thing that is brought up is to let the scale adjust to your ambient temperature for at least 24 hours before using it, and to always allow a 5 minute warm up period when using the scale."
Performance-
In reloading repeatability is the most important thing to most of us. I have gone back and weighed powder charges that were already in the brass on the balance beam scale. The weight would come back a little bit heavy or light; which I found frustrating. Once I let the scale warm up for the 5 minutes (after sitting all night reaching room temp) using the 20gr check weight the scale would return to 20.000 about 80% of the time. The other 20% it would show 20.001 or 19.999. The deviation was never greater than this minute difference.
In weighing powder charges I can move much quicker than with the balance beam scale. I start out by using my Harrell Precision powder drop. I have it set to drop approximately 26 grs (of the needed 26.5 grs of Reloader 10X for my .204 Ruger load). Response time on this digital scale is between 2 and 3 seconds. Trickling was another thing I looked forward to testing. Trickling one granule at a time does not always show a heavier weight, but I have found that by applying *SLIGHT* pressure to the scale and then releasing it will 're-weigh' the powder and the single granule difference WILL show up. If I trickle 2 granules a time, the scale appears to react consistently and show the new weight everytime (without tricking it into re-weighting).
One thing I am especially pleased with is that I can pull out individual cases with the weighed charge in them, dump the powder out onto the scale and it always comes back to 26.5 gr.
Conclusion-
I am thrilled with this scale. Using a balance beam scale was very frustrating for me, but I wasn't going to move to a digital scale if the repeatability and consistency weren't there. The GemPro-250 has sped up my reloading time significantly, and that alone made the purchase worthwhile.
Product specs:
Precision: .001g/005ct
Capacity: 50g/250ct
Modes: g, ct, oz, ozt, dwt, gn
Power Options: AAA Battery, AC Adaptor
Colors Available: Black
Weighting Platform Size: 6.8cm x 6.8cm/2.75in x 2.75in
Included Accessories: AC adaptor, forceps, vibration pad, weighing cup, removable tray
Warranty: 30 years
Background on the scale-
$199 normal price, but I bought it on sale for $169. I wasn't sure about spending $200 on a scale when a balance beam appeared to be fine but a bit cumbersome and slow.
First Impressions-
The packaging the scale arrives in was excellent. It comes in a good plastic case. The scale comes with a weighing tray (that needs to be a bit deeper for use with powder...of course the original design is to hold gems, gold, etc), an ASTM Class F2 20 gram check weight, a set of tweezers, and an anti-vibration pad.
Though I purchased mine from Old Will Knott Scales, I saw this tidbit on the "Sniper's Hide" forum: "In addition to the factory instructions explaining the features and programming options, the owner of Uniquetek includes a supplemental sheet that has some FAQ's and some tips regarding scale accuracy. Also, the owner of Uniquetek includes his own calibration test, where he weighs the included 20gr check weight 14 times over 4 hours. I was impressed by this. Him checking that the scale was working properly before it ships definitely adds a degree of confidence in my book. One thing that is brought up is to let the scale adjust to your ambient temperature for at least 24 hours before using it, and to always allow a 5 minute warm up period when using the scale."
Performance-
In reloading repeatability is the most important thing to most of us. I have gone back and weighed powder charges that were already in the brass on the balance beam scale. The weight would come back a little bit heavy or light; which I found frustrating. Once I let the scale warm up for the 5 minutes (after sitting all night reaching room temp) using the 20gr check weight the scale would return to 20.000 about 80% of the time. The other 20% it would show 20.001 or 19.999. The deviation was never greater than this minute difference.
In weighing powder charges I can move much quicker than with the balance beam scale. I start out by using my Harrell Precision powder drop. I have it set to drop approximately 26 grs (of the needed 26.5 grs of Reloader 10X for my .204 Ruger load). Response time on this digital scale is between 2 and 3 seconds. Trickling was another thing I looked forward to testing. Trickling one granule at a time does not always show a heavier weight, but I have found that by applying *SLIGHT* pressure to the scale and then releasing it will 're-weigh' the powder and the single granule difference WILL show up. If I trickle 2 granules a time, the scale appears to react consistently and show the new weight everytime (without tricking it into re-weighting).
One thing I am especially pleased with is that I can pull out individual cases with the weighed charge in them, dump the powder out onto the scale and it always comes back to 26.5 gr.
Conclusion-
I am thrilled with this scale. Using a balance beam scale was very frustrating for me, but I wasn't going to move to a digital scale if the repeatability and consistency weren't there. The GemPro-250 has sped up my reloading time significantly, and that alone made the purchase worthwhile.
