Powder measure

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Zalinth

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I need a little help making a decision here. I decide that i want to get one of those bench mounted powder measure. I have been using a lee hopper powder measure that sits on top of my lee classic turret press. It works great if you want to just make some light within ballpark range loads for just plinking at the gun range.

But what is getting very annoying is that i am trying to make a pet load for my 1918 enfield no1 mk4 and the lee hopper measure is dumping for example anywhere from 36.something to 37.something and i dont want that. So to make a long story short i can get the hornady lock and load powder measure here in town and was wondering if anyone had any trouble with it, do you like it, is it accurate or should i just go online and order the rcbs uniflow powder measure.
 
I've had great luck with RCBS UniFlow measure. But keep in mind, some powders will not drop reliably in ANY measure. However, the Uniflow with Ball powders are as perfect as you are going to get. It will do for some smaller extruded powder, but I would stay away from max if you don't want to weigh every charge.

For example. With Varget, (a common extruded powder), I can drop multiple charges with less than .1g variation. However, about 1 in 10 will be .2g, and maybe 1 in 50 could vary by as much as .4g. So in my case, if I want to load in bulk and not check every charge, I keep at least .5g below any maximum load.
 
What kind of powder are you using? The Lee Perfect Powder Measure while not perfect is one of the most accurate measures out there depending on what powder you are uusing. This is true with just about any of the common measures. Each one has their best results with certain powders.

Usually problems with powder measures are operator error and not operating the measure in a consistant manner.
 
Go to the Los Angeles Silouette Club www.lasc.us/indexBrennan.htm they have a listing on testing powder measures, good reading.

They have tested several powder measures and show the results they had, including any problems with the measures.
 
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I am liking the Lyman 55 measure. It has 3 different slides. You can choose which will work best for any powder. The slides are built in, you don't need to change them. Plenty of capacity for large casings too.
 
Well right at the moment i am only loading for my enfield and marlin 336c. The powder i will be most then likely be using a lot is hodgon or imr. I can easily find that in town, dont really want to order powder online because of the two week wait period, hazmat fee, shipping and handling is not really worth it. The powder i am using right at the moment is h4895.

I am not into max loads and will probably always stay one or two grains below max. I just like knowing that i have for example 36 grains in this batch or 37 grains in this batch of reloads. If it is off by .2 or so, thats fine. Maybe my lee auto disk powder measure doe not like hodgon and thats why i am getting the results i getting.
 
Any of the drum style powder measures will serve you well.

The main trick is to operate it the same every stroke. Otherwise the charge will vary.

It is best to use the cavity that is optimized for the charge you are throwing. Most of the measures have a large and small cavity available.

Some folks like using a baffle in the powder column, others don't. It comes back to consistent operation. I like baffles by the way.

When first filling the measure at the beginning of each loading session, throw 20-30 charges to settle the powder column. WHen dialing in the powder charge, throw several charges after the adjustment before weighing the charge again.

I like the micrometer adjusters. They do not make the powder measure more consistent, but they make returning to a particular powder charge or making adjustments easier. Definitely a luxury expense.

I have a Uniflow and like it. I also have two Redding 10-X measures, Midway indispensable (a discontinued unit), a Hornady L-N-L, and a Culver. I like them all. I have each set for a particular range of powder charges or purposes. I accumulated them over several decades of reloading for various reasons. Each works fine for all purposes but I have found a niche use for each.
 
I have both the Hornady and RCBS powder measures and they both do an excellent job.
 
My two Hornady's even work great with Unique and Bluedot and pretty darned well with 5744. Not so great with larger stick powders, but then what measure does? Just make sure to use the right rotor. I also use the micrometer adjusters.
 
I've been using the RCBS Uniflow, small cylinder, micro adjuster and a baffle for pistol reloads. I'm happy with it. For best results the hopper needs to be at least 3/4 full.

It also helps to clean the factory rust preventive out of it and run a bunch of powder through it, to coat the internals with powder dust.
 
I own an older Pacific measure (now Hornaday), a Lee Perfect Powder Measure, an older Lyman 55, and a RCBS Little Dandy. They will all work quite well for most propellants but there are some minor problems with each one. That said I like my 55 the best as you can fiddle with the measure slides and get accurate drops with most any type of flake or extruded propellant. The thing is to note the settings to get the same good drops next time without having to reinvent the wheel each time.:) I have to agree that the single most important thing for consistent drops is to become extremely boring and repetitive, like a robot when charging your casings. I can get +/- .1 grain with my 55 using Blue Dot or Bullseye easily when I concentrate on method.
 
I have both the Hornady and RCBS...True they both do the job, but I think the Hornady does it a little better.
 
I have two Reddings (one the Benchrest model) and a CH4D. The Redding does very well with ball powders but not so well on the extruded stick powders. The CH4D is just the opposite! I'd think since it does so well on the stick powders it would be right on for the ball powders. Not so.

I've started measuring every load for my rifles. I got a chronograph and found I wasn't nearly as close with my charges as I thought. A good quality electronic scale confirmed a considerable variation in my loads. My consistancy is much better now. For pistols I check about every 10 drops and make adjustments as required.
 
You could always by a B&M off Ebay for low volume reloading, or, get a Quick-Measure for high-volume reloading. Both work well with all powders, even extruded.
 
The Lyman #55 is a very good choice. That said, back when, I bought a Lee Perfect Powder Measure and even though it looks and feels cheap it meters very well. It's usually spot on even with stick powders.

So what I'm saying is, it comes down to what you want to spend. I'm cheap so I bought a Lee PPM but I think if I could do it again I just might go for a Lyman #55 instead.
 
I bought a Redding #3 BR powder measure about a month ago, really like it. I've used W231 in it for revolver loads, does a good job, within 1/10th of a grain then use trickler to finish. I'm pleased with it. I've used it a couple of times with stick powder, 3031, did okay, might be me, more testing coming up.
 
This is what The Rifleman's Journal (a dedicated long-range precision shooting website) posted on powder measure setup - http://riflemansjournal.blogspot.com/2011/11/equipment-sartorius-gd503-evaluation.html
New Setup: Equipment
1. Sartorius GD503
2. Omega Power Trickler: You can trickle single kernels with ease.
3. Lee Perfect Powder Measure: You can spend a lot more money on a measure but you won’t get one that is better. I owned a $250 Harrell’s Premium Power Measure, but prefer the $20 Lee.
Click to expand...
 
:D^^^ NO SURPRISE HERE^^^:D

I still think that the Lyman 55 is easier to adjust for consistency with different types of propellent but for the price the Lee is the winner here.
 
Usually problems with powder measures are operator error and not operating the measure in a consistant manner.
Click to expand...

I concur.

With the lee, the length and force of pull, and the "stop" at the top of the stroke can dramatically effect your charge drop with some powders.
 
Thanks for the replies guys. After reading all of your replies and doing some thinking i deiced to go ahead a get the hornady lnl powder measure. After cleaning it last night and messing with it; i am very pleased with the results. My only complaint is it does not really like the h4895 stick powder, it likes to stick about every other pull. The drops i was getting with it was 36.0,36.1,36.2,36.0,35.9. That is such a huge difference compared to what i was getting with the lee auto disk.

I noticed on midway they have the lee perfect powder measure on sale for 20 bucks, i might order that for giggles and have two around the house. I remember reading some where that lee handles stick powder a little bit better.
 
Try putting in a powder baffle near the bottom if it did not come with one. There are patterns on the net to make one out of a pop can if you want. This helps with consistency as much as anything after technique does.
 
Yes it did come with a baffle, and what i did was drop the baffle in and them dumped the powder on top. Is that the right way using the baffle? I was not sure.
 
I use a RCBS Uniflo & drop the powder about .4 gr below what i want & then use a drippler into a RCBS 5-0-5 scale & bring the powder up to what I want.
I use that for certain loads in rifle only---pistol I load below max & don't worry about it.
 
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