Automated powder dispenser

[tedthorn]

There is an aftermarket insert that installs inside the trickler tube

virtually ends over throw

 

[Uncle Sauce]

Had the Chargemaster for years. No experience with the Lyman. As mentioned the straw trick works. You can also program the speed + to drop as well...some good youtube videos on it. I run 2 pans on mine...Had to file down 2 pans so they were exactly the same weight, so as soon as you pull one, you put the other on the scale and while your pouring into a case the other one is automatically charging on the RCBS. Goes pretty quick this way if your loading a lot of cases. Hope this helps!

 

[tedthorn]

To get very good loads. Set your loader .3 below your desired load and use a hand trickier to bring it up.

Are you kidding me?

Spend hundreds of dollars to trickle up

hell no!!

 

[larry4831]

Had the Chargemaster for years. No experience with the Lyman. As mentioned the straw trick works. You can also program the speed + to drop as well...some good youtube videos on it. I run 2 pans on mine...Had to file down 2 pans so they were exactly the same weight, so as soon as you pull one, you put the other on the scale and while your pouring into a case the other one is automatically charging on the RCBS. Goes pretty quick this way if your loading a lot of cases. Hope this helps!

That sounds like a good idea. The only complaint I have about mine is that it is slow.

 

[Hogpatrol]

I use one but double weigh on a better scale. The Chargemaster accuracy is plus or minus .1 grain. One's load requirements would determine whether that's acceptable.

 

[Mike Van Horn]

Are you kidding me?

Spend hundreds of dollars to trickle up

hell no!!

It all depends on how precise you want your loads
Good luck

 

[Andrew Short]

Had the Chargemaster for years. No experience with the Lyman. As mentioned the straw trick works. You can also program the speed + to drop as well...some good youtube videos on it. I run 2 pans on mine...Had to file down 2 pans so they were exactly the same weight, so as soon as you pull one, you put the other on the scale and while your pouring into a case the other one is automatically charging on the RCBS. Goes pretty quick this way if your loading a lot of cases. Hope this helps!

Great idea and time saver! Especially when loading a lot of cases or large capacity cases!

 

[shootist~]

You can tell from his post that @Hogpatrol loads for "Precision", which is a long range thing. I'm similar and use two powder pans (Not of equal weight).

One pan sits on a seperate electronic scale and receives the dump from the Chargemaster. It just depends on how precise you want to be.

You will find your own tricks that fit your loading style as you gain experience with the Chargemaster. You probably already have everything (else) that you need.

 

[Tbitty]

I have the Hornady one myself. It does a good job if I keep it on the low speed, but it gets goofy on normal or fast setting speeds. Overall, it stays consistent enough for my general purposes. When I make my precision loads, I hand weigh everything anyway for as close to exact as i can get.

 

[Andrew Short]

I’ve never reloaded for “precision” only duplicating factory performance with acceptable accuracy out of my 5.56 rifles.

I now have dies for my 7mm/08, 300 WSM so I can start working up loads for those.
I’m not sure if im keeping the Rigby but I’ll reload for the 404 jeffery for sure.

 

[Hogpatrol]

The old straw and programming tricks have been around since the chargemaster was first introduced. Just a WAG but I believe the newer models have a quicker reaction time. I've found overshooting the desired weight happens most with the slow burn rate stick powders. Ball, flake and finer stick powders aren't as problematic.

 

[norfolk shooter]

I got a chargemaster lite and I love it. I used to have a a little thing called a target master that is available in the UK. It was ok but not a patch on the CM lite. I guess if you dont need all the extra features on the big CM just get the lite and you can use the saved money on more reloading components

 

[PHOENIX PHIL]

I wonder who thought to use a straw..

I’ll be happy if the RCBS holds to 1/10 grain. Per reviews it does

What happens is somewhat dependent on the powder and how easily it flows. As the charge weight approaches what you programmed in, the dispense will start spinning much slower. As you get really close it will stop and just make partial turns until it reaches the desired weight OR.......goes over.

The question is how much does it go over. You only know by waiting to see what the final weight was. For me with practice rounds if it goes over by no more than 0.2 that's fine. But for hunting rounds, my engineering OCD kicks in hard and I start over again. I want it to be exactly what I wanted on the final weight. I know there's error there from the machine, but that's okay.

Again this is dependent on the powder from I've seen. You'll kind of get used to it, you'll see the dispenser turn a few times with nothing falling into the pan. Then that next little turn happens and something of an avalanche of powder fall into the pan and take you over what your targeted weight.

The straw trick is I guess to make the powder flow a little easier and avoid this problem. For whatever reason I've not even tried that yet.

 

[PHOENIX PHIL]

I've found overshooting the desired weight happens most with the slow burn rate stick powders. Ball, flake and finer stick powders aren't as problematic.

Yep, I agree with that.

 

[Hearties]

I have a Chargemaster lite and load for hunting so 1/10th of a grain accuracy is good enough. Just follow the instructions, give it enough time to “warm up” and I recommend recalibration after every 20 rounds or so. As mentioned above, if it over-throws just dump that change and go again...

 

[Andrew Short]

I have zero experience with ball powder. Everything I use is extruded so I’ll be looking for over charges.

Even using the traditional powder dispenser you get shorted or have over charges with extruded powder. I always set it short and used the trickle to get my load. Very slow and annoying when loading a 1000 5.56.

 

[Andrew Short]

I have a Chargemaster lite and load for hunting so 1/10th of a grain accuracy is good enough. Just follow the instructions, give it enough time to “warm up” and I recommend recalibration after every 20 rounds or so. As mentioned above, if it over-throws just dump that change and go again...

How long is the recalibration process? I’ve seen videos that recommend recalibrating every 40-50 rounds but if you are double checking charge weight before dumping into the case it seems like you could go further. Just curious why you go 20 rounds?

 

[JimP]

Re-calibration doesn't take that long.

On under and over charges, years ago I read a article in one of the gun magazines that asked that very question. This was before digital scales and most charges were thrown by a powder dispenser.

They came to the conclusion that as long as you were not at the max pressure with your load that a couple tenths of a grain one way or the other is not going to affect the accuracy or trajectory of your shots at targets or game animals.

I know that there are those that are OCD about getting exactly what their load is suppose to weigh but it really isn't necessary to get that precise of a measurement.

When I first got my Chargmaster I thought that there was something wrong with it when it didn't dispense the whole charge with the initial dump. Then I wondered about why there was grains of powder on the tray coming out of the tube when I went to charge the case. I quickly learned just how it worked. As was mentioned it will trickle the powder into the pan until it hits the correct weight of the charge.

 

[shootist~]

With powder measures you are lucky to consistently get +/- 0.2 grains with most extruded powders. And with Varget (that I avoid like the plague), +/- 0.3 is more like it. You don't see this if just checking a few here and there with a balance beam.

But then an additional electronic scale (not necessary unless loading for long range precision), adds it's own issues, especially in areas that have high static electricity like ABQ.

My Gempro electronic scale reads to 0.02 grains, but is it really that accurate? Hence I finally went to -.02 on the low side (it really easy and quick to trickle in a little more) to +.04, on long range loads, and maybe +.06 grains on hunting loads.

Note that an individual kernel of (most) stick powders will usually weigh (roughly) between .02 to .04 grains.

BTW, the Chargemaster only reads to 0.1 grains. I weigh every single charge - just part of my routine. I would say that it's almost never off by more that -.06 on the low side and usually much closer than that. It will occasionally go Over by much more, but it will let you know if it's about +0.1 or more.

I had the Gempro electronic scale and the nifty electric trickler before I ever considered getting a Chargemaster, BTW.

 

[Royal27]

There is a guy on EBay that sells a brass reducer that works a little better. Not really necessary unless you are anal and trying to stay inside .04 grains or so.

Just got my Chargemaster set up and with a straw yesterday. Cut little jagged edges and it seems to work well. I can see where that brass fitting would be even better but a little slower? For what I'm doing right now I think the straw is fine. If I get to shooting long distance on a regular basis that opinion may change.