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Posted: 12/16/2012 7:16:23 PM EDT
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OK, I sold my Rockchucker and my Chargemaster over the summer, in order to fund a Hornady LNL progressive press.
Well, just as I was ready to click on the final checkout.submit button, I had two fleas, from a reinfestation jump on me. So, I held off, because I would need some of it for an exterminator. Turns out it was worse than I thought, and I wound up paying a girl to clean the house, and some guys to clean up the yard. Then I got the call from the Nursing home that my dad was sent to the hospital. He passed away about two weeks later. So with all that happened, I spent every penny from all of the sales of reloading stuff, and some more. I have no press now, but that is simple, and can be taken care of with any decent single stage. I loaded on a cheap Lee for years and still made very good ammo. For now though, I need to get a Powder Dispenser/Measure. I have the little Lee perfect powder measure, and used it for years, but it really is sensitive to certain powder types, and will not usually be too consistent with extruded, and sometimes larger spherical. I always had to set low and trickle up. I still have my 5-0-5 scale, and will probably do as I always did before the chargemaster and weigh every charge anyway unless I see that whatever measure I get is really consistent, and then I'll measure ever 5th or 10th or something. My thoughts are that I would like to stay under $75, and really, if I could be at $50 I would be very happy. I like the Hornady LNL one, and the RCBS Uniflow. Guys recommend me something. Oh, I would like to add, I will at some point be getting some sort of progressive press, whether it be Hornady or RCBS, or Dillon. May be a year or so off though. Thanks |
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Both are priced around $70-$75 new, but you could get them around $50 used, but good condition on our EE regularly. If you're time sensitive, then head on over to eBay, and you'll find some great deals there also. I picked up my Redding BR3 for $35 on eBay a couple years ago.
GlockMonk |
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I like the rcbs units that i have.
On the same note id like to pu a hornady unit because of the super fast caliber switch out, I could get a kit for every caliber i reload and leave the cylinder in with the dies. I love not having to redial a charge but i have 6 measures and its kind of obsessive of me 
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I've been using my Uniflow since day one (@1985) and for ball powder and most pistol powder it is fine.(If not nearly perfect.) For short stick or powders that are a little more coarse it is still easily less than +/- .5 grain. I have both cylinders for mine.(back then it came with both.) and use the small one for everything that I can.
I have used it with stick powder for "plinking loads". They would be +/- 1gr. but usually less. My practice load in .308 Win would tolerate this nicely and seem to have little effect even out to 500 meters. |
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Hornady uses two rotors, rifle and pistol. Then you can buy inserts for dedicated charge weights. I'm using a Harrells measure for anything requiring accuracy but I can say this much. Having two Hornady measures for one AP press is a good thing. Sorry for your loss, has to be devastating, would be for me.
Anyways, having a good Redding PM as a stand alone ain't a bad idea either. |
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Hornady uses two rotors, rifle and pistol. Then you can buy inserts for dedicated charge weights. I'm using a Harrells measure for anything requiring accuracy but I can say this much. Having two Hornady measures for one AP press is a good thing. Sorry for your loss, has to be devastating, would be for me. Anyways, having a good Redding PM as a stand alone ain't a bad idea either. Is there anything that will reliably throw charges within 2/10gr even if it's only with spherical powder or maybe flake type, without spending $150? I don't mind throwing a tad low and trickling up, but would love to have something accurate enough not to have to do that. If I go that much money though. I may as well break down and buy another Chargemaster. I normally tested a few loads on the 5-0-5 each time to start, and then one every 10-20 rounds. Almost every one was right on the money with what the Chargemaster showed. I have started moving from H322 to AA2200 for most of my 6.8 loads over 90grs, but still like the Re7 for the 80-90gr bullets. |
| I haven't had the chance to try a Hornady or Redding pm yet, but with ball powders my Uniflow with a baffle tends to throw within a tenth, 2/10s tops. Have not tied with stick powders, call me chicken because I think it will make me want to buy a charge master. I really wanna run some Varget.... |
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I haven't had the chance to try a Hornady or Redding pm yet, but with ball powders my Uniflow with a baffle tends to throw within a tenth, 2/10s tops. Have not tied with stick powders, call me chicken because I think it will make me want to buy a charge master. I really wanna run some Varget.... I have been loading Varget in my son's 5.56 , 55gr Hornady HPBT loads. The Chargemaster made quick work of that task. Also some of the powders I was using for the 6.8 were stick, as well as the .308 when I was loading with IMR 4064. I sold the .308 right when I got it though. |
| Just the wrong time of year, tis the season.. To be broke! Also I think a powder throw will probably be better for my current mission of loading 2500 prairie dog tactical elimination munitions. Though knowing me ill probably end up with an 8lb jug of Varget throwing .4 gr short and trickling up each load. How many donations to a certain bank you think I'd have to make to fund a chargemaster? Lol |
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Just the wrong time of year, tis the season.. To be broke! Also I think a powder throw will probably be better for my current mission of loading 2500 prairie dog tactical elimination munitions. Though knowing me ill probably end up with an 8lb jug of Varget throwing .4 gr short and trickling up each load. How many donations to a certain bank you think I'd have to make to fund a chargemaster? Lol RCBS has a $50 rebate on anything $300, so that puts a new one at $250 some places. It can be very fast if you get coordinated and get a rhythm going. Just load pour the powder into a case from the pan, and stick the pan back and mash dispense. Load the bullet in that case, and sit it down. Your next powder charge will be measured, dispensed, and ready. Repeat. I got pretty quick with it. A lot faster than throwing low and trickling up, and almost as fast as just throwing the charge. We're talking a few minutes slower per hundred rounds to get an exact weight that is easily seen and verified by just looking at a number on the machine. The biggest time consumer in reloading for me has always been case prep. hope to one day get some method faster that using the RCBS trimmer, even with a homemade power tool attachment, ( Allen bolt in place of the handle, and a electric screwdriver with an Allen bit , oh, and some coloring books or something for a stand - never did get around to making something permanent ). Ultimately, I would like a case prep center like the Hornady one, and a power trimmer. |
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Well, its a crime to have all the redundacy that I have in reloading gear but that's my area of priority. I do without creature comforts to afford redundancy mayhem. I'm constantly plagued with thoughts of, "If I could only have one ?" Never owned Redding or RCBS measures but I've got a lot of respect for Redding products. I hold Hornady measure to the same level of regard as Dillon. Both good, neither precision. Have owned/used every Lee PM combination imaginable and invented a variation of my own along the way using two adjustable bars, double stacked for rifle. Owned a Forster measure, very accurate, bitch to set. Harrells measure will hold the worst metering powders to within a total half grain variance and most powders within a total of .03 grain variance. The measure I use adjusts in .02 increments with a 25 grain capacity. Any higher I finger trickle on Veritas S123 pharmaceutical grade scale to within .02 grains.
But, and you knew they'red be one. There's a trick to making powders like IMR Hi-Skor 700x meter to within half a tenth. It's called a Doc Johnsons vari-speed, variable control bullet vibrator banded to Harrells powder container. I truly believe you can take an implement like a vibrator and make the hardest to meter powders measure very well in the cheapest, least expensive measures provided measure doesn't leak like the PPM will with certain powders. Some guys use aquarium compressors which would be easier on the ears than bbeeennn, bbeeeeennn, bbeeeeeennn playing the powder tube. For the accuracy it provides I tolerate it. If metering a powder like N310 the Schuetzan measure will stay within 3/10 of 1/10 all day long without vibratory assist. Unfortunatly powder bridging is trouble for all measures metering powders like 700x. I've been side tripping lately on a new project. Call it the ultimate press if you like. Some of the best reloading equipment is made from scratch in a machine shop, basement or garage and not store bought and the good store bought stuff is re-engineered by the likes of top rifle competitors from around the world. Anyways, when I got to studying how pharmaceutical companies measure powder I find the word vibratory used a lot in conjunction with powder measure. If'ins you think about measuring capsules, pharmaceutical companies are all about precision measures. That technology has crossed into commercial ammunition manufacturing and expensive to the tune of $20,000.00 to drop within .02 in less than 3 seconds. One $30.00 Doc Johnsons gets us as close as we need to be with a measure costing less than $100.00. |
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http://i250.photobucket.com/albums/gg272/dryflash3/Powder%20Measure/PC160334.jpg I bought the Hornady PM new back in 1997, the others are funshow finds. $15 to $25 for the Uniflows and $35 for the Reddings. So check out the used market. Case your wondering, I like Redding PM's best. I was wondering about yours, and 1911Smith's, and everyone here, especially the regulars here. FWIW, I don't do anything over 30grs. I may if I find a good 80-85gr bullet cheap enough, but I really think the sweet spot for the gun I shoot most, the 6.8 is 100-110gr, maybe 115-120. I'm gonna try some 140 VLD Bergers one day, but it'll be a while. The 110gr Hornady OTM at about 2700fps is hard to beat in that caliber out to where I shoot. If I can get 2450-2500fps from the 140gr I could see it, but at 2400 even, it isn't as flat in the first 400-500 yards although it has a lot more energy and drops less once you get passed that point, and wind deflection is better. Some of the guys are getting more that the SSA advertised 2400fps, more like 2430fps from their 16" AR Performance barrels. Matching that blend with an off the shelf powder might be tough though. Some of the 130gr bullets are looking good too for some of the guys. A little more speed, still high BC for this caliber. Almost all of these bullets will use between 28gr and 30gr of most popular for caliber powders. As for the only other rifle I load for, my son's Spikes M4-LE 5.56 , I use 27gr Varget with a Hornady 55gr HPBT. I haven't loaded anything else for him yet. He's had it for a few years now, but he has been sick a lot, and not able to shoot it hardly at all. He was shooting his old Oly Target rifle a lot. Used to love shooting. He has severe headaches and back pain, and we've found no help for him yet, and it keeps him from being able to stay in position, and shooting in general. He had starting shooting bows when the headaches first got bad, but the back pain took him out of that. He loves to be outside and shoot with me, and reload, but hasn't been able to in years. He might go outside and pop a few rounds off just for trigger time, but that's it. He has to go back and sit down. I plan to load him up some 75 or 77gr bullets soon for him, and get them dialed in for him, but I hate to have more time on his gun than he does. Just doesn't seem right. I'm open to try something other than Varget though. My primary reason for that was that I was loading .308 and 5.56/.223 and wanted something that would work well in both. I tried it and like it in the .223 but never loaded any in the .308, I sold it and got the 6.8 due to a bad shoulder injury from prank involving squats, weights, and a long pair of needle nose pliers, oh, and a so called friend. lol Needles to say, I was squatting with the weights, and he strategically placed the pliers. For my pistol stuff, I still use a 12 year old 3 hole turret press from Lee. It works fine for my needs. Nearly died today loading a batch of 9mm for a friend. He bought a M&P 9mm from me, and I had worked that load up for it. The little plastic bushing died with about 70 rounds to go, along with the primer arm spring going wonky. That's why I was going to get a progressive that was better like a LNL , or Dillon, or even the RCBS model. Load them all on one. Thanks for the suggestions. |
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Hornady uses two rotors, rifle and pistol. Then you can buy inserts for dedicated charge weights. I'm using a Harrells measure for anything requiring accuracy but I can say this much. Having two Hornady measures for one AP press is a good thing. Sorry for your loss, has to be devastating, would be for me. Anyways, having a good Redding PM as a stand alone ain't a bad idea either. Is there anything that will reliably throw charges within 2/10gr even if it's only with spherical powder or maybe flake type, without spending $150? I don't mind throwing a tad low and trickling up, but would love to have something accurate enough not to have to do that. If I go that much money though. I may as well break down and buy another Chargemaster. I normally tested a few loads on the 5-0-5 each time to start, and then one every 10-20 rounds. Almost every one was right on the money with what the Chargemaster showed. I have started moving from H322 to AA2200 for most of my 6.8 loads over 90grs, but still like the Re7 for the 80-90gr bullets. With H380, my Uniflow is dead-on every time (of course, as long as I don't do something drastic like seriously speed up or slow down my throw) It's pretty accurate with flake powder as well, but ball powder is an absolute dream. I haven't done anything to "tune" it, other than putting on a micrometer adjustment instead of that damned locknut deal it comes with to measure the powder. |
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RCBS Uniflow with ball powder. I check about every 1 in 10. RARELY to I get one that is off .2 of one grain, most are dead on. I have dispense powder like H-335 right down to where it was nearly empty, measuring every one in two when forced to do this, and still see no more than .2 off.
With powders like IMR-4350 you are looking at +/- 1 grain. |
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