Hi, I was at the local gunshop the other day and I noticed that they had one of the RCBS electronic powder dispensers that work in conjunction with the Pro Digital scale. The concept of the two working togethor sounds good but I was wondering about the reality of it. I think I've heard that the system is slow, does anyone have any first hand knowledge of this system? Thanks, Jeff
Posts: 101 | Location: WA | Registered: 25 April 2003
The REAL advantage of these, at least if you buy it new (and maybe if you don't) is that the maker warrenty is forever. RCBS will fix it free for about a year but forever is longer.
They are a bit slow but they certainly work and work very well. Take a while to set up. You have to run powder through it in order for it to know how do dispense it. I've had one for years and have no complaints.
Lyman now has a similar product which skipps the powder set up time. Lyman's, however, is only guaranteed for a year. Forever is definitely better.
PACT (the maker of the RCBS unit) has an upgrade for the PACT units that improves the speed. I have not sent mine back for the upgrade yet but will this winter. I have the PACT unit and like it a lot. I no longer have to have one step that is just for dispensing powder. I size, prime all my cases and then have the PACT unit dispense a charge, i dump it in the case and start another charge dispensing, i then seat the bullet and final inspect the case. Works out purty well.....
Posts: 1574 | Location: Western Pennsylvania | Registered: 12 September 2002
Mssmagnum: Which unit is the upgrade for, the dispenser or the scale?
Jeff: They work pretty well together. You have to warm up the scale for about 30 minutes to cure the "wondering zero" problem, but after that is works well. This is not a significant problem since I can eat supper or do something else while it is warming up. The setup time is about 3-5 minutes, therefore I only use them on large jobs, say 40 and up cases to charge. I use a powder measure to throw a light charge, and then use the dispenser to bring it up to the desired charge. Works faster than a balance beam scale but not as fast as just with the powder measure. What you gain is some speed and the ease of use since you are not squinting and bending over trying to read and charge the beam scale. On a large job this is significant.
Posts: 26 | Location: Marilla, NY, outside of Buffalo | Registered: 11 June 2002
I've got one that I've been using for about three years. The only draw back is the speed and, as Mike stated, PACT is now offering a faster version. Not sure if RCBS is offering the upgrade. IF they do I'll think about it, depending on the cost.
Lately what I've been doing is putting a bit of powder into the pan before dispensing. Then the dispenser tops it off for me. It definatly speeds things up.
Take Care,
-Steve
[ 08-24-2003, 04:57: Message edited by: Steve ]
Posts: 2781 | Location: Hillsboro, Or-Y-Gun (Oregon), U.S.A. | Registered: 22 June 2000
quote:Originally posted by dodgestdshift: Mssmagnum: Which unit is the upgrade for, the dispenser or the scale?
The upgrade is for the dispenser according to the magazine ad i read. The upgrade will be free (unless you count the shipping to them) for the PACT units. I am not sure how RCBS will handle it...
I warm up my scale while i am priming cases and such, by the time i am ready to load it is ready.
Posts: 1574 | Location: Western Pennsylvania | Registered: 12 September 2002
Thanks for the speed update, I have the RCBS so I'll wait and see what they decide I guess. I mainly use the Redding measurer and use the PP dispensor to trickle up from a grain below tho.
I had the Pact and ended up selling it. It worked good but changing powders was a bitch and it had to be recalibrated each time. If you loaded a lot of shells with the same powder and charge, they are handy. If you do a lot of testing with different powders and weights, I would rather weigh them by hand. The Lyman DPS looks good and I had them send me info on it,but as mentioned earlier,it only has a one year warranty and that is a drawback.
I have the PACt unit and I love it. Speed is not a problem if you do like others have mentioned here and seat the bullet while the next charge is being dispensed. Of course I don't load anything with a Coke bottle case so maybe my 20 to 45 grain charges make the speed thing a non-issue.
Glad to hear about the upgrade though, I'll have to check it out.
As far as a warm up time and wandering zero, I don't have that problem. My loading bench is in my house and the temperature where I store my unit never dips much below 60 degrees, maybe that is why I don't have to go through the warm up.
Posts: 59 | Location: Pennsylvania, USA | Registered: 04 March 2003
The PACT website has some info on the new speedier dispenser as well as some upgrading info too. Unfortunately they do not say when we can upgrade our dispensers only that it will be available for around $50 to $75. Check out the link PACT Dipsensers
quote:Originally posted by dodgestdshift: Mssmagnum: Which unit is the upgrade for, the dispenser or the scale?
The upgrade is for the dispenser according to the magazine ad i read. The upgrade will be free (unless you count the shipping to them) for the PACT units. I am not sure how RCBS will handle it...
I warm up my scale while i am priming cases and such, by the time i am ready to load it is ready.
I called Pact and they said the upgrade will be about $100....Hope you're right and I am wrong!
Posts: 3865 | Location: Cheyenne, WYOMING, USA | Registered: 13 June 2000
Just some food for thought. I've posted on this before, but it bears repeating. I have an RCBS Electronic Trickler (this is not the dispenser with the keypad, it is a trickler) that couples to the scale in the same way the dispenser does. The idea is that you throw a charge with a Lee dipper or a powder measure and then hit dispense and the trickler tops off the charge to the desired weight. The first one I had was kind of slow to finish the charge, so I sold it. I later ordered another and it is much, much faster. My guess is that the new faster electronics are in this tricker. It will top off a charge immediately upon hitting the button and it has two speeds, depending on how far from your desired weight you are. It costs much less than the dispenser. I paid $59 for mine, but I've seen them as high as $149. I like it much better than my buddy's dispenser. When you're done, you simply pour the powder back in the can. No cleanup or disassembly. It might be a cheaper route than even upgrading, I don't know.
quote:Originally posted by dodgestdshift: Mssmagnum: Which unit is the upgrade for, the dispenser or the scale?
The upgrade is for the dispenser according to the magazine ad i read. The upgrade will be free (unless you count the shipping to them) for the PACT units. I am not sure how RCBS will handle it...
I warm up my scale while i am priming cases and such, by the time i am ready to load it is ready.
I called Pact and they said the upgrade will be about $100....Hope you're right and I am wrong!
According to the magazine article i read, it is FREE. I WILL not upgrade mine if there is a charge!! I will look for the ad, scan it and post it here later......
Posts: 1574 | Location: Western Pennsylvania | Registered: 12 September 2002
Well, I got on this electronic scale kick lately. So I tried the cheap cabelas unit. Sucked, wouldn't update as fast as I trickled.
So I then get this dispenser and the pro scale. Guys, I can load just as fast with my beam scale and powder dispenser and trickler. I really don't see the use of this electronic job, unless they really speed it up. So I sent back all the electronic jobs, and put 400 dollars in my pocket for a decent trimmer.
I just dug out the magazine that has the ad in it and they DO NOT state that it is free! When they first came out with the Powder Dispenser, they offered an upgrade for the scale of $25. When i got my dispenser, i called PACT to find out what deal was and they told me that they would upgrade mine for free!! I actually got a completely new scale as mine was a fossil and all at no charge. I guess i will WAIT a while to see if the same thing happens with this upgrade... I did have a problem with it the other day and a fine grained ball powder, might have to send it back anyway.....
Sorry for the confusion, seems the CRS is kickin in!
Posts: 1574 | Location: Western Pennsylvania | Registered: 12 September 2002
Q: I�ve had my Dispenser since 1996, can it be upgraded to the new system?
A: Of course. Any and all PACT manufactured Dispensers can be upgraded. We expect to start offering that service in July. Cost will be in the $50.00 to $75.00 range.
But with an even faster speed, will it be as accurate? I would sooner have it instantly too, but not if accuracy is screwed. Example: if the current is +/- .1, what if a faster unit is +/- .4 ? I really do not want +.4gr on top of a max load. Granted your beam scale can be off too, but still.
quote:Originally posted by Hellrazor: But with an even faster speed, will it be as accurate? I would sooner have it instantly too, but not if accuracy is screwed. Example: if the current is +/- .1, what if a faster unit is +/- .4 ? I really do not want +.4gr on top of a max load. Granted your beam scale can be off too, but still.
I WOULD NOT settle for a loss in accuracy to gain speed. The whole reason that i use this unit is obtain "trickled charges" without actually having to do the work! Reloading, to me, is not about speed.
Posts: 1574 | Location: Western Pennsylvania | Registered: 12 September 2002
I also called Pact, Thurdays, and was told that it would be at least a couple of weeks before they were caught up with present workload. There was no discussion of price and I didn't ask. With regard to accuracy of the faster units their site indicates there is no loss in accuracy.
I recently went to dropping everything but the last .5 gr or so and letting the dispensor trickle in the last. It does speed up the reloading process. It is also alot easier to change charge weights with the digital dispensor, simply punch in the desired change and press enter and you're on your way. Start low and work upward and you don't even have to reset your manual dispensor.
As to upgrading, I just bought mine the end of April and if there is any significant charge they can keep it cause I've got enough speed with the manual dump before digital top-off.
Posts: 78 | Location: CA | Registered: 02 March 2002
Mine works great, provided there are no appliances running anywhere in the house. This include the A/C, fridge or pretty much anything electrical. Fluorescent lights can screw with the IR port, as well. They give you all this info over the phone...after you're bought it. I found deveations as great as .5 grains when checked on another scale. I've also watched the scale reading DROP as powder was added.
I have the Pact and wouldn't be without it now. The only thing that you may run into problems with is if you load W296 or H110 (it is to fine for the dispenser). I tried using them in mine and it jammed up before I could get it calibrated. I called Pact about this and they told me that they got the specs. on these powders from Hodgdon and Winchester and made the bushings in the dispenser to handle the diameter of the powder, but the size of the grains must have been changed.
Posts: 321 | Location: Tulsa, Ok. | Registered: 27 June 2001
quote:Originally posted by Eddie: Mine works great, provided there are no appliances running anywhere in the house. This include the A/C, fridge or pretty much anything electrical. Fluorescent lights can screw with the IR port, as well. They give you all this info over the phone...after you're bought it. I found deveations as great as .5 grains when checked on another scale. I've also watched the scale reading DROP as powder was added.
Eddie
Mine is running UNDER fluorescent lights and i have never had a problem. I got in the habit of double checking EVERY charge with my old Redding balance beam..... Out of 100 charges i may reject 1-2 charges but i will only accept charges that are +/- half a tenth off. (example, 53 grains charge will be either 53.05 or 52.95 as read on the balance beam)
Posts: 1574 | Location: Western Pennsylvania | Registered: 12 September 2002
quote:Originally posted by DennisF: The only thing that you may run into problems with is if you load W296 or H110
I had my first problem with this the other day and it was with AA4100. AA4100 is a VERY fine ball powder. I have used AA#9, H110 & W296 without any problems, knock on wood, as i load a LOT of H110.
Posts: 1574 | Location: Western Pennsylvania | Registered: 12 September 2002
quote:Mine is running UNDER fluorescent lights and i have never had a problem.
So was mine. That was the first thing PACT recommended changing.
Mine would take longer to zero than to dump a 23 grain charge of H4227. I could throw a light charge by hand and use my manual trickler and finish before the PACT setup. I'm really disappointed. I have a PACT timer and chronograph and was certain I would be happy with the dispenser/scale.
Mine and my dads both are running under flourescents, never a problem either. Maybe yours was a bad unit is all? Both our lights are plugged into the same circuit as the scales and dispensors as well, figured that might cause some problems but it never has.
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I will look for the ad, scan it and post it here later......![[Frown]](images/icons/frown.gif){kind=icon}
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