Which is better? The Lyman 1200DPS II or the RCBS chargemaster combo.

Someone told me the rcbs was faster, easier to program and less likely to collet dust in the buttons. So I was looking at getting it. But it is 100 bucks more.

I have both of them here but one is going back to the store unopened.

I have the RCBS and reccomend it for all the reason's you state. $100 over the life of the equipment isa pitance.

I'd have to second the RCBS Chargemaster. I own the Lyman and it is slow as molasses. My buddy has the RCBS and it is much faster than mine. Accuracy isn't a factor with either one.

I loaded some 41 mag ammo with the RCBS. It is SWEET.

I was given the Lyman for Christmas and it is not that I am ungratful, but for the type of loading and shooting I do it is way to slow. It is a nice toy, however. Don't know about the RCBS but unless it were 3 times faster my feelings for it would be about the same. Maybe if I were long range competition shooting I'd find some use for it??????????? roger

Dont forget Pact!! I have used the RCBS(old style) and I own the Pact and they both work equally as well. Never used the Lyman.

I've got the Pact, and my buddy has the RCBS. Pact is slower, and you have to calibrate it for every time you change powder. No memory for loads, the RCBS will remember a bunch for you, and you don't have to re-calibrate--the down side I suppose--is that you could put a wrong powder in the RCBS and call for a certain charge, and it be for a different powder and that could be---not good!

I have the Lyman 1200 and a friend just got the RCBS Chargemaster combo. His RCBS is definitely faster, but for small stuff, like our 22-250's etc. that doesn't amount to much. For bigger stuff like my 338/378 I'm sure it's even quicker, but for larger ammo I've found the trick is to set my manual dispenser up to throw a couple of grains short and use the Lyman 1200 as an automatic trickler. With that method, they become equals and I can crank out a bunch of big rounds in a hurry. Last but not least the Lyman is a tad cheaper, I think about $75 less on average. I don't think you can go wrong with either.

I have the RCBS and absolutely love it. Very easy to change powders and simple to calibrate as well. I bought a set of check-weights and that seems to have been a waste of money as I haven't found a discrepancy yet. The best feature is speed. I load a lot of 6.5x55 with R-22 powder and in about the time it takes the powder to work through my funnel and to seat a bullet, my next case is full and ready to repeat. It's one of the best reloading tools I've ever bought.

Eric

I have both of them. Got the Lyman first because of price. Works just fine. But I bought the RCBS because I wanted something faster for the bulk varmint rounds.

Given a choice, the RCBS wins hands down.

WAY faster than the Lyman. Running them simultaneously, the RCBS does two to every one Lyman. Other BIG thing for me was the cleanup/change out times.

MUCH easier to clean and change out powders with the RCBS. Saves a bunch of time and hassle, especially when developing small batches of test loads with multiple powders.

NO 30minute warmups with the RCBS either, meaning I can get right to work when I want.

EASY answer on this one...RCBS.

My Lyman only gets used alongside the RCBS when I am loading volumes.

Just posed the same question a few weeks ago on this forum. Do a search for "RCBS Chargemaster 1500" and it will bring up the thread. Somebody posted an interesting link that compared the auto dispensers.

I bought one a week ago and have never been happier. Well worth the extra dough.

I still use two of the old Lyman Autoscales, each set up for only one powder. I can get a load every 9 seconds from them. I also have the Lyman 1200 that in combo with the other two I can get really fast if I need to. Good shooting.

quote:

I've got the Pact, and my buddy has the RCBS. Pact is slower,

Perhaps you have the pre 1996 model. You can have it updated for $75 + shipping. Go to www.pact.com for details.