Bad Luck with RCBS??
- Thread starter JakeSCH
- Start date
Ok a few things to clean up here.
first the rcbs kit is not a bad investment. i use pretty much everything in that kit besides the dumb lube pad all the time. so nothing in there goes to waste. Yes you can get better made things then what comes in the kit but its not bad.
you can use the harbor freight calipers. they are as accurate as the high dollar ones. i have tested them and so has the interweb. they are straight up copies of the good stuff and work. Your use of them will have more error then the machine will.
YOU DO NOT NEED Certified weights. @Larry Dude where did you even come up with that. Cert weights are freaking expensive and even if you had a scale with the resolution to calibrate it wont help. calibrate your scale with a weight yes but as long as you do not change calibration weights your load is your load. when you work up a load for each gun as long as your scale is calibrated to the same weight the work up its good, right or wrong. keep in mind we are talking about the difference between .01 and .02 gr here. You would be surprised how accurate the cheap weights are. I do still check every 5th to 10th load or so on my beam scale to make sure my 1k$ A/D electronic scale stays sane. you can increase that check if you use a cheaper electronic scale as they sometimes drift.
in terms of accuracy the powder drop is least accurate but still works with smaller powders that meter well. plinking ammo will never know the difference.
next is the cheap electronic scales the best of them being the gempro 250.. ( some love them and some like me hate them) i lump all the reloader made scales like the charge master and so on in the group.
beam scale is next kinda... they can be super accurate to the kernel if used right. they are just slow to use and you need to have them at eye level or parallax can mess you up. my 20 year old beam is still as good as the day it was new.
high end electronic scales. The fx120i being the entry level into that world. its spooky accurate combined with a auto trickle its bad ass
The take away is the beam is GOOD TO GO!!!! you can add more later if you want
so your list
pretty much the rcbs kit
- a single stage press
- dies for what you want to reload. ( thats a whole thing on its own )
- scale, get a beam to start and you will use it to verify for the rest of your life.
- case trimmer
- chamfer and debur tool
- hand primer/ or press with built in primer tool
- calipers with the hornady comparitor tool / thats a must have for proper seating depth. you do not need the OAL gauge except for ar15s. for bolt actions use the wheeler method ( google that ) for figuring out where the lands are
- powder throw is nice to short throw then trickle up to your weight
- a tray to hold brass
- funnel of the correct size to fill cases with powder
- a brain to look up stuff and refer to load data guides
And all this great info from a waterfowler.....
Certified/Verified? I dunno WTF they're called. (Looks it up online...) "Scale Weight Check Set". Ya get 'em the same place ya order your other reloading components from. I don't remember them as being expensive.
Long story shorter, WhyTF do you feel the need to single out my damn name in something? That's just down right rude and un-neighborly. There was absolutely no need, nor benefit to be had from you electing to throw my name into what you said there. None. You could have merely said "There's no need for blah blah blah" and been done with it. #BeGood
Long story shorter, WhyTF do you feel the need to single out my damn name in something? That's just down right rude and un-neighborly. There was absolutely no need, nor benefit to be had from you electing to throw my name into what you said there. None. You could have merely said "There's no need for blah blah blah" and been done with it. #BeGood
$54 at Graingers , certified weights to calibrate scales are necessary.
I merely took a moment to point out that it was rude and unnecessary to purposefully single out my name in that matter.
Last edited:
OR...You could just go to Fine Firearms...Buy a new rifle & ammo.... 
Did you read my post, all of it?
Yes you need one! The 10$ one from Amazon will work just fine. This one will be more accurate then anyone will ever need for reloading.
Remeber a kernel of powder weighs about 2/100th of a gr. Weighing things past that point requires a lab setting and still wont weigh powder any better
The reason its not important that your 30gr is the same as my 30gr is you do your load development based off your scale. As you do development you work up from low to high. As long as you do your calibration its accurate to your load.
This is the reason you use caution when sharing load data. If larrys load of 32gr of varget is really 35gr you can get a hot load. The standard warning start low work up to high
Things that affect pressure
Powder
Case
Bullet
Temp
Seating depth
Barrel bore size and twist
Yes you need one! The 10$ one from Amazon will work just fine. This one will be more accurate then anyone will ever need for reloading.
Remeber a kernel of powder weighs about 2/100th of a gr. Weighing things past that point requires a lab setting and still wont weigh powder any better
The reason its not important that your 30gr is the same as my 30gr is you do your load development based off your scale. As you do development you work up from low to high. As long as you do your calibration its accurate to your load.
This is the reason you use caution when sharing load data. If larrys load of 32gr of varget is really 35gr you can get a hot load. The standard warning start low work up to high
Things that affect pressure
Powder
Case
Bullet
Temp
Seating depth
Barrel bore size and twist
Yes, thank you, I read all of your post. Sounds like we agree, simply that there was an error in naming convention on my part. Awesome that you were lookin' out. Just not cool at all how you went about handling it. A more tactful approach might have been to say "Um... I think you might be referring to 'Scale Check Weights'. Because "Certified" weights are something else and much more expensive." Ya feel what I'm saying here? Rather than belittling a person by saying "Dude where did you even come up with that." Just not cool, Man.
Bill you know hell of lot more than I do about reloading and it works for you.
how ever 32 gr is really 35 gr has no logic, for give me but I would want to know the exact correct weight in gr.
if I have a scale that weighs 32 gr but it actually is 40 gr. that to me is very bad.
I want it to tell me the exact correct weight. in grains. that would be hot..
not trying to be argue but I have been trained to be exact in my measurements.
analogy :
if I am using a bore gage, and I have, I have to measure the exact bore size. with a bore gage that has been properly calibrated.
if it is measuring the incorrect size, it is not ok because all the bores are the same size.
it will kill the bearings. and be out of spec.
we all have our opinions and that is OK to have a general discussion.
You missed the point i was making lee,
Was saying the reason you work up a load from low to high is because you can't trust a scale you read about on the interweb.
I agree about accurate is good. My goal in making good ammo is to take out as many variables as possible.
Was saying the reason you work up a load from low to high is because you can't trust a scale you read about on the interweb.
I agree about accurate is good. My goal in making good ammo is to take out as many variables as possible.
Last edited:
Snake Charmer
Happiness is a warm gut pile
Once again Bill speaks truth, my folks bought me an RCBS kit in 1974 for Christmas when I was fifteen in 1974 and I have used it ever since then with added accessories as well as the same scale and it has been my go to from the beginning. I use it today like I used it then. Your loads are your loads and I never shoot or trust anyone else's ammo. The difference I've seen over the years is that the components have become more reliable and consistent in all aspects. I still check everything but I have far less variation than I had way back when. When I started to reload it was because ammo was mediocore at best and I read a lot of magazines and manuals and took the info to heart (the only way to learn back then) From what I have observed it has only gotten better with widespread information and technolgy. Bottom line -DO YOUR HOMEWORK...
A good way to look at reloading is every reloader is different. We all have different goals and we all do things a little different. You are going to find things that work for you and you are gonna not do things other guys do. It really is an evolution.
Side note it is an obsession and I highly recommend doing it. For me it’s almost a healing process love sitting out in the garage and developing loads. Also a great way to bond with your kids.
That is what I am seeing too! I had my 3 year old decap about 200 rounds of brass on his own. He was so made when all the brass was done...
in this world you can get three different experts , give three different answers, but all can be correct.