Hornady LNL beam scale

Carrier said:

I ended up with one that the brass nuts on the beam have moved and want to know how the factory calibrates them when new.

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Alk8944 said:

Easy, they set all poises at Zero, then adjust the balance nuts until the beam pointer points to the zero mark on the scale when the balance is level. Nothing complicated about it! It doesn't have to be exact, that's what the leveling screw on the base is for.

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noylj said:

What is wrong with sending it back for repair?

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Carrier said:

I thought that might be what to do but wasn't sure as Hornady says if nuts are loose and have moved it must be returned to have them repair or replace the scale. Thought it would be odd if this is all that has to be done.
With a level table the body adjuster bolt is about 3/4 of the way through the body.
So I guess then set the bolt about halfway then adjust the nuts to get to zero?

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Alk8944 said:

Basically. On a level table adjust the leveling screw so that the scale body is parallel to the table. Then adjust as above and lock the nuts together without moving them using 2 wrenches.

Thanks for the info. This scale is pretty much new and got it for nothing. I'm going to clean up the knife edges and bearing surfaces after adjusting it level. Also going to try something other than that bolt they have for leveling in the base. It has a crappy bottom to it and the course threads are a bit loose. Might try putting a Heli coil with fine threads and a rounded end stainless steel bolt in to see if that works better. It doesn't return to zero all the time so if doing what you said doesn't help then I'm gong to try the above and see what happens.

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Decker said:

Can't say for sure who makes the Hornady beam scale, but I can say for sure that Ohaus makes MOST of the beam scales for the reloading brands.
Ohaus is a major player in precision scales, so you should hope that it is they who made it and not some "low bidder" that Hornady might have chosen.

My RCBS 5-0-5 is over 30 years old and still doing great, and it is made by Ohaus.

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Carrier said:

Alk8944 said:

Basically. On a level table adjust the leveling screw so that the scale body is parallel to the table. Then adjust as above and lock the nuts together without moving them using 2 wrenches.

I'm going to clean up the knife edges and bearing surfaces after adjusting it level.

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Sharpen the knives before doing anything else. It has to have perfect repeatability before calibrating it. Use a hard Arkansas stone and stroke into the edge alternating sides, just like any other knife. Keep close to the original angle.

The bolt. Don't worry about the bolt threads being coarse or loose, this isn't important. My recollection is that the older Hornady scale had an acorn nut on the bottom of the leveling screw. But, if this the scale you have: Hornady Manufacturing Company :: Reloading :: Metallic Reloading :: Tools & Gauges :: Scales & Accessories :: Hornady® Balance Beam Scale it doesn't look like that is still the case. You could chuck the screw in your drill or drill press and file the end of the screw so it is slightly crowned though, if it isn't already.

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Alk8944 said:

Carrier said:

Alk8944 said:

Basically. On a level table adjust the leveling screw so that the scale body is parallel to the table. Then adjust as above and lock the nuts together without moving them using 2 wrenches.

Sharpen the knives before doing anything else. It has to have perfect repeatability before calibrating it. Use a hard Arkansas stone and stroke into the edge alternating sides, just like any other knife. Keep close to the original angle.

The bolt. Don't worry about the bolt threads being coarse or loose, this isn't important. My recollection is that the older Hornady scale had an acorn nut on the bottom of the leveling screw. But, if this the scale you have: Hornady Manufacturing Company :: Reloading :: Metallic Reloading :: Tools & Gauges :: Scales & Accessories :: Hornady® Balance Beam Scale it doesn't look like that is still the case. You could chuck the screw in your drill or drill press and file the end of the screw so it is slightly crowned though, if it isn't already.

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Yes that is probably the way to go first. It is that scale and the bolt is ****. It is loose in the threads so like I said I am either going to replace it and redo the threads with a helicoil with fine threads or maybe try replacing it with another and thread tape to see if that works. The bolt end has been cut with a slight concave and isn't good. Not sure how to polish the bearings as they are not in the open or turnable like the old Hornady/Pacific M scale was.

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