RCBS scale help
- Thread starter ACORN
- Start date
pantannojack
US Veteran
level the table top and "0" the scale every time you use it. IMPORTANT
DWalt
Member
Many, if not all, triple and quadruple beam balances incorporate a thin threaded rod and nut as a moveable counterweight for fine zero adjustments. That probably wouldn't work as well on the typical single beam powder scale, and for the most part it would serve no purpose that the base zero screw does not perform.
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As suggested by others.
Level the Scale - YouTube
Level the Scale - YouTube
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This. I have two. One is the auto dispense type. I could never get my beam scale to zero.Get a digital scale.
Robert
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I had a couple like the 2nd. Made 'em from plans from Nation Reloaders manufacturers something or other. Gave'em both away to friends. Got a nail cabinet from a hardware store with 15 pull out metal nail trays...now I have one of my lathes on it. I made a reloading bench out of 4 2 drawer filing cabinets with an inch and a half furniture grade plywood top with a 3 foot by 28 inch sheet of steel. I put most of my metallic presses on the Dillon strong mounts. I change 'em out ...under a minute or two with an electric drill/driver. I just need a place to store the presses
If you use pennies as a check weight be sure to check the date, the material changed in 1983.
One up to 1982 will weigh 47.99 grains. 1983 and later weigh 38.58 grains.
My first scale was a virtual gimme as it wouldn't zero from the factory. I ended up making a little aluminum block with a dimple for the adjustment screw so it could be zeroed. Some years later I got brave and fiddled with the shot inside the pan holder. I figure someone packed the wrong pan holder with that particular scale.
A little experimentation with blocks of different thickness will allow you to zero the scale(s) without monkeying with the innards. If you later get a level bench/scale shelf, you'll be glad you did.
A little experimentation with blocks of different thickness will allow you to zero the scale(s) without monkeying with the innards. If you later get a level bench/scale shelf, you'll be glad you did.
muddocktor
Member
On the RCBS/Ohaus scales, the shot container part of the scale pan is what the factory uses to fine tune the scale to work correctly and adding or removing shot is the correct procedure to adjust the scale to zero correctly and adding or removing shot from it will not affect accuracy once you have it correctly zeroed with the foot roughly in the middle of it's adjustment. I bought a 510 scale off eBay around a decade or 2 ago to be a second scale to use with my 1010 scale. And when I received it, zero was off enough that I had to have the foot almost all the way at the end of the adjustment to get zero. I took the pan apart by removing the screw and separating the halves and removing 1 or 2 shot and solved the problem. And yes, I did check it with scale weights after.
Baltimoreed11754
Member
Get a little stick on rubber pad that they sell in Lowes and stick it on the bottom of the adjustable foot of your scale. Should give you another quarter inch to play with. Or build a eye level shelf that is level.
Nice bench!
Thanks, but yours looks a lot more “pro”.
Mine looks….well, like I made it.
Your wood working skills are obviously better than mine.
Set aside a weekend and attack the problem. Working around it or ignoring the root cause only delays a future problem. If it means tearing up half a room to do it, fix the problem. My scales sit on a movable shelf that can be easily leveled if needed, but my bench is level, thank goodness. if it wasn't, I'd need a tractor jack to raise the legs for any leveling.
OP
ACORN
Member
Fixed! 6 pk. of screws $1.29, enough for all my scales twice.
Checked with check weights, spot on.
2 minutes per scale.
And a lot easier on my worn out knees.
Checked with check weights, spot on.
2 minutes per scale.
And a lot easier on my worn out knees.
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The 510 RCBS scale is the best ever made for the money. Easy to get squared away. On the RCBS scales...once every few years pull the agate bearings or just use a Q tip and alcohol to clean the bearng points. Dust you know. We have LOTS of dust in Wyoming. Had a couple of benches like the one pictured above. I made one and bought one from a fellow when he sold me ALL his stuff. Good benches but I sold one gave one away. Bought a few work benches with butcher block tops...In fact I bought another today...lots of drawers fot storage. Hate to say it but Harbor Freight special. Momma wants my loading room to look good(and professional). So if it'll make her happy. I am putting all my presses etc on strong mount types of bases. Easy to change out
My 2 cents. Start with a perfectly level bench that is secure and does NOT move, bolt it to the wall if necessary, You can tell by pushing your press handle all the way down- if there's any movement of the bench it "ain't" secure enough. This helps with powder drops and primer drops. Mount your press and powder dispenser if applicable. (not on the machine like a dillon). Find a place for your scale on your rock solid bench, and keep it in the same place. Make sure you use a scale weight to zero. Always keep powder in a dry area. All these things accomplished -- You have a good start, The only variable is you. Now you have eliminated your variables. Just my anal two cents.
Jim
Jim
gwpercle
Member
This Is The Answer !
Sit the scale on something , anything ... I have used a stack of books , a wooden block (4" X 12") anything handy ... and level/ shim the block / book stack ... Leave the scale alone unless it will not level out on a level surface .
The scale is also easier to read if it is sitting higher near your eye's ... I sit when reloading and like to have the scale sitting on something to raise it up , off the bench , to about eye level .
I found a small wooden box that is sturdy , the right height and it didn't require any shims to get the scale level on my bench ...
Elevating that scale realy helps when reading it .
I'm not sure if adding weights to the scale affects accuracy but if you can find a different "fix" ... go with the other fix .
Gary
ggibson511960
Member
I use a Black & Decker Workmate to isolate my RCBS scale. Very easy to level it within the adjustment range of the leveling screw. Simply orient the scale perpendicular to the fall line of any floor slope. If you monkey around with the shot weights in the pan holder the slider counterweights will no longer be proportional to the correct weight. The “agate” bearings in these cheap RCBS (Oahu’s) scales are junk, but can be made to work if you sharpen the beam support knife edges, clean the bearings, and gently tap or vibrate the scale’s support table to overcome hysterisis and encourage the beam to settle on its equilibrium point. All very tedious and slow, but why are you weighing charges if in a hurry? Simply dump powder measure charges and take what you get. Notice that tiny reamed hole in the beam. Ohaus reamed that hole to perfectly balance and calibrate the beam far more accurately than we need and more trustworthy than Chinese electronics and piezoelectric strain gauges in cheap electronic scales.
I gave up on a beam scale almost immediately. I have a small digital scale and a dispenser with a built in scale. I wont even try to beam scale again.
gwpercle
Member
It is best to use the scale on a level surface .
I set my scale on a stack of large books ... then level the books in both directions , scale on books is now at eye level and easier to read .
I wouldn't monkey with adding weights to the pan ...
You just asking for errors ... and electronic scales are just as bad if not worse ... lights and motors affect them ... I bought one , but soon went back to my trusted RCBS 5-0-5 !
Gary
I set my scale on a stack of large books ... then level the books in both directions , scale on books is now at eye level and easier to read .
I wouldn't monkey with adding weights to the pan ...
You just asking for errors ... and electronic scales are just as bad if not worse ... lights and motors affect them ... I bought one , but soon went back to my trusted RCBS 5-0-5 !
Gary
