The Best Blackpowder Measure?

Discussions of powders, bullets and loading information.

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opencountry
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The Best Blackpowder Measure?

Post by opencountry »

Hey fellas, what is the best (most consistently accurate) powder measure/hopper on the market today for cycling corrosive (Goex Fg) blackpowder? I’d like to cut my reloading time down some - a LOT. I’ve been hand-measuring with an RCBS Range Master 750, along with hand-trickling my loads for years; there’s got to be an easier way. Please, some feedback on this...

Robert
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Kenny Wasserburger
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Re: The Best Blackpowder Measure?

Post by Kenny Wasserburger »

RCBS Chargemaster works great with FG Goex.


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Re: The Best Blackpowder Measure?

Post by opencountry »

Thank you, Kenny. Much appreciated! I’ll read up on it.

Robert
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Kurt
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Re: The Best Blackpowder Measure?

Post by Kurt »

I have gone through several electronic powder chargers. A lyman was the first when it died I got a RCBS 1500 charge master. The first time the scale died . Then the drop died and back then RCBS still repaired them. When they died again I got a Scheels and it was a good drop but more important they have a no BS warranty, it breaks bring it back to the store and you walk out with a new one off the shelf. I still have one that was a replacement unboxed for a back up but I don't think they stock them anymore because the last one that died they didn't have them anymore so I took the refund they gave me and bought a Frankfort Arsenal and I can't say anything bad about it at all. It's fast, by the time it fills the case I seat a wad, compress it and by this time the pan is waiting for me to dump it in a case.
It will very seldom drop a charge that is not right on and if it does it's only 1/10 gr light. You must let it warm up and run it through the calibration and it will drop right on the money. It also has a calibration for the powder you use. Run this calibration and it will do the rest.
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bruce m
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Re: The Best Blackpowder Measure?

Post by bruce m »

what is really the time issue when loading black powder cartridges?
it is compressing time.
if you don't sufficient time to compress each charge, they might to some degree spring back out again.
this gives plenty of time to throw a charge on a lyman thrower, trickle it up to weight. seat a wad.
plus I know guys use these electronic gizmos with black powder, but I am leery about it.
in part because only the living tell the tales.
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Lumpy Grits
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Re: The Best Blackpowder Measure?

Post by Lumpy Grits »

Very happy with my MVA.
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bruce m
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Re: The Best Blackpowder Measure?

Post by bruce m »

should have added to my last post that droptubing also adds time.
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Re: The Best Blackpowder Measure?

Post by opencountry »

Kurt,
Thanks for your lengthy reply; it mirrors my own past experiences.
So, in calibrating the Frankfort scale I’d simply fill the pan with either my 45/90 load (95.0 grains, or my 45/110 load (111.0 grains), put the pan back on the plate and let the machine ‘self-calibrate?

Robert
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Re: The Best Blackpowder Measure?

Post by opencountry »

Yes, Bruce, I also drop-tube my loads.

R
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Re: The Best Blackpowder Measure?

Post by Coltsmoke »

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Kurt
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Re: The Best Blackpowder Measure?

Post by Kurt »

Robert, no you use the supplied weights that come with the unit. I let the drop warm up while I prep the cases. In my prep time is just seating the primers and by that time the scales have warmed up enough and I start the calibration.
When the scales are calibrated I calibrate the powder. All you do for this is have the hopper with the powder you want to use and hit the calibrate button, It starts the calibration with different speeds and the final trickle at the end. What really surprises me is when t's filling the pan at high speed it will stop about maybe 6/10 gr and usually once it will see it in the trickle mode hit it once, some times twice and it will read stable and it's right on the button. So far it has worked flawless since I got it last year. After it has run for a time and I see the weight of the empty powder pan weigh less than what it did after weight calibration like 1/10th I will recalibrate it. But I checked the weight on my balance beam before and down the line several times when I first got it and it has been dead nuts on when ever I checked.
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Re: The Best Blackpowder Measure?

Post by opencountry »

Thank you kindly again, Kurt. You’ve nearly convinced me. I’ll do a little looking on maybe YouTube, etc. for even more confirmation. I thank you!

Coltsmoke, you’re a man after my own heart; live to shoot, and shoot to live. Well organized - your passion.

Robert
Beware of the man that owns one rifle.
jackrabbit
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Re: The Best Blackpowder Measure?

Post by jackrabbit »

I really like my Harrell's

https://www.buffaloarms.com/harrells-pr ... pclassicbp

I am not a regular 1,000 yard shooter, but I am not too bad at silhouette and midrange and have found dropping charges and loading by volume is more accurate and I have more consistent mv's than by loading by weight with black powder. I know the subject is a bit of hornet's nest as others adamantly believe in weighing charges. I always have to chuckle because if you look down the firing line, there are many opposing ways of doing things and different people seem to make different ways work. Anyway, I am not saying anyone is wrong, just saying what works for me.
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desert deuce
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Re: The Best Blackpowder Measure?

Post by desert deuce »

Jackrabbit, I am not going to let you get away with that drive-by posting. Come on back and put some meat on those bones.

OK so you are not shooting with the grown ups at 1,000, that's OK, true you are a bit young yet, BUT, how about some more information about learning to live with that green gadget and how you came to trust it to throw accurate charges or better yet how good is the ammunition. Know you probably have a chronograph, know you have probably proved the loads on paper even if it was a brown paper shopping bag. Do you drop directly into the case, do you use a drop tube, etc. Come on Bro, your admiring public is breathlessly waiting.

What I really want to know is how did you convince Coralee you needed such a high end gadget ?

Just don't tell us you won it in a BB gun match!
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gunlaker
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Re: The Best Blackpowder Measure?

Post by gunlaker »

I like my Harrell's a lot too, but mine won't handle Fg at all. I tried it once and it the powder basically got stuck in the drum and wouldn't flow through the measure. It works extremely well with the finer granulations though.

For BP these days I've been using my MVA measure and have saved the Harrell's for use with 4227 in my smokeless schuetzen rifles.

Cody I weigh my charges for matches but almost always just drop the charges with the MVA for practice. I don't know at what distance weighing is significantly better, but I can say that it is definitely further than 300 yards.

Chris.
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