Reloading for rifle: Powder measures

[CDR_Glock]

So I have a turret press that I’ll be using for reloading my rifle.

I’m torn amongst powder measures and automatic measures...



I’m limited by my range distance of 250 yards.

Right now, I’m getting ready for my Suppressor to come. So I will be loading 300AAC, first. I’m shooting mainly from an AR pistol for it....

I have dies for 308, 300 AAC, 5.56 mm, 6.5 Grendel, and 7 mm-08. I’m good on my supplies for All, except 300 AAC.

Any experience or suggestions are welcome.

Thank you.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Pro


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Pro

[Uni-Vibe]

I use the same RCBS powder dumper I have for 40 years, for both rifle and pistol. Very similar to the lock-and-load pictured above. I tend to use powders that meter well in such tools, e.g. AA5 and AA9. I use Ramshot TAC for .223 and it works out just fine.

[gaijin]

Sorta depends on your volume of reloading.

For load development and just a few hunting rds. I use a 30 year old RCBS "Uniflow".

For loading multiple hundreds of rds. I use an "RCBS Chargemaster". It is still a marathon.

https://www.cabelas.com/product/RCBS...mbo/741110.uts

[Lefty223]

IMHO a powdah that meters well has more bearing on potential for consistency than the measure. I have a collection of over a dozen, from vintage (Belding & Mull and old Hollywood) to cheap (Lee Perfect) to acknowledged precision (Harrell’s benchrest).

The B&M is by far my favorite, but if forced to choose the ‘best all around’, the Lee would get the nod.

[CDR_Glock]

These insights raise another question for me on my Turret use. Should I mount a powder measure onto the turret or should I mount it onto my bench/desk?

I think I may get a powder measure for speed loading but also get an electronic powder measure like the RCBS 1500 for precision.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Pro


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Pro

[Kenneth]

Just do yourself a favor and get the chargemaster.

Plenty of people use them including myself and shoot past 1k easily. I haven’t shot factory ammo in a long time and make hits out to 1300 with my 6.5 creed.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[gunnerblue]

For high volume loading I’ll use powder throwers with powders that meter well (TAC, H110, WSF). For precision and/or low volume I’ve used a balance beam and trickled combo. Very precise but slow. I recently bought a Chargemaster from a member here and love it. Very fast and accurate with extruded powders which is great for my loads requiring H4350, Varget, etc. It’s really the beat of both worlds when it comes to speed and precision.

[jack crab]

For years, I used RCBS powder measures and scales. However, a month or so back, I purchased the RCBS Chargmaster Lite.

For several uses, awesome. Superperformance and Reloder 16 were spot on. H4350 had a struggle. But, over/under charges go back in the hopper. Over about 500 rounds, it had about a 20% missed weight.

Then, sadness. I plugged it in last week. Gave it the 25 minute warm up, and it is essentially a random number generator. The displays just rolls up and down with varying weights. I thought maybe it was a one time event. But, it persists after 3 tries a couple days apart.

So, back to RCBS it goes tomorrow.

[m1a_scoutguy]

I have a very OLD Hornady Lock-N-Load powder measure that works great for most loading. I have used it sparingly with rifle powders, at least extruded types but works fine for ball powder. Always wanted a RCBC Chargmaster but just never could justify the $$$$ when these work just as good and is really faster than the chargemaster, at least for me, check them out there cheap and work great then decide what fancy scale you mite buy ! https://leeprecision.com/powder-measure-kit.html

[308sako]

I have an older Lyman 55, and an RCBS, but I use a Redding BR3.

As mentioned above it is critical for precision to use a powder that meters consistently. For the .300 Blackout I can strongly recommend the Winchester 296 or H110 ball powders. I have found IMR 8208 XBR or Hodgdon's Benchmark to meter well enough to use thrown charges in the 5.56.

If I am loading ammunition for ELR shooting I use an electronic scale as I have found more issues with beam balances not to my liking (or older eyesight!)

Best of luck, just learn to get the most from the tools you choose.