Reloading Scale Safety and powder selection are the most critical safety issues reloaders should be concerned about. Choosing the right powder for the cartridge you are loading must be the first thing we consider, but of even more concern is making sure the powder is weighed properly and that we do not over-charge a round by even a few tenths of a grain of powder.
I bring this to your attention because after 40 years loading the “old way”, I upgraded to a new Lyman digital scale and found out I had been on the edge of danger for a long time. Little did I know that my old balance beam scale was not as accurate as I thought. Being a few tenths off when loading 50 grains of slow burning rifle powder is not a big deal, but being a few tenths off with loading pistol powder or small rifle cartridges can really make for a bad day.
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In my younger days I was always pushing the edge of the limits on my loads, most hotter than they should have been. There was no internet and few people I knew reloaded ammunition. Monthly magazines like Peterson’s Hunting and Shooting Times along with one tattered 45th Edition (1970) of the Lyman Loading Manual were my guides. I read about Elmer Keith pushing those big slugs from 45 Long Colts and I was right alone side pushing 250 grain slugs a thousand feet per second from my Ruger Blackhawk.
I was content (or ignorant) all these years with my old balance beam scale until one day when I chronographed some 223 Remington and 6.5 Grendel loads, the velocities were very high. These loads were not supposed to be maximum loads but the velocities were too high. I just stopped shooting and it hit me like a ton of bricks that had made some BIG errors loading those rounds. I pulled the bullets and checked the powder weights on the old scale and they were very close to the “proper” weights. Then I started weighing bullets and other things to verify the scale and found the old scale was too far off for safely loading ammo.
Digital Scales For Improved Reloading Safety
Time to move out of the stone age and get a new modern digital scale. Thanks to Youtube , my favorite place on the internet, there were plenty of reviews about digital scales. One Youtube Channel I really like is Johnny’s Reloading Bench, and a video he had done on the Lyman Gen6 Powder System convinced me it was the one I wanted because of the accuracy and ease of use. It does a lot of things but the most important thing is that it measures powder with accuracy.
After receiving the new Lyman Gen6 Powder System and learning how to use it properly, going through the calibration and weighing some bullets of known weight, I pulled the bullets of the suspected overloads and almost had a heart attack when I weighed the powder on the Lyman. My load of 26 grains of Hodgdon H335 actually contained 27.8 grains of powder. That is almost 2 full grains more than the the load called for!!!
After all these years of reloading, discovering how much those rounds were overloaded with powder was an eye-opening moment for me. It’s like starting all over again and realizing how much I did not know and yes, I had been careless during my reloading. Yes, the scale is a little expensive, but it is worth it! Take a break and look over your entire reloading operation and try to improve your safety.
Bottom line, please take care when reloading any ammo, and if you are like me and have one of those old balance scales, consider an upgrade to a digital scale, use extreme care and pay attention to any signs of high pressure. I know it will probably fall on deaf ears, but consider using moderate loads and not max loads. Another hundred feet per second from your hunting ammo will not make any difference on it’s effectiveness, and if you are a target shooter, your accuracy will probably be better. In addition, there will be less stress on your firearms and your cases will last a lot longer if you reload them.
Thanks to Johnny’s Reloading Bench for that great Lyman G6 Powder System Review. I urge you all to watch it and decide if it is a time for you to upgrade to a new digital scale.
Lyman Compact Touch Screen Powder System
In addition to being just being a scale, the Lyman Gen6 Powder System also dispenses powder from a hopper and weighs it automatically to a tenth of a grain. And like some other brands, it works quickly as well as accurately. Below is some information from Lyman.
The compact Gen6 design takes a minimum of bench space and offers unrestricted pan and touch screen access for both right and left-hand users. Accurate to one-tenth grain, the Gen6 dispenses all types of smokeless powder at two grains per second. In addition, it features an auto-epeat function that drops a precise charge each time the pan is reset.
Based on re-engineered digital technology that overcomes problems commonly experienced by older designs, the system is packed with additional state of the art improvements like fast, 3-minute warmup, anti-static and anti-drift technology and has sophisticated electronic shielding to resist interference from other electronic devices like cell phones, etc. Shop Lyman today for improved measurements with a digital powder scale.
Touch-Screen Controls
Compact Size – Uses 50% Less Bench Space
Auto Repeat Function Drops Charges Each Time the Pan is Reset
Quick-Drain to Change Powders
Electronic Interference Shield Resists Interference from Cell Phones, etc
Anti-Static/Anti-Drift Technology
Fast Operation – Dispenses 2 Grains per Second
Accurate to 1/10 grain
Handles all types of Smokeless Powders
