Powder measure suggestions

[chris in va]

I've had it with Lee, just bought a second one to replace my old one and frankly it won't work with H110 at all, just leaks like crazy and binds up bad.

I'm looking for something reasonably priced but works with flake and ball powders better.

[44 AMP]

I've been using an RCBS Uniflow for decades. Works well if the operator does.

[hounddawg]

Get a Lyman 55 for ball powder and keep the Lee for stick

[Shadow9mm]

Had the same problem with h110 in mine. Gritty, binding, hard to use. I took it apart and cleaned it. Used a little wd-40 specialist dry lube. It's about 90% better and more than usable.

[rc]

My first reloading was with a Lee 75th anniversary kit that cost like $75 in 1993. I was smart enough to order RCBS and Hornady dies to try at the time. Hated the Hornady sliding seater. I ended up buying some more used RCBS equipment from a retired fireman for $200 in a wooden chest. The equipment was very old with the lime green paint but still in great shape. You pretty much can't wear out a cast steel rock chucker or Uniflow!!! The Lee perfect powder measure from the start would bind up and leak with AA#7 as one of my main motivators to get rid of Lee stuff. The aluminum press also was getting creeky and wearing out after a year or so of use. I've got several more used Uniflows now and another rock chucker and RCBS case trimmers and they all work fine. I've got almost all RCBS dies with a couple of hornady sets. Tried some Lyman 32-20 dies and they were lousy. Sent them back and got RCBS Cowboy dies and they were excellent with smooth threads and the correct seating stem and dimensions for cast .313 bullets rather than 308 spitzers like lyman sent with dies in that caliber. You can certainly get a used cast steel measure from hertors or other off brand on ebay but the Uniflow is one of the best with lots of spare parts. Some even have a quick change powder charge assembly. I recommend that one over buying the fidly competition micrometer that doesn't have adjustment clicks and is not really any better than the standard assembly. Regardless of what CAST STEEL powder measure you buy, you will be better off than you are with the cheesy Lee "Imperfect" powder measure!!!

[Nathan]

Hornady works very well for all, but Enforcer. Actually, it works with Enforcer too, but there will be leakage.

[jetinteriorguy]

Which Lee measure are you talking about?

[cdoc42]

When I started reloading I quickly moved from an old Lyman powder measure to an RCBS, then to Redding, and finally, I was introduced to the Bruno Precision Measure. The Bruno model is stainless steel with a brass calibrator indexed on ball bearings in quarter-increments. It is very easy to arrive close to your desired powder weight and charge reproducibility is excellent. I say, "close to" because the increments rarely get me to the exact charge, and I must trickle the balance. It is useful for all rifle powder charges but it fails on small handgun charges.

I had used the Redding measure for handguns but I was unhappy with the reproducibility, which may have been more user technique failure, so I ended up coming back the the RCBS and it's my go-to for AR charges of CFE-223, and handguns for CFE-Pistol, Unique, 2400 and H-110. Last night I charged 50 cases with 26.0gr CFE-223 and only 4 dropped a charge of 26.1gr. The RCBS calibrator is more inconvenient to use than the one on the Redding model, but the accuracy outweighs that disadvantage.

I have a Lee Load Master that I use for .44 Mag with the Lee "Perfect" powder measure but it drops H-110 over the countertop excessively despite an accurate drop of 29.0gr of powder. Lee provided an insert to reduce the loss but it is not "perfect" and I have since returned to the Rock Chuker and conventional reloading technique for the .44 Mag.

[hikingman]

Hornady is the standard (unless you like Lee).
RCBS is not a close second in the powder measure category.

[Unclenick]

The Lee Perfect measure is famous for having trouble with ball powder getting between the drum and its tapered cavity. Some have fixed them in various ways, including graphite or other dry lube combined with tightening the drum fit to shrink the space it fits into, but there is a limit to how perfectly undistorted plastic parts can be, and, unfortunately, the fine spherical propellants have particles that can find their way into the space. Reportedly much better is the Deluxe Perfect with metal drum and body. I don't own one, but don't see why it wouldn't be as good as other metal drum powder measures.

I've been using a Redding BR-30 for spherical propellants for a number of years, and it works fine with them. The Harrel's and other high-end measures do well with it, too.

Flakes always have the problem they don't always fall freely into place. They tend to overlap each other creating a bridge that interferes with flow, with big flakes being worse than small ones in this regard. In industry, making pharmaceutical tablets, for example, the dosage cavities are often shaken rapidly to uniformly pack powders that don't flow well. The door knocker-style rapper on the Lyman 55 is an example of trying to get some of that action. Some folks have attached aquarium air pumps to their powder hoppers and use a pushbutton switch to run them for a short blast time to break up bridges before throwing each charge. If you have a need to meter a flake really consistently, the electronic dispensers are the only way to guarantee it, but they are a bit slow for handgun cartridge loading and it usually isn't necessary to throw handgun charges that tightly.

[totaldla]

I use a Lee Deluxe Perfect for ball powders and it is very accurate and doesn't leak. At the time it was a much better deal than the other brands, but I don't know if that is true anymore.
I also used a $20 Lee Perfect for years with short stick powders - excellent for the money.

[Geezerbiker]

Originally Posted by hounddawg

Get a Lyman 55 for ball powder and keep the Lee for stick

I ended up with the same 2 powder measures. I'd had the Lyman for many years then I bought the Lee specifically for use with extruded powders. It feels cheap but it always does the job...

Tony

[mehavey]

Originally Posted by Unclenick

I've been using a Redding BR-30 for spherical propellants for a number of years, and it
works fine with them. The Harrel's and other high-end measures do well with it, too.

Have had the Redding for what must be 40 years. Then 20 years ago got the Harrells -- both larger Culver and Schuetzen.
Miraculous precision even with thee likes of Unique.

[Big Wes]

I agree with the Harrells, Culver and Schuetzen here also. Not cheap but very nice quality. You get what you pay for!

[FITASC]

I've been using an RCBS Uniflow for decades. Works well if the operator does.

Same here; added the baffle a few years ago, drops are even better now. The key to any dispenser is consistency in how you operate it.

[Jim Watson]

I started out with a Redding No 3. Double base powder ate up the cheap acrylic plastic hopper so now it has a metal hopper for black powder. For BPCR I measure short and trickle to weight. At 600 yards, "grains volume" need not apply.

I have a RCBS Uniflo with small drum. Good enough for service load type stuff.

I had an Ohaus Duo Measure that was ok but not great, a friend uses it for filler over his Nitro for Black .450 BPE loads.

The Bonanza with strange looking angled chamber/handle is precise but is a pain to adjust to the desired load.

For target rifle ammo, I use a PACT electric dispenser.

I load bulk pistol ammo on Dillon progressives. Measures are good with Bullseye and Ball powder but I used the air pump vibrator for 700X flake.

[Irish Lad]

I use a RCBS Uniflo for my rifle rounds and a RCBS Little Dandy for my pistol rounds. Been happy with both.

[Nick_C_S]

I've been using an RCBS Uniflow for decades. Works well if the operator does.

Yep. Me too. It was part of a kit that I bought in May '84. Back then, it came with both large and small drums. I installed the small one when I got it and it's been in there ever since (except a bi-annual cleaning). It is literally the only hopper I have ever owned or used.

[GeauxTide]

Used an RCBS Uniflow for 40 years. Upgraded to an RCBS Chargemaster a couple of years ago. Outstanding.

[Mike / Tx]

Well, I have 4 Uniflow, two Lyman 55, and a couple others I've picked up that are 60's era I thought were cool. Also have one of those Hornady electronic dispensers.

I've thrown just about every type of powder and had minor issues here and there but overall the Uniflo has done great.

[Crankylove]

Grew up using RCBS, have one on my bench now. Have also used Hornady. Both worked fine.

Had the Lee for a while before I got tired of the mess and bought my RCBS.

Gave the Lee to a brother to use, who got tired of the mess and bought a Hornady.
I believe he gave it to another brother. It may still exist, but if so, it’s sitting on a shelf collecting dust.

It was accurate enough, but too messy for me and the powders I use(d).

[Reloadron]

Been using a few RCBS Uniflow units for decades. For small light loads with ball powders I use the small assembly cylinder. I also have a RCBS Little Dandy with a few rotors and it always worked fine. Currently using an RCBS Charge Master. Really like that.

Ron