Part 4b: Powder Measure & Dispensing

Powder Measure & Dispensing

Now that your brass is primed the next step is picking a powder measure to use, measuring the powder then dispensing it. This is a fairly easy step that I like to
combine with seating the bullet. The reason that I do this is for safety. If I seat a bullet directly after I dispense powder and fill a piece of brass I have less of a chance of an accidental double charge; which I will talk about later in this post. First lets discuss the powder measure which is the tool used to measure and dispense the powder.

There are two main kinds of powder measure tools, mechanical and electronic. Let’s talk mechanical first. This type of powder

RCBS ChargeMaster Combo

measure uses gravity to first drop the powder into the measuring cylinder then into the brass or tray of some sort. At this point you have the option of using what has been dispensed or measuring the charge further to gain accuracy. Using a mechanical powder measure usually requires some other measuring device like a mechanical beam scale or electronic scale so you can properly adjust the powder measure. To fine tune your charge down to the tenth of a grain a powder trickler is used. I’m not going to go to deep into this subject as I want to talk in detail about the method I use; an electric powder measure.

An electronic powder measure is more expensive than a mechanical powder measure (or drop as its sometimes called). I chose to use an electronic powder measure because I wanted accuracy without having to measure each charge. This method is a little slower than the mechanical method (if you don’t measure each charge) but I find myself having more confidence in the consistency of the rounds that I make. The electronic powder measure I chose is the RCBS ChargeMaster Combo which includes both the RCBS Dispenser and the RCBS ChargeMaster 1500 electronic scale.

If you want to go the RCBS route like I did but don’t want to break the bank right of the bat, you can buy the RCBS ChargeMaster 1500 electronic scale then add the RCBS Dispenser at a later date. If you go this route you will probably want to buy a mechanical dispenser until you have enough money for the electronic dispenser. In my opinion, just wait for a sale and get the whole thing, I paid $289 shipped free then I was able to apply a RCBS rebate which dropped it even further. I don’t regret this purchase whatsoever.

RCBS Powder Funnel

Other miscellaneous equipment you will need for this step are powder funnels, reloading trays (which I talked about in my last post) and powder. Powder funnels are used to dump the powder into the brass, nothing complex here. Powder on the other hand is a different conversation. First off, you need to know what kind of powder you want. In my case, since I’m reloading for 223/556, I am using Hodgen Varget (based off load data in the Lyman Handloading Guide). This is a very popular powder not only for the caliber that I’m reloading but others too. The problem is my local stores (Cabelas, Bass Pro and Gander Mountain) are usually out of stock. Like I discussed in my last post, buying powder online will require a HASMAT fee just like primers. Your best bet is to find a local source to purchase powder or visit your local gun shows like I did and find somebody who deals direct so you can buy in large volume (think 8lb jugs). Another thing to note about buying powder: laws exist that limit the amount of powder you can legally store in your home. In my area 20 lbs is the most you can have in your house at one time. I’ll leave it up to you to figure out what your laws are.

A couple safety notes about the powder. Always store you powder in the containers they came in. Do not transfer to another container as the manufacturers containers are designed for safety. It’s also a good idea to store your powder in a locked cabinet so your kids don’t get into it and decide they want to try blowing things up. Lastly, remember its flammable and don’t smoke around it 🙂

How to Use the ChargeMaster Combo Powder Measure

If you decided to break the bank  on a ChargeMaster Combo (or are thinking about it) this next part is for you. The official manual is located here and unlike other RCBS manuals this one is pretty easy to follow. I’ll summarize anyway.

Calibration

1. Turn on the unit and let sit for 30-60 minutes to warm up the load cell. This step is highly debatable and optional.
2. Turn off the unit and remove the powder pan.
3. When the unit displays 0.0 press the CAL key on the scale.
4. When the display shows C 0 press the CAL key again.
5. When the display shows C 50 place a 50 gram weight on the platen and pres the CAL key.
6. When the display shows C 100 add the second 50 gram weight to the platen and press the CAL key.
7. Now the display will show 100.00 g. Remove both weights from the platen. The display will automatically switch to 0.0 GN (grains) then beep.
8. Next, place the powder pan on the platen and press the ZERO key to zero the weight of the pan.
9. The display should now show 0.0 GN and is now calibrated and ready to operate.

Add a Load Data Entry

1. Press the NEW MEM key.
2. If this is the first time you’ve added an entry MEM=0 will flash. This is the memory bank number that the data is being stored. Your second entry of load data will be MEM=1, then MEM=2, etc.
3. Press the ENTER key.
4. The display will flash CART and shows C=. Key in the cartridge one digit at a time. Use the number keys on the unit for numbers/letters. When your done press ENTER. Example: 556 (for 5.56 caliber)
5. The display will flash B_WT and shows B_. Key in your bullet weight then press ENTER. Example: 62 (for Sierra MatchKing 62 grain)
6. The display will flash POWD and shows P=. Key in your powder name then press ENTER. Example: VARGT (for Hodgen Varget)
7. The display will flash WT_. Key in your powder charge then press ENTER. Example: 25.5 (for 25.5 grains)
8. The load data is now stored in the unit. You will be prompted to enter more load data but you can disregard.

Dispensing (Recall the Load Data)

1. Press the RECALL key, the display will show C=.
2. Press the RECALL key again and the display will show the first memory setting.
3. Use the NEW MEM or TRICKLE key to scroll through the load data entries until you find the one you want to dispense then press ENTER.
4. After you’ve selected your load data entry press the DISP key. This will dispense powder into the powder pan.
   

   RCBS ChargeMaster Combo (Side)

Now that you know how to use the powder measure there are a couple tips that I would like to tell you about.

Tip #1: Different powders have different granular types; flakes, balls, bars, etc. Sometimes as the powder dispenses it will be off a tenth or more. When this happens when I’m reloading for accuracy I remove powder or use the TRICKLE key to add more until I get to the desired amount. When I’m reloading for my handguns and I know I can be ballpark I don’t worry about it unless its way off.

Tip #2: Before you pour in the powder make sure the clean out valve on the lower right is closed. Nothing sucks more than dumping the powder right on your bench!

Tip #3: Like I stated in the first paragraph of this post. Seat your bullets after you charge your brass that way you will reduce the chance of a double charge. This also gives you something to do while the next charge is being dispensed.

When you get your desired charge dispensed you should use the powder funnel to dump the powder in the brass. If you’ve followed the steps in my last post your reloading trays should already contain primed brass ready to accept the charges. I would highly recommend that you watch the next two posts before charging all of you brass as it will save you time to seat bullets and charge at the same time.

See you in the next post!

Different Power Granules

Equipment discussed in this post: