I have been doing a lot of research looking at different automatic powder scales/droppers. I have seen a lot of people recommend the Intellidropper, but a friend tried one and it was off a ton. It was always over by 1.x grains almost all of the time. He calibrated it multiple times. So I am not sure if it was just a bad unit or if they are not that great. I looked at the Chargemaster and some of the others. They all seem to suffer from similar issues. So that lead me to the Autotrickler. I am fine with buying it if that is one of the only ways to go. I am looking for input from people that have tested a lot of the different systems.
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Auto Powder Droppers
- Thread starter Ikyo
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I have a Hornady and do not like it at all. It's slow and 1 in 10 times it throws over.
I preordered the Autotrickler over a month ago and just today got an email looking for the balance to get it in the mail.
Will be able to give a better review hopefully in a week or two.
I preordered the Autotrickler over a month ago and just today got an email looking for the balance to get it in the mail.
Will be able to give a better review hopefully in a week or two.
I have a Chargemaster that gave me a little trouble at first, I read a bunch of things online that people tried to do to them from changing the speed controls to shoving McDonalds straws into the nozzle. I didn't mess with the programming because I figured that RCBS would have done their homework to achieve best results but I did make a brass insert that screws into the nozzle that did wonders for the repeatability of the machine.
I made one for my buddy's machine and one for a guy at my club but didn't want to make any more so I left the dimensions for the nozzle in the comments under the video for anyone that wanted to make their own.
I made one for my buddy's machine and one for a guy at my club but didn't want to make any more so I left the dimensions for the nozzle in the comments under the video for anyone that wanted to make their own.
The FA Intellidropper is the best cheap one that I’ve seen. They work fine and are quick enough. 99% of throws are within .05 of my FX.
That said, if you got the cash, Autotrickler all the way.
That said, if you got the cash, Autotrickler all the way.
My one question is how repeatable is the intelldropper? I say that because accuracy is not really as important as people say it is. Is it always the same reading? If so who cares if it right?
I don't understand, are you saying the scale is off by over a grain in terms of measuring against another scale or do you mean that it is over throwing?
What powder are you trying to dispense?
Did you wipe the whole unit down with a dryer cloth to get rid of the static electricity?
Did you try to straw mod it? (people sell a reducing insert that helps all of the cheap throwers)
If we could get one that was constantly .05 off, that would be awesome. This one was over every time and it did even show it as being over.
Also are you calibrating with the same weights? If you aren't then you will have issues with them reading the same amount.
Who cares what the scale says compared to another? As long as it reads the same on the same scale every time why does it matter? A number is a number. As long at it is repeatable then the scale is working fine.
And why does it matter if it dispenses 31.x gr of powder when it says 30 gr, but you want 30.x gr of powder. If you do load dev with a scale and the scale is repeatable who TF cares.
Also what are you comparing the reading of the Intellidropper on?
You are totally missing the point of what I am saying. If I ask the scale to dispense 30 gr of powder and I am getting 31.x, that isn't what I am asking for. If I was getting 30.2, then that is in the acceptable range that the unit is supposed to be accurate to. I don't know a single person that would find that acceptable. I am sure if I called Frankford, they would request me to send it back to them.
Why does it matter? Because when you set it to 30 you expect it to dispense ~30. Not 31. Why have a fucking setting if it doesn’t use the setting. Go be dense elsewhere.
I am not dense. you probably don't get what I am saying or understand measurement error. Just because a measurement tool does not have good accuracy does not mean it is useless. Especially if the machine itself is repeatably dropping the same actual weight, which is exactly what we want.
I ask about the calibration weights as it is not like standard calibration weights that are shipped with scales are calibrated to a internationally recognized classification. When that happens you can get significant differences between them.
I have the Lyman Gen6 and it is working well. I, however, set it to drop .5gr below what I want and trickle it to my desired load. That gives me exactly what I need every throw.
I have a charge master that I used for a year and a half. McDonald straw and adjusted the settings to dispense faster. I followed 8541 Tactical's youtube video on setting adjustment. It worked great for me.
Recently upgraded to Autotrickler V2 which speeds up the process versus the Chargemaster. Its accurate to the kernel. Basically upgraded speed and added accuracy to weight of powder dispensed.
But I wouldn't hesitate to use the charge master at all.
Recently upgraded to Autotrickler V2 which speeds up the process versus the Chargemaster. Its accurate to the kernel. Basically upgraded speed and added accuracy to weight of powder dispensed.
But I wouldn't hesitate to use the charge master at all.
Not sure but this photo was spotted in the wild. Looks like it’ll measure to two decimals which is a huge upgrade over the last.
Attachments
Bryan Sikes posted this from his Instagram page last night. Other than saying it was badass and beyond impressive results, he didn't give any detail. Nothing on RCBS page or website as of now.
Hopefully it no longer uses a load cell and they decided to go with magnetic force restoration sensor. But I doubt it. The issue with the current chargemaster, and also the reason I broke mine by punching it, that the scale portion doesn't communicate quickly enough with the dispenser, and is not in sync with it. It arrives at the requested charge, and keeps spinning, over-throwing by .2-.3 grains every single time now. I have a nozzle, I've reprogrammed it, I've used the straw mod, to no avail. It's just getting worse and I have had it. Put a deposit on the Autotrickler V3 but will also want a cheaper replacement for the Chargemaster.
By the way, does anyone have a broken chargemaster and willing to let go of it for cheap? Or just the scale with an intact display? (The scale display is cracked on mine and I can't figure out how to find a replacement screen for it.)
I just want a backup dispenser after I get the V3.
I have two Chargemaster Lites with the reducing insert. They both throw stick powders within .1 grain (Varget and H4350). They are perfect for the ranges I shoot at and my current skill level. For about $250 or so each I highly recommend them.
Yeah. That would be good.
Normally I take care of my stuff. But loading 300 rounds and having to pick kernels out of EVERY drop to bring it to weight got on my nerves. I'm paying for it now by having to manually throw/trickle but it forced me to slow down. It was also a very expensive lesson since even the crappy 1500 still costs 350.00 bucks. Don't get me wrong, it worked adequately for 5 years, but it really doesn't like RL-16 for some reason.
It won't be mag force as just making a mag force balance is like $250 in manufacturing.
If You’re trying to accurately and consistently measure .1 or .05 grains, you are going to have to spend some money. You need a lab grade balance if you expect results, and they are not cheap.
Right now, the Autotricker system is the best out there in terms of price and accuracy. I have one and love it. The only other system that works as well is Prometheus, and it costs twice as much.
Right now, the Autotricker system is the best out there in terms of price and accuracy. I have one and love it. The only other system that works as well is Prometheus, and it costs twice as much.
