PACT Digital Scale / Dispenser & Tinfoil Hats?

[338macgruber]

I picked up the PACT Dispenser/Scale Combo from Midway USA earlier this year- the scale jumps back & forth a plus or minus of 6.8 grains at random. I sent it back to Midway USA & they sent me a replacement. The replacement does the same thing as well.

After reading other issues on the interweb, I have tried the following:

- I have installed magnet "choke" line filters at either end of the power supply cable.
- I have turned off all wireless devices in my home (wifi, cellular, etc.)
- My table is a wood table with metal legs on a cement floor (grounded)

STILL ACTS THE SAME.

I called PACT last week & they recommended the following (which I did)

- I spray myself head to toe with anti-static spray
- I wipe down the scale with an anti-static dryer sheet
- I constructed a home-made Faraday Cage from a cardboard box wrapped with Aluminum foil & placed the scale-dispenser inside to "shield from possible radio waves from radio towers within a few miles of my house"

This has helped a little, but I still get a 1.5g or so fluctuation in measurements.

My friend brought two of his older PACT scales to my home (same models) and they run perfect without any of the "remedies" above applied!!!!

I call PACT today & they say that there is a new circuit board in the newer models that may be more sensitive that the older models & that I can send it in, but there are no guarantees on what they can do to solve "my issue".

I'm into this so far:
$248.99 + $9 shipping
$12 return shipping
$8 line filter magnetic chokes
$5 anti-static spray, dryer sheets
$5 Faraday Cage / Tinfoil Hat
Hours of frustration

Has anyone else had similar issues? Any remedies?

 

[milo 2.0]

Re: PACT Digital Scale / Dispenser & Tinfoil Hats?

OMG,
I feel your pain, you really should have done more research.
I had the same setup, mine was RCBS, I sent it back 5 times.
Scale seemed to work by itself, gave it away, used the dispenser as a target,ooohhhh felt good.
I'd send it back for return, get a Chargemaster, way gooder!
Natchezz sells them for $289.00.

 

[338macgruber]

Re: PACT Digital Scale / Dispenser & Tinfoil Hats?

Just spoke with Midway - they are going to take back the PACT & give me a RCBS Chargemaster for $50 more.

What a mess.

So much for good old U.S. made equipment....

Does that make me communist for upgrading to the Chinese-made RCBS unit?

 

[Gene Poole]

Re: PACT Digital Scale / Dispenser & Tinfoil Hats?

Probably BS. They (PACT) have no idea why your's is drifting and the other units were not. New boards? I call bullshit. They are required to be properly shielded by the FCC. US companies are more strictly controlled in this regard that foreign made stuff.

My guess, just from having worked with dozens of precise lab-grade balances in my career as a chemist, and working with Chargemaster specifically as a reloading hobbyist, is that there was some debris in the load cell arm contact point with the pan rod. Even a little dust in those things will cause drift, and a kernel of powder will send them into freak out mode.