RCBS 1010/Omega Auto Trickler vs. RCBS Chargemaster

[rjacobs]

I currently am running an RCBS Chargemaster. I really like it overall. I havent had issues with over throws after I got it tuned up for the various powders I run. Its easy, its neat to push a button and have it do all the work. Its still SLOW.

I recently ran across a video of a guy running an Omega Auto Trickler/RCBS 1010 in combo with a Redding BR30(I think) thrower and it looks FAST and accurate.

Im contemplating selling my chargemaster and swapping to this setup.

Anybody running a setup like this have any thoughts?

And when running something like this does the powder measure really matter? BR30, Harrell's, RCBS Uniflow?

 

[mdmp5]

I used to run a Redding BR3 with a redding trickler, and it is fairly quick, but labor intensive. I went the opposite way and started running a chargemaster. I like the chargemaster better, because I can do other stuff while the next powder charge is dropping. If your chargemaster is running slow, try reprogramming it. Press edit/mem and enter at the same time and then make the necessary numerical adjustments. Smaller numbers make for faster throws, but if you go too fast, you will overthrow. There are instructions on how to do it if you search "program charge master".

To answer your next question, no. Everyone will try to tell you that their powder drop is better than others. There is no true reliable way to volume drop extruded powder to an exact weight. Unless you shell out 2k for one of those prometheus units, which still relies on a powder trickle to get an exact weight. The $300 drop is no better than the $100 drop.

 

[rjacobs]

My chargemaster is already programed and its pretty fast and accurate. Guess you missed that in my original post.

I just see how these guys are using this combo of a thrower to throw to around a grain of target, throwing it on the 1010 and hitting the button on the Omega and it trickles right up to where they want to be. It seems WAY faster than the chargemaster.

Im not talking about going to a thrower and a manual trickler, the omega is an auto trickler that uses a light beam in conjuction with the beam scale to shut off the trickler.

But this whole combo of a Harrell's, a 1010 and the Omega is like $500.

 

[wburke2010]

If your only complaint is the cm is slow then get a second cm. That is what I am about to do next time they go on sale.

Walter

 

[mydogsmonkey]

What's a good price on these charge masters? I'm seeing natchez has them for 290 right now

 

[justinbaker]

What's a good price on these charge masters? I'm seeing natchez has them for 290 right now

That with the rcbs $50 rebate is hard to beat

 

[MikeD987]

Going by the ad though doesn't it have to be a 300 dollar purchase? So like another sizing die or something of RCBS to make the 300 dollar value?

 

[Dogtown]

I use the 1010/AutoTrickler combo for my precision loads with the caveat that I don't actually trickle powder with it - I do that by hand. The reason being it's very tricky to get the autotrickler to constantly emit a steady flow of powder not too fast and not too slow. Too fast and you'll over load the pan before the scale can react; too slow and you'll be waiting for far too long. For my process, I start with Lee powder scoops into an RCBS scale (yeah, basically the same one as the Chargemaster) - it's ballpark accurate but like all of the electronic scales that don't cost $750+ it'll drift and become unreliable for precision. I pour the powder onto that scale to get close to where I need to be, then I dump that into the 1010 and start the autotrickler's sensor. From there I take a pinch of powder and wiggle it between my fingers, dropping one kernel at a time slowly until the sensor shuts off and tells me I've reached the proper weight.

This system works so well for me now that it's actually faster than my old DPSIII or Chargemaster and I get very consistent results. In fact, I can tell right away when the RCBS scale starts drifting because the 1010 will go over weight initially, so I have to undercharge further. Luckily that process often starts with it drifting right into the zone for a while before going over, so I usually get a couple dozen perfect throws first without any trickling needed.

 

[rjacobs]

The reason being it's very tricky to get the autotrickler to constantly emit a steady flow of powder not too fast and not too slow. Too fast and you'll over load the pan before the scale can react; too slow and you'll be waiting for far too long.

So your saying that the Omega trickler is garbage? Or its just finicky to get setup on the right speed for your powder?

 

[seanhagerty]

For precision rounds, I throw with a lee powder measure (about 0.5-1.0 grains low), then trickle up on an rcbs 5-0-5 using an omega trickler. Quick and accurate enough for me.

I didn't see any real reason for going with an expensive powder thrower. I am not looking for accuracy or repeat-ability, just getting the bulk of the charge thrown. Then I trickle up to the desired load weight with the omega/rcbs scale system.

Sean

 

[Dogtown]

So your saying that the Omega trickler is garbage? Or its just finicky to get setup on the right speed for your powder?

Finicky. It has two speed modes and depending on how you rotate the base and slide the sleeve on the tube, it controls the rate at which powder moves through the tube. That said, I find that it's rarely a consistent flow, so you may have a train of kernels followed by a huge gap then a few more kernels then another train. So when you have lots of gaps, you set it to trickle fast, but before you know it you get a train and it dumps too many into the pan before the beam can react. Some people don't have a problem with it - I just find it faster and more consistent to do by hand.

 

[rjacobs]

Finicky. It has two speed modes and depending on how you rotate the base and slide the sleeve on the tube, it controls the rate at which powder moves through the tube. That said, I find that it's rarely a consistent flow, so you may have a train of kernels followed by a huge gap then a few more kernels then another train. So when you have lots of gaps, you set it to trickle fast, but before you know it you get a train and it dumps too many into the pan before the beam can react. Some people don't have a problem with it - I just find it faster and more consistent to do by hand.

Good to know. I think I am going to grab a thrower of some kind. I already have a beam scale and a hand trickler. I might do a test with a friend to see which is faster: tuned up chargemaster vs a volume thrower and a hand trickler for that last 1/2 to 1 grain.

 

[Fred_C_Dobbs]

I don't have the trickler/auto combo but I've been using an Omega trickler for a little more than three years. My only complaint about it is that once you've got the slow flow rate adjusted so that you can cut off the flow ...right ...on ...the ...dot, that necessarily also means the fast rate is on the slow side. So just because it's faster, I set up the dropper to dispense 0.3-0.4 grains under the target weight into the pan, put the pan on the scale and top it off with the trickler. When it's set up spot-on, you can drop one kernel at a time, with anything from stick to ball. Once I'm in the groove, I can run through 100 loads and only overshoot two or three charges, five at most. For my use, the best thing is that you don't have to rest your hand on the shelf anywhere near it (or the scale). So if you have your scale elevated to eye level on a shaky shelf (like I do), you can run the trickler without disturbing the scale. You couldn't to that with a manual trickler. I'm well sassified with it.

Here's a review from a fellow SHer using the Omega with a twin Chargemasters.

 

[gunsnjeeps]

I've used my Omega for small batch loading, work up loads and long range ammo. Throw a charge, trickle it up, dump it in a case. Anyhow the one thing I've noticed is that by using both speeds on the Omega it causes powder clumping in the drop tube. When used with only one of the speeds, generally slow, it keeps the powder flow even in the tube.

As an aside, I've compared loading for 50 cases of 24 grains of Varget on my PACT dispenser scale combo (31 minutes, 56 seconds), the Omega and a 505 scale (29 minutes, 45 seconds), and the 505 with an RCBS trickler (30 minutes, 45 seconds). So it turns out to be a spread of 2 minutes, the slowest being the least work.

 

[Aimsmall55]

Fast , accurate to within .02 grains and extremely EXPENSIVE. But makes precision loading go FAST!!

 

[mdmp5]

My chargemaster is already programed and its pretty fast and accurate. Guess you missed that in my original post.

I currently am running an RCBS Chargemaster. I really like it overall. I havent had issues with over throws after I got it tuned up for the various powders I run. Its easy, its neat to push a button and have it do all the work. Its still SLOW.

You said it was slow

 

[rjacobs]

You said it was slow

The chargemaster is as fast as it can be reprogrammed to be. So yea it's fast, but it will never imo be as fast as a volume thrower. At is fastest I'll guess close to 30 seconds to throw a 44g load of varget. A volume thrower can do that in what 1 second but then it takes 20 seconds to trickle up on a beam scale.

The speed test a guy above posted is interesting that there really isn't any difference.

 

[ZiaHunter]

I use a Chargemaster in combination with an Omega trickler. Chargemaster is programmed to throw .2 gr. less than the desired charge then trickle up. While the Chargemaster is doing its thing, I am seating a bullet. Takes around 45 seconds per round on average throwing 42 gr. of H4350 and a little longer for charges in the 70 gr. range.