Verifying scales

[Stevew]

I am getting ready to load some 10mm. The last 357 mags I loaded a couple of weeks ago were chronographing a little faster than I expected. I don't have any check weights to verify my scale. I was wondering if I could get someone to weigh a couple pennies for comparision. Here's what I came up with.

YEAR weight
2008 38.4g
2005 38.4g
2002 38.2g
1996 38.3g
1994 38.3g
1982 47.3g
1980 48.7g

[DefensiveCarry.com]

[Ram Rod]

I came up with 38gr even on my Texan beam scale with the 2005 penny. Maybe QC isn't good with pennies. Maybe I need to re-zero it? Sometimes I wish I did have a digital. I did do some searching for that 2005 penny though.

[TheShadow]

2008 weighed in at 38.3gr on my Dillon Beam Scale

[Munch]

If your Lincoln Memorial penny has a date before 1982, it is made of 95% copper. If the date is 1983 or later, it is made of 97.5% zinc and plated with a thin copper coating.

Copper pennies weigh 3.11 grams, whereas the zinc pennies weigh only 2.5 grams. If you happen to find a copper 1983 take it to a dealer to see what it's worth.

1 gram = 15.4323584 grains

3.11 g = 47.9945 gr

2.5 g = 38.5808 gr

[Stevew]

If your Lincoln Memorial penny has a date before 1982, it is made of 95% copper. If the date is 1983 or later, it is made of 97.5% zinc and plated with a thin copper coating.

Copper pennies weigh 3.11 grams, whereas the zinc pennies weigh only 2.5 grams. If you happen to find a copper 1983 take it to a dealer to see what it's worth.

1 gram = 15.4323584 grains

That explains the weight difference. I thought it was the price of copper. In a way I guess it is.

[Palmer]

I would highly recommend getting some check weights. Any given penny will have all of the discrepancies from its given pressing, but also some virtually unidentifiable amount of wear.

The odds of any two pennies, regardless of year, weighing the same should be slim to none; At least with the kind of certainty and regularity you are looking for. You would need a good number of pennies just to hit the statistical average.

[Stevew]

I would highly recommend getting some check weights. Any given penny will have all of the discrepancies from its given pressing, but also some virtually unidentifiable amount of wear.

The odds of any two pennies, regardless of year, weighing the same should be slim to none; At least with the kind of certainty and regularity you are looking for. You would need a good number of pennies just to hit the statistical average.

Just wanting to make sure I am still in the ball park. Some folks reload without a scale. With the information I already have I can tell I am.

[nedrgr21]

I've never been too worried about calibrating my scale with check weights per se, zeroing yes, calibrating no. I start off with a minimum load and work up and stop when I have a great group or see pressure signs. The load I stop at, according to my scale, is what's important because if I change scales, I would start over anyway with the min load. Consistency (within your reloading operation) is the key here. You can pick any object, weigh it, and as long as the scale you use for loading registers the same amount with that same object, you're GTG. Check weights are an agreed upon standard; within your reloading world, any standard you choose is fine. Of course this assumes you adhere to safe reloading procedures - always start with min loads (never just try a load off the net w/o reducing 10% or max load), work up slowly, etc.

[razor02097]

2001 = 38.3 GRAIN
2005 = 38.6 GRAIN
2008 = 38.1 GRAIN

Weighed on electronic scale and verified on the balance beam.


pennies are going to vary in weight quite a bit depending on their life.

[boscobeans]

Find something that will not rust or oxidize and is easy to handle. Take it to your neighborhood pharmacy and ask them to weigh it for you. Most pharmacy scales or balances should be accurate to .01 grain.

Keep it in a plastic Rx vial and use it to check your powder scale.

bosco

[razor02097]

at the hospital there is a Mettler TOL AE163 scale that is accurate to .0001 grams. It even has a plexi housing to keep the air pressure and vents from messing with the readings... its pretty cool and I would try weighing a penny but I don't want to be tackled by the lab techs...again

here is what it looks like... wish I had the 1500 bucks to get one...

[jem102]

I've never been too worried about calibrating my scale with check weights per se, zeroing yes, calibrating no. I start off with a minimum load and work up and stop when I have a great group or see pressure signs. The load I stop at, according to my scale, is what's important because if I change scales, I would start over anyway with the min load. Consistency (within your reloading operation) is the key here. You can pick any object, weigh it, and as long as the scale you use for loading registers the same amount with that same object, you're GTG. Check weights are an agreed upon standard; within your reloading world, any standard you choose is fine. Of course this assumes you adhere to safe reloading procedures - always start with min loads (never just try a load off the net w/o reducing 10% or max load), work up slowly, etc.

I do use check weights because the accuracy they provide for the cost is well Worth it.
However you are correct...if most folks kept their scales clean (dust cover), leveled and zeroed they would be fine staying within loading book start to max ranges.
A better choice than a penny would be any top mfg.'s match bullet.

[mauser1959]

I never worry about doing more than leveling my scales, but I guess that I could check them against my Ohaus triple beam, just see no real need as a scale for powder should be very accurate.

I have been looking at one of the little electronic scales that Midway has on special this month, for the price it sure looks interesting. For $20 a person could have a very nice little portable scale.

http://www.midwayusa.com/viewproduct...eitemid=175512