New Lyman Gen 6/RCBS Chargemaster Lite Powder Dispenser

[RC20]

They look identical so my guess is someone is making them for those two (maybe more) and come in Lyman colors, RCBS green, maybe Hornady as well.

I got the Lyman and they call it Gen 6, RCBS is calling it Chargmaster Lite.

I am a bit cramped on space and did not need all the features of the Chargmaster and a higher cost for stuff I won't use.

This one was on a very good sale, its even smaller than it looks though I think it would hold enough powder to easily load 150 rounds of 30-06 if you filled the hopper up. This is what I wrote up to my brother on how it went.

I fired it up and ran two different grains loads of 50 total last night.

The thing is almost cute, smaller than it looks. Does the job though have to watch the data entry. Will see if I can find something that works like a finger for the screen touch (styluses are made for those type screens). My fingers are a bit on the large size and it is a small screen.

About 80% hit it to the grain. The other 20% are one grain above or one below. I was shooting for a 2/10 grain split on the load so a bit of overlap.

One or two overshot by a couple of tenths, I just dumped back in the hopper. This was 4350 (stick) and supposedly harder accuracy for it. I put the adapter in the tube and that helped.

I could also keep a small pan of powder and add a few grains to the ones too low. Not sure about picking out the overage ones, probably quicker to dump back in and run it again. I was working a awfully narrow gap though.

Usually doing load development I am doing 3/10 gr split or as high as 1/2gr increments not 2/10.

If you are doing a kown good load and just single output, the 1/10 above or below would be irrelevant and I would throw the charges that were higher than that back in. There were none that were more than 1/10 below, when it missed it was an overshoot of 3/10.

About 25% faster would be nice but no slouch speed wise.

I just changed the operation around and started seating bullets from cases that were full while it was loading a new charge into the pan..

I could keep up with it and the bullet seating used up most of the wait time.

More than Small enough the footprint is no problem.

Cleanup was easy as well once I figured out all the latches. The power tray comes out though I think that does not have to.

Next time I will probably just drain the hopper and then run another pan and see if that gets all the powder out of the tube.
Tubes come out easy enough, just something to play with .

The excess chute works fine. I just kept the level down and was close to out when I finished. I used a clean but different container as a bigger mouth than the can of powder looked better fit for it.

It looks like the scale has an auto zero, never drifted during the operation. Pan weight was same as previous so its is a good cross check.

It will cut that part of the loading time in half from what I can see and more so as the bullets get seated at the same time. Overall more than half.

I had to drive up 40 miles to get it at another store, then back and nothing to eat since about 9 am (5 ish when I lit out)

Despite having shot up till 4, hit the store, got it on hold up North, I still got 50 loaded up in about 40 minutes and that included priming rounds, learning how to make the machine work.

Its not fancy but I was not after fancy, just punch in the numbers, tell it to run auto and away it goes.

Will see how it does long term of course but it sure suits what I was after and at a good price ($160)

[Robinhood]

Good review RC20

[Deadshot2]

I have a friend who uses his Chargemaster for load development at the range. Just bought a battery holder from Radio Shack or some online source that holds enough D-Cells to match the output voltage from the Wall Wart power adapter. He just sets his dispense weights for .1 gr less than what he wants. If it comes out .2 gr less, or so, he hits the "Trickle" button. If just a tenth less he merely taps the discharge tube to dislodge a granule or two

I can see the "Chargemaster Lite" being a great tool for accurately dispensing powder charges at the range during load development. The idea it has a smaller footprint is appealing considering how much other stuff competes for room in your range loading setup's transport box.

[RC20]

Good review RC20

Thank you.

I suspect you can probably have a pick and pull grains out as well to get it up if needed.

One very long day when I did the first runs and still went well, didn't try to get trickily with it just checking out basic ops.

As the scale and hopper are stacked, not only is it smaller but replacing the powder dispenser used to get the other electronic scale close as well.

That location may be freed up for a second press.

[Fotheringill]

It looks like the PITA drainage system on the Gen6 is a thing of the past. From the instructions, it looks like the "open the cock" system already on the Chargemaster.

[RC20]

I don't have any of the previous dispenser let alone Lyman, but this one is simple as note3d. Open the spout with a container to catch powder and it drains all out. You need a larger size container mouth than powder comes in, but easy to transfer.

The assembly that drives the tub also releases.

As RCBS has an identical looking unit someone else has to be making this for both.

I do have a Lyman scale and its not nearly as good as this one.

It looks to have a auto drift correction, the other one says it does but it starts to drift out 1/10, then 2/10 and I re-zero it at that point.

Not a big deal but this is pretty nice not having to eagle eye it, I do ensure when the pan comes off it registers the scale weight as a check.

[rjtfroggy]

When the Charge Master first came out it was actually made by PACT. I don't know who makes them now, but if you own an old one Pact still makes them ( old style) and can be bought separately ie; dispenser or scale or both together.
I do know my unit almost never over throws and if it does it is never more than +/- .1 which equates to 3/4 kernels of 4895.

[Robinhood]

I am curious if this one is programmable like the 1500. Slowing things down with 1.5 grains to go with a straw or insert made thing very accurate.

[RC20]

So far no, but its awfully new.

Not sure about the straw working let alone if the same size.

I got a close up shot of the RCBS unit, it has two buttons on the side vs the single button below the touch display on the Lyman.

So there is a difference though it looks cosmetic and some functions are different per the buttons.

It does come with a screw in insert that has a small hole in it for the stick powders.

That does help.

[RC20]

So far the only complaint is I would like it to be faster.

As I shoot 308/30-06 and 7.5 Swiss, grains are in the 40+ range.

It would be nice to have a parameters shift that it goes like crazy until it hits 5 grains below the target, then slow down with a different set of tuning parameters (P, I or PID whatever they use)

For smaller cases in the 243 range and below its probably ideal.

Its still faster than I can do by hand and I can seat bullets so the whole process is faster.

I would like to be about 40% quicker though.

Accuracy wise it continues to be good and if it misses, its a tenth under about 80% of the misses and I can snag a few grains out of the tube and make it spot on.

Probably 80% of the time total filled, its spot on to the tenth.

I have not used all the possible powders yet either. So far it has been R17, H4895, Imr4451

[RC20]

As use continues I continue to be happy with it.

It cleans out the old power nicely. Drain the hopper, knock the grains loose, then fire it up to the pan and get the last of the power out of the tube. I use a small tool to get any stray out.

For the next powder I run a 1 gr load to ensure any significant grains left in the tube are gone, pitch it and then off I go.

Maybe not the best for 9mm, but I am doing 308/7.5 Swiss and 30-06, a grain of something else is not going to change things.

I still would like faster but can live with it as is. Always something to do around the bench during short weights.

I did get the touch stylus and that is a bit t help with my fat fingers and the small display (it should come with one)

I have a pain brush to brush kernels away (better than what came with it).

I have a tiny screw driver I use to pull grains out as it often does under charge by 1/10. I know that is picky, but I also let the 1/10 over charge go so I am within 1/2 of a tenth and that's good enough.

I my drill some holes to accommodated the tools and keep them with the unit.

I would call it one of the best buys along with the bore scope tool from Lyman. Best being a big improvement in one area or the other.

Dies tend to be the same and I am pretty agnostic on those, whatever suits any given need.