Lee Powder dippers?

[krod47nw]

Has anybody tried, or now use Lee powder dippers instead of weighing and/or throwing charges?  Let me know what your experience was/is.

Kevin

[45-70.gov]

i

like  them   and  use  them

WHEN  THEY  WORK

get  the whole  set

not  versatile  if  your picky

and  not  a replacement  for  your scales

[krod47nw]

i

like  them   and  use  them

WHEN  THEY  WORK

get  the whole  set

not  versatile  if  your picky

and  not  a replacement  for  your scales

What do you mean "When they work"?

Kevin

[mrbigtexan]

sometimes your best load will be in between measured dippers and you will have to weigh your charge. they only work when they come out on the money.

[Tom W.]

I have  set and use them all of the time, but use them to put the powder onto the scale. I prefer to weigh my rifle charges. 

To load for my hand guns with ball powder I'll throw my charges, but still keep an eye on the weights....

[bilmac]

When I am working up loads I use them to place a close to charge on the scale and then use the dipper to add or subtract powder.

I also use them occasionally, mostly for pistols, when I want to throw a few rounds together with no serious intent. For instance to use up a few odd left over bullets. I used to use them a lot more, when I played around with reduced load cast bullets more. Actually they weren't Lee dippers, I made a set of my own. I developed my load, then made a dipper to hold the charge I wanted.

Lee dippers never hold the charge that the chart says they do, it is always lighter than claimed, for the lawyers. When used right they can produce charges almost as consistent as a measure,  but you can't depend on the chart to tell you what that charge will weigh.

[45-70.gov]

sometimes your best load will be in between measured dippers and you will have to weigh your charge. they only work when they come out on the money.

what  he   said


also  use  the  chart  just  to  pick  the  scoop....then veryfy  with  scale
in  my  notes  i  note  the  scoop  number  if  used
then  that  load  is  easier  to  duplicate  in  the future

smallest scoop  of  bullseye [3grains] for  90% of  my  38  no mater  of  slug
no  need  to fiddle  with  any thing  else

lee  dies  come with a scoop and  suggested  powders and shell holder

[FW Conch]

I have the full set but use the dippers to dump a "close" charge into the scale pan then trickle in the rest.

I believe as soon as a reloader can afford it he should buy a scale but the dippers are very useful from time
 
to time.        Jim

[sk330lc]

When I am working up loads I use them to place a close to charge on the scale and then use the dipper to add or subtract powder.

This is what I do. 

[zoner]

i have had pretty good luck with the dippers for handgun charges...at home i use a scale and/or a powder measure but when i travel i take a kit with me(hand press,dies,primed brass,powder,bullets,dippers)....if you need a charge that is between dipper sizes you can take the next larger one and drop epoxy into the dipper with a needle till the cavity is the right size for the load you want, keeping in mind that you need to check these volumes with a scale and it also helps keep charges consistent if you develop a technique for loading the dipper and do it the same every time and keep the powder volume consistent in the container you are dipping from

[Winter Hawk]

You can also try to use two dippers in combination to get the charge you need....

-WH-

[hillbill]

seems like i remember reading a article or chapter in a reloading manual where the guy that developed the lee powder measure system had developed a technique with practice that would throw a charge within a tenth of a grain or less every time.Ive used them Enif to know it can be done if you work carefully but i don't think id try it without a powder scale to check my work. powder scales are just to cheap to try to work without one. in the past ive had good luck with weighing charges and cutting or fileing down a empty case to a exact fill level and epoxying a nail to it for a handle and using that for a scoop for throwing charges. however i always had a scale to back me up till i was comfortable using it and i wasn't working at max load levels either.obviously this method wont work with bottleneck type cases but does work well with straitwall or tapered cases.

[jhalcott]

  For a back packing hunting trip these can and do work. I'd verify what the scoop holds though. I have fiddled around with them on occasion. Some times a charge from 2 different scoops is what is needed. Carefull use and "carding" the excess off is neccessary. IF you are looking for utmost accuracy a scale is the ONLY way to go. A GOOD to excellent HUNTING load for deer to 200 yards is easy to make up with the Lee scoops.

[Ladobe]

In the 50's when I first started reloading it was pretty common to use dippers.   But then we were mostly only reloading for our big game and predator/varmint hunting rifles, and big bore pistols.   Much of that reloading was with Lyman 310 hand tools and so dippers.   Mostly we made our own measures out of brass of something with larger capacity cut down for the powder charge weight we wanted for a specific powder by volume.    But eventually I did end up with a complete set of Lee dippers.   They have their place I guess, especially for someone who doesn't do a lot of reloading.   But as cheap as serviceable as powder throwers are I'd go that way up front even if only loading for one rifle.   

[LaOtto222]

Lee dippers can work well, if done properly. I believe the correct method is to lower the dipper into the powder right side up and letting the powder flow into the cup. Then strike off any thing above the rim, so it is not heaped. This will give you the most consistent results. As mentioned already There are differences between the dippers, so your ideal charge may fall between dippers. I think you still need a scale to check your weights. This is a gut check, to make sure you are getting the weight you want and to practice technique until you can be consistent with your chosen dipper. Once you have developed your load and you are satisfied you can be consistent, then you can dip your loads with confidence. If your ideal load falls between dippers. you can modify a dipper to match your ideal weight or dip it short and dump it onto a scale and trickle in the rest. If you dip short and trickle, then you do not have to be as consistent with the dipper, your scale will make up the difference. Good Luck and Good Shooting

[GameHauler]

When I am working up loads I use them to place a close to charge on the scale and then use the dipper to add or subtract powder.

This is what I do. 

And another here

[LaOtto222]

I just thought of a way to adjust a dipper. If your dippers are too big and too small for the powder charge you want - take the bigger one or maybe one size even bigger and drill a hole through the bottom big enough for a #8-32 screw to go through. Then take a #8-32 screw and put nuts on both sides. You can adjust the screw in and out to vary the powder charge. If it is a small charge of powder or you are using a large granular powder, you could put in a smaller screw to give you even finer adjustments and keep the distance from the screw to the side at maximum. If the dipper is one of the smaller ones, this may not work due to the small distance between the screw and the sides. You would have to make sure that all the powder would fall out each time you dumped too.

[cwlongshot]

When pop taught me how to load the dippers where quite popular and we used them in conjunction with the powder scale. The lee loader alls where also popular and they came with dippers too. I still have that set!!  BTW, they where black not yellow back then...

 Now a-days I use a RCBS Little Dandy with removable tumblers to dump specific charges. It a pistol only thing for me and of late I have only used it on 32-20's and 38 Sp calibers. No particular reason.

http://www.midwayusa.com/eproductpage.exe/showproduct?saleitemid=545386

CW

[45-70.gov]

my  lee  dippers  are  red....in  the kit....real  old??

the   ones  that come  with the die sets  are yellow

[cwlongshot]

I have that old kit from my pop and a newer one form about 15years ago. His are black and the newer ones Yellow. I also have a couple neck sizing die sets and they are yellow as well...
 I haven't seen the red ones, maybe your right.. really old!!! On second thought, they cannot be too much older than mine as plastic wasn't used much way back then. Don't know for sure, but I'm gonna guess mine where made in the early 60's.

CW

[45-70.gov]

late  70s early 80s for mine