Lee Dipper powder measure

[VA Shooter]

I was in a gun shop today and saw a Lee dipper powder set and was wondering if any of you have used these before What are pros and cons thanks

 

[DGW1949]

Yeah, I been using them for over 35 years.

Pros:
Cheap, easy, fast, and as "repetable" as most dispencer-measures.
Unbreakable, and won't ever wear out.

Cons:
Not as precise as a scale, so they're NOT for turning out Max loads.
"Repetability" is a product of operator skill, and must be learned.
The "chart" aint right. Most times, the actual charge they hold will be somewhat lower than indicated.

Hope this helps.

DGW

 

[Rick Courtright]

Hi,

Use 'em all the time!

Mostly for "working up" loads: w/ a combo of a big dipper just under desired charge weight, and a smaller one, I can scale loads as easily as setting a measure and playing w/ a trickler.

There are a couple of loads I use where I'll just use the dipper instead of resetting a measure, too.

DGW pretty well summed up the pros and cons... but let me add one more thing about "too light" loads:

If you're careful w/ your QC procedures, you CAN use a combo of dippers to get just about any reasonable charge you need if just one of them alone leaves you too short.

When I do that, I charge all the cases w/ the biggest dipper, then add a second charge to all w/ the next size (or sizes--I've actually used three once or twice.) Then check 'em all w/ a strong light and check weigh a couple w/ the scale.

W/ practice you gain both speed and consistency...

Rick C

 

[mikld]

I've been using them for a bunch of years (been reloading off and on since '69). Since I only reload 50 to 100 cartridges at a time, and I batch load, I "dip and weigh" a lot of my loads. As said, they are easy to get very repeatable "dips", and not all that slow. Yesterday I reloaded 50, .357 Mags with 8.9 gr of True Blue. I had the brass ready and primed, so all I had to do was charge, seat, and crimp. True Blue is a fine ball powder and had to trickle up some loads but over all it went smoothly...

 

[guitarpicva]

Another forum I occasion had some really nice pictures on how they are used. The deal is: pour your powder into a bowl. Push the CLOSED end of the dipper into the powder at an angle and let the powder fall down into the cavity. No scooping, shaking or tapping. May have to strike the powder to level. Then weigh or charge, depending on where you are on the MAX load scale.

I am told it is not uncommon for this method to be employed ON THE RANGE (private of course) using a Lee hand loader to develop a load.

I have a set I have yet to use. I'm going to start with Blackhorn 209 for my muzzle loader to see if I can find a consistent way to load my speed shots without a cylindrical measure.

 

[Jimbo357mag]

I use them all the time. They are shaped perfectly and if you need to change the volume of one you can cut a cardboard disk and put it in the bottom to reduce the volume a little. They work very well for less than max loading or doing dip and weigh with very few grains usually needed to add or subtract to get the exact weight that you want. I wouldn't be without them. 8) 8)

...Jimbo

 

[guitarpicva]

...They work very well for less than max loading or doing dip and weigh with very few grains usually needed to add or subtract to get the exact weight that you want. I wouldn't be without them. 8) 8)

...Jimbo

That's what I was intending to do. I have a trickle charger that can sit next to the scale.

 

[J Miller]

I have one of the original black sets. The one that measure grains not CCs.
I used them for a while but no matter what method I used I couldn't get consistent results. So I went to a powder measure and scale.

Joe

 

[Olsherm]

I weighed several charges from a dipper recently and found there was quite a bit of difference in weights. Depending on how you drag the dipper thru the powder I guess?I also noted that the longer i use the dipper it seemed the charges got a little lighter? Static maybe? I could not tell.But I use them all the time and just trickle in with the dipper.The cardboard disc in the bottom was a good idea. I think I will try that.Sounds like it will work.Never thought of that. Proves that two heads are better than one.Especially one like mine. HAHA

 

[Rick Courtright]

Static maybe?

Hi,

Somewhere Lee tells about that (could be the instructions, could be the "Modern Reloading" book.)

Their "solution" is to wash the dippers in warm water and dish soap, then let air dry. DON'T rinse...

Rick C

 

[Donaldjr1969]

Static maybe?

Hi,

Somewhere Lee tells about that (could be the instructions, could be the "Modern Reloading" book.)

Their "solution" is to wash the dippers in warm water and dish soap, then let air dry. DON'T rinse...

Rick C

Would wiping the inside and outside of the dippers with a dryer sheet also net the same results?

I use a dipper along with a trickler when I am working up small quantities of a load, such as 18 rounds or less.

 

[mikld]

I have modified some of my dippers by drilling a small amount out of the cavity (to make charges heavier) or dropping epoxy into the cavity (to lighten a charge). I've also made dippers from empty cases and brass ferrels/tupbing and soldering a handle on them and adjusting capacity by reaming or drilling and filling (I glued a BB in one to lessen charge). No matter what method you choose to dip, just do the same thing every time and charges shouldn't vary much (I can hold about 1/10th grain when I hit a rythm and stay focused).

 

[Rick Courtright]

Would wiping the inside and outside of the dippers with a dryer sheet also net the same results?

Hi,

Dunno, but I've seen a lot of guys tell us that's a favorite trick w/ their bigger powder measures, so it might work! And it's easy enough to try...

Rick C

 

[guitarpicva]

..I've also made dippers from empty cases and brass ferrules/tubing and soldering a handle on them and adjusting capacity by reaming or drilling and filling (I glued a BB in one to lessen charge)....

This is also a common practice. The great thing about this method is, you use the brass from the cartridge you are loading and it's easy to keep them all straight. If you have two loads for one cartridge, you just write the charge on the outside of the brass with a Sharpie.

 

[Lost Sheep]

I have one of the original black sets. The one that measure grains not CCs.
I used them for a while but no matter what method I used I couldn't get consistent results. So I went to a powder measure and scale.

Joe

As Olsherm indicated, technique is vitally important.

When using the dippers, I developed a technique that was consistent to .1 grain (measuring 5 to 12 grain pistol loads)

I would fill a 5" diameter shallow bowl about 2' deep with powder and pass a dipper through the powder in an arc that went just shy of the bowl bottom. (No abrasion to the powder) and tap the handle with my forefinger to knock off any powder mounded above the dipper rim.

This was before I read the Lee-prescribed method of pushing the dipper base-first into a bowl of powder and letting pure gravity fill it.

If Lee wanted us to do that vertical push, why did he/they not put a vertical handle on the dipper? If the handle was long enough, we could dip right out of the bottle the powder is sold in.

Anyhow, if my technique was consistent, it was more accurate than my RCBS powder thrower, though the powder thrower did take less attention and was faster.

One advantage of the dippers is that you will never run out of powder unknowingly. I have done that with a press-mounted powder measure. Had to pull over 30 bullets to find the half-dozen squibs I had loaded.

Lost Sheep

 

[bwelch47]

Static maybe?

Hi,

Somewhere Lee tells about that (could be the instructions, could be the "Modern Reloading" book.)

Their "solution" is to wash the dippers in warm water and dish soap, then let air dry. DON'T rinse...

Rick C

Agree.