Chargemaster troubles

[Tim N]

Hi All,
My chargemaster combo has decided it won't calibrate or change from gns to gms
Are they repairable or am I up for another scale?
Everything else seems ok
Lucky I have some loaded rounds or today would be most miserable

[MCLE]

Hi Tim
Mine started to play up (Long Out of Warrenty) I phoned the Distributor and asked if there was someone that fixes them is Australia. And when under warrenty they send them back to the Manufacturer And I got the impression that they just give you a new one as it's not worth the hassle.Mine has done a heap of work might be time for a new one for me.

[BATattack]

Tim as a fellow boilermaker. . . . I think we both know what the problem is here . . . . You need a bigger hammer!

[saum2]

Hey Tim,
Make sure you haven't any powder inside under the weigh plate, mine played up similar to yours but it was powder inside. Worth a look and a shake first. Then if that doesn't work, u need a bigger hammer like BATattack suggested. U playin with the SAUM today?
Geoff

[6.5x55ai]

After a problem free run of about 8 years my Chargemaster came up with a set of numbers in the display when powered up. I could not get it to go into cal mode or zero out. Sent RCBS an email describing the code and they replied "fatal error code". (I had already guessed that.) They also said that as they only source them, not make them, and then on sell them they have no spare parts or repair facility. They then graciously apologised.
I tossed up whether to go with a Lyman Gen5 or Gen6 but ended up just replacing the scale component with a new one.
Had some trepidation when I plugged the scale into the dispenser and powered up but all was good so I am away again. Death of this lower to medium quality of electronics after 8 years is probably not too bad but I was still pissed off.

[6.5x55ai]

Hi All,
My chargemaster combo has decided it won't calibrate or change from gns to gms
Are they repairable or am I up for another scale?
Everything else seems ok
Lucky I have some loaded rounds or today would be most miserable

Possibly the membrane keypad is getting kaput.

[Tim N]

Thanks all for the advice and suggestions
Bat attack: if we run into each other on the range we can discuss the finer points of the noble art of boiler making I'm one of the few who have actually worked on boilers , where I shoot I'm surrounded by fitters, which we all know are just boilermakers with a ruler in their back pocket
Any way the only issue I can see with the hammer is I'm a little out of practice and when I get the 14 lb at full swing I might miss the scale and persuade the dispenser instead
Seriously (if that's possible)I might continue to use the dispenser and check the weights on a separate scale?

[Tim N]

Hey Geoff
The saum is a project just commencing so could be a while till testing
I did notice some powder in the top of the scale but didn't undo the base because of the void warranty stickers but since it's out of warranty I will have a look, better go find that hammer.

[6.5x55ai]

Hey Geoff
The saum is a project just commencing so could be a while till testing
I did notice some powder in the top of the scale but didn't undo the base because of the void warranty stickers but since it's out of warranty I will have a look, better go find that hammer.

I pulled mine apart and checked the plugs were secure - all to no avail. You will see the loadcell when you tear it apart and can check for powder contamination but going by your description of the fault it will not be the loadcell.
Years ago I did have another problem with mine - I changed the power supply that came with it (heavy wire wound unit) for a Switched Mode supply with what I thought was more than enough capacity. It worked fine for a year and then the dispenser started doing strange thinks eg completely running past a charge setting and not stopping until I stopped it and also stopping grains short of a setting (most likely the slowdown point). I was all prepared to buy a new Chargemaster but as a last resort got the old clunker wire wound supply out and bingo. Have also heard of others having PS problems as a lot of guys here purchased the 110v option as it is cheaper than the 230/240v. They then have sourced a Jaycar type PS and in some cases have then had problems with the unit doing weird things. It would be worth checking your PS. The other thing to try is to uncouple the scale from the dispenser and just see what the scale does on its own. You should see the link indicator on when they are coupled and off when separated. Good luck.