Old scale help needed

[barryjyoung]

Your efforts are worth the effort!
I have three of these scales. Stuff happens. Anyway, being a certified scale freak, I have to tell you about my findings. After I restored my Christian Becker Chain-O-Matic analytical balance which weighs to .1 milligram, I decided to do a test on all my other scales. This included two of the excellent Pacific scales like yours, plus an identical Texan with magnetic damping, a torsion balance that I had recently rebuilt, RCBS 5-05, 10-10, and 304 scales,an old Webster, and a Herters, I borrowed my buddies Redding magnetically damped scale for the test too. Doing some sophisticated analysis of my check weights compared to a certified 10 gram which goes to calibration every year on the Becker balance gave me great confidence that my numbers were very close. I will not bore you with the numbers, the torsion balance was hands down the most repeatable and the most accuarate of all the scales marked in grains. Next unsurprisingly was the RCBS 304 which was very repeatable yet, much less accurate than the Torsion. What surprised me was the very next best scale was the Pacific oil damped beam balances and the identical Texan. These are scales that cost 1/10th what the two scales that beat them cost. Next the Redding which is an excellent scale. The 10-10, and the 505 were next. I like the Webster, but it just did not perform, in last was the Herters which I promptly gave away to a new reloader. To get the most out of your Pacific scale, fill the oil reservoir with 10 weight machine oil, NOT 30 weight engine oil. The engine oil trick is where oil damped scales get the bad name. fill the reservoir just to the point where the paddle is touching the oil during it's entire arc. Adjust the scale as close to the beam pointer as you can get it without having it touch. There are two nuts you can loosen behind the scale to adjust it. Do these things, and you will have one of the finest powder scales ever made. They are truly wonderful.

[uscra112]

Hah! Somebody else who owns a Chain-O-Matic! I found one at an auction house 40+ years ago. Cheap, because the pans were missing. Made new pans for it. In doing that, I discovered that I had to use cotton gloves, because it was capable of detecting a fingerprint! Wonderful instrument.

[mf79]

maybe if someone has the same scale with correct pan and hanger you can get them to weigh each one on another scale and send you weights, then you would know how much weight to get off the ones you have or if you make another how much it would weigh.

[salpal48]

You can still adjust the scale. even if the pan and hanger is to heavy
first thing try to remove small bits of metal from the pan hanger. Most are oversize any way. remove the adjustment nuts( replace with Plastic Nuts if necessary)
By doing this see if The beam will start to move, If it does continue on the pan hanger, If not, Pleace a tiny piece of Metal on The top of the beam where the dial is. if it moves( lead shot is good for this ) , Then adjust the metal bit. bigger or smaller, Closer to the point of the scale the beam become heavier , Further from the point The beam becomes liter. When you get the right combination Of weight to Balance spot glue the metal to the top of the beam.
Sounds complicated but It's not, it's just weight and balance
Good luck
Sal

[salpal48]

I also Have a Chain O matic with the 24Ct gold Chains, also a Torsion Balance Great scales