For over 60 year I've accumulated 5 beam scales. A few years ago I was given, by my SIL, a Gen 6 which proved to be beneficial. Yesterday I pulled all 5 of the beam scales out, dusted them off and played with them using my RCBS scale weight set. I'm happy to say this was a fun way to spend a day and a trip down memory lane. It also proved that I never needed to upgrade. On the other hand I'm not disappointed I did.
My first scale I got from my dad and still have and occasionally use is an old oil damping Redding and it is still functions accurately. Marked $12.50 on the box. Actually this is the scale he taught me how to reload with as a kid. Well we used homemade scoops too.
My second was a Lyman M5. It's still my go to beam scale today.
The 3rd was a Lee Safety Scale. I used a slide rule a lot when I younger so that was never a problem for me. It as sensitive and accurate as the best of my my collection. It required adding a lead ingot under the housing to keep it stable or rather from moving when adjusting. It just doesn't settles as fast as the others and maybe faster than the older Redding'
Number 4 was an Ohaus 10-10. It's a similar to the M5 but I find the M5 a little easier to read. But then I've never found it necessary to read a measurement as fine as it's capable of measuring.
#5 is the new Redding #2, a recent purchase. Like the Lee scale it is very sensitive and accurate. Indeed I have to hold my breath to get a reading with this scale. A light touch is required when setting the pan on the pan holder or the beam's pointer goes above the holder for indexing zero marks and has to be adjusted to get in back inbounds. This was part of its learning curve for me but just a minor one.
The Gen6, I was given, took awhile for me to appreciate because I just refused to trust it for a year. But it has proven to be reliable consistant and fast in use. It's some 5 year old now and much appreciated for it speed and consistency.