Lyman 1200 DPS Upgrade

[454PB]

I bought the Lyman 1200 DPS about 2 years ago, and it is a fun, techie type unit to impress your friends. However, it is high maintenance. By that I mean the time required to empty it is a PIA, plus the fact that you're supposed to let it warm up for 30 minutes before use. I guess my main complaint is how S-L-O-W it dispenses the powder. I load a lot of big magnum rifle cases, and they use anywhere from 65 to 80 grains of powder. To dispense 80 grains of powder took several minutes, so I started using my Lee dippers to put about 60 grains in the pan, then used the DPS to dispense the last 5 to 15 grains. It occured to me that I was going through a lot more movement and time doing it this way than if I just used my RCBS Uniflow and balance beam scales. So, I put it away and it was unused until recently when I bought the upgrade kit. It's advertised as increasing the speed by 2 to 3 times. Well, it did speed it up some, but I seriously doubt that it is that much. All the kit contains is a new plastic hopper base for the powder reservoir, a new aluminum tube that dribbles the powder, and a new powder pan. I have no idea why a new powder pan or reservoir could speed it up, so I have to assume the aluminum dribble tube must have different threads.

I think I've been had.........$21 (plus shipping) for an aluminum tube

[Buckshot]

...............I was thinking about getting one of those . Anyone know if the newer ones are fast enough to be worthwhile?

................Buckshot

[MT Gianni]

Ed, I believe that the Alum. Tube is a larger inside diameter as it feeds powders that it previously did not. The new hopper is designed to prevent powder hangups when emptying. I think it's faster but that might be how I use it.
Rick, I like mine but use it only as a single stage on a Lee turret press. I deprime/size, prime, fill thecase with powder and push the recharge button, seat and crimp. The powder is ready before I get to that stage again. Gianni

[ktw]

Rick, I like mine but use it only as a single stage on a Lee turret press. I deprime/size, prime, fill thecase with powder and push the recharge button, seat and crimp. The powder is ready before I get to that stage again. Gianni

This is also how I use mine. It throws a charge in less time than it takes me to seat, crimp and box a finished round, then expand the neck on the next case. I deprime/size and reprime in separate batch processes.

I was thinking about trying The Upgrade but haven't found a compelling reason to do so. I did fit a cardboard baffle in the bottom of the powder reservoir so that there is a lot less unreachable powder sitting below the feed tube.

If I have any complaints over the unit they are related to the noise rather than the operation.

-ktw

[454PB]

Gianni, I'm sure you're right, although I didn't compare OD of the two tubes. Maybe I need to change my habit of doing one operation at a time. It's always been my practice to charge all cases, then inspect each one in the loading block with a bright light and compare it to all the others for proper level.

ktw, great idea! that last ounce or so of powder can't be reached by the "auger".

Buckshot, Lyman says the upgrade brings the older machines to the same speed as the new DPS 3.

One thing I failed to mention, the upgrade kit also includes a reducing bushing that can be screwed into the end of the aluminum tube to restrict it's flow with some powders. I haven't found a need for it yet.

[AZ-Stew]

Last weekend I bought a DPS II packaged with the Speed Upgrade. I didn't bother to do any test runs with the DPS II tube installed. The speed upgrade aluminum tube is larger in diameter for faster feed. The new hopper serves two purposes: Its bearings accommodate the larger diameter feed tube, and it has a sloped bottom for faster, more complete emptying of the reservoir. I was thankful for the extra scale pan. Now I have one dedicated to weighing cast boolits and one for powder. I don't have to worry about cleaning the bullet lube out of the boolit pan before using it for powder. I'm going to order one of the Lyman plastic pans with the integrated funnel next time I order from Midsouth. http://www.midsouthshooterssupply.co...u=000157752433

I can tell you that a 55.5gr charge of either ball or stick power (I tried a number of them) will dispense in 16-17 seconds. The instructions for the speed upgrade say the reducing bushing is for use with coarse stick powders to keep them from causing slight overcharges during the final seconds of trickling. I tried both H-4831 and H-4831-SC and didn't have any problems without the bushing. The machine stopped exactly on the 55.5gr charge. Notably, smaller charges, such as 5.5gr Bulseye took almost as long to dispense as did the 10X larger charges of rifle powder. Doesn't matter to me. I always load pistol rounds on my Dillon RL-550B, so the speed of the DPS II for small charges will never be an issue. I just had to try it, though.

I did compare the dispensed charges against my 35 year old Lyman balance beam scale. The DPS II dispenses charges up to about 30 grains in exact agreement with the balance beam scale. Above 30 or so grains, it tends to dispense about 0.2gr high, regardless of powder type. Some will say this makes the tool dangerous and worthless. I have a different take on it. For old, established charges I've developed over the years for my rifles, all I have to do is check the load against the balance beam, then if necessary, re-set the DPS II to a 0.2gr lower value to have it agree with the beam scale. Bingo! Same charge. For loads that are currently under development, all I have to do is develop the load and record the charge. With the DPS II it will always be correct. If I ever resort to the balance beam scale for the same load it will always be a couple of tenths of a grain low, therefore safe. None of us know for sure whether ANY of our scales are perfectly calibrated against NITS standards, so we're always working with relative powder charges, give or take a tenth or so.

My $0.02.

Regards,

Stew

[dromia]

16-17secs that's good.

I have the Pact Scale and Dispenser that I've been using hard now for over three years, it takes an average of 20 seconds to drop 55gns of Viht N140.

The Chargemaster from RCBS is supposed to be the beesknees but I've just timed a demo on You Tube for 50 gns of 4895 and it took over 25 secs.

To be honest they all seem to be performing on a par with each other so if I was going to repurchase I'd go with price.

The thing I like about the pact is that the scale and dispenser are separate so its easy to just use the scale on its own for boolit weighing etc.

Calibration is easy both for the scale and powder.

Its accuracy checks out with my beam scales and its had some hard use cranking out easily well over 10,000 charges dropped to date.

Where these really win out is in load development where you are doing 5-10rd batches say going up in .5 gn increments thats where the speed comes in, its a must have tool on my bench now.

[Ken 45LC]

A few years ago I was debating between the Lyman and the RCBS. I decided on the RCBS chargemaster after reading all I could find about the two. And now after reading your post, I'm glad I did. I've never timed it for the speed, but I don't have any complaints. Changing powders is relatively easy, it has a drain at the bottom of the hopper, and you just twist it 180 degrees to drain the powder back into the container. And like dromia, I find it really helpful when developing new loads.

I've checked the accuracy against another older RCBS digital scale, and my balance beam and they all came out with the same reading.

One thing I always wondered about, why do you need to let the Lyman warm up for 30 minutes?

It also appears that 454PB might have a lemon compared to AZ-Stew's. I would call and tell them how long it takes you to throw your 60-80gr charges, and that other people with the same model takes much less time. It couldn't hurt.

Nothing worse than spending your money on something you're not happy with.
Best of luck,
Ken

[AZ-Stew]

Ken,

All electronics drift over time until they reach a stable temperature and operating point. Circuit design will determine what the percentage change is in the end product. I don't worry about the 30 minute warmup. My DPS 1200 is left in the "ON" condition. This costs me just over 1/6 KWHr over a year. Price for the power is in pennies. The DPS 1200 has an override for the warmup period. I suppose if you calibrate it against a known good beam scale during the warmup period over several sessions, you could come up with a formula for setting the DPS when it isn't fully warmed up. Sounds like a lot of work. I'll leave mine plugged in.

I'm also going to re-run the 30+gr powder charge tests I mentioned above. I was tilting the unit to empty the dispensing tube, rather than removing it from the unit when changing powders. That may have been the reason for the +0.2gr measurements on the heavier charges. I did a re-cal on it each time I set it back level on the bench, but I don't know whether it's sensitive enough to require a "level rest" period after tilting. I'll report back.

Dromia,

Price was a factor for me, too. I found a gent on e-bay selling the DPS II units with the speed upgrade included for $200. I also bought the software and cable so when I get my bench completely finished (with laptop) I'll be able to pass loads back and forth between the DPS and the computer. I forget how many individual charge weight memories it will handle, but I'm sure it's sufficient. I also want to be able to pick up loads from the Wolfe Publishing Load Data web site (http://www.loaddata.com/) and work with them.

I've already taken advantage of the digital scale on the DPS 1200. It's really nice and fast for weighing cast boolits. The dispensing tube doesn't really get in my way. Readings are almost instantaneous.

Regards,

Stew

[454PB]

I also own a Pact digital scale, and I have to admit that the 1200 DPS digital scale is far more stable.....IF you do the 30 minute warm-up. The few times that I've ignored and bypassed the warm up period, the damn thing beeps constantly and needs re-zeroing.

I suppose leaving it plugged in all the time is a good solution, but I always worry about those wall warts overheating and I really don't want that to happen in my loading room with all that powder and primers. I'll just plan ahead and turn it on 30 minutes before I need it.

[Handgunr]

I've got the original release on the DPS1200.

I've had it for several years now, and when it comes to stick powders, it's a godsend. I've handloaded for around 40 yrs. now, and I use to trickle up on reduced thrown charges until I was blue in the face when it came to stick, or IMR powders.

I love to handload ammo, but there are corners that can be cut to make it a little streamlined. I haven't bought the upgrade kit for it as yet, but I've been considering it. The only problem I had with the machine was the bearings were causing some binding on the feed tube in the beginning, and a little chasing with a jewlers file took care of that.

I hadn't used the RCBS Chargemaster to date, but due to the cost difference at the time I bought the Lyman, I'm not disappointed in it at all. It's performed very well to date, and I'd buy another if this one died. That is, providing the price hasn't climbed to the point of the RCBS. If that were the case, I might try the latter.

Take care,
Bob

[monadnock#5]

+1 on the faulty drop tube bearings on my original unit. I dehorned the drop tube around the intake and discharge ports to reduce the problem, but never eliminated it. I went to not using the reservoir, and would push the bearings back into their mounts when the powder got low.

If Lyman has addressed the problem of crumby bearings with the upgrade unit, it’s a very good thing.

[Handgunr]

monadnock,

Actually, I tried filing them lightly with a jewler's file, and being that they're are of a teflon/graphite kind of material, it was kind like sawing wood with a butterknife. I needed a sharp edge to just scrape the surface of them, so I got smart and I used the intake port of the drop tube to scrape the bearings lightly at first. It skimmed the surface enough, and being round as well as the ID of the bearing, it worked like a charm.

Smooth as butta'

I was cranking out rifle loads with mine over the last two days and it's workin' pretty quick for 48-52 grain loads. If the upgrade makes it faster than that, I might be interested.

Bob