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Rocky’s Reloading Room |
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Quick Measure
At a gun show recently, I observed a booth selling the most accurate powder measure made. That was the man’s sales claim, but I took it with a grain of salt.
It’s a good thing I didn’t place any bets.
As near as I can tell the Johnson Quick Measure may indeed be the most accurate manual powder measure – period. What’s more, it is guaranteed to never cut a single powder grain, even the log-like extruded powders like H4831. Hard to believe? You bet. That’s why I gave it an extensive test right then and there.
First, a description: the Quick Measure body is machined (not cast) of aircraft grade aluminum and anodized for a smooth surface and long life. The valve parts are machined of solid brass. Each measure is hand made.
The inventor and owner of the company is a retired engineer, and in his words, “I examined and identified every possible fault in standard measures and then designed my measure to eliminate those faults.” The secret to the accuracy and complete lack of kernel cutting is in the valve. Unlike virtually all other manual measures, the QUICK MEASURE does not use a rotating drum to measure and transfer powder from the storage tube to the cartridge.
Instead, the measuring valve is comprised of a brass tube that slides vertically within a housing. When the tube is raised, powder enters it through a hole in the side of the outer housing. When the tube is lowered, an angled surface in the top of the tube pushes excess powder kernels aside. This gentle pushing is what completely prevents shearing of powder kernels. Because the powder enters the tube from the side, there are virtually no gravity-induced errors in the charges.
The length of the dispensing tube regulates quantity of powder dispensed. Adjusting a sliding section at the bottom of the tube makes small adjustments, and interchangeable tubes provide for gross adjustments. Each measure comes with an assortment of tubes, and others are available. Also available as an optional accessory is a precision dial gauge that can be used to precisely adjust charges in a known and predictable way.
What is more, the measure requires only one hand to operate. All other measures require the reloader to hold one thing (cartridge, scale pan or funnel) under the dispensing tube, while operating the measure’s handle with the other hand. The QUICK MEASURE has no operating handle at all, and so it requires only one hand to quickly dispense each charge.
To do so, one merely presses upward against the dispensing tube with a specially modified funnel, wait a moment for the tube to fill, then lower the tube to drop the powder. The funnel has a brass hemisphere suspended in its center. The hemisphere serves as the bottom of the measuring tube. The funnel comes with the measure, as does another brass hemisphere that can be glued into a scale pan. Both provide a consistent surface and prevent powder leakage if the funnel or pan is tilted while dispensing.
Now to my tests. I was unable to obtain a trial measure for extended tests – demand is such that there is a waiting list for each hand-made unit. So I dispensed and weighed 100 separate charges right there at the booth. In the measure was a quantity of H4831 (one of the toughest tests for any powder dispenser). With the tube set for 60.0 grains, not one of the 100 test charges varied plus or minus more than one-tenth grain. Most were EXACTLY 60.0 grains. That’s astounding performance.
In fact, the QUICK MEASURE has been independently tested against several benchrest-quality measures, including the Redding and the Harrell. None came close to the repeatability or accuracy of the QUICK MEASURE. The QUICK MEASURE is even faster and at least as accurate as current electronic dispensing/weighing systems, according to Johnson.
The final bit of good news is the price. Competing top-end dispensers such as the Harrell can cost as much as $300. The QUICK MEASURE retails for $135. That price includes five drop tubes of increasing capacity and printed tables of powder settings. Optional accessories include drop tubes in smaller and larger capacities, the small and large funnels, the dial gauge, a hard carrying case, dispenser stand and more.
To order or for more information:
Johnson Design Specialties 4607 W Elderberry Spokane WA 99208 (509) 464-0697 smalstuf@mindspring.com www.quick-measure.com
Copyright Rocky Raab, 2004
Update 2007: Tim Johnson continues to add clever new products, features and accessories to his Quick Measure line. He now has “Small Charge” adapter funnels to throw smaller charges than before, and many other improvements. My recommendation is the same: BUY ONE! |