When I saw the Lyman Brass Smith adjustable powder trickler at the last SHOT show, I thought to myself: “I could use a trickler with those features”. What features am I talking about? A cast aluminum body paired with adjustable steel base (low center of gravity!), long-reach tube, oversize turned knob, and more. In this article I’ll show you this trickler and demo a few different configurations. Let’s get to it!
Here’s a few of the scenarios I showed in the video:
Trickling with a Beam Scale
With a beam scale and trickler, you can fine-tune powder charges to a high degree of precision. It’s not the fastest way to measure powder, but it’s cost effective and quite precise. I tested the Lyman Brass Smith Adjustable Powder Trickler with the Lyman Beam Scale and found it to be the perfect height at the trickler’s lowest height setting.
Trickling with a Low-Profile Electronic Scale
I tested the Lyman Brass Smith Adjustable Powder Trickler with a low-profile electronic scale I use frequently: the Hornady GS-350. Again I had the height setting at its lowest position, and it worked well. I’ll note here that if powder spillage in this situation is a problem, you can shim up your scale about 1/2″, and then fine tune the trickler tube clearance over your pan to about 1/8″. That would be the way to dial-in this kind of setup perfectly.
Trickling with the A&D FX-120i Lab-Grade Scale
Trickling with the A&D FX-120i lab scale: NOTE: the wind screen is removed to show the setup here, but should be in-place when trickling critical powder charges
The A&D FX-120i is a large scale- it’s both wide and tall. For this setup, I shimmed the Lyman Brass Smith Adjustable Powder Trickler up about 3/4″, and maxed-out the height setting. With this scale, the long-reach tube is a must- otherwise it would be very difficult to get this kind of configuration to work. The Lyman Brass Smith Adjustable Powder Trickler shined here.
A Lineup of Tricklers in my Shop
I thought this would be a good opportunity to show the powder tricklers that I have in my shop side-by-side! From left to right above we have:
- Hornady economy powder trickler
- RCBS cast aluminum powder trickler (an older unit, replaced by new model)
- MEC powder trickler
- Lyman Brass Smith Adjustable Powder Trickler
Hopefully this helps you compare if you already have a trickler pictured above.
Here are some of the things I like about the Lyman powder trickler:
- Adjustable height
- Low center of gravity
- Long-reach tube with internal threads
- Precise control
- Fit/finish
- Price (I’ve seen street prices below $20!)
Do you have this trickler? Please leave a comment and let us all know what you think of it!
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Thanks,
Gavin
