Scale replacement

David08848David08848 Member
in Resources
My two OHAUS troopers are both not working and I don't want to spend much money for a replacement scale.  I now basically do production batches of handcrafted soap, shaving soaps and shaving cream.  The shaving cream is made in 100 oz. batches, 320 oz. for soap and about 50 oz. for shaving cream. 
I have seen several lab or restaurant digital scales slightly lower and higher than $100.00.  They look like they would work.  I have an Ohaus Triple Beam Scale that I could use for the "chemical" aspect of the formulas, if necessary. 

There is an Escali 
https://www.katom.com/094-SCDGM33.html

Any opinions, advice or suggestions will be appreciated!

Thanks!
David


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Comments

  • SylSyl Member
    I worked for Mettler Toledo for 7 years for one of their divisions. They own the Ohaus brand. As far as I am concerned all their product lines are over priced, they think of themselves as the Louis Vuitton of balances. Their Ohaus balance is made in China. As an employee of Mettler, they would not give me a discount on an Ohaus balance for my hobby. So I bought an Adam brand balance from the UK, then a second one when I started my business and I have no complaints. 
  • David08848David08848 Member
    Syl said:
    I worked for Mettler Toledo for 7 years for one of their divisions. They own the Ohaus brand. As far as I am concerned all their product lines are over priced, they think of themselves as the Louis Vuitton of balances. Their Ohaus balance is made in China. As an employee of Mettler, they would not give me a discount on an Ohaus balance for my hobby. So I bought an Adam brand balance from the UK, then a second one when I started my business and I have no complaints. 
    I certainly can agree with you on the price of this line of products!  It is difficult finding a scale that works well, lasts for a long time without any problems, and is easy to operate!  The Instruction Manual that comes with the Ohaus is not very clear and doesn't seem to offer any assistance to fixing a problem rather just stating that there is a problem!  I'll take a longer look at the Adam brand you mentioned as well as all the others I see out there!  I need to get busy with some projects and this is the worst time for this to happen!  Thanks!


  • suswang8suswang8 Member
    Rats.  I had been salivating over a specific Ohaus for a few weeks now.   :|
  • SylSyl Member
    @David08848 You should contact their tech services, they usually have good tech services. They also heavily promote their balance on site service which is costly, but it is very good.
  • David08848David08848 Member
    Syl, I called them today, talked about the 2 machines which need help.  They were so old that the guy I spoke with really didn't seem to know enough.  If we were going to try to "calibrate" it, I was told that I needed a 30 POUND weight to do the process!  The TR30RS seemed to have some with a little weight that I can't find any longer and one site showed a small metal circular weight item that was sold with it and I remember having one and using it to set up the machine!  So, it seems that it would be the smallest weight (200 grams) used by the machine is the one that is needed!  Did I get it right or wrong?

    David




  • SylSyl Member
    You are correct, you need weights to calibrate your balance. I am not personally familiar with this model but this is the link to the online manual.
    https://www.manualslib.com/manual/868349/Ohaus-Trooper.html?page=29#manual It says that you need a 20and 30 kg weight for the TR30RS. I would review the manual and call again to confirm. You might get a more knowledgeable person this time. My recommendation is to not give up, call until you get the help you need, they have the expertise.
  • DASDAS Member
    If you follow GMP, you shall calibrate and certify your scales yearly. This is done by a company that has the equipment, knowledge and capability to extend that certification. 

    So basically, if you need to work with those standards you will have to pay for the maintenance, calibration and certification. If you don't, then it will be much cheaper to buy those generic chinese. You are making soap, you won't notice a difference in 1 or 2 more or less grams.
  • mikethairmikethair Member
    I have used Ohaus for many years, and have found their balances robust and straightforward to use.

    As we operate a GMP Certified manufacturing facility, we have them calibrated annually by a certified company.
    Dr. Mike Thair
    Cofounder & Chief Formulator
    Indochine Natural
  • David08848David08848 Member
    Update:

    Thanks guys for your replies!  Syl, I did have a copy of the manual from that link but I looked around and found the original document!  I also found 8 500g weights that I purchased several years ago to somehow make it work and I had assistance from a friend, Kevin, to get it running at that time but I don't think that was a "full" calibration but rather an "update" "correction" to make sure that the numbers were up to date?  (I seem to remember having a telephone conversation 7 or 8 years ago with someone from Ohaus who talked me through a process to use those eight 500g weights!) 

    As far as the document is concerned,  unfortunately, the text seems to be written for those who are knowledgeable of scale parts and function and it is not "dumbed down" for those with lack of knowledge in this area.  I know that I have seen Error 1 and Error 2 and Error 14 as well but that apparently got me nowhere!

    DAS, you made a good point as far as the usage of these scales.  Since soap, shaving soap and traditional shaving cream are concerned, I do not work with minute numbers and a slight difference in a number isn't going to make much difference!  Also, I own an Ohaus Triple Beam which I can use for smaller amounts and more precise numbers!  I just need something that will weigh up to 300 oz. or 320 oz. with a bucket to make the soap and less for the rest and having a scale that could do a "tare".  One that would hold an 18" wide bucket on top.  One that would weigh in tenths instead of .2 .4 .6 .8 (like the Ohaus did!) so if I have something with 1/2 oz. I could get an actual weight for that!  Other than that I would need to fancy features just accurate weight and not cost a crapload of money to purchase!  It would be great if I could get both running again but if spending up to $100 for an easy and accurate scale it would be great!   Thanks guys for you input!  Eager to hear more if you would!  Regards,
    David


  • SylSyl Member
    Your balance seems to have a bigger problem than just a need for calibration.
    Still, it is important to understand the concept below is a link that explains it.
    https://www.precisionsolutionsinc.com/scale-calibration-guide/
    Most sales manufacturer sell through distribution. You can find many online store like this one https://allscaleshop.com/ They also sell parts and offer technical support. You may want to contact them or a similar business, they will be able to offer you a solution. 





  • David08848David08848 Member
    So, in trying to go through the processes for the Ohaus Trooper we did try what I think was the calibration.  In doing so, we put the eight 500g weights on the scale with "Cal" showing on the screen and it read the eight weights and when we removed the eighth and seventh it still showed something that indicated it was reading them but when we removed the sixth weight, it no longer showed that it was weighing anything so it read the weights totaling 3000g which indicates to me that it still has the original factory calibration on it.  Only ERROR 1 showed on the screen this time and no other errors.  Sorry for sounding so vague in describing this but after trying to go through so many procedures it is difficult to remember exactly what happened with each one!  Thanks for your help so far.  If you have any suggestions regarding the above stuff, it will be appreciated!  Regards, David



  • suswang8suswang8 Member
    For those of us wanting a newbie 0.01g-precision scale, it seems like my main options -- being in the US -- are either Ohaus ($260 or so) or . . . what else comes to mind?  

    (My current one was $15 on Amazon, and that has lasted me about 9 months before becoming inaccurate.)

    Thank you.
  • SylSyl Member
    Ohaus is owned by Mettler Toledo, their direct competitor is Sartorius; both offer scientific grade balances. But unlike Mettler, Sartorius does not have a lower line like Ohaus.  Ohaus competitors are Escali which is Italian known for food related applications, Adam Scientific which is based in the UK, There might be other brands I am not familiar with.  
  • suswang8suswang8 Member
    Thank you.  I believe Escali is actually an American company with production in the "Far East," as they say.

    Kern (German company) is also supposed to be good, but with shipping and handling (to the US) it becomes as much as the Ohaus.
  • David08848David08848 Member
    Well, I'm looking for a scale with a tare feature that can weigh from 0.1 ozs. to 20 to 25 lbs.  I don't need any fancy features just the ones above and I need it to last 4-5 years.  I would like it in the $90-$120 range.  As I mentioned before I have an Ohaus Triple Beam Scale which I can use to measure chemicals in small percentages.  If anyone has a suggestions I would greatly appreciate it!  Escali looked interesting...   David


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