EdgbastonBreamBasher

OK, after re-reading through the replies I wanted to pick up on this one point which in regards to Reuben Heaton 7000 series digital scales is not correct. The 7000 series have been designed so that when battery levels drop below a certain point the scales will simply not turn on. The software does not wait until the battery has been completely drained before this happens, which means that before the digital scales are capable of displaying an incorrect weight due to the remaining power of the battery they will simply not turn on, this happens first, and that is by design so as to not give false readings. I have now invested in more Avery weights and will be conducting more tests soon on my Reuben Heaton digital scales, which are still going strong, but are they still 'accurate'? We will see in the coming days after I have conducted my tests, which can take a while to do.

Just a note on digital scales and any references made about then regarding their use of batteries and them being reliant on them. So are our alarms, so are our cameras and so are our mobile phones... we don't often mention any of those items in negative terms, yet with digital fishing scales it is often the biggest negative point brought up, and I would wager that 'most' people who do so have never owned a set of digital scales or if they have then they have not had any such issues with them. I do know of people who have had digitals go wrong and when they have gone wrong they have done so in an epic way, not an ounce out here, or 4 ounces out there... For the most part if you look after your equipment it should last you well but as stated previously there is more that can go wrong with a set of digitals versus a set of analogue, but this does not mean that it will.

I honestly think that 'spot on' is something we will just not get at the price point we pay for fishing scales, that includes sets upto £100. There is something else that I have not included in my 'review/guide' and that is when weighing a fish or simply just testing your scales it is vital to use a sling or bag that actually weighs something so as it can be detected by the scales during the weighing process. For example, if you place a plastic carrier bag on your scales it may not even move the needle, certainly this is very likely on scales that weigh in either 2oz or 4oz divisions but the bag still weighs something even if it isn't detected and this will be calculated in the total weight of your fish or whatever it is that you are weighing. When testing my 60lb x 1oz Reuben digitals I use a heavier duty shopping bag, one that weighs 4oz, so I can 'tare' it and get a zero starting weight, a regular plastic carrier bag might only weigh 1/2oz or so but if you are not taking it into account then it's a false reading and for a 26lb 5oz Pike it might not be a big deal but for testing the scales accuracy (which is what this 8 year old thread is all about) then it is paramount to do things correctly. I have just tested my Reuben Heaton digitals in grams as opposed to ounces and a 4lb weight placed in a tared bag came in at 900 grams approx so my digitals are weighing 1/2oz light at 4lb, but it is not as simple as that... because sometimes they are not reading 1/2oz light at 4lb and we have discussed why this is in previous posts but just to reiterate for you the importance of divisions... My scales weigh in 1oz divisions, so at any weight they can be 1oz light or 1oz heavy and be within calibrated tolerance, like it or not that's the standard for that division. So sometimes when testing/weighing my 4lb avery weight on the same scales in the same bag in the same conditions (my kitchen with no draught) there can be a 2oz fluctuation in the result (3lb 15oz - 4lb 0oz - 4lb 1oz) and all of those are standard and correct for a 1oz division set of scales. Which is why I highly recommend getting a set that deals with lower divisions 1/2oz or 1/4oz when species targeted permits their use. If I was using a set of 30lb x 1/4oz Reuben Heaton digitals (which like I said are being released this summer 2022) and weighing my 4lb weight it would fall between 3lb 15 3/4oz - 4lb 0oz - 4lb 1/4oz. So a 1/2ounce fluctuation and much more 'accurate'? For anyone interested in the upcoming Reuben Heaton 7000 digitals here is what they said to me when I contacted them... Hi Paul, after running the mk1 for a few years we had enough data for what we needed to improve on for the upgrade. We have increased the durability, waterproofing and added some software elements to maintain the tolerance and help combat fish movement in the sling. Essentially the scale has a much bigger brain to differentiate between movement and weigh change. Others items included visible LCD angle and temperature compensation Regards RH PS I do not work or have affiliation with Reuben Heaton, but as they are the industry standard in fishing scales I wanted to share my findings, thoughts, opinions and information about with you as I am sure there are a few people out there like me who this sort of things fascinates and is interesting to read.

How about this for a necro post... OK so I have now owned my Reuben 7000 digitals for 8 years and I do keep an eye on them, they have not yet been serviced, I didn't think they needed it, but perhaps maybe soon. I still own those very same avery weights in 1lb - 2lb - and 4lb respectively. So tonight I have just conducted the very same experiments that I did 8 years ago on the same digital scales with the same avery weights... Here is what happened... The 1lb weight gave different readings between 15oz and 1lb approx. This is within tolerance of 1 division but less accurate than 8 years ago. The 2lb weight did the same fluctuating between 1.15 and 2.01 The 4lb weight was spot on at 4lb. The combined weight of all three weights is 7lb and they gave me a combined reading of 6lb 15oz. So all in all they are still 'within tolerance' and I guess you could say 'accurate' although slightly less so compared to 8 years ago. I only used Duracell batteries, I dont get my scales wet, I keep them warm in a pouch when they are not weighting anything. Now I must be honest and say that whilst I was weighting my weights if i moved the weight around in the bag it would give different readings, so for example the 1lb weight would settle at 15oz and after the scales said 'hold' I moved the bag a little to recreate the movements of a fish in a sling if you will and this is when they might then read 1lb... the weights did fluctuate a little doing this. Do I recommend the Reuben Digitals? Yes, but... just know that they are only accurate within tolerance and don't take then for gospel. Lastly a word on the batteries, there was one occasion when I went to use them (they have never faild to turn on in 8 years) but my battery which I was sure was still good actually flashed and displayed 0 bars which meant it needed changing, doing so with a fish in the sack is a bit of a flaff about, like I said I was sure my battery was good, I always keep an eye on these things so be cautious, after all they are completely reliant on batteries and as such this is perhaps their biggest strength (digitals are more accurate in my opinion) but this is also their biggest weakness as they are also far more likely to let you down at the wrong moment. You pays your money... PS: If you own a set of 60lb x 2oz division Reubens and so does your mate then both of your sets can be upto 2oz out across any weight and be within tolerance. So if you catch a carp and weigh it and it comes in at 30lb on the button it could in fact be 29lb 14oz or 30lb 2oz. Now that does not mean you will get the same readings on your mates set of identical 60lb x 2oz division Reubens, on yours it might come in at 29lb 14oz and on your mates it might come in at 30lb 2oz... So there could be a 4oz swing on 2 identical brand new sets of 60lb x 2oz divisions. Which (if either) of those weights are correct is anyone's guess, even if you had your scales recalibrated by Reuben themselves they would say they was perfect and within tolerance (which they are). The best advice is to just stick to weighing on the same set this will ensure consistency if nothing else. I would always suggest getting a set with the smallest division that you can get to ensure higher accuracy but obviously there is no point getting a set of 30lb x 1/2oz division specimen hunters if you are catching 35lb carp... if you are catching 35lb carp then get the 60lb x 1oz division and not the 60lb x 2oz division if you want better accuracy. PPS: Reuben Heaton are bringing out a new version of the 7000 Digitals in the next month or so, these can read 33lb in 1/4oz divisions so will be accurate? to within 1/4oz across all weights and as such will be very accurate, keep an eye open for those in the summer of 2022. Thank you for reading, I hope some of this was interesting and/or informative to someone.

2 x Drennan Specialist Tench and Bream rods wanted. Would ideally prefer the Mk2 version in 2lb but 1.75lb would also be perfect, would also take the Mk1 1.75 Only interested in the cork handled versions... Must be in good condition please. Thank you so much.

Good to see your digitals giving perfect results. To answer (briefly) some of what you said (as I have banged on about this nonstop) I will say this. When using the Reuben Heaton specimen scales and holding them via a weigh handle (which is one of the methods that are recommended for use in the scales literature) and placing a 2lb weight into a zero'd sling the needle is very still, it is not dancing around and it is very readable and it is weighing 1/2 oz light, upon repeating this type of test across several weights similar results were obtained with the scales consistently weighing 1/2 oz out and rarely were they spot on. Now if the scales are weighing 1/2 oz out before I even start to take into account any of the factors that you mentioned then I am already not accurate before I even begin to take a reading and for a top of the range fishing set of scales with a RRP of £99 I considered this to not be good enough, this however, was maybe just my particular set, I cannot speak of other peoples sets, this is up to them to test themselves, if they want to. But from the conversation I had with Reuben just do not expect dial scales to be bang on across the board, no matter which set you own, as they will not be, and your variance of accuracy will depend on which set you own (1oz - 2oz - 4oz division) and it is not possible to know at which weight any scales are reading correctly or incorrectly without actually testing them. This was news to me, I think naively I expected my scales to be better than that, especially with how most people seem to swear by them and say how accurate they are (have they actually tested their scales before they say this or are they just assuming they are spot on based other people saying how great they are?). The bottom line is (and this is from Reuben themselves) that it is impossible for dial scales to be 100% accurate.

I don't currently have a bag of unopened sugar but I will buy one when I next go shopping and then weigh it on a zero'd sling whilst it is still inside its paper packaging, naming the brand of sugar etc, just to be as anal as possible. This will be done on one set of flyweights, one set of Avons and one set of Reuben digitals. For the record in reference to Anderoo mentioning 1 litre of water, I performed this test today on both a set of Avons and a set of Reuben digitals, and again just now on some Flyweights, not to forget before I returned some scales today I also performed this exact test on Reuben Heaton specimen hunter dials, so I have included that result too. Zero'd sling with empty bottle inside, 1 litre of water added slowly and as accurately as possible to the bottle after scales were zero'd. Result 1: Avon scales 40lb x 1oz weighed 1 litre of water at 2lb 3oz approx. Result 2: Reuben Heaton digitals 66lb x 1oz weighed 1 litre of water at 2lb 2oz approx. Result 3: Reuben Heaton flyweights 40lb x 1oz weighed 1 litre of water at 2lb 3oz approx. Result 4: Reuben Heaton Specimen hunter 30lb x 1/2 weighed 1 litre of water at 2lb 2 1/2oz approx. Things to note from my tests... The flyweights take some time to get as close to zero as possible, the Avons take a little effort but not as much as the flyweights, the Specimen hunter Reuben dial were very easy to zero and the Reuben digis was just a press of a button and took no effort at all. My flyweights are 5 years old and show it. My Avons are an unknown age but in excellent condition. My Reuben digis are less than 1 day old The Reuben specimen hunter are no longer in my possession (see thread created by me for details why not).

I will absolutely keep an eye on them and report back with any findings, whether that be no news to report or any variation in readings, however slight. I wanted to use the same weights and keep notes, that way I can test them at any time and see how they are performing, but at the end of the day they are Reuben Heaton still, the same company that makes dial scales that people seem to have total faith in, so I see no real problem assuming they are not abused or allowed to run low on power.

Sorry for the delay in replying I was out shopping. I didn't take it as a pop mate, I just saw it as a question, if my reply was a bit defensive then I apologise as I appreciate it Is easy to judge someone like myself in the position I am in by saying how I am not happy with some scales that are weighing 1/2oz out... if it were me reading this I would probably think what others are likely thinking, but as it was my money that was spent I have a slightly different stance and feel a bit hard done by when I was led to believe how accurate they would be. Anyway, another update, I returned the scales and got some Reuben Heaton digitals in their place, I must admit that this was a little hesitantly done as I have no experience with digitals but I decided as I have some dial Avons it would be ok to get some digis. So yes you guessed it, as soon as I get home out come the avery weights and on goes the sling... firstly I should say how small and light these scales are, secondly I love the tare on them, turn them on, put the sling on and press tare, instant 0... love it. So on with the test... The 1lb avery weight was weighed at approx. 1lb The 2lb avery weight was weighed at approx. 2lb A combo of the 1lb and 2lb produced a weight of 3lb The 4lb avery was next, this weighed 4lb approx Not making any of this up, if the weights are out I will say so. Then the 4lb and 1lb and yes this weighed 5lb The 4lb and 2lb avery weights weighed 6lb approx Then all 3 weights together weighed approx 7lb, not 7.1 not 6.15... but 7lb. Remember my 1l bottle of water? this weighed 2.2lb... All my avery weights together and the bottle of water (combined indivual weight of 9.2lb) was weighed last, and yes, you guessed it, they weighed approx 9.2lb. Now you can take from all of this what you will. Edit: Just weighed my rucksack and on the Reuben Digis this weighed 17lb 11oz and on my Avons the same rucksack weighed 17lb 12oz... you may recall my Avons weighed some of the Avery weights at 1oz heavy so all of these test results tie in perfectly together. For me, the Reuben digis are far more accurate than the Reuben specimen huneters I owned, other peoples sets of specimen hunter might be more accurate than mine was as mine were consistently 1/2 out at nearly every single weight (usualy light) and I didn't think this was acceptable for £80. All of my results are done to the absolute very best that I can to ensure as much accuracy as is possible.

I think if the fish is worth weighing it is only right to want to weigh it as accurately as possible, if a rough idea would suffice you might as well just take a punt and guess your self, which is possibly what some people do, and that is fine, but some people like to keep records and like to beat personal bests, not just species personal bests but personal best for a specific venue, or method, and having the most accurate set of scales you can find will only help with this, I know it is not everyones cup of tea but it must matter to a lot of people otherwise we would all still be using Samson scales. Fishing is many different things to many different people, I would love a 2.15 roach or even a 1.15 roach, and not be remotley unhappy with it, I would be turning cartwheels for months afterwards. My sole point in all of this is the scales i purchased are on most readings not giving the performance i expected them too, or was led to believe they would, i can totally accept them being 1/2 ounce at on some readings and understand that this is as good as you can get for fishing scales but when they are consistently 1/2oz out and very rarely actually correct then this becomes an issue with me, especially when you factor in the £80 i paid for them. I do feel the performance i am getting is on par with many cheaper sets and indeed even my old Avons (which if anything are slightly more accurate than these Reubens i bought).

This is true, and it is for that reason why I wanted as accurate a set as I could get, so as many things are on my side when weighing in real world conditions. I appreciate the 30lb set is not ideal for a 2lb roach, but this was one of the main topics of conversation when I purchased them, I was told that if I wanted to know for sure if I had a 2lb roach then I needed this set, that seems almost funny now. The roach is only an example, it isn't the style of fishing I usually do, but is still a very real possibility.

If someone is paying a lot of money believing the scales to be very accurate then yes I think it does matter. I just emptied a bottle of water, zero'd the empty bottle in a sling and then added 1000ml of water (again being as particular as is humanly possible to ensure as very close to 1L was used - I added the water slowly and with a bigger jug underneath the bottle to catch any missed drops that I could add afterwards to ensure as close a reading as I could get). I believe 1 litre of water should weigh 2.2lbs, on my Reubens I got a reading of approx 2lb 1 1/2oz... theres a pattern forming, I am consistently light by 1/2oz with these scales, and considering they have an RRP of £99 I find this disappointing and in my case even misleading (but as far as the scales are concerned this is within their acceptable parameters - hmm) I would be ok if 'some' readings were out by 1/2oz with the majority on the money, but this is significantly not the case. Edit: And furthermore yes 1/2oz could be mammoth if I had a 2lb Roach in the sling... Edit #2: My Avons weighed the bottle of water at approx 2lb 2 1/2oz which is in line with the Avons previous readings around that low weights being 1/2oz heavy. The readings I am getting from the bottle of water are also making my avery weights look very accurate.

Out of interest I am not sure of where I stand here with these scales and returning them? Technically they are not faulty, but they are not displaying as I was led to believe they would when I was sold them, but that's just my word. I know they are within the tolerances that Reubens told me today over the phone but I was led to believe that these would weigh a 2lb fish at 2lb and be the best money could buy, I am slightly unsure if that is actually true.

Just got my old (but still immaculate) set of 40lb x 1oz division Avons out and done some tests, but take into account that these tests are done with the same 3 pieces of Avery weights that Reuben said could be innacurate. *Although these are 1oz division on some readings you can clearly see that the needle is mid point between 2 divisions hence my 1/2oz readings. Using the 1lb weight my Avons weighed 1lb and 1/2oz Using the 2lb weight my Avons weighed 2lb and 1/2oz Combining the 1lb and 2lb my Avons weighed 3lb Using the 4lb weight my Avons weighed 4lb Combining the 4lb and 1lb my Avons weighed 5lb Combining the 4lb and 2lb my Avons weighed 6lb Using all weights (1,2 and 4) my Avons weighed 7lb All results are as approximate as I can get, I must stress I am totally OCD about this sort of thing, so 7lb means 7lb. **Note, the Avons are slightly harder to zero and need a little more patience. On paper you would say the Avons are the winners by a mile, but without knowing the true weight of the avery weights who can tell? If nothing else the Avons are completely consistent at all weights except the lowest two. However, whn we start to get into 15lb and 25lb, who knows? I cant test that. Still, I wanted to post this none-the-less.

That would only work if you was using 2oz division scales as using a set of 1/2oz division would have the fish registered as either 2lb 13 1/2oz - 2lb 14oz or 2lb 14 1/2oz.... I know its not ideal but its how it is, and using a quality set of scales helps to keep the tolerances closer to each other and helps eliminate any 'outrageous' readings and a higher degree of 'accuracy' can be achieved. This is only true with the Reuben Heaton 4000 series and whilst I cannot comment in great length on the tolerance of other sets of scales, however the fly weights I would 'guess' are accurate at some weights but more commonly out by more than 1 division at other weights, in some cases more than 2, 3 even 4 divisions. I do own a set of flyweights and mine weigh inconsistently at higher weights being 4oz heavy at 20lb... which is 4 divisions and unacceptable. (I have got the 40lb x 1oz set). They do weigh quite close at up to 12lb however. These were tested against my recently purchased 1/2oz division Reubens which I accept should be far more accurate across all weights. On the subject of other sets of scales, some food for thought, a roach weighing just 1.14 could be seen as a 2lb roach on an England set of 60lb x 2oz division scales and on your mates set of the same England 60lb x 2oz that 1.14 roach could weigh just 1.12... you might think one set of scales is weighing 4oz out whereas in reality they might both be doing what they are supposed to be doing and perfectly within their respective tolerances. Equally a legitimate 20lb 1oz pike weighed on some 2oz division scales could be registered as 19lb 15oz on the same scales which for some would be heart break. How long can you expect your expensive set of scales to perform how they was intended? Reuben Heaton told me 5 years is about right for their sets, after which time they will still continue to give years of perfect use but you might look into getting them serviced thereafter. Choose your tools wisely and know their limitations, and as I am still a newbie with this type of thing I think I learnt a lot today from my conversation on the phone. I am really glad I looked into this, a little disappointed at the lack of total accuracy but perhaps I expected far too much when in reality it just isn't possible for a transportable set of fishing scales to be absolutely on the money at all weights.