Sciencemadness Discussion Board

lab equipment: what to buy scale, Graduated cylinder etc

ScopeGuy2 - 27-12-2015 at 14:31

I need to order a digital scale. Looking for something decent.
I have a harbor freight nearby but not certain if they would be good enough
http://www.harborfreight.com/catalogsearch/result?q=Digital+...

Is there any better quality ones that I should consider? I plan on doing a lot of 1/4 and half gram measuring for an upcoming project and need it to be fairly accurate.

I could get one shipped from amazon if they are better but don't know which ones are good quality

I also need a 100mm Graduated cylinder both a glass and not glass one and a Glass Beaker Set. Looking for something decent and easy to read

dermolotov - 27-12-2015 at 14:42

Quote: Originally posted by ScopeGuy2  
I could get one shipped from amazon if they are better but don't know which ones are good quality

I also need a 100mm Graduated cylinder both a glass and not glass one and a Glass Beaker Set. Looking for something decent and easy to read

When it comes to these scales, there seems to be no intermediate between the Ohaus $300 versions and the crappy Chinese made $5 scales.
Starting out in my own lab, I would take the scales available at the local headshops which would cost only $15 for something that measures down to 0.02g. They were the cheapest and most dependable scales back in the days and I would figure still be now.
The issue with them is that they do frequently break. But that is the same problem with the Amazon and other China-made "econo-scales".
The best intermediate IME would be a lab bench scale which relies on the metal balancing weights. You can get a cheap 0.01g Ohaus one second hand for around $50-$100 if you're patient.

Regarding glassware, check out my signature! ;)

ScopeGuy2 - 27-12-2015 at 15:00

I have been reading up on other brands online and so far http://www.amazon.com/UNISHOW%C2%AE-Digital-Precision-Kitche...
looks better than the harbor freight ones

I will look up the ohaus

Thank you

Dr.Bob - 27-12-2015 at 16:47

The Unishow scale will be hard to match in price, not too big an investment no matter what. There are many better scales, but that may be fine for most things.

As for cylinders, beakers, and more glassware, I still have some of the basics, just found a brand new 100 ml grad cylinder, have some new 250 ml beakers, and have some other sizes used, plus many other basics. Send me a u2u for more info, let me know what sizes you are looking for, or I can send you a list. If you are in the US, those things would be reasonable to ship.