Upgraded Powder Hopper
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Ran across this upgraded powder hopper for the Prometheus, looks like a pretty decent upgrade. It has a shut off valve built in so checking calibration with powder in the hopper could be done if your like me and forget about half the time. Also would make powder changes much easier.
https://dramworx.com/prometheus/
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Very interesting. I'm curious to see how the shut off works. Could indeed be slick for changing powders.
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Got these from the guy making them. The shut off valve is open when the lines meet and close when they aren’t. Everything is fitted with orings for a good seal and tight fit. I’m thinking about try one of these.
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So can the hopper be turned off and emptied without making a mess?
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Yes that’s what they are saying, just looking at it looks like there would be a couple throws worth in the tapered part of the uniflow that would need to be cycled out. I’m thinking about ordering the smaller version as I don’t need that extra capacity shown in the pictures.
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I have one sitting at the office... Once I get a chance I'll get you guys some pics.
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@orkan
Well I hope you like it cause I just placed an order for one of the small sized ones. Let us know what you think of it
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I think I'm going to like it. :)
... but you know the drill. I need to eval it for a good while before I will be able to say.
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The little tit on the bottom of the valve looks like it sits right above the cavity in the Uniflow drum. There might not be more than a partial charge in the queue when it's turned off. That would be great for me as I switch powders several times a week during the season.
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You and me both I switch several times a week most of the time. I ordered one last night and got a email stating it would ship out Friday. Unless @orkan updates us first on his, I’ll post some pictures and give my first impression thoughts when it gets here.
I’m excited about this cause I hate changing powders on the Promentheus and I’m also bad about forgetting to check the zero on the scale until after I’ve put powder in the hopper.
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Seems like this would work really well if someone had a dedicated powder hopper for each powder. That way it could be clearly labeled and one would be much less likely to get powders confused.
Either that or just buy a promethius for each powder one uses.
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@dddoo7 Being able to dump it out easy is good enough I think. You have like 2 powders... I'm not ordering 12 of these things to keep powders separate. lol
@bull81 said in Upgraded Powder Hopper:
Unless @orkan updates us first on his, I’ll post some pictures and give my first impression thoughts when it gets here.
Get after it. I don't need to be first. ;)
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Word sure got out fast....
Ward, from Dramworx, and I have been protyping these for a few months now and finally got it "released" a week ago. I have no financial interest in this, and simply approached him with concept design as I thought it to be worthwhile addition for prometheus.
There are 3 basic parts:- an adapter that fastens to uniflow body via set screws
-the hopper itself which is comprised of the lower portion which fits over the adapter and is held to the upper portion by a screw which allows the two portions to rotate relative to each other.
At one end of rotation there is a hole in both parts that line up and allows powder to flow, and when rotated to the off postion the holes do not line up. Pretty basic.
We also incorporated a tube in the lower portion to limit the powder column in the uniflow. There is plenty there at any time, yet minimizes the throws to empty it out.
The uniform powder column should, or may, help with more uniform charges from the uniflow since it is acting as a 'baffle', especially if you go from a 'full' hopper to 'almost empty'.
I believe it to be a worthwhile upgrade for prometheus.
Ward has been good to work with and I hope you guys like it.
I believe the units as shipped have only a groove cut to indicate the 'on' position. I painted mine with red fingernail polish to better see it, and also put a 'dot' on the lower section at the full 'off' position.
Another thought... greasing the O ring. This will certainly make the hopper easier to remove than with no grease. Not sure whether it really matters. We used a silicone O ring which should last a good long time as it is not affected by ozone like your typical buna O ring.
- an adapter that fastens to uniflow body via set screws
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Ok finally received my new hopper today. Order shipped priority 2 day on Friday as promised so the the late delivery had nothing to do with Dramworx but our shity Postal Service.
It was easy to install and is very well built as far as I can tell. I haven’t loaded with it but can’t see it being any different than the original in that regard. As Mr. Cole pointed out its a three piece design with an adapter, main value body and a hopper lid. The shut off valve work very good and does not allow any powder leakage with IMR 8208. The valve is also very easy to turn on and off. The main body fits very snug to the adapter but is still easy to remove. The adapter mounts to the uniflow with three set screws and is a nice fit and snugs down very well with no wobble. I use a lot of 8lb jugs and due to the way my loading room is set up is difficult to pour into the original hopper, being able to remove the hopper and close the valve makes refills very easy with the 8lbers. As expected emptying the hopper is super fast and easy. I set the Prometheus for 100 grains and shut the valve off to see how much remained in the uniflow. I was able to get almost 3 full charges before the powder was completely empty. So basically about 300 grains or powder (8208) remains under the shit off valve once it closed. This is great in my opinion and only requires a minute or two to completely clear.
A few small gripes
- The shut off valve is extremely easy to turn in and off, turning off wouldn’t be a problem because once it’s own your no longer working around the hopper, but in the off position it could be accidentally opened while not attached to the Prometheus and spill powder every where. I’d like to see a bit more resistance in the valve or some type on detent.
- There is a tube protruding down below the bottom of the shut off valve to minimize the amount of powder sitting in the uniflow. This is a good thing for the most part, but the tube protrudes down past the bottom of the main housing and will not allow you to set the hopper down on the bench without trying to fall over. For me these are extremely minor gripes and are not anything for me to be majorly concerned with.
All in all I feel this is going to be a very good upgrade to the original and don’t foresee having any regrets with its purchase.
Adapter installed
Bottom of main housing with protruding tube
Shut off valve in open position
Shut off valve in closed position
Hopper installed on Prometheus
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Thanks for the write up.
Btw- you can drill a hole In the bench so you can set it down.
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@dddoo7 lol... or maybe a block of wood with a hole drilled in it? ;)
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Yea I already thought about making a wooden stand to set it in while filling the hopper, like I said these are pretty minor gripes in my opinion.
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My hopper valve was a bit too snug...
Use allen wrench (1/8" I think) and reach in and adjust tension of the screw. May have to hold short end of wrench with pliers to reach down there and provide torque.Protruding tube.... good idea on drilling hole in piece of wood to build a stand for it.
Or you could whittle it down to flush, but if you do powder column will be higher when hopper removed and more cycles to empty remnants. Just gut feel, the shorter powder column just "better" all around and more likely to have a chance to improve uniformity of throws. If you have ever seen one of the old Belding and Mull measures....
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Is it hard to take off the hopper? I have one coming today.
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Mine is not hard to remove. It makes refilling and emptying much easier.
