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Originally Posted by spacecoast
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It is correct that tapping the dipper handle compacts the powder and can lead to an "over-charge" if the loader is relying on the Lee chart.
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Tapping the handle can do nothing but remove powder unless you are putting the dipper back in the powder afterward, so I cannot understand this statement. After "dipping" (actually immersing the dipper the way Lee intended) I usually give it a light tap to level off the powder. In this way I believe I throw very consistent charges.
It's true that the chart is not accurate for some powders, hence the need to calibrate each dipper for each powder using a scale.
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Picture it this way:
Fill the dipper to the point where powder is mounded up above the rim of the dipper. Tapping the dipper will knock some of the mounded powder granules off. Tapping will also "settle" or "compact" some of the granules inside the dipper. As the dipper contents compact, some of the mounded "extra" granules will now be below the rim and will wind up staying in the dipper.
I don't think there will be a LOT extra (enough to qualify as a dangerous overcharge if you are not already at the limit), but how much compaction is achieved before the mound either falls over the rim or settles into the bowl could cause charge weight variation of a degree unsettling to many of us.
Lost Sheep