The Ultimate Guide to Milligram Scales

Milligram scales - something every avid researcher knows they should use, but many neglect to do so. In this article, we'll outline the importance of using scales during your experiments, we'll give some tips on how to best use them and we'll give our recommendation for the best milligram scales on the market.

This may be obvious to some of you, but milligram scales are essential to use when conducting scientific research because with some substances, only a few milligrams in difference can create significantly different results.  Even if you're confident in your ability to guess the weight of different substances, we feel it simply isn't worth the risk of accidentally using too much (or too little) in your experiment.

Using milligram scales allows you to truly optimise your experiments as you learn over time exactly what weights are ideal for each individual substance. If you want to get really nerdy about it (and we recommend that you do), you can keep a logbook of all your experiments, making note of the weights used and the resulting findings. This way, you can really fine tune each experiment as each individual researcher is different.

Using milligram scales isn't rocket science, but there are important steps to making sure you get the most accurate measurement possible:

1. Make sure the scale is placed on a firm, level surface that is free from vibrations and in a room with minimal air movement. Any vibrations or wind will disrupt the reading of an accurate milligram scale.
2. Make sure you're using the correct units. There's normally a button on the scales that you can presson to cycle through different unit types. This can be easy to miss as the unit indicator is often incredibly small on the screen!
3. Place your weighing tray or container on the scale platform and hit "tare" to bring the weight reading back to "0.00g". Wait a couple seconds for the scale to stabilize (this is always good practice whenever adding or removing anything from a millgram scale).
4. Add your substance to the tray/container, wait for it to stabilize, then take the reading.
5. Remember to regularly calibrate your scales, especially after moving them! Most scales are supplied with a 10-20g weight. You can use this to test whether your scales need callibrating or not.

Price vs Quality

For simplicity, we'll split this range into three categories: low range, mid range and high range, though obviously there will be some overlap between the three.

Low-end €0-50

A set in this range (although these aren't strictly "milligram" scales as they only weigh to 0.01g/10mg) that I'd recommend are On Balance's Tuff Weigh (we don't sell these ourselves, so here's a link to Bol - it isn't a referral link). These little bricks are surprisingly durable and do the job if you're weighing in the 100mg-200g range (if you need to weight smaller amounts, we recommend a higher range set of scales).

Mid-range €50-1000

In this range, I highly recommend the AWS Gemini-20 scales. You've likely seen scales that look virtually identical to these all over Amazon. That's because these scales set the standard for low cost and high precision milligram scales and since then, many cheap knock-off versions have made their way onto the market.

These scales had previously been impossible to buy in Europe without importing them from the United States, which obviously came with long shipping times and import fees. We have bought several sets for our own use just like this. It was for this reason that we decided to take matters into our own hands and start supplying them ourselves. Now, not only is our supply taken care of, but we can offer them to our customers at a much more affordable price (other sellers in the UK were charging as much as £120 for them!).

One Reddit user did a great community service 10 years ago and made a post in which they tested the accuracy of the Gemini-20.

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High-end €1000+

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Calibration

Most scales come with a metal calibration weight of between 10-20g. Just follow the instructions on your weighing scale for how to properly calibrate it!

DISCLAIMER - While we tried to keep this part of the article useful for everyone, we had to write the next section to improve the SEO for our Gemini-20 scales (all hail our overlord AKA The Google Algorithm), so unless you're seriously interested in hearing more about them, feel free to skip it! Although, of course, we fully believe in the quality of the Gemini-20 vs other similarly priced scales.

The Gemini-20s are capable of measuring weights as small as 20 milligrams with an extremely high degree of accuracy, especially for the price. Their compact size makes them easy to use and store, and their sleek, modern design looks great in any setting.

The GEMINI-20 has a clear and easy-to-read digital display. The large, backlit display shows the weight of the item being weighed in a variety of units, including milligrams, grams, and ounces. This makes it easy to obtain accurate measurements, regardless of the unit of measurement you prefer to use. The scale also has a tare function, which allows users to subtract the weight of a container from the total weight of the substance being measured.

In addition to its clear display, the GEMINI-20 is also very user-friendly. Its simple controls are easy to understand, even for those who are new to using precision weighing devices. Its durable construction is built to last, with a sturdy platform and a solid base that provide a stable foundation for accurate measurements.

The margin for error of the GEMINI-20 is also extremely impressive, especially taking into account the difference in quality from other scales in its price bracket, or even much more expensive devices.

Results of Error Testing:

20 g: 20.004 g

10 g: 10.000 g

5 g: 5.004 g

2 g: 2.001 g

1 g: 1.001 g

500 mg: .501 g

200 mg: .201 g

100 mg: .101 g

50 mg: .051 g

10 mg: .014 g

1.010 g: 1.011 g

The stated accuracy of the GEMINI-20  from AWS themselves, is .005 grams, so these results fall well within these parameters. The very slight margin for error is also quite non-linear, which makes it much simpler to account for when taking your readings.

Overall, the AWS GEMINI-20 Portable Precision Digital Milligram Scale is a reliable and accurate tool that is suitable for a variety of applications. Its compact size, clear display, and user-friendly design make it an excellent choice for anyone who needs a precision weighing device for small objects or substances.

Accurate, reliable weighing scales are an essential part of conducting safe, responsible research. Still, unfortunately, the price can often be preventative, and our research has shown that most scales under 200 Euros are fairly inconsistent.

However, we have managed to source Gemini 20s directly from the manufacturer in the USA, so are able to offer them in Europe far cheaper than any other retailer at this time.

CHECK OUT THE AWS GEMINI-20 Portable Precision Digital Milligram Scale HERE

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