If you’re serious about glaze making, a reliable digital scale is non-negotiable. The Ohaus Scout Pro has been a studio staple for years — accurate, durable, and straightforward to use. Here’s what you need to know before buying one, and how to get the most out of it in your ceramic practice.
Overview
The Ohaus Scout Pro is a professional-grade portable digital balance designed for laboratory and studio use. It reads to 0.01g precision, making it accurate enough for weighing small glaze additions like colorants and deflocculants where even a fraction of a gram matters. It’s significantly faster and more accurate than a triple beam balance for everyday glaze work.
Key Features
- Precision: Reads to 0.01g — accurate enough for colorant additions and deflocculants
- Tare function: Zero out the scale with a container on it to weigh ingredients net weight
- Multiple capacities: Available in 200g, 400g, 2000g, and 4000g models — choose based on your typical batch sizes
- Removable pan: The stainless steel weighing pan lifts off for easy cleaning
- Auto-off: Powers down automatically to preserve battery life
- AC adapter or batteries: Can run on either power source
Choosing the Right Capacity
The Scout Pro comes in several weight capacities. For ceramic studio use:
- 200g / 400g models — ideal for weighing small colorant additions and test batches. Not suitable for full glaze batches.
- 2000g model — the most versatile for studio use. Handles most glaze batch sizes while maintaining good precision.
- 4000g model — best for large production batches. Slightly less precise at the lower end but handles larger quantities comfortably.
For most studio potters, the 2000g model is the best balance of capacity and precision.
Tips for Accurate Readings
- Always remove the weighing pan before moving the scale — the pan can shift the calibration if left on during transport
- Avoid drafts and temperature fluctuations — air movement and heat sources cause the reading to fluctuate, even on a stable surface. Keep the scale away from fans, open windows, and kilns
- Place on a level surface — the built-in level bubble helps you confirm the scale is sitting flat before use
- Let it warm up — give the scale a minute after powering on before taking critical measurements
- Use the tare function liberally — tare with each new container to avoid calculation errors when weighing multiple ingredients into the same bowl
Alternatives to Consider
The Scout Pro is a quality scale but it comes at a price. For potters on a budget, the American Weigh Scales AWS series offers similar precision at a lower price point. For large production studios weighing batches over 5kg regularly, a dedicated industrial bench scale alongside a precision scale for small additions is often more practical than relying on a single scale for everything.
For a comparison of scale types for ceramic use, see our Types of Scales guide. For more on glaze making equipment, visit Glaze Making Equipment for Beginners.
