A few years ago, a small crisis occurred in our kitchen. My wife, a hobbyist baker, declared that her old, stylish scale was no longer reliable. "You can't get a consistent taste without precise measurements," she said, and I knew she was right.
As a technician who preaches the importance of precision in my own work, it was a familiar sentiment. It seems all roads lead to the same truth. So, she replaced it. Her choice, the Nomics WH-1, surprised me. It was sturdier and more expensive than her previous model, but also far less elegant. But she was thrilled. It was a classic case of choosing function over form.
A Well-Built Tool for the Serious Home Cook
From a practical standpoint, it was a solid piece of gear. It was accurate and stable, the weighing platform was detachable for easy cleaning, and it even had a built-in bubble level—a feature you’d expect on a professional tool.
It was a no-nonsense tool built to do its job well. But it also came with an unexpected bonus feature that many might overlook.
The Bonus Feature: A Built-In Parts Counter
This kitchen scale has a "PCS" (pieces) button, a function more commonly found on industrial scales. It's used to quickly count large quantities of small, identical items like screws or bolts. While my wife didn't know what it was for when she bought it, it's a useful function for those who might need it.
For anyone not familiar with it, the process is simple. You weigh a sample (e.g., 10 pieces), set that as your reference, and the scale will then display the count instead of the weight. I tested it with some coffee mix packets.
The entire process is in the video below:
An Unrelated Story About Cookies (and My Banishment)
Speaking of baking, my wife often makes cookies, a process that requires weighing each ball of dough to ensure they all bake evenly. (I suspect my own obsessive tendencies might be contagious).
While she was busy, I decided to contribute my own artistic creation. Unfortunately, my "artistic vision"—which leans a bit too much towards hyper-realism for cookie dough—was not appreciated. I was told my creation was "unnervingly realistic" and was promptly banished from the kitchen.😅
Oh well. At least the cookies she and my daughter made were delicious. And that's all that matters.
