Chronograph suggestion?

tobnpr · November 15, 2011, 07:59 PM

Need a basic chrony...
We're not competition, just need basic and reliable mv's to plug in for bullet drop calcs on our best loads for long range. Bells and whistles neither needed nor desired- just reliability and reasonable accuracy.

saands · November 16, 2011, 09:32 PM

I have had great success with the Shooting Chrony lineup ... they make some that just read out the velocities on the unit and they make a modest upgrade to one that gives you a 15' cable and a remote readout that lets you put the numbers right on your bench ... if your eyes are 20 years old, the simplest one will take care of you ... if your eyes are past 40, then I'd recommend the remote readout ... it is nice to be able to see the results without squinting or using binoculars

saands

plumbercrack · November 20, 2011, 04:40 PM

I saw a guy at the range I go to with $4,000 worth of rifle and Leupold scope using a chrony Alpha to clock his .338 lapua rounds. He was checking his reloads for speed so he could go to Africa on a safari. I imagine if it was good enough for him it must be pretty good.

BruceM · November 20, 2011, 08:03 PM

One thing I would suggest is that you purchase a unit where the "brains" sit with you behind the firing line and not below the sunscreens. Remember, what can happen will happen.

Bruce

frank_1947 · November 28, 2011, 11:57 AM

BruceM

ditto what he said I have shot a couple chrony's

UtopiaTexasG19 · November 28, 2011, 12:53 PM

It was a quick and painless death in my case !
You just gotta love the .357 Magnum.

David_S · December 7, 2011, 02:58 PM

Quote:

...just need basic and reliable mv's to plug in for bullet drop calcs on our best loads for long range. Bells and whistles neither needed nor desired- just reliability and reasonable accuracy.

I am in the same situation and have used a ProChrono Pal successfuly. For a string gives Max, Min, Avg and No of shots - simple. I just write the readings down (pencil & paper) and move on to the next string. When I get home I transfer them to my computer which can do all the statistical calculations you can possibly think of and never need. Cheap and simple. What I do recommend is a remote readout which is available on one model, not mine.

I have recently been trying the Shooting Chrony Beta Master and have been a bit disappointed. Instructions are lengthy (24 pages), poor, and not easy to understand - not helped by the small print and the inclusion of information for all models some of which is not pertinent to the Beta. The unit seems very sensitive to precise bullet placement over the sensors or it will drop a reading or give a ridiculously low or high value. The "sight frame" is only 2" deep which is fine for bench rest shooting but tight when shooting outdoors off a sandbag on an improvised range, when you have to align rifle, chrono and target, not forgetting to allow for height of scope above bore.

The Shooting Chrono has lots of bells and whistles but requires cycling through interminable button presses to view them. I cannot understand in this day of cheap electronics why a modern console displaying this information, or most of it, simultaneously is not available. Or why you can't just hook it up to a laptop. I have the impression that the unit has not changed much in 20 years.

The wire rods which support the diffusers are a loose fit in the sockets and tend to spring apart as do the diffusers with any slight knock, or the blast from a .270. I have to tape them together. It's a pity because on the whole it seems a well-made unit and the remote readout is handy. Even though it stores the data from each string I still write the readings down as I don't really trust my ability to retrieve them from the unit memory when I get home - and I am not what you call computer illiterate.

Another thing I have noticed is that I can test the Prochrono just by waving my hand over the sensors but the Shooting Chrono returns an error reading every time I try this.

So guess what? The Shooting Chrono tends to stay in its box and I have gone back to the old ProChrono Pal reading the output with the help of my rangefinder optics! The ProChrono has a cheap plastic feel about it, but it is cheap, and it works.

David

alloy · December 7, 2011, 03:17 PM

I use a green chrony, but it's labeled an F-1 Master I believe which has the remote front readout, same as shown, in UtopiaTexasG19's post.
So far(bout 2 years) it's answered whatever questions I have had reliably about how fast the projectiles are moving.
Been worth whatever it cost, which wasn't all that much.

November 15, 2011, 07:59 PM	#1
tobnpr Senior Member Join Date: August 1, 2010 Location: Tampa Bay Posts: 4,556	Chronograph suggestion? Need a basic chrony... We're not competition, just need basic and reliable mv's to plug in for bullet drop calcs on our best loads for long range. Bells and whistles neither needed nor desired- just reliability and reasonable accuracy.

November 20, 2011, 04:40 PM	#3
plumbercrack Member Join Date: October 21, 2011 Location: Las Vegas, NV Posts: 98	Chrony I saw a guy at the range I go to with $4,000 worth of rifle and Leupold scope using a chrony Alpha to clock his .338 lapua rounds. He was checking his reloads for speed so he could go to Africa on a safari. I imagine if it was good enough for him it must be pretty good.

November 28, 2011, 11:57 AM	#5
frank_1947 Member Join Date: August 9, 2008 Location: MO Posts: 76	BruceM ditto what he said I have shot a couple chrony's __________________ Frank NRA Certified Rifle Inst.

November 16, 2011, 09:32 PM	#2
saands Senior Member Join Date: November 14, 1999 Posts: 1,573	I have had great success with the Shooting Chrony lineup ... they make some that just read out the velocities on the unit and they make a modest upgrade to one that gives you a 15' cable and a remote readout that lets you put the numbers right on your bench ... if your eyes are 20 years old, the simplest one will take care of you ... if your eyes are past 40, then I'd recommend the remote readout ... it is nice to be able to see the results without squinting or using binoculars saands

November 20, 2011, 08:03 PM	#4
BruceM Senior Member Join Date: March 12, 2006 Location: SE Wisconsin Posts: 285	One thing I would suggest is that you purchase a unit where the "brains" sit with you behind the firing line and not below the sunscreens. Remember, what can happen will happen. Bruce

November 28, 2011, 12:53 PM	#6
UtopiaTexasG19 Senior Member Join Date: July 3, 2011 Location: S.E. Texas Gulf Coast Posts: 743	It was a quick and painless death in my case ! You just gotta love the .357 Magnum.