What chronograph would you buy today and Why

[Mogas]

My last Chrono bit the dust last year and I will be looking for a new one soon. Bought the one that broke about 10 years ago so I guess there may be a lot of new changes in chrony since then...What would you purchase if you were shopping for one today?

 

[9mmepiphany]

If I were to buy one, I'd get the LabRadar without hesitation.
It is very much a Buy Once, Cry Once deal...but the flexibility of set up, wealth of information provided and accuracy makes it a great value.

The question then become whether the features are worth the price to you

 

[Demi-human]

I’ll second the nearly impossible to ventilate LabRadar.
Accurate, fast, and most importantly, not down range!


For three times less the price, the Caldwell Ballistics Chronograph kit is a great deal and very serviceable. It comes with everything.
And the bullet hole through my still functional one proves their durability.
(I don’t think I’d shoot it again to prove it…)

 

[Targa]

If cost wasn’t an issue it would be a LabRadar. As for me and because setting up down range is not an issue, I will stick with my ProChrono.

 

[Walkalong]

I like my Magnetospeed, but you do have to attach it to the barrel, and I like to zero without it on, with a Labradar I could check every shot downrange. I'd like to have one, but it's not in the budget for some time since the Magnetospeed works very well for my needs on a PRS rifle, and my Pro Chrono works well for pistols and rifles. I used both back to back a couple of weeks ago to get .22 LR speeds at the muzzle (both), then downrange (Pro Chrono). I just put a hunk of steel in front of the guts of the Pro Chrono. I got speeds out to 300 yards. Avg 1105 FPS at the muzzle and avg 731 FPS at 300 yards.. A Labradar would make that easier for sure.

 

[mcb]

Another vote for Labradar. So much good data to be had, and no down range setup. But they are expensive. If you go light gate route think about trying one of the IR LED lit ones like the CED. Much less effected by ambient lighting conditions.

 

[EricBu]

The cheapest one on the market.........I have a buddy who has a nack for hitting them.

 

[GoldieMI]

LabRadar here...but with a better mount lol. The Arkcomachine unit is where I would land again.
Only caveat would be if I was shooting the super fast units- 22-250 and others that surpass 4000 f/ps where the magnetospeed comes into play as the LabRadar can't go that fast.

 

[lordpaxman]

I had the pro-chrono with an attached Bluetooth dongle and that worked pretty well, but I upgraded to a Labradar.
If you get a shoot through, I’d recommend a wireless connection between it and some app that can record and send data so you don’t have to write down numbers. I’d also protect the plastic with steel so errant shots aren’t an issue. Finally, make sure the sky screen supports are wood and not metal. Good luck.

 

[Blue68f100]

Since the Labradar is out of my budget, I would go with the CE ProChrony DLX. Built in blue tooth so it interfaces with your phone/ipad for collecting data. Mine current one (6 yrs old) required a BT adapter, the new one is built in. http://www.competitionelectronics.com/product/prochrono-dlx/

 

[cfullgraf]

LabRadar. It is the cat's meow in chronographs. Get an auxiliary USB battery pack. There is a bit of a learning curve on set up, at least with the early ones but once figured out, I get reliable reading virtually 100% of the time.

For guns with big muzzle blast, like a 460 S&W Mag revolver, make a shield to protect the labRadar unit. A "shade tree mechanic" version can be made from corrugate box material taped to the unit but a fancier one can be made from other materials.

I like that the unit use an SDcard to transfer data to a computer. At east with my unit, the files do not interface well with Apple Numbers spread sheet but a simple rinse through a text program to change a cell delimiter in the data file fixes that. LabRadar may have updated that.

I have an early version of the Magnetospeed. The bayonet sensor was a bit of a pain to attach. Mine does not do pistols well but I understand they have improved that with later versions.

If you get an optical chronograph, get one that has an auxiliary light option. It makes detecting the bullet so much more reliable. I have a CED M2 that works well.

I think Chrony has gone out f business. Over the years, I've had several expire from "lead poisoning".

 

[jmorris]

I would probably look for a used Shooting Chrony, it’s the one I use most. If it had to be new only, I would pick the Pro Chrono, I keep one of them at the farm and they too work well. I use them much more than the Pact XP I have but the additional data it can provide and print out, is nice.

I have played with the Labradar and didn’t get overwhelmed with enthusiasm. I generally keep it pretty simple.

On an overcast day, open the thing up, turn it on and shoot over it. Like in this video, I aimed the rifle at the middle plate of the plate rack on the right, down range, then took a step back and made sure the chronograph was below the path the bullet was going to be traveling.



If the ammunition is so inaccurate I can’t be certain I can miss a chronograph, just a few feet in front of the barrel, I don’t need to know how fast it’s going because I would never use it.

Down at the farm I shoot under 60 ft of shade often so getting muzzle velocity with a standard chrono isn’t possible. Once I have the load on paper, I just set the chronograph in front of the target.



Again, if a given load is erratic, I have no interest in knowing additional information about it. The only time I shot a chronograph was right after I took this photo, for the “how low can you go?” Thread. The next pellet bounced off the table and into the chronograph somewhere undetectable.

 

[Herman B]

I've not delved into chrono options but have found the Competition Electronics ProChrono to do all I need...simple enough. The less time I spend with a chrono, the better!

 

[BBarn]

I don't use my chronograph a great deal, but my CE Prochrono DLX with bluetooth is quick to set up and has worked great every time. Just a basic tripod, the unit, and a tablet or phone and you're set. Easy to learn. No SD card. No battery pack. The phone or tablet sits right next to you on the bench, takes up little space, and shots are stored automatically on the phone or tablet for review later.

Not a good choice for careless shooting, but it's everything I need in a chronograph.

 

[mcb]

I have used a Lab Radar in the past and loved it. My current chrono is an old Shooting Chrony Alpha Master with the remote screen. It's been a good chronograph that I have been using for nearly two decades but when it finally dies I will be buying a Lab Radar. And now that I have recently gotten a Can Cannon I really want access to a Lab Radar so I can calculate the ballistic coefficient of a can of soda, can of paint, and maybe even a tennis ball (though that might not return a good signal, though I think I can fix that).

 

[CoalCrackerAl]

I have Caldwell. It does what i need. I don't use it often. I do like it when im curious about a new bullet and powder After i know it's not going to hit my chrono due to bad accuracy. I set up about 15 foot away from the muzzle.

 

[Chuck R.]

Without hesitation LabRadar:



You can even chrono while practicing from field positions:



The results are savable spreadsheets that are easily manipulated. It has no light requirement, meaning cloudy, dusk/dawn shooting isn't an issue.

It's expensive, but save for it!! It makes capturing data easy enough that you'll actually do it!

 

[Bartojc]

I've been asking myself this same question for about a year now. I've never had a chrono, but think I need or at least want one. I think the Labradar is without a doubt the best one going. With all that it does and gives you its the Cadillac so to speak. I like the ability to use it with any rifle or pistol with nothing attached to the barrel. I like that there is no danger of shooting it . Nothing to set up down range. Downside is that it is pricey. Ease of use and versatility seem to be worth it to me.

-Jeff

 

[kcofohio]

Prochrono works well. It had a good run with it until it met a 40 cal bullet. It's repaired now, but I haven't tested it yet.

BTW, it's a good idea to have a solid rest for the gun. And that the POI meets the POA. I didn't until too late.

 

[flatsticks]

Lots of good info for the OP and anybody looking for a chrono. lots of votes for the labradar .

Had a question regardinng the labradar as I saw a person mention on youtube mention it was not good ( did not read them well ) for smaller bullets like 223 , is that true ?

Did not mean to hijack the post thanks

 

[Atavar]

I agree LabRadar looks great, and I am researching chronos to help with my reloading. I just have a hard time fitting it at the top of the priority list when the price could just as easily be a new rifle or a Dillon press.

 

[mcb]

Lots of good info for the OP and anybody looking for a chrono. lots of votes for the labradar .

Had a question regardinng the labradar as I saw a person mention on youtube mention it was not good ( did not read them well ) for smaller bullets like 223 , is that true ?

Did not mean to hijack the post thanks

It still works but it will track the bullet a shorter range down range. The calculation of the muzzle velocity for all caliber will be equally accurate (assuming your using the internal trigger) but it will not report down range velocities as far down range for smaller diameter projectiles. The smaller the caliber the smaller the surface area it presents to bounce the signal back to the radar. Boat-tail bullets and small calibers are the worst. So a 223 boat-tail bullet may only be tracked 40-50 yards down range where a flat based 450 Bushmaster bullet might be tracked well over 100 yard down range. Being sure your bullet path is in the center of the radar beam will also help maximize usable range.

If you have an SD card installed in the system then for each shot you fire it will create a file (in a sub director for that string) with with a data-set that will have a data point ever milli-second** with velocity, range, and signal to noise ratio for the bullet as it goes down range. This is in addition to the regular file it makes for the summary of each string of shots. This can be fun data to play with. Though this data file is not well document well in the manual for some reason.

**every milli-second when the rifle velocity range is selected, every 2 milli-seconds for the pistol velocity range, and I have not used it in the Archer velocity range so I don't know that time interval is.

 

[Walkalong]

The Pro Chrono works great and has served me well, a very cost effective solution.
SNS 180 Gr Coated TrFP, 5.0 Grs W-231.Chrono at 5 yards, target at 7.

 

[dredd]

I'm glad I bought a LabRadar. It has been great.

I started out with a Magnetospeed Gen. 1 and detested its mounting system!!!!!

 

[cfullgraf]

Lots of good info for the OP and anybody looking for a chrono. lots of votes for the labradar .

Had a question regardinng the labradar as I saw a person mention on youtube mention it was not good ( did not read them well ) for smaller bullets like 223 , is that true ?

Did not mean to hijack the post thanks

I've shot alot of 204 Ruger including some boat tail bullets with my LabRadar. As mcb said, the chronograph does not track the bullet as far down range as a larger bullet, but my set up was less than optimal and I get interference from the surrounding vegetation down range. At least at this time, muzzle velocity is all that I am interested in.

I also have a couple 17 Remington rifles, but I have not chronographed them with the LabRadar. Even with optical, chronographing can be a challenge with 17 caliber bullets.

The key is to spend a bit of time carefully aiming the LabRadar at the target you are going to shoot. There are rudimentary sights on top of the LabRadar. There have been a number of folks that use various devices to get a longer sight radius. I'm sure the information is still floating around on the internet.