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Let's talk chronographs

garandman

Bad Advice for Free
Banned !
Full Member
Minuteman
Nov 17, 2009
2,688
384
Huntington WV
The Magnetospeed looks cool, but is it worth 3x as much as the others?

The ProChrono Digital looks easy to set up and use.

I've used the Shooting Chrony and it works pretty good, but it tedious to set up.

Can anyone help me pick?

Thanx.
 
If you can wait, the labradar is another option. I contacted them and they said should be shipping first batch late June, but we will see. This is the one I'm holding out for.
 
I was using May magnetospeed this afternoon. I love it, not like, love. Even if it is just some honking strong magnet, wires and an LCD I love it. I wish my wife was half as reliably. I've used my fathers shooting chrony and yes it was three times less expensive, but it's at least twenty times less useable. A cool thing about it is you can fire reloads in the dirt behind your reloading shop without having to go to the range and set the screens hope the light is right etc...
 
My first chronograph was a Chrony and started giving me flaky reading so I upgraded to an Oehler 35P. Great unit but a PITA to set up and always had to wait until the range was clear so spent lots of time waiting around. Also have to shoot off a bench. A week ago I received a Magnetospeed V3 and took to the range on Sunday (after church of course). Easy to set up and can use it from any position. I shoot mostly prone and the display was right next to me and easy to see each shot. From an accuracy standpoint it was very close to the 35P and not materially different. It will be my chrono of choice going forward. Buy once cry once
 
I have a MagnetoSpeed V1, a CED M2, and probably will buy a Labradar when available.

The MagnetoSpeed is a joy to use. Setup is a snap no matter what range rules apply. Light conditions do not matter - indoors, outdoors, rain or shine. And there's nothing you will shoot. Drawbacks are upfront cost, your firearm must have a barrel the bayonet can attach to, and attaching it is 99% likely to change your POI (there's no evidence it changes group sizes) due to changing barrel harmonics. Using it during load development means most of us make extra ammo to run separately thru the chrono.

The "standard" chronos are less expensive and can be used with any firearm. Drawbacks are setup requires going down range which is not possible at some ranges and at least requires a cease-fire so you can fine tune while other people glare at you. And that fine tuning may have to be done without touching your firearm, depending on range cease-fire rules. Light and weather conditions can affect or preclude use. Finally, you or a dear friend *will* shoot it at least once.

If you go this route, consider a chrono with a remote display to keep some electronics out of danger and bring it closer to your eyes. More expensive models that provide statistics, data storage, PC transfer etc can be done with a pencil and paper or OpenOffice Calc/Excel.
 
I have recently just got a magnetospeed v3. I love it. I also have a regular chrony rcbs and the magnetospeed is leaps and bounds better. Unfortunately you will still need the regular chrony for semi auto pistols and firearms you can't mount the magnetospeed to. If it is within your budget get the magnetospeed if not a regular chrony now and the magnetospeed later.
 
Has anyone heard any rumor on what the LabRadar is going to cost? I just signed up for their email list. I was saving up for a magneto but this looks like a whole different ball game.
 
I used the Chrony for years and finally shot it. Got the Prochrono digital and wish I'd done it years ago. You can actually look at the buttons and tell what they do without having to re-read the book. The chrony caused me to waste a lot of ammo with all the errors etc. It even had a button on it labeled "FU." The prochrono is light years ahead of the chrony and has a redneck-friendly interface. Several hundred rounds over it now and not one error so far. I can't use the magnetospeed because I do a lot of pistol rounds.
 
I just got my first chrono, a Comp Pro based on the good reviews. While interested in the ease of the Magnetospeed, I was very concerned that it would change the barrel harmonics when working up loads to find the nodes vs the tradeoff of setting up the conventional chrono. The Comp Pro is caveman simple, and I will check it out on the range next week!
 
I'm interested in the Labradar Doppler unit as well. Because I chrono pistol as well as rifle this look like the WTG.
I was unable to find a spec sheet so I sent an inquiry to them asking about connectivity/download ability. I'll post the reply.
 
I am interested in the labradar, but will it have Bluetooth capability? I have seen some new ones coming out that have Bluetooth that you can set up down range, including in front of the target.
Check the specs on it - IIRC Labradar gives downrange readings from your bench. Dunno what the range is though. And Bluetooth doesn't have enough range to matter.
 
I'm interested in the Labradar Doppler unit as well. Because I chrono pistol as well as rifle this look like the WTG.
I was unable to find a spec sheet so I sent an inquiry to them asking about connectivity/download ability. I'll post the reply.

Here's the dope from Richard @ LabRadar,
"Yes, the data can be downloaded via USB cable, SD card or Bluetooth to our Iphone/pad app.
It will be in csv format (textfile)"
I'm in as soon as this unit hits the streets.