Chronograph advice please

Not trying to hijack this thread but does anyone have trouble getting the Labradar to read the shots. Just got one but really having trouble getting to to read my shots. Trying it out this afternoon and out of 12 shots it only recorded 2. Thinking I am doing something wrong. At what distances are you taking the 5 different readings from? I am using a centre fire rifle that should be in the 3400 fps. area. I started at 10 yds and went in 10 yd. increments. Keep getting an error not sufficient data. Any help would be appreciated. Where do you have the muzzle in relation to the radar,no muzzle brake.
Thanks
 
Having used both the Magnetospeed V3 and the Labradar, hands down I would choose the Magnetospeed. Contrary to what many people on here say the Labradar is super finicky, drives me nuts every time I have to use one. Are they accurate? Yes, definitely. But thy are also a huge PITA! The Magnetospeed takes moments to setup, and once set, you just shoot, no hassle. I think I have lost maybe a half dozen of hundreds of shots over the Magnetospeed. The Labradar on the other hand is finicky to start picking up shots, and when it does, will drop some for no reason whatsoever. Oh, and don't get me started on the battery situation, if you want to spend a day at the range you better bring a costco pack of AA batteries with you, double it if it's cold out. Honestly, it goes through batteries so fast you almost require an external usb battery just to use it. I never used an optical chrony, but with how everyone praises the Labradar, they must have been trash. Either that or no one wants to admit they spent $800 on something that is a huge PITA to use. Get a Magnetospeed V3, you won't be disappointed.
 
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Willy 1 said:
Not trying to hijack this thread but does anyone have trouble getting the Labradar to read the shots. Just got one but really having trouble getting to to read my shots. Trying it out this afternoon and out of 12 shots it only recorded 2. Thinking I am doing something wrong. At what distances are you taking the 5 different readings from? I am using a centre fire rifle that should be in the 3400 fps. area. I started at 10 yds and went in 10 yd. increments. Keep getting an error not sufficient data. Any help would be appreciated. Where do you have the muzzle in relation to the radar,no muzzle brake.
Thanks
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Honestly, I would start by recommending you go through each and every option on the menu, make sure you have it set for exactly what you're doing. The 3 big ones that I found have an effect for getting it to read are the trigger sensitivity, the frequency, and the distance from the muzzle setting. Honestly I will take a tape measure with me to the range to get them set just right. Also, when you aim it, I find if you point it to the far opposite edge of your target that it does better. Example: labradar is on the right side of the gun, so I point it to the left most edge of my target. Doing that seems to give me the best luck.
 
@lt.hicks@rogers.com

What about handguns? Not so good on those, especially if it doesn't have a rail, lol. If you have one rifle you need to test it’s OK. Spend all that time fiddling around trying to get it into position. Make sure to avoid bullet strikes, dealing with flash hiders, muzzle breaks, ported barrels, bayonet lugs, etc, etc.

At the end of the day nothing more than a good old optical chronograph (in most cases) isn't necessary.
 
I worked with a Shooting Chrony for years. I am getting older and just do not muster up the gumption to get it set up and aligned to shooting table, etc. In my "glory days" I would set it up on a tripod and shoot through the window at the 100 yard target - velocity and group at the same time. Last week, I received a Magnetospeed Sporter. Apparently lets me sit on my butt at the shooting table - strap it on / take it off in a couple seconds. Shoot my pressure series and get the velocities, then work back down with it removed to find the best groups. All from the bench. Apparently no more walking down range with string, etc. to get repeatable distance and alignment. Looking forward to spring here in Western Manitoba....
 
lt.hicks@rogers.com said:
Having used both the Magnetospeed V3 and the Labradar, hands down I would choose the Magnetospeed. Contrary to what many people on here say the Labradar is super finicky, drives me nuts every time I have to use one. Are they accurate? Yes, definitely. But thy are also a huge PITA! The Magnetospeed takes moments to setup, and once set, you just shoot, no hassle. I think I have lost maybe a half dozen of hundreds of shots over the Magnetospeed. The Labradar on the other hand is finicky to start picking up shots, and when it does, will drop some for no reason whatsoever. Oh, and don't get me started on the battery situation, if you want to spend a day at the range you better bring a costco pack of AA batteries with you, double it if it's cold out. Honestly, it goes through batteries so fast you almost require an external usb battery just to use it. I never used an optical chrony, but with how everyone praises the Labradar, they must have been trash. Either that or no one wants to admit they spent $800 on something that is a huge PITA to use. Oh, and it's not just a case of a bad one, we have 5 of them at work, and they are all the same. Get a Magnetospeed V3, you won't be disappointed.
Click to expand...

Second this...I have a Magnetospeed V3 and my friend has a Labradar. Without a long winded explanation, Magnetospeed worked everytime where Labradar was very finicky and wasted several shots. Friend is also very tech savvy unlike me so improper setup was not an issue. Battery life as mentioned on Labradar sucks. There pros and cons to everything but for me anyway the Magnetospeed fits the bill.
 
I really like my Magnetospeed.

Mainly cause its so easy and simple to use. The only downside is that its not good for pistols (though I loaned it to a co-worker and he used it on his revolvers).



Years ago I had a Shooty Chrony. Worked good enough but had to set it up on a tripod and be careful not to shoot it. The upside to that was the ability to shoot anything through it. All the way from a 204 Ruger over 4000 fps, to pellet gun, airsoft pistol, compound bow, cross bow, and just cause we had it set up; air nail gun.
 
I'm using a Caldwell chronograph. It seems to work very well.
Can anyone tell me what True Muzzle velocity is?
I'm using the app for the chronograph and it lists average velocity which is nice but also True Muzzle velocity.
 
I had a shooting chrony but found a 55gr fmj at 3080 to be too much for it to handle. Atleast with a head-on impact, seems to handle bullets going over the unit better. I switched to the Magnetospeed sporter but can't find a way to shoot it with the rifle? It's always just below the bullets path for some reason. But other than that minor bug, it has performed great. It misses the odd shot or throws an unrealistic velocity but we're talking less errors than the shooting chrony by a good margin. I wish I'd gone with the V3 for .22lr and shotgun (sporter won't read them) but for my main use of CF rifles I've been very happy with it.
 
@thatmikeguy

True muzzle velocity should account for velocity decay.

Velocity decay: In this instance would refer to how much velocity your bullet loses between the muzzle and chronograph.
 
I have both the Magnetospeed V3 and a Labradar.

As mentioned by others, the Magnetospeed is dead simple to use, accurate and reliable. Batteries seem to last forever. The only detraction is that there can be a small POI shift as the Magnetospeed changes the barrel harmonics depending on the rifle.

The Labradar works well once you figure out the settings required and placement. It is definitely finicky about exactly how it is set-up, muzzle placement, and exactly where it is pointed downrange. It can also time out before you shoot at times and needs re-arming which is most frustrating (and YES, I know you can change the time-out period) but that introduces other problems in the way I set it up and use it, specifically associated with it missing a shot. Battery life is abysmal, you absolutely require an external battery pack. BUT, there is absolutely NO POI shift since it has no contact with the rifle.

Either one works but there is a definite learning curve with the Labradar. With the Magnetospeed, to get around the POI shift, I make up 10 rounds at each charge level. I shoot 5 rounds of each with the Magnetospeed to get all my velocity data first. Then I come back to the beginning and shoot the next 5 round series without the Magnetopseed on the rifle for accuracy. Just the way I do it. I feel 5 rounds is a minimum to average out each of the data points - velocity and then grouping/POI. And yes, that means I will generally shoot 100 rounds when doing a ladder test - but that is why I go out there in the first place - to shoot.
 
I had a chrony for years and it was good enough. Then I lent it to a guy who managed to plug it with a fmj bullet. There's always those guys and if you're one then labradar is really your only choice.
 
I have a ProChrono. It works good.I wish I would have gotten a magnetospeed instead. Setting up the Chronograph is a PITA. It pretty well requires a shooting bench to use.
 
I finally had a chance to get out and give my Labradar a serious try out. After going through all the settings and making sure it was sighted properly down range it worked flawlessly.
I was impressed with it. Expensive but a good addition to my shooting gear.
 
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