Got my beta chrony today

[jhalcott]

first thing I did after reading the booklet was set it up and chrono 2 different air rifles. 'cause they use lead boolits!. I THINK I got it figured out???!! I'm getting ready to cut some gas check shields for it now.

[lefty_red]

Can you "plug" this in to your computer and download your shooting data into it?

Lefty

[NVcurmudgeon]

[QUOTE=jhalcott; I'm getting ready to cut some gas check shields for it now.

Excellent idea. You might consider making your shields do double duty and prevent the screens being tripped by muzzle blast. I made mine about an inch wider on each side, and about an inch higher than needed to just cover the screens. Seems to have solved the problem of getting a very uniform 1100 fps (speed of sound) when chronographing .38 wadcutter target loads from a 2" Chief's Special.

[robertbank]

The Chrony line is a good one. If you shoot a rifle with a scope remember to aim higher than you think you should and also start counting the days to when you shoot one of the rods. You then will have joined the Chrony club.:mrgreen:

Take Care Eh

Bob

[MT Gianni]

McDonalds Soda strwaw work to hold up the screens if one of the rods gets broken or misplaced. Don't ask me how I know. Gianni.

[drinks]

J;
My chrono's shooting glasses collected their 4th gas check last week, in just over a year and a half., 1, .35, 2, .45 and the latest, a .22.
Mine is 3, .090 layers of Lexan.

[jhalcott]

I read about some one hitting the chrony with a gas check so I made a plexiglass shield for it. The shield is about 2 1/2" x 3 7/8" and just covers the front of the unit.Is this enough?

[waksupi]

I had plexiglass in front of mine. Still got full penetration with a gas check, but the unit still works. Have also whacked the sky screens with loose gas checks. I'm glad I'm loaded up pretty well on Gator checks now, this hopefully will be a thing of the past.
I got some sheet metal out of my scrap pile, and with a torch, cut out pieces to be the sky screen, and bent up a lip in front of the screen. Can't read it from the bench now, but I haven't had any more wayward gaschecks hitting the screen, either!

[jhalcott]

How do you fasten the shield to your unit? I went to the range today and the wind blew the tripod with the chrony over.It also blew my target off the frame twice! I loaded the bipod with sand bags where the legs are braced to the center post then just shot into the bank for speed tests. I had to set the chrony 20 feet from the muzzle to get readings . Our range has deflecter plates that can only be raised enough to see the target to prevent an errant round going onto the golf course next door.
I was glad to see my Whelen load getting 1995 average with a hi of 2046 and lo 1935 (3 shots). This load has shot into a 2" group at 100 yards on several tries. I shot some of the teflon taped bullets thru the 21" and 14" 7 tc/u. the longer tube averaged 2039 fps and the 14"only clocked 1870 fps.These were loaded in un fireformed once fired .223 brass. I'm getting 2247 (21") and 2093
(14") from this bullet using FWFL. I have a bunch of 30-30 plinking loads using a 311291 (170gr) and 8.8 /PB/ wlr. They get 1256fps in a 14" barrel.

[drinks]

My chrono has a plastic eyebrow over the display, I bent a piece of Lexan into an "L" shape, the horizontal part is connected to the chrono with a couple of short screws, I started with 2 layers of .090 Lexan, have just added a 3rd layer. now 3 x .090 thick.
so far, it has stopped all gas checks, including a .45.
If I have many more, I shall start thinking along the lines of some #10 sheet metal!

[Bigjohn]

I have had a Chrony for about ten years now but it stopped working about five years ago. No, I haven't shot it but the screens have a few holes in them.

This model is an early model with the cardboard diffuser supports. I think the problem with it is the fact that one of the diffusers took a hit and went south. I don't seem to have the time to check out all possibilities. A job for the list of things to do while I'm on extended leave soon.

IMO, the shooting of chrono screens is not a problem experienced by chrony owners; one club member managed to destroy both screens on a CE chrono with one round out of a .17 Rem.

John.

[dla]

Remember, you can use your Chrony upside down or sideways too. I too went the route of creating boo-boo plates to protect my Beta Master from my friends. Then one day I tried my unit upside down and I haven't looked back. I use an old camera tripod that has a mount on the bottom. I have the Chrony "look" at something white for contrast.

It seems easier to judge distance under the unit than over the unit.

[Ken O]

I have destroyed my share of Chronys, I gotta say they have great customer service.
A couple weeks ago, I was chronying some loads, working up a load and zeroing in some new sights at the same time for my match rifle in .260 Rem. Well, I hit this one pretty square, it pretty much blew up, in fact a piece of it ricochet and took out a window in the house. Now I have hit one before (actually about four) and shipped them back to be fixed. So, I got all the pieces I could find and dumped them in a box and shipped them back to Chrony to be "fixed". I expected a letter saying "are you f@*king nuts". But, I got a call from them saying it would cost $39 to fix it, of course I gave them a CC number and waited for the package. I got a brand new Beta Master Chrony (which is what I had) with sky screens and extra long cord for the remote.

[Ricochet]

I drilled my first one dead center with a 210 grain Berger .308" VLD at about 2800 FPS. It slowly toppled over backward as I hoped it was muzzle blast that toppled it. Doggone, that bore line's pretty far below the center of the scope.

[robertbank]

I may have bragged about this on another thread but I hold the official Chrony arm tossing championship of Canada, dare I say the world! Just over 50 yards down range, with an officially timed "to find" of just over 45 minutes. Used a .38S&W out of a Webley 5" gun. Lyman 358477 150 gr LSWC, 2 gr Bullseye, Dominion cases and Win SPP. Cartridge OAL 1.182. Avg Velocity 531 fps. We Chrony Olympians are true sports and share our Gold Medal loads.

Proper technique is to ensure the gun as a 20# trigger pull and poor sights. Oh and because it is a light shooting revolver only use one hand and be thinking about an old girl friend as you pull the trigger.

Take Care

Bob

[Ricochet]

Are these gas checks y'all have been plugging your Chronies with the crimped on Hornady type?

[Beau Cassidy]

Just remember you don't always have to use the skyscreens when using the chrono. I hardly ever put them out when using my Pact or Oehler. Haven't tried it with the Beta, well, just because. I take it for backup. Remember, the skyscreens are just serving as a backdrop to get a good shadow off of the bullet- I think I said that right. I know my time is coming, though...

[drinks]

Ricochet;
Yes!

[Ricochet]

Ouch! I haven't been using any special shielding in front of my Chrony with checked boolits. I guess my time's coming, too.

[BruceB]

There seems to be some confusion in our shooting circles as to just what parts of a chronograph are "sky screens".

Back when personal chronographs were just coming into consumer use, I believe it was Oehler who coined the name "sky screens". In their usage, the sky screen is the actual sensor for the chronograph, the part that detects the bullet's passage above it. This was to contrast the hot new electronic/optical technology of that time, as opposed to the Luddites (like me) of the Dark Ages, who still groped along with breakable screens which had to be replaced after every shot.

As time passed, it became evident that many of the newer "optical detection" chronos performed better if there was some sort of neutral background and more-even lighting behind the bullet's profile as it thundered past the sensor. Ergo, they came up with what we older geriatric specimens still call "diffusers"....just a fancy name for a background panel of some sort which gives a consistent "view" (i.e.: constant color and lighting) for the screens to look at.

Nowadays, there is a large contingent which calls "diffusers" by the name of "sky screen", and it leads to considerable confusion. If I say that I wiped out my sky screens, it means that I blew the snot out of the actual sensors. If I state that I shot a diffuser, it means just an unfortunate strike on one of the diffuser support arms or the bland-colored panel itself. The first is a tragedy, and the second just an inconvenience (don't ask!).

The changing terminology is understandable, since all a diffuser does is "screen" the sensor from the "sky", ergo: SKYSCREEN! Duh. However, be aware that it's not the way it began, because in those long-gone days, the "screen" detected the bullet against the light of the "sky".

Just one of those things, I reckon. Just try to make sure we all mean the same thing when we discuss damaging shots on the equipment!