Chronographs

[Denver]

Hello All,

I decided I have lived long enough without the benefit of a chrono and am looking at either the Shooting Chrony Beta or the Competition Electronics Prochrono digital. Both about the same price. Anybody want to offer their advice/opinions on these?

Thanks, Ron

[mike in co]

spend once...buy the best....ohler...with printer, 4 ft bar, 3 screens...

[fourarmed]

The downrange boxes have the advantage of quick setup. The disadvantage is obvious. Make sure the warranty includes bullet damage.

The ones with remote screens and a benchtop box have the advantage of putting the data at your fingertips. They do take a little longer to set up. I bought a PACT PC when they first came out, and it worked well for years, then stopped seeing bullets. I called the company, and the guy who answered the phone said "Send it in with five bucks." I did so, and in a couple of weeks I got a new Model 1 and new skyscreens in the mail.

If you just want to shoot a couple of rounds to get a rough idea, the cheapest ones will do all you want. If you love to massage data to death, shoot the works. The Oelhler is the standard, but it still just measures how fast the bullets are going.

[Beau Cassidy]

I have the Beta as a backup. Not real impressed with it. It was a Christmas gift. Lots of missed shots. The cheezy cable running from the skyscreens to the box on the bench comes unplugged a lot. Really compact, though. No experience with the Competition Electronics.

Beau

[shooter2]

spend once...buy the best....ohler...with printer, 4 ft bar, 3 screens...

Ditto. Exactly what I have and I wouldn't have anything else.

[David R]

I use the Original Crony. I always felt it read fast. I hit the display with a wad from a shotgun. I sent it back with the required $35. They sent it to me fixed. Years later, it doesn't work at all as far as I am concerened. I wish I had gone for the better one because the one I have now is useless. It will read 1126, 1985, 2680............................ All from the same load.

[Urny]

My late, lamented ProChrono seemed an excellent tool. Not tough enough for a 95 grain Nosler Partition, though. I'll have to buy another one day, and if I don't spring for the Oehler (?) it will be another ProChrono. Called Oehler once upon a time, and the sound of that young ladies' "Ayluh Enginerin'" just about melted me then and there.

[Bent Ramrod]

I use the Beta Chrony, after inadvertently putting a bullet through an Original Chrony. It sometimes gives erroneous readings when the sun is at a wrong angle, but this can be fixed with the proper application of target paper and masking tape. It gives me the data I want, and it's so cheap, I can't afford to be without one. Kind of like a loading press or a spotting scope: it depends on the level of convenience you need and the amount you're willing to spend.

I was sold on the Chrony when a shooting companion put away his .243 and pulled out a .348. "Isn't that chronograph a little close to your shooting bench?" I asked. "We'll find out in about one minute," he replied, touching off a round from the Model 71. The skyscreen holders disintegrated to lint, the plastic tops launched to the ionosphere, and the Chrony sagged on its tripod to a 75 degree angle. But the display ran the numbers up to "2760" just like he figured his loading would give. I figured that was a good enough product test for me.

[buck1]

I bought the cheepest chony five years ago. I have checked it from 220 swift to a bb gun. It works every time without fail. Yes you get what you pay for, but its like the lee bullet sizing rigs. Cheep , simple ,and it works fine. The best $60.00 I have ever spent. PS shoot over them not into them!! LOL
What ever you decide, do get one! There great to have!! .....Buck

[Frank46]

Ditto for me, ohler 35 with printer, screens and bar. Bar none. pun intended. It costs more but you won't be sorry. Frank

[Finn45]

...proper application of target paper and masking tape...

I have very similar experiences. I use target paper (card board actually) and masking tape to prevent direct sunlight; Chrony sky screens... They are good for attaching them. I use masking tape hinge and card board also to shield the face from flying lube, dirt, card wads and possibly gas checks. I shot my first M-1 (F-1 for you) Chrony by myself; nice .45 caliber groove on the top of the unit. Size of the circuit board is the same as the front face of the unit, so it was clear one shot kill; no staggering, no long escape run. That was amazing since there was no blood at all; maybe good old blood stopping shock or high lung shot I believe. Now I use Chrony Alpha. I think, the red one with some memory and basic calculations. It's inexpensive and handy and it works. Some more advanced chrono might be better and Oehler with three screens is a must, but price goes too high for me. Only clear and obvious misreading so far have occurred late in the evening, heavy clouds on the sky and Chrony positioned right under the edge of the range roofing; Chrony showed values ok, but alhthough I increased the load, the value stayed the same and even decreased. Battery change didn't help and I was pissed because I drove home and back to get that new battery, all gear packing and setting it up again of course. After that I cobbled together simple battery-bulb setup for low light conditions. Haven't need that since, but it's very technical and important to have it, wires, black PVC tape and battery holder, always causing trouble when packing the unit away. Old goofers must have good time watching me on the range.

[Willbird]

Ditto on the Oehler, most folks won't pay the price for quality tools tho....

I have shot over one crony, it was a mile off in certian lighting conditions.........



Bill

[NVcurmudgeon]

I have an Oehler 33 at least fifteen years old. I left the batteries in it too long and the pink bunnies died and rotted. Energizer bought me a new chronograph. Now I NEVER buy batteries other than Energizers, if one store doesn't have them I go elsewhere. I also managed to score a Dutch double on Skyscreens. I had set up for chronographing an Iron-sighted rifle, then changed to a rifle with high scope mount. First shot took out both screens, but Oehler sells replacement screens cheap. BTW, a .358 Winchester with cast boolits is plenty of gun for screen hunting. After rediscovering the speed of sound with a 2" Chief's Special I had to make muzzle blast shields for the screens. That is the sum total of all my troubles with my Model 33, notice that they were all self-induced.

[Trailblazer]

I have an Alpha Chrony and it works well. My neighbor has one of the originals and his misses a lot of shot readings. Mine misses one once in a great while. I don't use it enough to invest in an Oehler. I have hit mine with a gas check just left of the switch, nicked the top edge with a wild round and hit one of the rods with a gas check. Still works!

[Pilgrim]

I bought an Oehler Model 35P sometime in the early 90's. I think it was 1992. I had a "problem" with it and didn't know the solution. It was mid winter here and the temperature was in the low 30's and the unit wouldn't run. I called Oehler and spoke with Ken Oehler himself. He asked me to return it. I did. Oehler tested it in a freezer, heated it, etc. and did everything he could think of to make the unit fail. He couldn't find a problem. The "problem" turned out to have been two brand new dead 9V batteries bought and installed consecutively by me. My problem, not Oehlers. One was an Energizer, the other was a Duracell. The problem was where I bought the batteries. I now buy batteries ONLY at a store that sells a lot of them. No problems since then. The unit is still running with not a probem found to date. I'm now on my second printer ink cartridge. Printer paper is standard 2" adding machine paper you can buy any place that sells paper (Wally world, wherever). Oehler doesn't stick you with a product that needs lots of TLC or factory support. As a result, you dont get nickle and dimed to death. Excellent Unit. Excellent company. The printer feature lets me put the data right on the target with the "holes" by simply tearing it off of the printer and taping or stapling it in place on the target. Once I settle on a load for a rifle/peestol, I keep a printout of the data for my records. I put the load data right on the printout, and I have the whole works captured in one place. Anytime I want to go play with ballistics, I have what I need to find out what I want to know. Any time I want to put together a new or different load, I have a place to begin for comparison purposes. IMO it was money well spent. I'd do it again. In fact, I'm now contemplating the model that has the downrange features as well as pressure recording capability, etc. . FWIW...Pilgrim.

[Willbird]

Buy the best and only cry once...........I have spent long green on things and wished later I had not, but I have never felt I got the short end of the stick with the oehler.


Bill

[Sky C.]

Here's a vote for the C.E.D. as sold by Dillon or Brownell's. Got the benefit of seeing & using my buddy's Ohler 33. Works fine but it large and bulky by comparison to the C.E.D.

Benefits for C.E.D. vs. Ohler:
1) All data sownloadable to your PC. I keep records and this is a great feature.

2) Available IR lighting system. Here in CO - late fall through early spring - natural light really limits when any of the systems will have sufficient light at a high enough angle to consistantly trigger the unit and give good readings. If you only shoot at mid day that's probably fine but I often want to do load development in the AM when the breezes are most calm. The IR unit adds many hours to the day for using the tool.

3) Smaller & faster to set-up. Dual sky screens... Interesting but not of much value as far as I've seen. The C.E.D. will pack into a small tool box with room to spare.

If I had it to do over again - I'd get the C.E.D. again.

Best regards-

Sky C.

[drinks]

I caught the Pro Chrony Pal on sale for $80, has worked like a charm, do have to remember to turn it off after using or the battery will turn up it's toes.
Having seen several sites talking about things hitting the box, I made a 1/4" Lexan screen that attaches with 2 screws in about 30 seconds, so far, no strikes.
Have had good results with mine, it really opened the doors on actual, rather than guessed from published figures info.
Also shows some minor to pretty major fibs by ammo makers.

[Denver]

Thanks all for your input. My only experience with a chrono was several years ago with a borrowed Oehler from a friend. Seemed like a lot of hassel with setup & take down, not to mention the size and bulk of it all. That was my primary reason for the interest in the more compact units. If they give accurate and reliable readings, that's what I'm interested in. I just want to know how fast my bullets are going. Mostly interested in loads using surp powders where little published data is available.

Thanks again, Ron

[imashooter2]

I bought the Chrony F1 Master. Cheap enough and it has a remote readout/control box which is required at my primary range where there can be a long time between cease fires. I haven't had any difficulties with it that didn't stem from me setting it up in the shade. The cheap boxes don't do any calculations so I put together a quick Excel spread sheet. It handles strings from 2 to 20 shots and outputs high, low, average, ES, SD, KE and power factor. If anyone thinks it might be useful to them, they can get a copy here:

http://mywebpages.comcast.net/imashooter2/crnycalc.xls

[locutus]

Oehler!

"Nuff said!

[JohnH]

I've had two Chronys, sold the first, shot the second. I'll have a third when I've the cash to get one. I doubt one could prove as much as a 5% difference between any of the models, your choice will come down to what you what and what you can afford. Any of them are good enough to use to determine if your loads are dangerous. Any of them are habit forming enough that you will find yourself clocking loads for no other reason than because you can. All of them are accurate enough to apply statistical analysis to your loads. They are all good enough that you will find out that your most accurate loads are not nessicarily your best statistical loads. In the end it is one more pool of slush to wad through to decide just how good your loads are.

Left to statistical analysis, I'd have thrown out a couple of very nice loads. Having had a chronograph to check my loads with, and being in the place of not having a chronograph, every new load I shoot leaves me feeling that something is missing.

Get the Chrony. You'll probably find it will tell you everything you want or need to know. If after having it a while you decide you want to spend more money, you can always upgrade to as more expensive unit.

[tall grass]

Denver I know you are looking for a better model of unit than this but for you guys looking for a cheep altrenative do a search on the Chrony site. Go to the bottom of the product page or wherever they have stuff listed and under product number 102 or 105 ( I can't remember now but looked at it the other day) and they have reconditioned F1 chronys for $49.95 plus shipping. I got this deal for Christmas a couple of years ago and works fine for me.

Jim

[ronjulian]

OK, after reading this I have more questions than answers, But that;s not all bad. I am more interested in the Chrony it self that clocking my loads, But that would be a help in developing them.

I am a tinkerer. I like to find out how things work and how to fix them. For that I need cadavers. [dead things] If any body has any cronys around that work or don't work that they are wiling to part with for learning/experimenting with, please contact me at fidel@webcoast2coast.net.

I don't want your pride and joy, this must be on the cheap. If they work when I get them, they might not work afterworld. But, If the do NOT work when I get them, they will most likely still not work after I get them but there is a chance after I figure out how they work, they MIGHT work again. That is how I learn.

As for the pros and cons of who makes the best, keep em coming, That too is how I learn.
Thanks, Ron

[Harpman]

Do any of the crony models have computer hookups ?

[Junior1942]

Get the Chrony. You'll probably find it will tell you everything you want or need to know. John, you're a wise man. All a shooter really needs to know is Average Velocity. A low Extreme Spread or Standard Deviation does not mean a good group.

[David R]

This might help the financially challenged like me.


Crony Here (http://chrony.ca/products_SCMMCM.htm) Look at the bottom of the page, Reman unit $49.00 + $5.00 S&H

I have one, but its the old F-1 model I can trade it in on a new one for a good price. I cannot use it to upgrade.

Gotta do something, the one I have now is useless.

[mike in co]

John, you're a wise man. All a shooter really needs to know is Average Velocity. A low Extreme Spread or Standard Deviation does not mean a good group.
awww...but just how good is the data ?? just one of the oehler big advantages is the third set of screens. it measures the velocity TWICE, and compares the data( you can select certian comparison criteria) and then tells you if the data is suspect !

bite the boolit only once......

[Willbird]

Actually the BIG BIG advantage to the Oehler is the long screen spacing, even the proof channel runs a longer screen spacing than any of the cheaper cronos.

With computers and such as common as they are now I can't see why nobody has come up with a set of screens with an interface for a serial, parallal, or usb port, I would think the computer could do the time measurement nicely.


Bill

[Harpman]

I just found that competition electronics chrono does have a windows compter hookup.

[JohnH]

awww...but just how good is the data ?? just one of the oehler big advantages is the third set of screens. it measures the velocity TWICE, and compares the data( you can select certian comparison criteria) and then tells you if the data is suspect !

bite the boolit only once......

21 grains of H110 under Speers Gold Dot has an extreeme spread of 12-15 fps everytime I have used it to check the Chrony out. If you are stilli doubt, get a few boxes of 22 LR and spot check the machine every so often. If you want ot go to extreems, buy a brick, run the statistics on 200 rounds and thereafter use a 20 round string for your test sample. I bet there ain't enough statistical difference between a Chrony and an Ohler to amount to two farts in a wind storm.

I am curious though.....has the extra cash laid out for an Ohler ever paid off in statistically smaller groups????

[mike in co]

21 grains of H110 under Speers Gold Dot has an extreeme spread of 12-15 fps everytime I have used it to check the Chrony out. If you are stilli doubt, get a few boxes of 22 LR and spot check the machine every so often. If you want ot go to extreems, buy a brick, run the statistics on 200 rounds and thereafter use a 20 round string for your test sample. I bet there ain't enough statistical difference between a Chrony and an Ohler to amount to two farts in a wind storm.

I am curious though.....has the extra cash laid out for an Ohler ever paid off in statistically smaller groups????

would a group of 0..116" with an sd of 1
against a group of 0.157" with an sd of 3......
most people would be happy with a 0.157...but the data supports that the 0.116 was not a fluke)
( the answer is yes....the data is invaluable when closing in on results)
first the 5 and 10 shot groups fired by most shooters are not large enough to have a statically significant result.
having said that it is just another tool in obtaining the desired results.
i have no problem in spending money on tools.
if the was some strength in your statement , i would think that sierra would dump thier expensive oehler equiptment in favor of the chrony's.
my oehler prints my results...no lost data, no misprinting , no misreading the display...no typos . my oehler tells me when a shot is suspect...the chrony can't cause it doesnt have a proof screen/channel. there is a difference, if you cannot appreciated it...fine, but dont claim it aint there.

if you doubt my statements, thats fine, we are each entitled to our own opinions. personally it sounds like you are trying to justify your unwillingness to spend money. sorta like buying a kia instead of a lexus...they both provide transportation, though most people would really perfer the way the lexus got the job done.
if you would like some data to support my claims, ask 45nut what he thinks of my 308 win cast boolit rifle ??( it took him to first place in the cast boolit shoot one yr, in the 100yd small group ).

[Scrounger]

To put it another way, Mike: Not all of us drive Mercedes, BMW, etc, although we concede they are superior vehicles. It's just that Ford, Nissan, Dodge, whatever, really does all that we need and that leaves a few sheckels for guns, powder, and beer.

[wills]

John, you're a wise man. All a shooter really needs to know is Average Velocity. A low Extreme Spread or Standard Deviation does not mean a good group.

Why is that the case?

[Junior1942]

Just because the numbers look good doesn't mean the bulet holes are close together down range. The best chrongraph numbers I ever got with a cast bullet, SD something like 3, gave about 24" 100 yard groups.

[mike in co]

Just because the numbers look good doesn't mean the bulet holes are close together down range. The best chrongraph numbers I ever got with a cast bullet, SD something like 3, gave about 24" 100 yard groups.

and just because you shoot a nice group once , does not mean you can repeat it.
like i said it is just a tool, typically the more and the better the tool, the better your sucsess rate will be(cause you have more data to build from).
the CHEAP models MAY give you the average...or if they have a bad reading who knows what the average will be.
a user claims his chrony never errors, others disagree.( well it was consistant the time i checked it...so it is always right ..there is no reason to spend money on a machine with a proof channel)
it gets down to just what are you trying to do, and how good do you want to be.

[David R]

I have loaded some of my best loads with out a crony. I have also found the book is close on velocity, and if you don't get what you expect somthing is terribly wrong. Like I said earlier, I always suspected my crony read fast. I had no proof or no way to prove it. I think it had good days and bad days.

Bottom line, I am getting another crony because of $s. I would love a fancy bling bling one. For now one that works beats the heck out of the one I have now. I paid $89.00 for it more than 10 years ago, so another one (less trade in value) would be just fine.

[wills]

Just because the numbers look good doesn't mean the bulet holes are close together down range. The best chrongraph numbers I ever got with a cast bullet, SD something like 3, gave about 24" 100 yard groups.
As long as the groups are good no need to bother with velocity, but if groups could stand improvement wouldn’t one look at inconsistent velocity as a possible problem (I don’t know about SD’s, where I went to school, fortunately for me, only the psychology students were forced to take statistics.)

[JohnH]

Didn't mean to start no flamin' with my last post, don't mean to with this one....

Chronographs are electronic devices that operate best in a given window of conditons. All are subject ot being as good as the electronics, all are subject to being improperly set up or maintained. No matter how much money one has spent on a chronograph, if you ain't testing it occasionally against a known standard (ie a given lot of ammuntion) then the numbers may not mean didly.
Just because a system has a built in second opinion, doesn't mean it is fail safe. And if one is relying on the built in second opinion, what is to say when that is wrong????

To be worth anything an instrument of the quality of a chronograph must be checked against a known standard. This is typically called calibrating. The simpliest way any of us have to check the calibration of our equipment, cheap or big dollar, is to go buy a brick of 22LR ammo (spend as much as you like on it) clock 200 rounds of it, run the numbers, keep the data of course. Then once every season, send another 20 rounds of it over the screens. To be worth anything, the chrony should give you the same data from the original 200 rounds within +/- 2% (.02) Less is always better. By their very nature, a chronograph can only give a figure based on the distance between the eyes, and regardless of the velocity, distance doesn't change but time does, so what we have are really fancy clocks.

I set up a permanent table in front of my bench at 15 feet and set up my chrony in the same place every time. My bench is shaded by oaks and the only time I have trouble is when the leaves are gone and the sun is a low angles in the morning and evening sky.

Read the manufacturers set up guidelines and follow them strictly. Lighting conditions, muzzle blast and even where the bullets pass over the eyes can all affect how the instrument reads.

I dont use my chrony to tell me anything other than how fast the bullet is traveling. If the best my rifle shoots at 50 yards is 1/2" what is the point of super accurate ammo? Either I or my rifle can't shoot well enough to see much less use the difference. What the chrony does do for me is tell me how fast a load is going. Most any will be accurate enough to tell the difference between a load that is of starting pressures, max pressures or over max. The paper will tell me all I want or need to know about how accurate a load is. But what is vital for the handloader is how fast the load is going.

SAMMI sets standards on factory ammo based on velocity or pressure. A load meets that meets either of these is at it's maximum. The load can reach velocity first or pressure first, but at that point, we are at max (so far as SAMMI is concerned, and since most of our firearms are designed to operate with SAMMI spec ammo, what they say has lots of bearing on our loading, no matter our liking or dislike) Therefore, when 33.5 grains of WC846 gave me 2360 fps from a 150 grian bullet in my 30-30, and Remington factory was giving 2400, it was time to stop. I must also have velocity data to determine how fast one powder is against another. Won't matter if the chrony has a 5% error in it, both load developments will have that same error which for any real purpose.....cancels it.

So, can I spend more money on a chronograph? Yes. Will I have anything that is significantly better for my intended purpose? No. It is not a matter of being cheap, it is a matter of having enough cash to buy the reloading components I need to have to make use of the chronograph in the forst place.

As to all the fancy calculations, any computer that came with Windows Office has the math built in and spread sheets for the same. Plug in the numbers and enjoy. Or you can spend an extra few bucks and get a model that figures it all for you and prints it as well. Each manufactuer offers bottom and top of the line models and features.

[mike in co]

hmmmmmmmm
someone is still beating the same drum and getting no where.....
ASSumming that a machine has a 5% error and then ASSumming that the error is consistant is a very big stretch.
chrony has no built in check, the three screen oehler has a built in check.
plain and simple.....one has a built in check the other does not.duh ???
yes its possible but what is the probability that both fail at the same time??
what good is your 2360fps stop if infact the chrony had a single round that was out of wack...but not reported as an error....opps an instant reloading error, you were actually way over, but one round was low and brought the average down to a "safe" level......so you go load up a bunch more of this great load.....you go shootin on a bit warmer day..and the brass starts sticking.....now just how much brass /powder/bullets/gun did you waste because you bought the least expensive tool ???
if you and your best guns can only handle a half inch at 50 yards....you probably dont need a chrony....you need lessons, a better gun or a new hobby.

just cause you are happy with your results, doesnt mean the guy asking the questions would be happy with them, so please leave him the opportunity to make his own choices. just cause you are happy with just(maybe) ave velocity, doesnt mean the next guy is.

you actually cover this very well in your last statement

" Will I have anything that is significantly better for my intended purpose?"
he asked about HIS intended purpose not yours......so now you can slow down anytime.

[Scrounger]

hmmmmmmmm
someone is still beating the same drum and getting no where.....
ASSumming that a machine has a 5% error and then ASSumming that the error is consistant is a very big stretch.
chrony has no built in check, the three screen oehler has a built in check.
plain and simple.....one has a built in check the other does not.duh ???
yes its possible but what is the probability that both fail at the same time??
what good is your 2360fps stop if infact the chrony had a single round that was out of wack...but not reported as an error....opps an instant reloading error, you were actually way over, but one round was low and brought the average down to a "safe" level......so you go load up a bunch more of this great load.....you go shootin on a bit warmer day..and the brass starts sticking.....now just how much brass /powder/bullets/gun did you waste because you bought the least expensive tool ???
if you and your best guns can only handle a half inch at 50 yards....you probably dont need a chrony....you need lessons, a better gun or a new hobby.

just cause you are happy with your results, doesnt mean the guy asking the questions would be happy with them, so please leave him the opportunity to make his own choices. just cause you are happy with just(maybe) ave velocity, doesnt mean the next guy is.

you actually cover this very well in your last statement

" Will I have anything that is significantly better for my intended purpose?"
he asked about HIS intended purpose not yours......so now you can slow down anytime.

I, for one, am very happy with half inch groups at 50 yards. I don't shoot benchrest rifles so we are talking light hunting type weapons. Even with relatively low powered scopes, I can see the crosshair waver back and forth across the target at least half an inch at 50 yards. With light rifles, hunting scopes, sandbag rests, 64 year-old heart, muscles, and eyes, a half inch group is a victory at 50 yards, and other than the velocity (which proves the energy factor is high enough to get the job done), none of the other stats, SD or whatever, have any relevance to me. Obviously they do to you and that is your right. We're playing different games.

[mike in co]

way to go scrounger......thank you thank you thank you ( the ability to disagree without insisting only his answer is the right answer).
i'll think of you this am as i go put some more lead down range ( over my oehler, at 100 yds , thru my latest 308 win )

[Willbird]

Also on SD, one area that SD is very important, or MORE important is long range shooting..

The screen spacing is enough of an issue that Oehler does supply a shorter mounting bar for people that insist they need it, but they reccomend NOT using it unless absolutely neccesary.

another thing I didnt know about the Oehler setup until I got it is they send EVERYTHING you would need to use the machine, even a couple nice light tripods to set the screen assembly up on, and enough printer paper that I have had and used the machine for it seems 10 years and have not bought any yet.

As to quality tools, I have never ever regretted it when I scraped and scrounged and came up with the bucks to buy a better grade of tool. I never think when I'm using my Etalon 0-1 micrometer "Gee I could have bought an acu-rite for 15 bucks" I usually think "Man I wish I had gotten the 1-2 when I got this one" I have to settle for Starrett for the larger sizes.

Now guys that smoke $20.00 seegars is differant, I cannot understand that for a minute hehe, I told a kid at work if he was nice and played his cards right with a nice young lady a couple seegars worth of dinner and flowers might get him something that would be a lot better :-) than a stinky seegar.

Bill

[JohnH]

[QUOTE=mike in co ( the ability to disagree without insisting only his answer is the right answer).
[/QUOTE]

Perhpas I should just walk away, can't. Prolly gonna get my nose skint, won't be the first time.

If that remark is directed at me, you should perhaps consider that from this end it appears that you think Ohler is the only answer. Now where have I said that Chrony is the only answer, just that for my purposes and obvioulsy for the purposes for many others here, a Chrony works just fine. As well, I have put forth some very workable solutions to what may appear to be shortcomings to some. Apparently, a Chrony is not good enough for you, that doesn't make the choice of an Ohler a better choice. And what about the differences between his and your intended purposes? Perhaps now you can slow down too bubba.

[StarMetal]

How many of you fellows that own Ohlers own Rolex watches, drive either Ferrari's, Lexus's, Lincolns, Rolls Royce's, BMW's, live in at least a $500,000 home (not counting the property), eat caviar, lobster, Alaskan King Crab for most meals, bought your wife (if you're married) at least a 2 carat diamond engagement ring, your suits are imported from Europe, ditto the shoes, you have a gardner and pool man, you don't own a rifle under $2000 and all the oned that are scoped are with German glass?

Now that I think about it I'll fire off a letter to Rick Jamison of Shooting Times (not that he's a top guru of the gun world, but because I think he may do it) to do a comparison shoot off of all the chronographs on the market. Yes I know he uses an Ohler.

Joe

[Junior1942]

I'll tell you what I think! I think you guys who don't have a redheaded wife or girlfriend don't know squat! Down with blondes!

[flhroy]

Hold on a minute there Junior. My wife is blond and I think a blond is better then a Red Head any day of the week.

[Willbird]

No Rolex, I drive a 91 S10 (usually full of buckets of WW) and the cost of my house didnt go into 6 figuires even.

Oehler $395.00 (mine was 295 when I bought it I think)
If anything goes wrong with your Oehler Chronograph, simply send it to Oehler Research and they will repair or replace it, for 3 years, at no charge. If you shoot a screen or smash your chronograph, Oehler cannot be held responsible and you would be expected to pay for repairs.

http://www.midsouthshooterssupply.com/item.asp?sku=00084MASTERGAMMA
162.00 for this crony that offers some similar features (and some added ones like RPM), but you buy your own tripod

cheapest crony looks to be 77.00 no warranty mentioned on the crony's

Bill

[mike in co]

Perhpas I should just walk away, can't. Prolly gonna get my nose skint, won't be the first time.

If that remark is directed at me, you should perhaps consider that from this end it appears that you think Ohler is the only answer. Now where have I said that Chrony is the only answer, just that for my purposes and obvioulsy for the purposes for many others here, a Chrony works just fine. As well, I have put forth some very workable solutions to what may appear to be shortcomings to some. Apparently, a Chrony is not good enough for you, that doesn't make the choice of an Ohler a better choice. And what about the differences between his and your intended purposes? Perhaps now you can slow down too bubba.

dang couldn't slip that one past you.............
i owned a pact before the oehler. i say owned since it spent more time at pact in texas than with me or at the range.
i have seen the poor results from chrony's and have seen the stories here of thier poor results.( sorry i didnt see your poll where you found those "many other"....)
my oehler has never missed a shot, never, not one, never.
one of the clubs i shoot at has two oehler's for members use( but no chrony's)
the fact is, of all the shooters i hang around with, those that own chronographs .....own oehler's.

if you think you have not insisted that the chrony is all a shooter ever needed, please have someone read your entries and see what they say (family members do not count). go look at the lenght of some of your posts in
your attempt to justify your purchase of a chrony.

i'm a competitve shooter. i spend money on my guns, i shoot a lot of lapua brass, berger bullets, br hand made bullets..........yep i run at a much different standard than you do.
i have experience that shows the chrony and the pact do not live up to competitive standards; i see no data that documents that a oehler does not do the job it was designed to do.

slowwwing dowwwwnnnn

[NVcurmudgeon]

Joe, Yes I own an Oehler dating from the Reagan administration. The only troubles I ever had with it were (1) Killed both screens with one .358 Win. cast boolit-repairs cost $10 or $20, I forget. (2) Left batteries inside too long and ruined its innards. Somehow, between Energizer and Oehler, I got a new one free.

I do have a watch with a name that ends in the prestigious "X", but it is a Timex. My vehicle is a Dodge pickup. Our house was well under half a million, including property, and that in a hot real estate market. My lovely wife has a somewhat smaller than two carat diamond, but I did pay extra for a flawless stone. I don't own a suit, European or otherwise. I wear Wranglers and boots. I do have one pair of shoes, bought in 1962, that I used to wear when I had a suit. Anybody who thinks I have a gardener is welcome to come and watch me fighting the mustard and white top any summer day. No rfles with $2000 price tags here, some of them down to less than $60. Most rifles are iron sighted, the scopes are one Japanese and three American.

Junior, My wife was born blond, but has darkened up to light brown with the passing of time. I'd keep her if her hair turned green!

[carpetman]

Wills---Has there been any known suicides you could post a link to because someones Oehler or Chrony was found to be giving erroneous readings? Sometimes spending more is cheaper in the long run--don't know about this situation. I do wear a Rolex with a slight blemish,some fool wrote Seiko on it.