Who uses an Shooting Chrony F1 Chronograph

[LAKEMASTER]

ive been eyeballing one of these for 3 years now... they seem to appear in a lot of pellet gun videos in youtube, they just seem really popular.

does anyone on here have one and have anything to say about them? does anything fail on them ? i see they sell parts

[aspangler]

I have one I bought from Midway last year. It works quite well for me. So far I have not shot the rods but I have some wooden dowels on hand in case. If you don't have or make a remote you will have to write each reading down as you shoot or it will be lost. Very satisfied with mine.

[LAKEMASTER]

i know they have that system where it prints out the results or holds a memory, id be happy with just a ball park idea.

[Hannibal]

I bought one a couple of years ago. The only problem I've had is on sunny days the shades don't quite cover enough sometimes, but that is a common issue with thiscstyle of chronograph, or so I'm told.

The only other problem I had was knocking it over with muzzle blast. Find yourself an old camera tripod to go with it. Greatest chrono accessory ever.

[Denny303]

have had good luck with mine, had it 10 yrs or so. simple and easy to use. no problems would recommend it.

[knifemaker]

If you are knocking over your crony with the muzzle blast, you have the crony too close to the muzzle. Should be about 10 feet from a rifle muzzle or more if the blast is that severe. That muzzle blast can also give you a false reading on velocity if too close.

[Hannibal]

The problem was the crappy base I was trying to use, not the distance. I read the instructions, the chrony WAS 10' away.
A $5 garage sale camera tripod fixed the problem.

[Ola]

Hmm, how should I put it..

Back in the days I had a Chrony. Then I bought another. A little later I had to buy a working chronograph.

[Beagle333]

Mine works fine. I would buy another.

[Ola]

Mine works fine. I would buy another.
Really? I have never seen one that is totally hassle free. And I have seen more than one..

If the conditions are not optimal (too bright, too dark, too what ever) it is almost a miracle when a Chrony works. With my current chronograph it is other way around: NOT working is exceptional.

There is one accessory item that I recommend highly. The Chrony (red) led lamp (http://www.shootingchrony.com/images/Chrony_LED_Lamp.jpg). It makes the Chrony to work reasonably well in various lighting conditions.

[sandog]

I have used one for close to 20 years. never had any problems with it, although I did hit the unit with a .223 bullet about 4 years after I bought it. I called them and they said to send it in. They replaced it with a new one, and upgraded it to the remote model free of charge. Great of them to do that, as it was clearly my fault the unit was destroyed by the bullet impact.

[Bohica793]

I have one I use regularly. I wrote my own software to capture and save the data using a serial cable and to calculate spreads and deviations. All in all the Chrony works very well.

[JonnyReb]

Mine had been excellent. I used it mostly just with air rifles and .22's in the backyard and it never gave me any trouble. I loaned it to a friend and on his first shot with a Hatsan air rifle he plugged it right in the screen. DOA. Being a good guy he ordered me another one and presented it to me..he sent the original back in and had it fixed. I tried hard to get him to keep the new one and just give me the old one back but he wouldn't do it.

I found that on many days it is better to not use the diffusers and just shoot over the naked sensors.

[kens]

Mine worked good for many years, until, it quit. shotgun wad caved it in.

[cwheel]

Had mine for 20 years or so. Only problem is the error message in some intense sunlight. Solution is easy, just cover the sun screens with a single layer of duct tape, somehow makes it easier for it to see the bullet passing and record it. Over time, one broken tab on the sun screens, other than that, just keeps on working.
Chris

[bgmkithaca]

I had a Master Beta model that lasted 23 years before the electronics gave out-bought another a few years ago and had no problems. As for shooting on sunny days i took a piece of plexiglass and bead blasted it and fitted it to cover the entire sunscreen area-it works on those sunny days real well.

[Beagle333]

Really? I have never seen one that is totally hassle free. And I have seen more than one..



I can't say they all work, but I always set mine up in the same place (I have my own range) and it is always under the same trees and always facing the same direction, so maybe that helps with its reliability. I even shot the sticks off it and now it sports clotheshanger wire to hold the screens, but it's still clicking out the speeds! :D I did loan it out to some bowhunting buds of mine too and they said it worked for them, but I didn't ask details. They were happy to use it and I was just happy to get it back without an arrow in it. ;)

[Shade]

I have a Gamma Master, other than shooting the sensors once, no complaints, good customer service. I have to get some time to compare it my new CED M2 unit. No time...

[Shooter6br]

Had a first model I had muzzle blast damage it . Use a Pact No 1 . Bigger screen area also

[silverjay]

Have one that I got used 10 years ago. I don't have or use shades and it works well. I always shoot early in the morning so the shades may not be needed at that time of day anyway. Mine is usually within 20 fps from trued ballistic calculators.

[waarp8nt]

I have one too. Used it for many years with no problems. Bought it because it had such a wide range of testing 30-7000 fps and of course the reasonable cost. We used it many times for paintball with the church youth group and it has taken a few paintball hits to the back sensor (speeds up to 300 fps). Another added bonus with the extended testing range is it could be used for archery as well. For me it is mostly used to test new handgun loads, for example I dialed in a nice .40 cal target load using American Select powder. Latest testing was with a 20ga slug load using Herco.

If I had it to do all over again, I would go with the option of a removable screen. The main reason for this is the report or percussion from the barrel being close to the shooting chrony can cause screen error. Other than that I have no issues with the F1.

[ukrifleman]

I have had a Chrony F1 for 5 years or so and found it to be a great piece of kit.

I use it mainly for .30 cal loads and it gives accurate readings.

The only times it has given problems is in extreme cold conditions and under fluorescent lighting.

I would recommend caution when using scoped rifles, as it is difficult to see the metal rods that hold up the reflectors and you can easily hit one (I know this to be so!)

I would also recommend a protective screen over the digital readout as it can be damaged by powder residue.

Another good point is that it folds up making it easier to carry.

ukrifleman.

[jeepyj]

I've used a F1 the dial in my cast boolits loads for several handgun calibers and different moulds. Mine has only failed once when darkness started to set in and we were not quite done testing. I have bought some LEDs but haven't had the need yet to use them. As another member mentioned I would strongly recommend the remote and cord as an option. I picked up one off a discount site for $18. I also use an old camera tripod as some mentioned. I think that using chrony it's very interesting as well as Important important to the process of the hobby of shooting.
jeepyj

[Jim_P]

If you want the Memory, go for the Chrony Beta. I have one and it's a good one to build on. Buy the basic one and you have a good Chrono with remote display. You can add software to track and a printer to record - if you want. Nice thing is most of the electronics are in the remote display and fixing one after you shoot it, is easy and cheaper.

Just my 2 cents...

[jonp]

Mine works fine even with shooting it the first day I had it.

The only downside is having to write each velocity reading down. Not much hassle for me. My Honda CRV has a miniature picnic table in the back under the rug. Makes a great stand

[imashooter2]

I have the F1 Master with the remote readout. Very nice to have as there can be long periods between cease fires at my usual range. I never bothered with the print out/calculating models... I just jot the speeds down on a notepad as I shoot and do the calculations on a simple spread sheet I made once I get home.

If you ALWAYS set a target behind the device, remember that the bore is lower than the sights and shoot off bags, your Chrony will live a long life.

[ndnchf]

I've had one with remote readout for a couple years. It has worked fine, every time. Never had any trouble with it. I'm very pleased.

[jonp]

"If you ALWAYS set a target behind the device, remember that the bore is lower than the sights and shoot off bags, your Chrony will live a long life."

Now you tell me

[imashooter2]

"If you ALWAYS set a target behind the device, remember that the bore is lower than the sights and shoot off bags, your Chrony will live a long life."

Now you tell me

I'm sure there is a scenario out there in which I hole my Chrony, but I have been shocked by how cavalier some folks can be when shooting at a hundred dollar bill...

[xacex]

I had one...had one. It worked okay for what it was. A loose scope base solved the problem of me wanting a chronograph with a memory. I went with a Caldwell unit after the F-1 was killed by a 308 through the screen. The Caldwell was on sale at midway, and cheaper so I jumped on it. Glad I did. It hooks up to a smartphone or Ipad, and saves EVERYTHING! It calculated foot pounds of energy, standard deviation, all of my averages, as well as a list of the shot string and I can name the groups and save with dates. You can even add pictures of the groups, and put notes on group size ect. There was a recall on some that had sensors that were giving errors in bright light. Most of the time I shoot in over cast so never a problem, but on a sunny day it did throw some errors. Called up the company that distributes the caldwell unit and they sent out another one to me no questions asked. Great costumer service. Had a friend shoot his F-1 the first day out. I had to laugh, but he liked mine so much he ordered one up instead of replacing it with another F-1. I gave him some advice on not shooting the chronograph, and the new one is still alive.

[John Boy]

One flaw with the design of the Chrony's is the circuit board and the front/back sensors are one complete integral unit. The jack connector for the cable is connected to the board via molded plastic. Twist the cable jack for a loose connection - one has to send the complete Chrony back for a new circuit board. Service cost is $25 plus shipping
The older models had the sensor wires connected by a pin fitting. Put a round through a sensor and only the sensor had to be replaced. Now the whole board has to be replaced because the sensor wires again are an integral part of the board

[tunnug]

We were using my buddy's chrony one day, he's been happy with it and has worked like it should, anyways, we were shooting and kept getting no reading, so another friend says "you're aiming too high, lower it", I did, same result, lower he says, I did again and this time the chrony shook at the shot, we go look and the shot had carved a groove on the top edge of the case, luckily the shot only gouged the case and didn't harm the internals.
Turns out we had it too close to us for a good reading, we moved it out but this time I put some 2" masking tape on the forward rods near the bottom, that way if I lower the aim for the reading it would show me when I'm getting too close to the chrony.
We got our readings and my buddy said no harm/no foul since it still worked, he new I would have replaced it.

[higgins]

Like many other situations, most of the problems I've read of people having with the "cheap junk chrony" are solved by thoroughly reading the instruction booklet before using. The manual is available on the Chrony website if you've lost yours. I've had mine for years, compared readings to more expensive chronographs at the range, and I'm happy with mine.

[Budzilla 19]

Still have mine after all these years, works like a charm! Guess I'm just lucky.