Caldwell Long Range Target Camera

[Endyo]

Endyo,

What is the range of that target from your shooting position???

That is a very nice and clear picture and we want to know how far you are transmitting the signal so we can know what to expect. Thanks.

Side note: Might want to get you a sheet of plywood and pull that backer paper tight in case the wind kicks up

I had it set up again tonight at 100. I forgot to snap an actual picture of the camera so you guys could see how far off its set up.

The range is forgiving. You need to be at least several feet away. Offset.

That picture was 6 feet back from target and 3 feet from left.

 

[RockyMtnMan]

I had it set up again tonight at 100. I forgot to snap an actual picture of the camera so you guys could see how far off its set up.

The range is forgiving. You need to be at least several feet away. Offset.

That picture was 6 feet back from target and 3 feet from left.

Thanks. Appreciate the input.

Hopefully someone will post pics of its capability at 1K soon

 

[Endyo]

That was 1K. It works perfectly.

 

[CaptainMal]

Man I like that. Great for practice. Put it on a public range and someone seeing it downrange will shoot at the camera just "because".

Still want one.

 

[shoot4fun]

Tagging this thread. I want to see if this product is thumbs-up or thumbs-down.

 

[pressedRat]

i built something like this about a year ago using drone hardware. i had some old tv type security cameras and i pulled lenses off those and tried different ones on the camera. the first lens i had was 6mm i think and you had to get close to the target and also you were limited to the number of targets based on the viewing field. I then bought a 25mm lens from bhphoto (was cheap) and used that and i could get back a good ways and also see 4 to 6 mid size targets with the camera off to the side. Both ends ran off of lead acid batteries similar to what you find in a UPS. i could have gone more expensive but for what i was doing these batteries were OK. This system was like old tv lines per inch. it worked but i would have preferred better resolution.

at home i have 3mp security cameras from hikvision. very high resolution. i run them off power over ethernet (POE). so based on that i thought it would be nice to use a high def camera (you can get them from china real cheap, they have a web server built into each camera so you can view them from any browser). a lot of the hardware to put something like this together can be had from ubiquiti networks. the issue at the time, was how to easily power the gear, portable POE and the amount of power required to power the camera and the remote wifi unit and get the range and run for a long enough time to make it realistic. assuming you used stuff like this, any browser enabled device would work as the client. and i would prefer to use a PC instead of my smartphone as the picture is bigger. I dont have a tablet for instance.

see https://www . ubnt . com/ for the type of hardware ubiquiti has to give you some ideas (this would be a very good solution for a permanent range setup).

this appears to be a similar idea with those issues worked out. probably the single biggest issue from the system i built was finding the right lens for the camera to enable me to see bullet holes, to be back far enough and to enable several targets viewable (dont want to be running back and forth to the targets if possible). this would be a key issue for any system i bought or built. I normally do 4 to 6 ten shot strings so i want at least 4 targets of the appropriate size for 600 yards (longest distance i have easy access to) to be visible with the setup.

The stated price for this system, assuming it meets those requirements is very good.

 

[snakepit]

I recently received my Caldwell Target Camera and have only been able to use it one time. I used it at 600 yards but the day I was going to shoot it the wind was so strong that I decided to test the camera by hanging up some old targets at 600 yards that I had in my truck. These are 12" splatter targets, one a .308 and the other a 6BR. If you look to the left of the targets you can see some old bullet holes in the white backing board. I thought it worked great with a very clear picture on both my cell phone and my 10" tablet. On target #1 three of the shots in the center 1" luminous bullseye do not show up as well because the luminous bullseye is not part of the splatter target but one I put on my long range targets to help my old eyes see the center better. The other thing is that the center ring of that brand of splatter targets is 2 7/8" and not 3". On the 6BR target the first 5 shots fired have the single silver hash mark next to them from when I drove down to the target to mark them, with the next 10 in the center ring. With this camera I look forward to not having to drive down to check the targets so often and being able not to use expensive splatter targets.

 

[5spd]

My pal got his caldwell system today and the 1st thing he had a issue is was with the plastic neck for the camera, it drooped no matter how we did the angle & no way to tighten the neck connectors up as they just pop into each other.
To fix that we removed all the plastic connecters (they pop in/out of each other) down to the ones at each end. Moved the neck end to the rear thread and BAM, camera sits perfectly still with no issues on angles or height.

 

[snakepit]

My pal got his caldwell system today and the 1st thing he had a issue is was with the plastic neck for the camera, it drooped no matter how we did the angle & no way to tighten the neck connectors up as they just pop into each other.
To fix that we removed all the plastic connecters (they pop in/out of each other) down to the ones at each end. Moved the neck end to the rear thread and BAM, camera sits perfectly still with no issues on angles or height.

Sorry to hear you are having a problem with the adjustable neck on the camera. I have used this setup several times and have had no problems with it at all. The neck is nice and stiff yet flexible when adjusting the camera. It has never drooped at all and stays in place over an extended amount of time even in very strong winds. I am very happy with the entire setup and just returned from using it at 600yds at our club range?

Did you report it to Caldwell and see if they would send you a replacement neck?

 

[5spd]

My pal shot them an email on the goose neck. I have not heard from him yet if he got an answer, but Id bet they send another one to him. I thought it was pretty stiff my self, but when he set it up I saw it start to droop down slowly and thought that aint right. I know in 15 mph breeze at the range it would not stay in place from watching it in the house.

 

[argrendel]

I bought the Target Vision last year. I've used it out to 1000 yards. My only issue is you need to align the antenna or there is a big lag between shots.

Midway has the Cadwells for $$349

 

[Hntndad]

I'm contemplating purchasing one. My only concern is the rechargable 6 hour runtime battery. Is the battery built in? Is it replaceable?

 

[snakepit]

I recently used my Caldwell Target Camera System at 600 yards without the receiver antenna being hooked up. The wifi signal from the transmitter was strong enough to give me a perfect picture on both my smart phone and tablet at 600 yds without the receiver retransmitting the signal. I would think that I will have to use the receiver if I shoot at farther than 600 yds but at what distance I don't know yet.

 

[Alexander-M]

^^^^^^^^
Same here - At 600 yards the transmitter signal is strong enough to be picked by my Galaxy Tablet. I am very pleased with the camera so far.
Nando

 

[Hntndad]

What is the battery like guys?? Is it a built in rechargable? Is it replaceable? Can you get a second battery?

 

[snakepit]

What is the battery like guys?? Is it a built in rechargable? Is it replaceable? Can you get a second battery?

The Lithium Ion battery pack is built inside both the transmitter and receiver and I am not sure if you can replace them. There is also a pigtail cord on each unit to plug into a 12 volt external battery bank. The manual also says you can hook the units up to terminal batteries such as deep cycle batteries or power it by using the plug in wall chargers it comes with. The manual says both the transmitter and receiver can operate up to 6 hours on a single charge. I have run mine as long as 3 hours and when I put them on the charger when I returned home it didn't take that long to bring them back to a full charge so I don't think they were very discharged.

 

[Hntndad]

Thank you sir for that information. Everytime I think to call them and ask it's too late in the day. I was just concerned about the longevity of the battery. Like cell phones and everything else that uses even a good li battery, they deplete over time. I'm sure it wouldn't be hard to open the case and replace the battery if needed. And the option for an external battery source helps for long days.
I really appreciate your response, thanks again.

 

[Alexander-M]

Yesterday I decided to not use the receiver, but use the transmitter signal alone, which is picked up by my tablet at 600 yards. One thing I noticed for the first time is that the shots are not displayed immediately; it takes a couple of seconds or so for the shot to show up. I had not noticed this before and do not know if it happens when the receiver is used.

Regardless, I really like the delay as it makes the last shot very easy to identify. This is very useful if there are clusters of shots, or as happened to me several times, two shots practically on top of each other were easy to detect with the delay. Also, if the bull is a dark color and the shot lands within it, you can see it more easily as it comes up. I had 1-1/2 inch bulls that were too dark, and it was a lot easier to see the shots as they were displayed.

Nando

 

[snakepit]

Yesterday I decided to not use the receiver, but use the transmitter signal alone, which is picked up by my tablet at 600 yards. One thing I noticed for the first time is that the shots are not displayed immediately; it takes a couple of seconds or so for the shot to show up. I had not noticed this before and do not know if it happens when the receiver is used.

Regardless, I really like the delay as it makes the last shot very easy to identify. This is very useful if there are clusters of shots, or as happened to me several times, two shots practically on top of each other were easy to detect with the delay. Also, if the bull is a dark color and the shot lands within it, you can see it more easily as it comes up. I had 1-1/2 inch bulls that were too dark, and it was a lot easier to see the shots as they were displayed.

Nando

I have gotten into the habit of touching the camera button on the screen each time I shoot to take a picture of the target which enables me to see each shot frame by frame when I want to review what I have shot.

 

[Alexander-M]

That is a good idea.

I also jot down each POI on the record sheet I keep when I am shooting, and then write the round numbers on the actual target when done, measure the shots, etc.

Nando