Chrony Gamma

[Jeff Von Rosenberg]

Took my Gamma out yesterday and no matter how far I placed it , how high, how low, with diffusers, without diffusers all I could get is an error 1 message ( front screen not reading) . This is only 2nd time out, worked flawlessly first time out. Any Ideas and I don't want to hear " buy a different make chronograph" In 30 years I have found all of them can experience problems!! JVON

 

[jlow]

You need to tell us the weather condition.

 

[Jeff Von Rosenberg]

Sorry, sunny 64.4 degrees,wind 13 mph at 240degrees,Baro 30.02, elev.4660.

 

[338 Mollett]

My chrony is acting up also I think it is because the sun is too low on the horizon or I have it angled wrong in relation to the sun.

 

[tjtjwdad]

I've had that issue with mine when the sun is at mid angle in the sky. For me I have to wait it out because of the range lay out NNE/SSW direction.

 

[amlevin]

I don't know were you live but up here in the "left armpit" lighting is a real problem with all chrono's that don't have I/R sensors or a lighting kit.

For your Shooting Chrony I'd consider adding the lighting kit so lighting is out of the equation, regardless of season. Also limits the amount of speed variation from session to session as you're using the same level of lighting each time.

I have I/R sensors and merely power them with a 6v battery pack. Right now it's 4 D-Cells but I'm going to change to a re-chargable sealed gel type battery. No need for extension cords that way.

Shooting Chrony offers an LED lighting system and battery pack which is a good investment if you're going to be using it during the Fall/Winter months were even though it can be sunny, the light angle is low. The guys at S. C, suggest that you mount the unit on a tripod head that will allow you to angle the sensors toward the sun. Here we merely would angle them toward the brightest part of the clouds 8) (which is why I changed to the I/R sensors on a new Chronograph.

 

[Jeremy(WI)]

What were you shooting and what was the expected velocity

My old chrony doesn't like my 17wsm or my 17 hornet

 

[timeout]

My chrony is acting up also I think it is because the sun is too low on the horizon or I have it angled wrong in relation to the sun.

I shot two days ago and my ancient Chrony picked up the first three shots, then nothing. It was cloudy to begin with, then the sun came out. The sun was low in the sky, so I think that was creating the problem. I went to the house to load cartridges. When I got back, the Chrony was shaded. It registered every shot then. So I believe the angle the sun is now this time of year created your problem. Not to hijack your thread, but I'm considering a MagnetoSpeed chrony. I am wondering if guys with these experience any sun related problems? I've never seen one, so have no idea how they work.

 

[338 Mollett]

Buddy of mine and I conducted an interesting test a year ago.We lined up three chronographs on the same line to see if there was any difference .A magneto, Ced and a chrony beta .The spread was 75 fps.Magneto the fastest ,Beta in the middle,and Ced the slowest.

 

[amlevin]

I'm considering a MagnetoSpeed chrony. I am wondering if guys with these experience any sun related problems? I've never seen one, so have no idea how they work.

These chronographs do not rely on light in any manner. You could shoot in a dark room and it would still register.

Sensors are more "Proximity detectors" that sense the metal traveling past rather than optical that rely on light or I/R.

 

[Lapua40X]

I'm considering a MagnetoSpeed chrony. I am wondering if guys with these experience any sun related problems? I've never seen one, so have no idea how they work.

These chronographs do not rely on light in any manner. You could shoot in a dark room and it would still register.

Sensors are more "Proximity detectors" that sense the metal traveling past rather than optical that rely on light or I/R.

I'm lovin' my MagnetoSpeed .... no light, no problem. Too much light, no problem. So I spend more time shooting and less time trying to analyze what's wrong with the equipment.

 

[vtmarmot]

I got the lighting kit for my Chrony with the battery pack. It has made my shooting life a lot more pleasant. Only time I had a few errors was when it was raining and water got in the sensors. I got it out with q-tips and all was good again. Keep some extra fuses handy just in case.

 

[normmatzen]

I had a Chroney before I got a MagnetoSpeed and had good luck with it.

I had problems off and on until I did a remarkable thing. I read the instructions!

I learned that for out door use with rifles only the short supports are used with the 2 piece sky diffuser. The wide diffuser with extensions are for arrows!

I also found the sweet spot for the bullet path was 2" above the sensors. And a good quality, stout tripod is mandatory!

I then put blue tape around the short supports as a marker with the center at 2" above the sensors.

I NEVER had a problem after that, as long as I set it up level and so that the bullet path was 2" above the sensors.

Set up was still a pain so I bought the MagnetoSpeed and haven't looked back.

 

[Jeremy(WI)]

I had a Chroney before I got a MagnetoSpeed and had good luck with it.

I had problems off and on until I did a remarkable thing. I read the instructions!

I learned that for out door use with rifles only the short supports are used with the 2 piece sky diffuser. The wide diffuser with extensions are for arrows!

I also found the sweet spot for the bullet path was 2" above the sensors. And a good quality, stout tripod is mandatory!

I then put blue tape around the short supports as a marker with the center at 2" above the sensors.

I NEVER had a problem after that, as long as I set it up level and so that the bullet path was 2" above the sensors.

Set up was still a pain so I bought the MagnetoSpeed and haven't looked back.

I will try this and see if my chrony will read my 17 hornet then

Tried it, got 1 of 2 to read at 3272 fps. Guess it is time to order a magnetospeed

 

[amlevin]

I got the lighting kit for my Chrony with the battery pack. It has made my shooting life a lot more pleasant. Only time I had a few errors was when it was raining and water got in the sensors. I got it out with q-tips and all was good again. Keep some extra fuses handy just in case.

I live in an area with rain as a way of life. Went do the local Glass Shop and found a piece of clear Lexan in their scrap bin for free(anything smaller than "window sized" they scrap). It was just the right size to make a clear "roof" over my old shooting chrony. I left it flat but if I was to do it again I'd use a heat gun and make a shallow bend in the middle and a bracket or two to secure it to the "screens" so it would shed the water better. Kept the water out of the sensors yet allowed ambient light in.

 

[Webster]

Almost all rifle ranges are set up so the shooter faces North. This is so the sun is always behind you and not in your face. The Chronograph sun shield only protects from direct overhead light. The bright sun always comes from behind and under the sun screen. Under certain conditions this allows the sun to reflect off off the bottom of the bullet into the detector. In July and August my chrono seemed to give bad numbers starting around 3-3:30 in the afternoon. It seems to work the best on overcast days or when the sun is behind a cloud.