ShotMarker or Silver Mountain

[JamesnTN]

I’m considering either the ShotMarker or the Silver Mountain target system. For those who own one or both can you chime in on the pluses and minuses of each system.

 

[MattPeetz]

Go with the shot marker. Better interface and more features and Adam listens. I have the Solo because I got it cheap but would rather have the ShotMarker

 

[1shot]

I have shot on both, but currently own neither. If I were going to buy on it would be the Shot Marker.

Lloyd

 

[Walt Krafft]

I had a solo and sold it for a shotmarker. Only because the range i shoot at was all shotmarker and i was the odd man out. Operationally they are the same.

 

[Bisson1990]

I got a shotmaker because my range has the "pucks" on 1000y targets. I have been extremely happy with the product and Adam's customer service. No experience with the solo to compare.

 

[F Class John]

It’s become a Betamax vs VHS issue and Shotmarker is VHS. The Solo works just fine and the few people I know who’ve owned one don’t have issues. BUT you’re going find that between the two nearly every range that has e-targets uses Shotmarker. Personally I prefer the Shotmarker having used both and Adam is always working to improve things. There’s a reason the waitlist for one is three months....

 

[dcali]

I can't speak to a silver mountain because I've not used one, but I can't think of a single meaningful downside to the ShotMarker. The support is great, the product works, and it's easy to set up. The software is well thought out and for the most part pretty intuitive.

 

[Stumpy1]

I don't think there is a nickel's worth of difference, functionally, in the two.

That said, I like that the SOLO uses some 'off the shelf' components such as;
Batteries
Antennas
Ethernet cables
Antenna Cables

Full disclaimer:
I have shot on, and liked HEXta, Shotmarker, OLD SilverMountain G2, NEW SilverMountain, and SOLO
-I work with HEX targets regularly at our club
-I recently purchased a SOLO for personal use

I don't think you can go wrong with either SOLO or Shotmarker for personal use.

Frank

 

[jim1903a1]

I've had both. Currently use a ShotMarker, I sold my Solo because most of the people I shoot with have ShotMarker. Both work well, both use off the shelf components. ShotMarker's cables are 3.5mm jacked audio cables and Solo uses ethernet patch cords. Audio cables are cheaper and easier to get, I have all three of my target frames cabled and this really speeds up getting a target set up. One annoying thing about Solo is that the software seemed to work slower and sometimes it took multiple taps to get a target saved or cleared. Shotmarker is pretty snappy by comparison. Shotmarker also saves height, width, and calibration data for multiple targets. The Solo I had did not and you had to calibrate every you set up a different target frame. That was last year and I don't know what Solo's current capabilities are. Both targets will change the way you can practice. Without a buddy sweating in the butts, your time on the line is truly yours and you can experiment all you want at your own pace. We joke that the bullet and powder companies should subsidize these targets since your consumption goes up dramatically! Truly a big bang for your buck at around $850.

 

[Twdmar]

Having an older silver mountain and having shot a good bit on the shotmarker, they are both fine.
Customer service with silver mountain is good, as is adam Macdonald(I do own and auto trickler).
You can buy a refurbished silver mountain cheaper.
Around here the shotmarker, probably because it was made available sooner has won out and we are starting to use them for matches where people are bringing their targets.

 

[JLJ]

My local club. Fort Wayne Rifle & Revolver, (FWRR) is into its first full HP season using Silver Mountain. The match organizers are still learning all the options of the system. They seem to work great.

Jess

 

[BronzeArcher]

I can't speak to a silver mountain because I've not used one, but I can't think of a single meaningful downside to the ShotMarker.

The biggest downside I've seen is the minimum velocity of 1250ish FPS.

There are some decent F-TR loads that don't make 1250 FPS at 1000 yards. It is suboptimal to have to work up hotter loads just to get the target to work.

Not sure if Silver Mountain has the same drawback or not.

At some point, the NRA may have to weigh in. As the current High Power rules on electronic targets only require shooters to ensure their bullets are not subsonic when they reach the target. How long is the NRA going to keep sanctioning matches where the targets may not record all the bullets reaching the target meeting the NRA rules but not the target requirements?

9.27.2 Willful Use of Subsonic Ammunition on Electronic Targets – When electronic target systems are used, no competitor shall knowingly use ammunition which is subsonic at the time it impacts the target or reaches the target line. Subsonic rounds may cause damage to target systems and may result in erroneous readings.

 

[bholcomb]

I have a SMT solo and have no complaints about it. I shoot on shotmarkers at most club matches and they’re easy to work as well. My solo measures group, velocity, etc and can save strings, etc. I found the solo used for a great price and that’s why I went that route.

 

[dcali]

The biggest downside I've seen is the minimum velocity of 1250ish FPS.

There are some decent F-TR loads that don't make 1250 FPS at 1000 yards. It is suboptimal to have to work up hotter loads just to get the target to work.

Not sure if Silver Mountain has the same drawback or not.

At some point, the NRA may have to weigh in. As the current High Power rules on electronic targets only require shooters to ensure their bullets are not subsonic when they reach the target. How long is the NRA going to keep sanctioning matches where the targets may not record all the bullets reaching the target meeting the NRA rules but not the target requirements?

9.27.2 Willful Use of Subsonic Ammunition on Electronic Targets – When electronic target systems are used, no competitor shall knowingly use ammunition which is subsonic at the time it impacts the target or reaches the target line. Subsonic rounds may cause damage to target systems and may result in erroneous readings.

Any microphone based target has the limitation of the ammunition being supersonic at the target, because the microphones are detecting the timing of the shock wave coming off the bullet. You sort of have to work within that limit if you want to use them.

 

[savageshooter86]

Shot Marker

 

[BronzeArcher]

Any microphone based target has the limitation of the ammunition being supersonic at the target, because the microphones are detecting the timing of the shock wave coming off the bullet. You sort of have to work within that limit if you want to use them.

1000 yard shooters have been solving the supersonic problem for a long time for accuracy and stability issues. But let's be honest, the bar for some of these electronic targets is higher than supersonic (1080 fps) at closer to 1250 fps. Lots of good high power and F-Class loads that are supersonic at the target (>1080 fps) don't register on ShotMarker.

It's a limitation that both private users and match users should be aware of. Simply saying, "Bullets need to be supersonic" at the target to register is misleading. The details are important. Some systems may register bullets down to 1100 fps. ShotMarker is not one of them.

 

[dcali]

1000 yard shooters have been solving the supersonic problem for a long time for accuracy and stability issues. But let's be honest, the bar for some of these electronic targets is higher than supersonic (1080 fps) at closer to 1250 fps. Lots of good high power and F-Class loads that are supersonic at the target (>1080 fps) don't register on ShotMarker.

It's a limitation that both private users and match users should be aware of. Simply saying, "Bullets need to be supersonic" at the target to register is misleading. The details are important. Some systems may register bullets down to 1100 fps. ShotMarker is not one of them.

Just curious, but what good F Class loads are you seeing trouble with? 6mm or .224? Most of what I see guys shooting is still around 1300 at 1000.

 

[6fatrat]

Shotmarker

 

[Doug Beach]

I’ve seen numerous .308’s, and .223’s use ShotMarkers at 1k. Among the .308’s were Palma rifles using 155’s, and M1As using 185’s. Among the .223’s were 20” AR’s, I’m not certain of the bullet used.
It’s possible that your load won’t work at 1k with a ShotMarker, but there are loads that will. Adapt, and overcome.

 

[243Mendoza]

I've shot with both systems.

Shotmarker:
-more reliable communication between target and shooter.
-if you have more than one shooter using their personal Shotmarker there may be some difficulty is getting this communication sorted out if you don't follow a strict procedure.
- power setup is more reliable
-more compact storage
-limited to 5 independent users if users require access to data for later use

Solo
-more friendly with multiple users
-more contrast on display
-less reliable target to shooter connection
-less reliable power cable connection
-more secure sensor/cable connection with ethernet cables
-unlimited number of users
-able detect bullet at velocity near M=1.1