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Athlon Optics Rangecraft Velocity Pro Radar Chronograph (Page 2 of 4)
 Athlon RangeCraft Chronograph VS The Garmin Xero A good comparison between the Garmin and the Athlon. The Athlon wins hands down so far. It's faster to respond, better price, comes with a case, metal tripod. |
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How much faster to respond? One of the annoying things about the Garmin is how long between shots... ETA- Watched the view and yes the Athlon is noticeably faster... but also noticed the difference in V0 between them, much bigger spread than when I compared my old CED to the Garmin (2fps delta) - also he didn't go over the app - or files export - guess that will come later. I have a feeling I may eventually get one, but not right away... |
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Originally Posted By SyberSniper: How much faster to respond? One of the annoying things about the garmin is how long between shots... The video shows it roughly 2x faster than the Garmin. |
Watching the kids shoot Pieeater's 1919 was great. Nothing warms the heart more than seeing a little kid kneeling in a pile of brass and links.-Pthfndr after the Nov 13th NorCal shoot
Global Warming Hoax Skeptic before it was cool
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I was able to test the Garmin, Labradar, and my ProChrono DLX, side by side, same shots. They were all within 5-10 fps of each other, and the differences were consistent: ES and SD were almost identical. ProChrono was slowest, but it was ten feet in front of the others. Was actually surprised the ProChrono held it's own so well; it is for sure a few more minutes to set up, but for the ~$150 price, it does everything I need, is just as accurate, and syncs well with my phones. So, will resist buying one of the little pocket boxes, for a while longer, anyway. |
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That’s Garmin as a whole. I recall them being a bit mercenary on add on and unlocks on GPS tech back in the day. You can buy the device and software but you get one shot at the computer upload. Your computer gets the blue screen of death? They will sell you a new code to let you use what you already bought. I do like their GPS gear but I did not like their corporate philosophy of squeezing the nickels out of their customers. I am glad to buy the Athlon. |
The only hyphenated names I like are cartridge names......30-06, 30-40, 38-55 etc.
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Originally Posted By GySgt_D: Europtic now shipping. I played with mine at the range the other day. I fumbled through the menus a few times. I used it with a lever action .357 carbine and a .357 revolver. No issues. I figure being more nimble with the menus will come with time. For power and energy calculations they ask for the bullet weight. I stumble on buttons there. Instruction booklet is sparse but mostly adequate. I know there are online sources for more tutelage on them but really all I need is Average, SD, Hi and Lo, which they erroneously refer to as min and max. Power I could use if I wanted to but on average I am not using that number. If you were looking to make major for gaming then it’s there. It’s way better than setting up my CED M2 and it’s tripod, wires and aligning it with the target downrange (I seldom shot just for V, I shot paper simultaneously). It really is a piece of cake to use even if you were on a shared use club range. That’s the one reason why I almost never brought the CED to the club range as I’d need to be all alone to go cold as needed to fiddle with the set up. |
The only hyphenated names I like are cartridge names......30-06, 30-40, 38-55 etc.
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Originally Posted By Cycolac: Optics planet has them for $350 + tax with free shipping (supposedly) in 7-16 days. Website says $399 and that includes 20% off.https://www.opticsplanet.com/athlon-optics-rangecraft-velocity-pro-radar-chronograph-2-4-in-display.html |
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Originally Posted By mvintx: Website says $399 and that includes 20% off.https://www.opticsplanet.com/athlon-optics-rangecraft-velocity-pro-radar-chronograph-2-4-in-display.html Originally Posted By mvintx: Originally Posted By Cycolac: Optics planet has them for $350 + tax with free shipping (supposedly) in 7-16 days. Website says $399 and that includes 20% off.https://www.opticsplanet.com/athlon-optics-rangecraft-velocity-pro-radar-chronograph-2-4-in-display.html It was $350 yesterday.  It is on backorder and supposed to ship on 5/15. I got an email this morning asking if I wanted to switch to an in stock item - a magneto speed for $400+. NOPE. Attached File |
I can explain it to you but I can't understand it for you.
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Originally Posted By Cycolac: Good or bad? Originally Posted By Cycolac: Originally Posted By Jetpig: Originally Posted By Cycolac: Optics planet has them for $350 + tax with free shipping (supposedly) in 7-16 days. Oh lord … Good or bad? You order from Optics Planet you might get it some time next year.. |
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Originally Posted By Jetpig: You order from Optics Planet you might get it some time next year.. Originally Posted By Jetpig: Originally Posted By Cycolac: Originally Posted By Jetpig: Originally Posted By Cycolac: Optics planet has them for $350 + tax with free shipping (supposedly) in 7-16 days. Oh lord … Good or bad? You order from Optics Planet you might get it some time next year.. I've ordered from them before with no problems. We shall see... |
I can explain it to you but I can't understand it for you.
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Originally Posted By Cycolac: It was $350 yesterday. It is on backorder and supposed to ship on 5/15. I got an email this morning asking if I wanted to switch to an in stock item - a magneto speed for $400+. NOPE. https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/494198/Screenshot_20250510_114511_Gallery_jpg-3537455.JPG Guess I'll have to keep checking their website. I wasn't ready to spend 600 clams for the Garmin but $350 for the Athlon, sure. My old Beta Chrony works great but like previously mentioned, it's a PIA to set up. |
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 Athlon Rangecraft Chronograph - Is It Accurate, Or Are There Problems? Full Accuracy Test! |
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I've watched several comparison videos. I think placement had alot to do with it and maybe the rangecraft picks the bullet up differently, possibly sooner? I watched one were the guy was discussing them at the end and again the rangecraft was slightly faster. He picked up each unit multiple times and set them then down during the discussion (he's an animated speaker) and the rangecrsft almost everytime gave an error like it was out of the fps range so it was looking for a shot. The Garmin did it only a couple of times. The YouTuber didn't notice as the screens were away from him. |
| Someone made a comment about how Hornady said somewhere that the Garmin was within 1% of their $6M lab grade Chrono that they use. If that's true, than the test results show that the Athlon is within that same 1% tolerance, meaning it's good to go as far as I am concerned. |
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Originally Posted By optoisolator: Someone made a comment about how Hornady said somewhere that the Garmin was within 1% of their $6M lab grade Chrono that they use. If that's true, than the test results show that the Athlon is within that same 1% tolerance, meaning it's good to go as far as I am concerned. Agreed. |
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I was at the range yesterday and a regular there had no idea what it was. and how far the technology had come. Iirc he thought I had a timer on the bench. He has Chrony but like my CED it is a nuisance to set up on a busy shared range. He was absolutely happy as a lark to chronograph some specialty shotgun loads over my Athlon. I still say over and really shouldn’t as it’s behind the muzzle and not at risk of being blasted accidentally. More than once I declined certain goofballs from shooting over my CED at an old club as they were the types to laugh if they accidentally blasted your gear. I have not checked my battery status but I got three two hour range trips on it and there was a lot of time I forgot to turn it off. |
The only hyphenated names I like are cartridge names......30-06, 30-40, 38-55 etc.
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I finally chronod all my revolver loads My magnum 357 loading with my 4.25" 66 is hitting 1300 fps with 15.5grs of h110 and a 160gr cast Keith hp My 3" is running over 1200 with the same load Neat stuff Only thing that's caught up with me so far is forgetting to switch to a new session when shooting a different gun. I had to dump some data due to that but that's a me problem and not the device. Interesting note as I didn't have a ton of time. I was shooting relatively quick. The spread seemed to be wider as the guns got hotter looking at the data now |
Battle Of West Appalachia Survivor
| Glad there is more affordable competition to the Garmin. That revolutionized my reloading to be honest since the Caldwell Mk2 was a pain to setup and would miss 20-25% of shots. This one looks great and will be in the consideration if I have to replace my Garmin. |
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Originally Posted By NEW-N-IMPROVED: It's not like they had much time to improve their product.  Originally Posted By NEW-N-IMPROVED: Originally Posted By borderpatrol: I just saw a Lab Radar for sale at $299. Apparently, a little competition has got them in a panic. It's not like they had much time to improve their product. How does the labradar compare? |
I can explain it to you but I can't understand it for you.
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Originally Posted By Cycolac: How does the labradar compare? In my experience, not even close. Mine sits in a box. ETA: mine is the original huge model. Most finicky device ever |
You look like the most normal person on the planet, or a serial killer. I can't decide. Either way, rock on.- Dan_Gray
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 6BRA, Labradar Vs. Rangecraft Test |
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Finally used mine for a rifle 16” fal with some 125gr bullets and some reject wc846 powder 2700fps average. I used this rifle and load against a garmin a few months back and it seems like the data is roughly the same from what I remember |
Battle Of West Appalachia Survivor
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Originally Posted By Bearcat24: As soon as I buy one of these, will take my POS Labradar (large one) to the field and use my 12 gauge to blow it to pieces. Please leave the memes in GD, thanks. dryflash3 Oops, my bad.
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Change is the only constant. - Heractilus
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Originally Posted By Jetpig: It is the only suitable end for a chrono. Originally Posted By Jetpig: Originally Posted By Bearcat24: As soon as I buy one of these, will take my POS Labradar (large one) to the field and use my 12 gauge to blow it to pieces. It is the only suitable end for a chrono. But, but, but,... they were everyone's darlin' not long ago? It seemed to be the company that hacked everyone off the most. |
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Briefly tried it for the first time in what I thought would be a challenging environment- the jungle that passes for my woods. Attached File Didn't miss a shot. CCI Quiet 22lr out of a suppressed S&W Victory. Wanted to try it out on something cheap before I chrono my latest .300 BO attempt..... |
And then, he arrives at the last item on his bucket list...
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The thing I usually fumble with is entering the bullet weight. It really doesn’t matter as I could care less about power factors at the moment. I get the first digit and when I go to move to the next digit I always toggle out of that screen. I suppose I will get smoother. I haven’t lost a shot capture yet with the Athlon. The CED would often lose one every 5-10 round string. Oh four trips now on one charge of the unit. About 2 hours per trip. After an approximate 8 hours of usage I was at half charge. I just finished recharging. That took about ten to fifteen minutes. |
The only hyphenated names I like are cartridge names......30-06, 30-40, 38-55 etc.
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For those looking to get the Athlon Rangecraft, Sportsman's Guide has a coupon code that gets it down to $309 for members - or $349 for non-members. The 90 day membership is $15, so that would be a good investment. Coupon Code cannot be stacked with the free 90 day membership, so better to pay the $15 membership fee and use Coupon Code SG4167 to get the $50 off. Non-members pay $15 shipping, members get free shipping over $49. Estimated Ship Date of 5/26/25 Athlon Rangecraft Chrono at Sportsman's Guide Attached File |
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In my email I see a Creedmoor ad for the Garmin on sale at $599. Not sure how that is going to work out for them. I like the Creedmoor company too. I have no regrets buying the Athlon. |
The only hyphenated names I like are cartridge names......30-06, 30-40, 38-55 etc.
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I really wish the price would have stayed what it was supposed to be a few months ago. I now have several expensive projects going on and can't see coughing up the cash for one now. BTW, does it work with archery? I am an avid archer as well and if it does, it will be a one-and-done solution for all my needs. |
Athlon Optics Rangecraft Velocity Pro Radar Chronograph (Page 2 of 4)
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