Power to the People!
In August I posted a particularly negative experience that I had with the shooting chrony company not to long ago. Some of you thought that I got what I deserved. HMM. Many others saw shooting chrony’s response for what it was. It was an evasion of their warranty. A warranty designed to get you and I to purchase their products. The vice president, mandy esteves, response to the situation was, in my opinion, deplorable.
Many people have contacted and thanked me for the heads up. Others have told me that they have purchased the Pro Chrono. (Others here have told me of their good experiences with the Pro Chrono…mine should be here in a few days).
I have filed complaints with the Better Business Breau, and the Federal trade Commission. I have also posted my negative experiences in many other places for the world to view. I do not expect a positive resolution other than affecting their bottom line and warning my fellow sportsmen about this possible pitfall.
We don’t have to take this gargabe without recourse. The internet is a valuable tool for communications. We can now share with others our positive and negative experiences for all to benefit from, worldwide. This is just too cool. 😎
All Replies
Steve,
When I bought, I hadn’t heard of the Pro Chrony. It would be nice to know if it operates any better than Shooting Chrony. I would like to hear from soneone who has used a product for at least a season. That muzzle hanger device, what ever it was called, doesn’t seem to have any long term supporters. I wondered about hanging any weight off the end of the barrel. And then some of our tunes don’t recoil much but if you want to use it for a springer or rim fire, how long could it last?
If I were starting over I think I would give the SoftChrono a try first. It couldn’t cost very much for a couple PC microphones and the extension cable. Many of us already have a cheep notebook computer or could make good use of a used one with Chairgun Pro loaded for ballistics diagnosis right at the range and possibly SoftChrono.
Hi Lurker, you are absolutely right. The learning curve can be steep. I wondered also if the bad economy had forced them to reign in their customer service? However, the sadistic, mocking nature of the VICE PRESIDENT really found my billy goat. I’m sure that there are, and will be, many people over the years that read my posts and formal complaints and buy someone elses equipment. Will I put them out of business, not likely. But there already is, and will continue to be, a drop in their bottom line.
Other people have sent me links to similar complaints about shooting chrony, so it’s not just me. Maybe it’s more disturbing to wonder if you are going to be next shooting chrony victim. Hit and miss customer service scares everyone. That’s what I mean whenI ask, “are you going to be the next person that sc screws?”
mine was picky about the light too…..fluoresent/tv/computer monitor etc at the same time as measuring would give errors…..and of the 3 models i have had they have all been very sensitive to shot placement….it has to be right over the sensors…….i thought you had the whole sky screen area….but no…maybe with big bore stuff it would be ok i dont know
display would fit, but then there would be no room for the wire
Mine did 8 strings of ten shots. As you exceeded the 10 shots, it would start dropping a shot from the so you had to be careful and not shoot more than 10 shots; otherwise it would queer the data. It was very picky about light. And they treated me like shit! Are you, someone who has already bought a sc product, or the guy who is about to purchase a sc product, gonna be the next sc victim???
I am surprised to hear that the master model’s display doesn’t fit into the folded up unit.
One of my friends said, “just buy another one and keep going.” I can’t do that. They fucked me. I am a good customer. My money is green and I pay up. I don’t intentionally try to take advantage of anyone. This bitch on the other hand is a real piece of work. You guys should know the risks so as to be able to make the most informed decision possible.
The Pro Chrono will store up to 100 shots I believe. They say that their sky screen area is larger than sc’s. Because it doesn’t fold open, it is armored along the top. It looks like if I repeated my original sin again, the pellet would skip off the top of the unit. I have heard good things from others on this forum about the Pro Chrono.
Nice one Cyg’ 😀
i currently got the top model gamma master i think its called….i dont like the detachable display, for me its just hassle when setting up or packing it away as the display and wire does not fit inside when folded up.
and i can see the display through scope if at a distance or if its a close up measuring well your close enough to read it, only thing i think it would be good for is if your chrony with a lowpower airgun, then the display is out of the way, but the metal case is soft so it will prolly fuck up the sensor that sits on the other side…..so imho the remote display is not worth it
the other difference is memmory…..alpha holds 32 shots, cant remember what the beta does…but gamma holds 1000 shots, but it puts them into strings , which by default is 10 shots but can be altered to 32 i think….so the calculations it does is only per string, so you can not get the calculations for say 100 or for that matter 1000 shots. kinda annoying if your messing with a regged airgun and shooting more than the 32 shots
my dealings with shooting chrony has been ok….they didnt aprove of the extension cable i got cheap at radio shack….they wanted me to use their “approved” wire….but they have responded and fixed my chrony quick when i have shot it
i would go with the alpha model (no removable display)and a printer…32 shot memory….and with printer you can shoot as long strings as you like, and then just enter it in a spreadsheet and do the calculations there….or you can take a brake ad write down the numbers from memory and just continue shooting…buy some thick Plexiglas and put in front of display….that way it should be ok should an airgun hit it…..if you hit it with anything bigger than rimfire it will fuck up the chrony anyway Plexiglas or not
that or the chrony SteveinLA suggests…i just like the shooting chrony’s fold-ability which packs away nicely as long as its not a master model
most chronys use a sensor that see’s the shadow that a bullet makes….and those sensors are shock sensitive….so dropping either chrony will likely break it…i recommend getting a tripod as well for it
as for Steve’s case i do think they fucked up, and dealt with it wrong, i have talked to steve an they defiantly did not treat him the right way, even if they are trying to save a penny here and there
I’m thinking of getting one
Which is the best/reliable/true reading/ least ball ache…..
Not to de-value my Alpha Shooting Chrony with Remote Display, Printer (de-liar), Red LED LIGHT BARS, and black garbage bag dog house cover, but I made a similar mistake one time.
No, I didn’t shoot it, I mean when I was self employed I charged a customer for a repair when he dropped and broke a recording device. The charge probably cost me a lot of business among doctors in the area. Money was real tight for me just starting out in a business but it was a mistake I wish I hadn’t made. It was a rough 5 years of my life.
My experience with Shooting Chrony has been favorable. However when I mentioned that the new rods that come with the LED LIGHTS are not hardened and easy to bend, I got no reply to that. I figured they are struggling to keep their heads above water in a tough economy. Their chrony works pretty good once I learned to avoid most of the things that cause ERRORS and FALSE readings. If other products don’t have these problems and hold up under use and a little miss-use, I have yet to hear about it.
I believe that any brand of chronograph is up against a difficult situation in normal use and there best tool is to ensure as full customer satisfaction as possible.
When you get a chronograph, unless you have someone experienced to help out, you are in for a steep learning curve of how to get the most out of it. It’s the nature of the beast.
i have had a chrony that had a hole shot in the rear sensor and it works fine to this day even though i dont own it any more
IMHO they should just have fixed the display which was the complaint, and leave it to the consumer if they wanted the rear sensor housing fixed too
Funny thing you should mention it WOK, I’m loading a special batch of .308 Winchester just for such an occasion. Great minds think alike! 😀
Actually, I clipped the rear sensor on my Beta model with a pellet, not a high powered rifle. I did not shoot the display. That sensor was still functional and only had cosmetic damage, that was their assessment. I asked them to repair the diaplay that stopped displaying the last two digits fully. That had nothing to do with the chipped sensor housing. But it made for a good excuse to wiggle out of their warranty…their False Warranty.
What is interesting, is that other people have contacted me with stories of having their chronographs replaced and even upgraded after shooting them with high powered rifles and pistols. So, I guess that it is hit and miss with the shooting chrony company. Which experience will you have???
OBTW, I love that Johnny Cash avatar. 😎
You should shoot your Pro Chrono and see what they say 😀
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I don’t much fancy buying anything from those people Steve. Even though I live over here and the customer service may be differnet….HA HA HA who am I kidding, customer service in this country is a rumour at best 😆
The Pro Chrony is from a different company?
Is it fussy about light or can I just deploy the bloody thing, shoot over it and it gives me my fps?(now there’s a crazy thought)