any experience with IR chronographs?

[Goin'Hot]

I'm out today TRYING to get some velocities with my PACT MK IV chrono and I don't trust the velocities. Ill get three readings within 20 fps of each other and then a shot 150 fps higher. The sun is in / out of the clouds.

I've seen the PACT professional and CED IR models are avalible. Does anybody here have any use with either or both of these units? They both will download data to my PC which is a nice feature.

Looking to buy and I need reliability in ALL / varying light conditions.

 

[Lowlight]

Re: any experience with IR chronographs?

I have seen the sun effect a CED Ir as well, in brighter sun it works better with them off also in odd angled sun it gives bad readings. I have covered the top of the screens with a long wide Cardboard and then used the IR to maintain even light. That seemed to help when the angle of the sun was affecting the numbers.

So really the Sun definitely effects it either way in my experience you just have to "know" if you ever really can, when numbers just don't look right, then you have to adjust accordingly which I base on experience seeing it happen often.

 

[gcoulsey]

Re: any experience with IR chronographs?

I have the CED ir screens too, for night use,
I havnt needed them yet, but tried them quick when they first arrived,
In bright sunshine they didn't work too good,
But that's not what they are designed for..
The regular screens have worked fine in all sun/cloud
Situations so far for me.

Sorry not much help!

 

[Jumper]

Re: any experience with IR chronographs?

To get consistent readings unimpaired by atmospheric light conditions some guys have built a felt lined box with an opening on each end to totally enclose their sensors. It shields the sensors from any light other than the IR screens. Its big, bulky hard to move around but it works. A simpler solution is to put an IR passing filter over the sensors. The filter would blind the sensor to all other light waves except the frequency output by the screens. Then, ambient light conditions shouldn't matter at all and you don't have a heavy box to transport. The hard part is getting the correct IR filter.

 

[Jumper]

Re: any experience with IR chronographs?

Here's a thread that has some technical info about IR skyscreens. Fred Dobbs has the answer for the IR filter:
http://www.snipershide.com/forum/ubbthre...632#Post2272632