Tuning My MagnetoSpeed chronograph finally arrived! Plus a quick test of my Prod and the Factor RC power dial.

It didn't take me very long to get the MagnetoSpeed set up on my two PCP guns, a Factor RC and a Prod / Marauder Pistol, both in .22 cal. Once the spacing of the Bayonet and the number of magnets was determined for each gun / pellet / speed combination, I got zero errors in 90+ 22 cal shots. See this link on AGN by fe7565 on how to use the magnets, which makes the Sporter version of the MagnetoSpeed work with pellets and 22 rimfire at half the cost of the V3. Their specs say centerfire cartridges only with the Sporter.

I found that with smaller and lighter pellets two Neodymium magnets were needed on each of the two internal magnet positions. The sensitivity was usually set to Hi 2 but with the Monsters it worked better at Hi 1. With the bigger pellets and faster velocity settings, one magnet on each spot usually worked well. The design of the clamping surface seems to tip the bayonet up slightly on my straight sided straight shrouds, so I put a shim under the front part of the bracket to tip the bayonet down until it was level with the bore line. I would like to find a light weight but very rigid aluminum tube that barely fits inside the bore for alignment. My cleaning rod is too heavy and has too much flex to make it a quick process. Though, once the settings and spacing are determined, you don't need to check the spacing again with a rod. I found that inserting the rod with the muzzle pointing up gave a more accurate clearance check. It won't work at all without the magnets, no matter how close you get the sensors to the bullet path.

I haven't tried it yet with .177 pellets as I rarely shoot my .177 guns anymore, but will do a test later and will report back. If I was serious about this hobby and had thousands invested in gear, I would probably get a radar style chrono like the FX that links directly to my phone, but this is great for what I want right now, plus it works with my powder burners as well which the FX would not!

Factor RC 22 Cal

These numbers were with the hammer spring set to max, using the three position power dial and the regulator set to 140 BAR for everything. The bottle pressure was kept between 2900 psi and 2200 psi. The Factor RC is as shipped from the factory with no mods. Note: I did take extra care in firing the strings for accuracy as I already knew that these three pellets would shoot well at 50 feet. I will test some H&N slugs soon.

22 CPHP 14.3 - Power at #1 - 10 shots - All shots touching at 50 ft (Max distance on my indoor range)
  • High - 662
  • Low -654
  • ES - 8
22 CPHP 14.3 - Power at #2 - 10 shots - All shots touching at 50 ft
  • High - 842
  • Low - 833
  • ES - 9
22 CPHP 14.3 - Power at #3 - 10 shots - The group opened up about 4x larger
  • High - 984
  • Low - 972 (Only one at this speed. Next lowest was 976 for an ES of 8)
  • ES - 12
JSB Jumbo Heavy 18.3 - Power at #3 - 5 shots* - All shots touching at 50 ft
*I was running out of JSB pellets so I stopped at 5 shots. I only sot the JSBs at power dial #3 as I had no interest in shooting them slower.
  • High - 909
  • Low - 904
  • ES - 5
JSB Jumbo Monster 25.39 - Power at #3 - 5 shots* - All shots touching at 50 ft
  • High - 820
  • Low - 817
  • ES - 3
22 Cal Prod / Marauder Pistol with no mods

22 CPHP 14.3 - 2600 psi down to about 2000 psi - 10 Shots into about 3/4" CTC at 50 ft.
Velocity dropped steadily with each shot. My Prod does not like the CPHP. The Meisterkugeln shoots the best of all my 22 cal pellets in the Prod. I will be running them across the chrono as soon as my next shipment arrives.
  • High - 664
  • Low - 634
  • ES - 30
22 CPHP 14.3 - 10 shots - 1900 psi down to about 1300 psi - Slightly larger group but still fairly close to the same POI as the string above.
  • High - 626
  • Low - 561
  • ES - 65
 
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I could never get my sporter version to read even with extra magnets stacked on the sensors.

That's too bad. How old was the one you tried? Did you get error messages or just no velocity reading? If no reading was the problem, it likely was not close enough to the pellet path.

I am guessing that due to the lower velocity plus lower mass, the pellet needs to be VERY close to the surface of the added magnets if using them. The owner's manual says you can be as far away as 0.375" with centerfire cartridges, but that will not work with pellets. I get within 1/8" or even a bit less for 100% functioning. The spacing has to be the same on the front and the rear magnet. Also you have to use silver Neodymium magnets. The dark colored more common type are not strong enough.

From the instructions:

Distances should be between 1/8” and 0.375” and they should be within 1/16” of each other.
 
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Yeah rare earth magnets from harbor freight, tiny little silver ones. It is an older sporter version. No reading on the monitor. I just use my shooting chrony inside at home with the added light attachment. Works so far. Magneeto for the powder burners so I don't have to worry abouying lighting. I also have the mount so you don't need it hanging off the barrel for no shift in impact.
 
The FX sure does look like a great piece of kit. If I used a chrono graph frequently on airguns, that would be the one I would get.

This MagnetoSpeed replaced my 30+? year old Chrony Beta that even with the right lighting outdoors or an LED light above the sensors indoors, would not pick up pellets or 22 rimfire. It works fine with centerfire stuff as does this one, so I gave it to my son.
 
I also have a Magnetospeed, V3. I like the way it works. No table needed.
I've done a quick verification with other chronograph numbers, as a verification of accuracy. So far so good. I'll be doing another check using the American Air Arms EVOL that I just received. I have the Airguns of Arizona speeds that they tested the gun with.
A couple of extra dollars for the V3 is fine to me. This way, I know the calibration is correct.

As for the MagnetoSpeed, "Sporter", it WILL NOT work with pellets (out of the box). As noted on their website.

Mike
 
The MagnetoSpeed Sporter with the added magnets is still working great. Significantly fewer errors than my old Beta had reading with firearms outdoors. I have never used an FX which seems to be the go to for airguns so I don't know what the frequency of errors is on those other than seeing quite a few error messages on YouTube videos. If the FX worked with firearms, I would have definitely bought that one instead as the prices are fairly close. Once the spacing and the number of magnets are figured out, I am getting less than 1 error out of 40 shots. Some sessions give zero errors. For $169 I am pretty happy with it since it does double duty on airguns and powder burners. I can live without the voice and recording features for now. I have not tried it with a .177 gun yet, but I am guessing it might not work very well. I will post an update if I do, but my .177 Diana 54 just sits in its case these days.
 
I tried to get the MagnetoSpeed Sporter to work on my newest airgun - A Beeman 2027 in .177 cal. The barrel is so skinny that none of the spacers were the right thickness to be within 0.125 and 0.25" of the bottom of the pellet path. But I got it as close as I could with 2 magnets on each sensor. It kept giving me Error 2, so it is detecting the pellet but not reading the velocity. I will keep working on getting the spacing down to the recommended distance. Not too worried about it not working for this gun as it shoots extremely well with Meisterkugeln pellets and I have no intentions of modifying anything internally.
 
I tested the MangetoSpeed Sporter on my new Gauntlet 30. It worked with no added spacer, no magnets, with the sensor just under 1/4" from the bottom of the bullet path and sensitivity at H2. I initially set it up with magnets on it, but the air blast from the Gauntlet 30 blew the magnets off the bayonet! They are somewhere between my shooting table and the garage. ❓ The slug stayed in the group, so there was no contact with the magnets, just air. No visible holes in any of the furniture or walls! Apparently with the larger 68 grain "Bob's Boat Tail" slug going 890 FPS = no magnets needed.