Chrome
Firefox
Edge
The Garmin Xero C1 Pro Chronograph has become one of the most crucial pieces of our kits as we go out and evaluate, not just rifles, but also ammunition. Shooting chronographs are a vital part of a serious shooter's toolbox. By calculating the velocity of a projectile, if you know the weight, you'll know not only how much energy you're delivering downrange, but also whether this projectile matches up with a regulation or an in-spec cartridge for your rifle. So, it's not only for performance, but it's also for safety's sake. That is doubly crucial for reloaders like us.
We have some cartridges loaded up to the Swedish M/41 spec that we’ll be shooting out of a Swedish M38 rifle. We also have some cartridges loaded up with a new type of powder, attempting to duplicate the speed that the regulation cartridge puts out. This chronograph is going to tell us exactly how much deviation there is between the two cartridges because, of course, the powder charge is different.
Once you turn the Xero C1 on and choose to start a new session, you select the session type - i.e., rifle, pistol, bow, etc., then the grain weight of the projectile, the general speed of the projectile, and finally the position of the Xero C1 in relation to the firearm. Typically, weight and speed are to determine if you're working with supersonic ammunition or subsonic ammunition. In this case, for a high-powered rifle, it will be set on the high-velocity category. After that, it is ready to record your shots. So far for us, the Xero C1’s accuracy has been good, and you get immediate feedback on the projectiles that you put down range. Our spec ammunition is hovering at a 2,535 feet per second average.
After firing a few shots of our custom load, the Xero C1 shows us that it is slightly hotter, so we’ll go back to the reloading bench and tone it down a bit. As a diagnosis tool, we’re pleased with the accuracy of the Xero C1 in telling us how fast our projectiles are going. On the display screen, it lists the minimum velocity, the maximum velocity of the string and the average feet per second. It also syncs to your phone so you can see more detailed information and maintain historical data.
The uses of this chronograph can clearly apply to loading for vintage rifles shooters, but they can also be applied to the precision rifle community when developing an ideal rifle load. Casual shooters can use this to clock the performance of the cartridges they're shooting. Not only does the Xero C1 display actual speed, but it also does a quick analysis to display the immediate mean and standard deviation, which can reveal how much variance there is between two different cartridges. Seeing that allows you to better evaluate the quality and consistency of your ammunition.
For example, while we were shooting the Steyr AUG LMG for a video, one of the projectiles shot much lower than the others, but we couldn’t be sure why, as it didn’t seem to be caused by poor aiming or shooting technique. We went back and looked at the data from the Xero C1 and we realized that one cartridge was loaded to shoot slightly slower. The recorded velocity numbers and standard deviation information helped us make that determination.
This little device packs a lot of new technology in it. The Garmin Xero C1 Pro Chronograph is one of those things we didn't know we wanted until we saw it. We highly recommend it.
--9-Hole Reviews
