Shot timers - the good, the bad, and the why do I go all apeman when I hear the beep?

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AppKalash

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Cool to see so much competition talk and interest, especially from new people looking to participate. Little do they know that hearing the beep is when the fun really starts and sadly often my brain goes dumb :eek::rolleyes:

I want to get a shot timer for numerous reasons, not the least of which is better match performance with less brain farts!

Which is the best to buy? How are the best ways to utilize them in training? Is it possible for an individual to use one without assistance while shooting?
 
I like the pocket pro timer. Big and easy to read with very simple controls. I also just got a shotmaxx timer for Christmas. Way more complicated, but it's louder than my pocket pros and it got tons of options. One interesting thing is that I can set it to stealth mode.. it activates a shot timer at the sharp movement of your arM ( the draw) this enables you to record your shots during a stage all stealthy. Then it Bluetooth s it to your phone. Pretty trick.
 
I have a ced7000. I don't hate it but don't love it either. It works. Has some nice features.
 
If you have a smart phone there are a plethora of free shot timer aps out there. I don't know which one to tell you to get as far as accuracy or ease of use, but just having something so that you can practice drawing on the beep is a big help.
 
For dryfire practice I use an app called Dry Practice Drill. You can set the par times and interval between reps.
 
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If you are looking for something to help with training, stay away from the pocket pro line. Even with the sensitivity all the way up, I have to tap it with my pistol for it to register a shot. But for live fire I love the pocket pro 2. Easy to set settings, par times, and you can set a random delay with a minimum delay time so that it's easy to press the button and get your hands into the desired position before the beep. I've used the phone timers and they were ok, I would say the biggest advantage of the phone ones is that they will keep multiple strings for review. I ran my pp2 beside my phone timer and the phone timer never had a split below .22 while the pocket pro was reading in the .18 range. Just my experience, hope it helps.
 
Pocket Pro 2.

Big numbers, big buttons, easy to read in sunlight (unlike the CED7000) and the new PP2s have adjustable volume for dryfire, adjustable backlight, etc.

​​​​​​I love mine, and if you try to take it from me I'll fight you.
 
slow is slow;n31526 said:
If you are looking for something to help with training, stay away from the pocket pro line. Even with the sensitivity all the way up, I have to tap it with my pistol for it to register a shot. But for live fire I love the pocket pro 2. Easy to set settings, par times, and you can set a random delay with a minimum delay time so that it's easy to press the button and get your hands into the desired position before the beep. I've used the phone timers and they were ok, I would say the biggest advantage of the phone ones is that they will keep multiple strings for review. I ran my pp2 beside my phone timer and the phone timer never had a split below .22 while the pocket pro was reading in the .18 range. Just my experience, hope it helps.
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I don't think there's a shot timer on the market that will pick up dryfire clicks, and honestly, I'm not sure what the value of it would be. Setup a par time and go with that.
 
FlatFender;n31534 said:
I don't think there's a shot timer on the market that will pick up dryfire clicks, and honestly, I'm not sure what the value of it would be. Setup a par time and go with that.
Click to expand...

I have found the shotmaxx picks it up 99% in airsoft mode. But I see no value in it.
 
FlatFender said:
slow is slow;n31526 said:
If you are looking for something to help with training, stay away from the pocket pro line. Even with the sensitivity all the way up, I have to tap it with my pistol for it to register a shot. But for live fire I love the pocket pro 2. Easy to set settings, par times, and you can set a random delay with a minimum delay time so that it's easy to press the button and get your hands into the desired position before the beep. I've used the phone timers and they were ok, I would say the biggest advantage of the phone ones is that they will keep multiple strings for review. I ran my pp2 beside my phone timer and the phone timer never had a split below .22 while the pocket pro was reading in the .18 range. Just my experience, hope it helps.
Click to expand...

I don't think there's a shot timer on the market that will pick up dryfire clicks, and honestly, I'm not sure what the value of it would be. Setup a par time and go with that.
Click to expand...
Pardon my ignorance(semi-pun intended---) but can you please explain this a little more? I don't know what a par time is and how it relates to a timer not hearing a dry fire click. Follow me?
 
FlatFender;n31534 said:
I don't think there's a shot timer on the market that will pick up dryfire clicks, and honestly, I'm not sure what the value of it would be. Setup a par time and go with that.
Click to expand...

A program called IPSC Shot Timer (beta) on Android picks up my dryfire pretty well, I only use it for draws, it's a little more accurate than trying to see how close to the beep you are, other than that, pretty useless.
 
AppKalash
Pardon my ignorance(semi-pun intended---) but can you please explain this a little more? I don't know what a par time is and how it relates to a timer not hearing a dry fire click. Follow me?
Click to expand...

Sorry, I can't reply to the comments well on my phone.

A par time is simply a second beep on a timer after an amount of time that you specify.

Say I wanted to work a simple draw and shoot dryfire drill. I set my timer to random start, with something like a .8 par time. When I push the button the timer will beep and then .8 seconds later it will beep again. My goal is to get that draw and shoot finished before the second beep.

That's all a par time is, a second beep to denote the end of your drill. I use it for basically all dryfire drills, and other than a couple exceptions, hardly ever use the par time for live fire.
 
Pocket Pro 2 does everything I need. Random start makes solo use easy. I do have to flip trough the manual sometimes though when I want to do something different. The belt clip sucks and comes off the spring all the time, need to JBWeld is or something. Still on the same battery I put in it when I got it a year ago.

I was pretty dissatisfied with the IPSC Shot timer app, lame at picking up live fire without a helper.

I agree par time is the way to go for dryfire. Without recoil what's the point in splits?

Buddy's PACT seems ok but has an appetite for batteries.
 
Let me ask this.
I understand when the RO holds the timer up near your head when you start the stage, but why in the hell do they follow you around holding that thing a foot away from your head as you work?
I've never heard it make any more sounds after that first beep.
 
They must pick up the last shot to give you a total run time. If they missed any of the final shots, the time would be quicker than they actually shot it, and because of so many other shots in other bays, the sensitivity must be down not too pick up those other shots. Hence the reason they stay so close to the shooter.
 
slow is slow;n32140 said:
They must pick up the last shot to give you a total run time. If they missed any of the final shots, the time would be quicker than they actually shot it, and because of so many other shots in other bays, the sensitivity must be down not too pick up those other shots. Hence the reason they stay so close to the shooter.
Click to expand...

FatboyFlash is always covering his face with the timer when I shoot. Flash is that to pick up the quiet shots of my gun better?
 
slow is slow said:
They must pick up the last shot to give you a total run time. If they missed any of the final shots, the time would be quicker than they actually shot it, and because of so many other shots in other bays, the sensitivity must be down not too pick up those other shots. Hence the reason they stay so close to the shooter.
Click to expand...
I figured there was something to it cause I'm really not that pretty.
 
FlatFender;n31534 said:
I don't think there's a shot timer on the market that will pick up dryfire clicks, and honestly, I'm not sure what the value of it would be. Setup a par time and go with that.
Click to expand...

I practice in the garage sometimes with an Airsoft gun. Do you thing the PP2 would be able to register that?
 
Jht05016;n32165 said:
FatboyFlash is always covering his face with the timer when I shoot. Flash is that to pick up the quiet shots of my gun better?
Click to expand...

It's actually to try and prevent my ears from bleeding after you open guys run a stage!:cool:

Running ncav8tor inside a food truck was the worst! I still feel the side effects of that.
 
Tigard;n32225 said:
I practice in the garage sometimes with an Airsoft gun. Do you thing the PP2 would be able to register that?
Click to expand...

No idea. I'm not sure I've ever actually shoot an airsoft gun to know how loud they are. But, I'm not sure how useful tracking splits with a gun that doesn't recoil like a real gun would be anyways.
 
My first timer was the Pact Club 3. I highly recommend that one. I don't recommend spilling monster energy on it causing the buttons to stick until it is useless. It is super durable...I've dropped it a thousand times while running and it just keeps going.

The second timer I got was a Pocket pro 2. It has some features that the Pact doesn't have, and it is 40 bucks cheaper. I still like the simplicity of the Pact better...but the Pocket Pro is just as good.
 
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