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Post by ET on Oct 11, 2019 22:08:48 GMT -5
First off, I couldn’t get proper readings off my Chrony. Velocities didn’t make sense. Okay I completed my 3-set of 4759 traces with load resistance at 24lbs average without velocity readings. Wanted one more set of 4759 traces to compare with previous higher load resistance test. Then moved onto 4227 tracing. Okay first 3-shots traced and then a false trigger trace occurred. I didn’t notice it right away and took a forth shot. Then computer displayed a corrupt file notice. Now what? For a moment I was fit to be tied. I saved the file but couldn’t open it afterwards. Okay now I have another project in a project to find out why equipment isn’t responding as I anticipate it should. I have trouble believing why this project is turning into such a steep uphill climb with so many obstacles? So what did work correctly is a picture of my target. Now that couldn’t screw up. Okay not wanting to be locked down I’m going to advance to my 3/8” recessed BP and do the load resistance test over with 50gr of 4227 only. Hopefully the PT program will respond correctly enough to get some kind of testing done. As for the Chrony it’s going to be a bystander for now. Ed
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scat
Spike
Posts: 37
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Post by scat on Oct 12, 2019 6:31:54 GMT -5
First off, I couldn’t get proper readings off my Chrony. Velocities didn’t make sense. Okay I completed my 3-set of 4759 traces with load resistance at 24lbs average without velocity readings. Wanted one more set of 4759 traces to compare with previous higher load resistance test. Then moved onto 4227 tracing. Okay first 3-shots traced and then a false trigger trace occurred. I didn’t notice it right away and took a forth shot. Then computer displayed a corrupt file notice. Now what? For a moment I was fit to be tied. I saved the file but couldn’t open it afterwards. Okay now I have another project in a project to find out why equipment isn’t responding as I anticipate it should. I have trouble believing why this project is turning into such a steep uphill climb with so many obstacles? So what did work correctly is a picture of my target. Now that couldn’t screw up. Okay not wanting to be locked down I’m going to advance to my 3/8” recessed BP and do the load resistance test over with 50gr of 4227 only. Hopefully the PT program will respond correctly enough to get some kind of testing done. As for the Chrony it’s going to be a bystander for now. Ed Not knowing the condition of your unit or cables and if you bought it new or not, I will share some insight on my past experiences. My unit began having issues like you speak of within a few sessions. I called the fellow at RSI. He advised me to flash the unit firmware. That did not work. He sent me more files and instructions to erase and reflash at a much deeper level. It worked and I've never had another problem. Being an Electronics engineer, I totally understood the problem when he mentioned the xray equipment used by USPS likely corrupted the unit in shipment to me. Cables. Always keep at least 1 spare main cable and several of the short sacrificial cables that connect to the strain gage. I say this because unlike benchrest cartridge shooters, we must remove the gun from the bench every shot to reload. This flexes the cables and they break internally. Being that the unit measures resistance of the strain gage to determine pressure, any change in cable resistance directly effects traced pressure displayed. One of the first signs of connection problems is false traces. This is why I always shoot my calibration load before testing to confirm it is correct. I also check calibration at the end of the session to confirm it is still correct which confirms that the session data collected is accurate.
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Post by ET on Oct 12, 2019 9:42:54 GMT -5
Scat
I really appreciate your assistance in determining what is transpiring with my PT unit. It was bought new, one of the earlier models just in a plastic case. Visually all appears well and when I stored it for numerous years it was inside a waterproof case. First outing went without a hitch even with moving cabling for reloading. I think the first check I need to do is hook up the unit with the supplied false gauge and wiggle the cables as well as the plug connections while in shooting mode. If there is even a momentary break then a false trace indication should appear. I always check the Strain gage voltage on each start up. I agree load validation check is needed to maintain accuracy.
Again, I really appreciate your help in investigating what is transpiring with my unit.
Thanks Scat Ed
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Post by ET on Oct 13, 2019 6:04:32 GMT -5
Thanks to Scat's post I started with checking my PT cable connections and no issues there. Now Scats mention of power interruption got me thinking so I tried retracing the events at the range. One thing came to mind was that when the message of file corruption on the screen appeared my computer had gone to Battery Saving Mode. Maybe, just maybe that might have caused my file corruption. Something I have to explore to eliminate as a possibility.
The weather is getting cooler so I'm going to shorten my wait time between shots. Also keep a closer eye on my battery level. It's obvious I don't have a lot of time and experience with the unit but I'm learning. If that is not the issue then all I have left is a program issue.
Now it's time to give the old lady (10ML-II) a good cleaning, switch BP'S and continue on our journey of testing. For some reason I again enjoy having the old lady in my arms barking and bucking. All I need to do is keep her clean and feed her the right diet, chuckle.
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scat
Spike
Posts: 37
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Post by scat on Oct 13, 2019 8:18:33 GMT -5
I use an aftermarket power supply for my computer that has both AC and DC (cigarette lighter plug) cables. I take an automotive battery to the range and connect it with a cigarette lighter plug adapter for a constant supply. Turn off screen savers and set power saving to off or disable it.
If you get a lot of false traces, decrease the sensitivity (1-10) look at the display before pulling the trigger. If a false trace happens, it can be erased using the "delete last trace tab". If another shot is fired, the false trace cannot be deleted without deleting the more recent one. You can select not to display it but then your data looks questionable because for example you are displaying traces 1,2,4,5.
A very good habit is to never turn the unit on with no cable and strain gage connected. This can also cause firmware glitches, requiring the unit be re-flashed.
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Post by ET on Oct 13, 2019 11:13:33 GMT -5
I use an aftermarket power supply for my computer that has both AC and DC (cigarette lighter plug) cables. I take an automotive battery to the range and connect it with a cigarette lighter plug adapter for a constant supply. Turn off screen savers and set power saving to off or disable it. If you get a lot of false traces, decrease the sensitivity (1-10) look at the display before pulling the trigger. If a false trace happens, it can be erased using the "delete last trace tab". If another shot is fired, the false trace cannot be deleted without deleting the more recent one. You can select not to display it but then your data looks questionable because for example you are displaying traces 1,2,4,5. A very good habit is to never turn the unit on with no cable and strain gage connected. This can also cause firmware glitches, requiring the unit be re-flashed. Hey Scat Any additional advice is welcomed. Being a guest at the range I need to know what I'm allowed to bring and use. And once I talk to someone with authority to clarify my options of what I can bring then I have a path for additional power. Now the range roof has power outlets for AC plugin. If they are live all the time and permission given to use one then a power cord and my 20V battery charger would take care of power issues. Working on it. My sensitivity level is set at 3. The only time I have experienced false traces is near the end of battery life. Will turn off screen savers disable power saving mode. Know about jumping numerical trace number as I've seen it when using pause mode. Normally I don't do anything, even when the unit asks me if I want to recalibrate after 5-minutes. When I'm ready I just hit NO on the request and continue. As for cable connections they are all made before I call up the trace program. Any other thoughts or advice would be greatly appreciated to get me on track faster. The one thing I do is copy my files onto my other computer for better viewing and analyzing. Here I use Windows 10 in XP compatibility mode. It works just fine. Also I place a copy on my external Hard Drive so there should be no chance of losing hard earned data. Again thanks for your help, Scat Ed
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Post by edge on Oct 13, 2019 14:58:10 GMT -5
SNIP. You can select not to display it but then your data looks questionable because for example you are displaying traces 1,2,4,5. SNIP.. Trace data is easily manipulated in WordPad or other editing software. If you get a trace with a long delay, most likely caused by unit triggering on sear disengagement, then delete those zero lines and renumber. These two traces are the same, I only changed 1,2,3,4,5 traces to 2,4,6,8,10 You can overlay traces this way too. Just remember that Traces must go in order, and the max is 10...at least in my old unit. If you renumber 1,2,4,3, then you will only get 1,2,4 and it will not recognize #3
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Post by GMB54-120 on Oct 13, 2019 15:22:17 GMT -5
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Post by ET on Oct 13, 2019 18:57:06 GMT -5
Edge Appreciate your suggestion but my unit display appears to be different. Ed
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Post by ET on Oct 13, 2019 19:00:56 GMT -5
GMB54-120 I have a older Lenovo 310 Think Pad with XP. I can't locate any such access for USB power management. Thanks for trying to assist. Ed
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Post by edge on Oct 13, 2019 19:46:07 GMT -5
Edge Appreciate your suggestion but my unit display appears to be different. SNIP. Ed Please explain? You open the PTC file with WordPad, not in your display. edge. It will look like this at the start. 3.30 Chart Title = 30-06 Springfield - Sierra 150gr Gameking Boattail Comments = Varget powder series. 0.5 grain increase per shot. Note that traces T5 and T3 are very similar. Barrel = Rem700BDL-3006 Gage Factor = 2.12 Barrel OD = 1.187 Barrel ID = 0.454 Case Wall Thickness = 0.027 Pressure Correction = 100 Barrel Length = 24 Case Length = 2.494 PSI Average = 42619 PSI SD = 2933 PSI Prob 95% = 4071 PSI High = 44402 PSI Low = 37427 PSI Extreme Spread = 6974 Area Under Curve Average = 3508932 Area Under Curve SD = 216340 Area Under Curve Prob 95% = 300281 Area Under Curve High = 3753952 Area Under Curve Low = 3180131 Area Under Curve Extreme Spread = 573821 Rise Time Average = 236 Rise Time SD = 20 Rise Time Prob 95% = 28 Rise Time High = 260 Rise Time Low = 210 Rise Time Extreme Spread = 50 Ambient Temperature = 60 Barometric Pressure = 30 Relative Humidity = 50 Shot Number = 2 THIS IS THE NUMBER TO CHANGEPeak Pressure = 37427.95 Peak Time = 42 Muzzle Velocity = 2707 Area Under Curve = 3180132 Rise Time = 220 Load Efficiency = 100 41.38549 11855.47 41.38549 11855.47 45.14785 12242.94 48.91018 12630.4 56.4348 13405.32 etc.......
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Post by ET on Oct 13, 2019 20:10:13 GMT -5
Edge
Now I understand with the additional instructions. Some days I'm not the brightest bulb with computers. I don't have Wordpad so are there any other programs that would make this possible?
Disregard last sentence as I found Note Pad and can open the PT file in this program. A new lesson learned.
Ed
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Post by ET on Oct 13, 2019 22:07:58 GMT -5
Thanks to Edge and his patience to educate me about using a different format to examine my PT file I managed to save part of my corrupted file. By deleting the corrupt section of my PT format I now could open the file. Thanks Edge Boy this has been an all-around educational day for me. Ed
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Post by GMB54-120 on Oct 14, 2019 8:55:32 GMT -5
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Post by ET on Oct 14, 2019 12:37:09 GMT -5
Thanks for your persistence to help and taking the extra step to guide me. Both Hubs now have their power management turned off. Thanks GMB54-120
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Post by GMB54-120 on Oct 14, 2019 13:29:35 GMT -5
Its been awhile but i had some USB device related issues many years ago with WinXP. Unchecking those boxes resolved those issues. Might have been a printer or scanner but the reason behind it is the same.
Basically they go into standby or sleep mode and dont come out of it when you want them to.
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Post by ET on Oct 14, 2019 15:08:12 GMT -5
GMB54-120
With my educational upgrade from you, Edge and Scat I now have a renewed confidence level with PT testing. All I need to do is more closely monitor my battery level and not be so concerned about possible unwanted hick-ups. Even if this laptop takes a nose dive and another laptop is necessary with a higher Windows format all I need to do is turn XP compatibility mode on and I'm in business. Currently all my review is on another laptop with Windows 10 in XP compatibility mode using the PT program and no issues here.
Now with the help of others for recovery of my bruises from falling off the electronic horse I'm now ready to get back on riding again, chuckle.
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