Since its introduction in 2014, Labradar’s “personal” ballistic radar chronograph has been a favorite for handloaders. Small enough to fit in a bag, it became popular with competitive shooters, especially the extreme long-range crowd. A decade on, the firm is joining the booming compact chronograph trend with its latest Labradar model, the LX. Check out the video above featuring the Labradar LX, or watch it at YouTube.
Much smaller than the original Labradar, the new LX has dimensions of 2½ x 2¾ x 2¾ inches and weighs 11½ ounces, sans tripod. This small shooting chronograph uses Doppler radar, like the original Labradar, and will measure the speed of rifles, handguns, pellet guns, bows and crossbows from approximately 65 f.p.s. to 5,003 f.p.s., with a short and wide 15x30-degree beamwidth. The company’s promotional materials state that it is “accurate with projectiles traveling at subsonic, transonic and hypersonic speeds.” In addition, it has useful features like an internal battery and a bright LCD display.
Rifles, pistols and bows have individual modes. Measurement range for rifles is between 1,575 f.p.s. and 5,003 f.p.s., for handguns it’s from 591 f.p.s. to 1,608 f.p.s. and for archery, it’s between 66 f.p.s. and 623 f.p.s.
The Labradar LX logs information such as maximum velocity, minimum velocity, average velocity, extreme spread and standard deviation. The chronograph also includes a built-in IPSC/USPSA/IDPA Power Factor calculator. This functionality is beneficial for action shooters focusing on load development.
A peep sight on top of the Labradar LX assists in aligning the internal radar antenna along the trajectory of the bullet or arrow. In practice, I found using the sight is not necessary, as the unit is quite forgiving, as long as you have it positioned less than about three feet from the muzzle.
The Labradar LX is mostly black, but it also has the bright orange color known from the original Labradar chronograph. You can see the orange on the frame around the antenna side. As for the base, it has a standard 1⁄4-20 camera screw for tripod attachment. The included three-leg tripod screws in easily. There is also a USB-C port on the bottom for recharging the built-in battery and updating the device’s firmware. An external trigger port is situated adjacent to the USB-C port at the bottom. Plus, a small rubber cover flap is attached to the LX chronograph, which should help keep the connectors stay clean and dry, preventing bad connections and corrosion.
Seven buttons located under the LX’s screen feature icons that simplify the identification of their purpose. Two buttons are on the left and right sides that turn the unit on and arm the radar. The remaining buttons are used for selection and configuration. While the buttons are easy to use, their location on the Labradar LX unit can cause misalignment. This can happen while adjusting the settings or even arming the LX’s radar. To avoid this, I advise using the companion MyLabradar app to arm the unit, which pairs with your Android or iOS smartphone or tablet via Bluetooth.
The Labradar LX’s operating system has a slight learning curve, but you get the hang of it after a few sessions. It stores shot series in numbered folders. Different screens show current shot data, series statistics and details about each shot. You can also enter the projectile weight (for Power Factor calculation), Vx distance, units of measurement and trigger sensitivity level. The color LCD display is vivid and legible, suitable for both indoor and outdoor use. The device also has a customizable screen saver, which lowers screen brightness when not in use to save battery power.
The Labradar LX chronograph possesses sufficient built-in storage to document up to 999 shooting sequences, with up to 250 shots for each sequence. To export data, you can use a USB-C cable or the MyLabradar app.
In all, this is a solid piece of kit for load development. Worth pointing out—the Labradar’s LX’s similarities with the current king of compact chronographs, the Garmin Xero C1 Pro. While there are some differences, such as the Labradar requirement to be armed before shooting, and the Garmin unit only having four buttons and overall smaller dimensions, these two chronographs are similar enough in functionality at the same price, that when it comes to picking one, it really comes down to personal preference.
You can purchase the Labradar LX compact shooting chronograph online for $599.95 at midwayusa.com. Labradar makes the unit at its production facility in Canada. Learn more at mylabradar.com.
