Best Shot Timers – What is right for you?

All the high-end ammo, match-grade barrels, and compensators don’t mean a thing if your own personal skills aren’t sharp enough. You can’t buy skill, but you can buy gear to help you become a better shooter. These pieces of gear require you to do the work while helping you along the way. One such piece of gear is the Shot Timer.

If you’ve seen a USPSA, IPSC or any real action shooting sport you would have seen a shot timer. The guy carrying the little square thing behind the shooter is carrying a Shot Timer. So now you might be asking, how does a tool used for competition help you sharpen your skills. If you’re not a competitive shooter then you might not see the value of this tool. The best way to tell you how a shot timer can help, is to explain what a shot timer is. 

What’s a Shot Timer?

Shot timers are very simple tools at heart. They are capable of registering the sound of a gunshot and recording the point in time in which that gunshot is heard. When you press GO and the device is activated, you will hear a ‘Beep’ to indicate when you can start shooting, at this time the device starts recording and registering your shots. At its core, that’s all a shot timer is. The reason it can sharpen you and your skills is that it provides objective data. 

Objective data at the range is tough to come by. Sure you can see accuracy and you can see consistency, everything in between though can be tough to come by. A shot timer allows you to measure speed and a target allows you to measure accuracy. Between the two, you can work to sharpen your skills by tracking your flaws. 

With a shot timer, you can measure your speeds for a variety of important skills. Drawing, reloading, and completing drills are all the better with a shot timer. Those skills all require speed, and without a shot timer, you’ll never know how fast you are going or where your weak points are. The same goes for shot cadence. Measuring the time between shots and the accuracy of your groups can help diagnose a variety of problems. 

This includes poor sight tracking skills and poor recoil control. With a shot timer, you can work to diagnose these problems and work your way through them. A shot timer costs less than 500 rounds of ammunition and will certainly sharpen your skills. 

Shot timers are expensive tools but well worth the money. They can even be used for dry fire practice. Well, good ones can. They can’t measure the dry fire shots, but they can provide a par time to work against while reloading, drawing, and fixing staged malfunctions. 

Best Shot Timers

• Competition Electronics Pocket Pro 2
• RangeTech Bluetooth Shot Timer
• PACT Club Shot Timer 3
• CED 7000 Shot Timer
• Double-Alpha ShotMAXX 2 Shot Timer Watch

The Best Shot Timers

1. Competition Electronics Pocket Pro 2		Editor’s Choice Stores up to 99 shots Adjustable Shot Sensitivity Long Battery Life	Check Price
2. RangeTech Bluetooth Shot Timer		Most Affordable Option Lightweight and Compact Rechargeable battery	Check Price
3. PACT Club Shot Timer 3		Professional Grade Shot Timer Easy to Ready Screen Sensitive Sensor	Check Price
4. CED 7000 Shot Timer		Connects to Various Extra Tools Multiple Modes Ultra Loud Timer	Check Price
5. Double-Alpha ShotMAXX 2 Shot Timer Watch		Watch Based Timer Ultra-Sensitive Sensor Smallest, Lightest Shot Timer	Check Price

Best Shot Timer Specs

Below we have outlined the main specifications of each Shot Timer so you can simply compare one with the other. In this table we look at the type of Battery, Battery Life, Weight and Length of each timer.

Review of the Best Shot Timers

Below, we’ll take a look at each of these shot timers and discuss their advantages as well as disadvantages. We will also examine the price so you know what to expect before making your purchase decision!

Competition Electronics Pocket Pro 2 Review

My favorite shot timer is Pocket Pro 2, aka Big Blue. Big Blue and I have been training together for years. In the frigid cold, the brutal summers, and even in the rain a time or two. The Pocket Pro 2 is an outstanding shot timer that keeps things very basic. The huge buttons are a godsend and provide immediate tactile feedback. The ‘Go’ button is huge and very easy to press for solo training. 

The big clip makes it pocket-friendly, and it attaches with ease. The position of the screen makes it easy to read without ever having to remove it from your pocket. The screen is easy to read, and the backlight makes it even easier when lights are low. Cycling through the menu is insanely easy and setting up the various par times, surprise timers, etc., is very easy. 

The Pocket Pro 2 has never failed to detect a gunshot, never failed to beep when needed, and has always been right by my side. Shooters looking for the best will be well served by the Pocket Pro 2, especially for solo training. 

Pocket Pro 2 Pros and Cons

RangeTech Bluetooth Shot Timer Review

Lots of shot timers, including many on this list, are quite expensive. It seems odd that such dated tech is so expensive, but you do get what you pay for. If you want a more budget-friendly option the RangeTech Bluetooth Shot Timer might be the right option for you. It’s almost half the price of the Pock Pro 2 and delivers outstanding performance. 

The thing about the RangeTech is that you will need an Android or iOS device. This gives you a readable screen and makes it easy to see your various times. Your phone acts as your interface. As such, it’s easily the most intuitive system to set up. You can also very easily review your previous shot times and screens. 

The actual timer is super compact and lightweight. It has a big button that makes range use to activate. Set your phone up in front of you, and you have a huge screen that makes it easy to review your times. It’s a sweet setup that helps cut the cost of a shot timer by just using a device you already have. 

RangeTech Bluetooth Pros and Cons

PACT Club Shot Timer 3 Review

The PACT Club Shot Timer 3 is one of the favorites for competition shooters. The super loud beep makes it easy to use among a big range where numerous shooters might be popping rounds off at the same time. That loud beep makes a big difference. Besides that, the PACT provides a super simplistic layout. 

It’s just a few buttons and they are massive and provides outstanding feedback when pressed. The go button is literally labeled GO! The layout of the buttons makes it very easy for an RSO to hold the device or for a shooter to train solo. The big screen is also nice and easy to read. It’s positioned so a solo shooter can see his or her time with just a quick glance towards their pocket. 

The PACT Club Shot Timer 3 can hold par times, set random delays, and measure a stream of different shots. Perfect for tracking your progress and building upon it. The PACT Club Shot Timer 3 keeps things simple, and simple can be good. 

PACT Club Shot Timer 3 pros and cons

CED 7000 Shot Timer Review

Simple isn’t bad, but when you want something more advanced, then you turn to the CED 7000 Shot Timer. One of the cooler features is the CED 7000’s ability to connect to the CED BigBoard or Timekeeper for quick and easy looks at your performance. The timer comes with a solo and RSO mode to keep things easy and on the fly. 

You can program multiple par times for quick changes between drills and ranges. This makes it really easy to set up a day of training before you leave the house. The memory holds ten strings of fire for easy reviews after a few drill runs. Why stop training after every drill? Run ten, then review, take notes, etc. 

The CED 7000 is not the cheapest option, but it’s one of the more professional-oriented shot timers. It’s also super compact and very easy to use if you just want a basic shot timer. If you run a range or are an instructor, you might want the CED 7000 in your pocket. 

CED 7000 Shot Timer pros and cons

ShotMaXX 2 Shot Timer Watch Review

It’s a shot timer that doubles as a watch. As such, it’s the smallest, most convenient shot timer on the planet. It straps to your wrist, and that’s it! It’s super easy for a solo shooter but not optimum for an RSO running a range. 

The screen’s small but easy to read. If you wear glasses, I suggest wearing them when you use the ShotMAXX 2. The ShotMAXX2 is one of the most sensitive sensors on the planet, and it can be used with airsoft guns and air guns, in general, to read times and train without live ammo. 

Outside of the sensor, the watch has an accelerator that can detect recoil and give you times based on recoil. This is great for indoor ranges where a multitude of shooters are sounding off. Heck, you can even use hand motions to start the drill. 

ShotMaXX 2 Shot Timer pros and cons

What to Consider when Choosing a Shot Timer

Shot timers are simple devices, but sadly there’s a bunch of rubbish ones that exist out there. Maybe the models above don’t quite scratch your itch. Well, if that’s the case, I can leave you with a little advice on choosing a shot timer. 

Ergonomics Inside and Out

The ergonomics of a shot timer are rather simple. You likely want one with big buttons on it. Buttons are easy to manipulate and easy to hit on the fly. This is especially true for the famed go button. You also want those buttons to provide some tactile feedback, so you know that they’ve been pressed while you wait for the beep. 

You likely also want it to be light enough not to tug and pull on your pants and pocket. When hanging down from a large clip, you don’t want the weight of the shot timer to make it flop about and free itself from your pocket and fly to the ground. That’s just a pain. Speaking of clips, with most shot timers, you’ll want some form of clip to hang it from your pocket or gear. 

Settings

With any shot timer, there are a variety of settings I want to be able to access and utilize when training. First, I want to be able to set a random start timer. This allows for some unpredictable surprises, and surprise is good. Surprise causes stress and beats predictability for training. A countdown timer also allows for solo training without someone else having to hold the timer. 

Second, I want the ability to set par times. Par times are essentially a timer that counts down and forces you to move fast to complete the drill. For example, the 10-10-10 drill requires a 10 second par time to pass. I set the par time on my timer, and the countdown to 10 begins as soon as the initial timer sounds. The second beep goes off when the 10 seconds is up. 

Next, I want the ability to review my par times and split times for each drill. I want to be able to read these times to track my progress inside the drill. This way, I can time my draw and where I might begin to slow down. I might find a spot where I’m dragging in the middle of the drill and pay special attention to that portion the next time I shoot it. 

Easy to Read Screen 

Shot timers don’t have very fancy screens. Often the simple screen is all you need because a simple screen means low battery consumption. That screen still needs to be easy to ready and should hopefully be complete with a backlight for indoor ranges. A screen that displays your information in big, bright numbers is invaluable, and if you struggle to read the screen, the timer will become more of a hassle than a tool. 

Can’t I just use my Phone?

My experience with using my phone as a timer is highly mixed. Every app I’ve ever used, including paid apps, never quite works. A lot of times, they will fail to ‘hear’ the shots fired and fail to record your time. It’s a huge hassle when you think you run a straight Bill drill only to find that the timer never picked it up. 

Shot timers in the form of phone apps just kind of suck. They don’t function well by any means and often fail. What they can be useful for is dry fire. A phone app shot timer can be set up with a random start timer and a par time, and you can practice reloads, draws, and dry fire malfunction drills. Once you step into the world of live ranges, a dedicated shot timer is a must-have. 

Beeeeeeeep!

That beep will quickly become one of your favorite sounds ever. It’s the loud shriek of a harpy that’s telling you to go faster. Faster and faster and faster without sacrificing accuracy, obviously. A shot timer is one of the few things that you can purchase and see a skill improvement. That big loud beep is a wonderful sound that you’ll learn to love. 

Shot Timer in Action

Below we’ve found a great video of the procedure of using a shot timer and how you can use it to become a better shooter. Check it out below!