"SHOOTER" Android Ballistics APP

BigDave · 03-16-2015, 02:41 AM

Anyone ever use this? They have a free version. I didnt bother. When I saw Bryan Litz was involved I forked over the 10 dollars for this app. I had downloaded several other FREE Ballistics apps. All of those were pure ca-ca.

I have only done test firing solutions(no real rounds down range yet) with Shooter using Litz supplied G7 BC's for SMK and the G7 tables. The software seems to work quite well. I mean its hard to tell until my scope comes in from SWFA and I take my 10 FCP out to 500 yards (max range within a day's drive). I can try it on a 1000 foot range if I drive to the West coast of FL and get a hotel for the night. So, there is that option.

SHOOTER app really helped my understanding of ballistics. It looks like something i want to actually use. I have played (not yet shot) with it quite a bit.

The SHOOTER app is made by Sean Kennedy and Bryan Litz. If you dont know who Bryan Litz is , then be sure to Google him. This appears to be an amazing program. Seems. Someone here must have tried it, right?

It cost 10 dollars vs 900 dollars for a Blue Tooth Kestral Horus ATRAG. It interfaced with a fairly high end Motorola smart shone. SHOOTER interfaces with your GPS, web (for closest weather station). It even interfaces with my inertial sensor to give me a "look" angle(angle to target). I can point my phone to get an azimuth too for Coriolis effect. It does spin drift, ambient temperature, ammunition temperature (You still need an infra red laser pointer which I do own) density altitude and much more.

Oh, it will link with any Kestral weather station via Blue Tooth!! If you dont have a weather station you can buy a cheap anemometer and use the temp/pressure/humidity data that will show up courtesy of the closest weather station which your smart phone will link to using your GPS position. How cool. Then you just enter your wind direction and speed on a touch pad portion of the program. Swirl your finger to enter the wind direction and slide your finger on the arrow to enter the wind velocity. These guys didnt leave much out.

I like SMK bullets which Federal in their total ignorance rate using a BC for G1 Ballistics. G7 Ballistics and BC's are preferred for boat tail bullets. G1 is for old fashioned flat base projectiles. Duh! (I say that like I know a lot about Ballistics. I dont really. LOL) I need to buy and actually read some of Bryan Litz's books on ballistics. I believe he is one of the foremost 21rst century gurus.

Having said that.....Not to worry SHOOTER has G7 BC's for SMK bullets (calculated by Bryan Litz himself!) so I can now use the G7 ballistic tables. The instructions say NEVER to use G1 BC values and then try to use G7 tables. The G7 BC for the 168 SMK is around .2 VS G1 BC which is .495. Cool, huh? All this is plug in from drop down menus. You can SAVE several ammunition choices and rifles to your phone and your personal web page too.

The SHOOTER app seems simply amazing. Is it? I still need to work up real life chrono figures and find out how temp affects my FPS. That's why I plan on using the Magneto Speed chrono for almost every shot.

You get a free online place in the "cloud" (its your own web page) to permanently keep your gun and ammo data. You can web sync your data to AND from your PDA! You can make changes online and push a button and the changes will instantly sync with your smart phone and visa vera.

The Shooter app isn't magic. You still have to tweak it, no doubt, for your real world results. But I am betting it will get you on paper out to 500 yards and maybe more. Once you tweak it, I think it should work quite well. Someone here must have used this. Who?

Google Play rating:

Rating: 4.7/5 ·
1,339 ratings

SHOOTER app Website: http://www.shooterapp.net/
lots of screen shots and FAQ's

Operation Manual for SHOOTER: WARNING! The developers have made many improvements to the software but neglected to update some of the instructions. Hey? What do you want for 10 dollars. There does not appear to be much in the way of support.
I think/hope its clear enough to just plain work and then you tweak values to get as close to real world results as possible. IDK. But I do Know, I like what I see so far.
http://www.shooterapp.net/manual.php

I know the main developer, Kennedy, is on one of the forums like Snipers Hide. I dont know his user name. I would like to find that out.

**Hotolds442** · 03-16-2015, 03:44 AM

I use Shooter only for the extensive bullet library. I then take the BC's from Shooter and input them into iStrelok. I like the interface on iStrelok better, and I can Dropbox between my iPhone and iPad. IStrelok allows you to choose one of many different scopes for each particular rifle, and displays the reticle of that scope with yardages given. Both programs are pretty close on their trajectory calculations, so it's just a matter of user preference as to which is better. IStrelok is also updated almost weekly with additional scope models added quite frequently. I think in the year or so that I've had Shooter, it's only been updated three or four times.

**huntin1** · 03-16-2015, 07:12 AM

I've not used Shooter, but I have the Android version of Strelok on my BlackBerry. I was surprised at how well it works. The calculations are very close to my dope card. I may have to try Shooter and see how it compares.

Huntin1

LongRange · 03-16-2015, 08:37 AM

i have and have used the shoot app on an Iphone and its never near my actual drops...ive also used ballistics AE and its not much better. the G-7 ballistics is pretty good and the jbm ballistics has always worked the best for me.

BigDave · 03-16-2015, 12:03 PM

Originally Posted by Hotolds442

I use Shooter only for the extensive bullet library. I then take the BC's from Shooter and input them into iStrelok. I like the interface on iStrelok better, and I can Dropbox between my iPhone and iPad. IStrelok allows you to choose one of many different scopes for each particular rifle, and displays the reticle of that scope with yardages given. Both programs are pretty close on their trajectory calculations, so it's just a matter of user preference as to which is better. IStrelok is also updated almost weekly with additional scope models added quite frequently. I think in the year or so that I've had Shooter, it's only been updated three or four times.

Great feedback. I will get Istrelock and try both programs out. Yes, the support seems quite lacking for Shooter. My email went ignored. I got a bit peeved that they did not update several parts of their Instruction Manual to reflect the software changes made to the program.

Yes, the bullet BC choices are incredible. I will likely just have to experiment switching between the two programs and possibly between using G1 VS G7. I will try the G7 first using Litz's G7 BC's. Thanks for then heads up. I will report what I find out.

BigDave · 03-16-2015, 12:13 PM

Originally Posted by LongRange

i have and have used the shoot app on an Iphone and its never near my actual drops...ive also used ballistics AE and its not much better. the G-7 ballistics is pretty good and the jbm ballistics has always worked the best for me.

Really? Did you use G7 BC's for your bullets? You cant use G1 BC's with G7 tables evidently. Litz went to a lot of trouble to go to the range and accurately measure G7 BC's for many bullets including SMK in .308 in various weights.
Does JBM have an app or program? I see JBM as printing out and cutting and pasting endless excel spread sheets to get data. I have seen work sheets etc to find firing solutions. There are extensive videos and links on Youtube by a guy called This is what really serious guys use for LRPR. I may end up doing that at some point.

For now, I want to get on paper and spend some time tweaking my inputs to see if I can get good results with SHOOTER and/or I-Strelock.
Once I get my shooting technique down I may get in to very tedious excel spread sheets. Unless JBM has an app. I dont want to buy a PDA. I would rather use my smart phone

**yobuck** · 03-16-2015, 12:30 PM

All due respect to Brian Litz who is by all accounts an authority on all things ballistic. From what im told he is also a very good shooter.
That said he also makes a living by selling information. The question becomes how much information is (necessary) in order to become
proficient at shooting long distances. And how much is necessary in order to keep people like Brian earning money.
Nothing takes the place of the actual experience of doing it. It then becomes apperent just what is and what isnt important.

**sharpshooter** · 03-16-2015, 01:10 PM

Good summary,yobuck. Most guys just wanna put some bullets downrange, not land a rocket on the moon. Like I always said....you can read about,you can think about, you can dream about it, but the only way to get good is to expend ammo.

**yobuck** · 03-16-2015, 01:24 PM

Originally Posted by sharpshooter

Good summary,yobuck. Most guys just wanna put some bullets downrange, not land a rocket on the moon. Like I always said....you can read about,you can think about, you can dream about it, but the only way to get good is to expend ammo.

Thank you, coming from someone well experienced its even more appriciated.

**RatMag** · 03-16-2015, 01:24 PM

I have used Shooter, iSnipe, BulletDrop, JBM, Berger, and iStrelok. Paid subscriptions for most, and the best one to me, is by far iStrelok. You can literally put all your information into the various software apps, and it seems like NONE of them ever give you the same information based on the same parameters. No, I am definitely not trying to land on the moon, but I definitely want to hit what I am sending a projectile towards. iStrelok just plain works...

DK

**yobuck** · 03-16-2015, 01:47 PM

Well if your that confident in your program, would you consider going to a 1000 yd match and going right to your record target without any sighter shots?
Certainly were all interested in hitting what we shoot at. Problem today is were being told by (EXPERTS) we can expect what is at best unlikly.

**Jamie** · 03-16-2015, 02:03 PM

I will have to give this one a look to see how it compares to the Strelok Pro I use now. I can say that with three different chamberings in three different setups it has been extremely accurate out to 700 yards and to 1k on the only one I have tried it with.

The more accurate information you can plug in, the more accurate the outcome.

**yobuck** · 03-16-2015, 04:25 PM

Originally Posted by Jamie

I will have to give this one a look to see how it compares to the Strelok Pro I use now. I can say that with three different chamberings in three different setups it has been extremely accurate out to 700 yards and to 1k on the only one I have tried it with.

The more accurate information you can plug in, the more accurate the outcome.

But thats still tap dancing away from a direct question isnt it? Would you or wouldnt you?

**aubie515** · 03-16-2015, 07:21 PM

I have Shooter and it works for me. Having electronic devices to assist you is great, BUT one should also know how to figure things out by hand just in case those electronic devices fail.

**flylo** · 03-16-2015, 08:01 PM

I have most of Brian Litz's books & will have to try it out as well as Strelok. How much is Strelok pro?

**missed** · 03-16-2015, 08:20 PM

I'm running strelok plus, I think it was $8. I think pro is a few bucks more. I may go to pro eventually but plus keeps me happy.

LongRange · 03-16-2015, 08:51 PM

Originally Posted by BigDave

Really? Did you use G7 BC's for your bullets? You cant use G1 BC's with G7 tables evidently. Litz went to a lot of trouble to go to the range and accurately measure G7 BC's for many bullets including SMK in .308 in various weights.
Does JBM have an app or program? I see JBM as printing out and cutting and pasting endless excel spread sheets to get data. I have seen work sheets etc to find firing solutions. There are extensive videos and links on Youtube by a guy called This is what really serious guys use for LRPR. I may end up doing that at some point.

For now, I want to get on paper and spend some time tweaking my inputs to see if I can get good results with SHOOTER and/or I-Strelock.
Once I get my shooting technique down I may get in to very tedious excel spread sheets. Unless JBM has an app. I dont want to buy a PDA. I would rather use my smart phone

Yes i have the correct info input into my apps....JBM does not have an app as far as i know but i only use it as a starting point and ive had a few ELR cold bore shots using the dopes it produces. That being said the problem with apps is that they only account for weather changes using the closest weather tower info to where you are using the app...which could be 2 block away or 2 counties away....cold,heat,humidity and especially barometric pressure will effect POI. Try this some time...use what ever app you want and go out and shoot 500yds wait 2 hours and then shoot that same 500yds and ill bet money your POI changes. Another thing to try....get dialed in at 500yds put one round in you lunch box 1 round on the floor of your truck and one round in the sun for 5 minutes and then shoot them back to back...make sure you have a big target so you can see the differences in the POI between the 3 rounds....a 60FPS spread equates into about 3" at 500yds...it will also change barrel harmonics which causes fliers.
As yobuck and sharpshooter said there is no app to make up for trigger time and learning first hand how weather will effect your shot down range....the accuracy rabbit hole is deep lol.

**Jamie** · 03-16-2015, 11:04 PM

Originally Posted by yobuck

But thats still tap dancing away from a direct question isnt it? Would you or wouldnt you?

I didn't tap dance away from the question as you did not ask me one.

To answer the question you seemingly asked RatMag, yes I would, even with only 5 range trips with.

**sharpshooter** · 03-17-2015, 12:14 AM

Spend your money on AMMO, not apps. When I first started shooting long range, we didn't even have computers, let alone a ballistic program. We got along fine with a pencil and a notebook, and got our information firsthand simply by pulling the trigger.

**Hotolds442** · 03-17-2015, 04:13 AM

Originally Posted by sharpshooter

We got along fine with a pencil and a notebook, and got our information firsthand simply by pulling the trigger.

Over and over again.........

BigDave · 03-17-2015, 01:02 PM

Originally Posted by sharpshooter

Spend your money on AMMO, not apps. When I first started shooting long range, we didn't even have computers, let alone a ballistic program. We got along fine with a pencil and a notebook, and got our information firsthand simply by pulling the trigger.

I just spent a whole $12 on Strelok plus. As PENANCE I bought another 200 rounds of Federal GMM. Seriously. I did. And I bought some Black Hills Match in 168gr and 175gr too! Waiting on my scope. I thought it would be stupid to buy rings until I measure carefully. So, its gonna take a bit of time to get set up. Getting there. I am just waiting for the mail for some items.

Originally Posted by RatMag

I have used Shooter, iSnipe, BulletDrop, JBM, Berger, and iStrelok. Paid subscriptions for most, and the best one to me, is by far iStrelok. You can literally put all your information into the various software apps, and it seems like NONE of them ever give you the same information based on the same parameters. No, I am definitely not trying to land on the moon, but I definitely want to hit what I am sending a projectile towards. iStrelok just plain works...

DK

You win the "Most Helpful Reply" Award. Thank you. I looked at Igor Strelok's Strelok pro. It was only $12 and change. AND it supports my Falcon B20 reticle. I was shocked. I bought it. I will compare firing solutions with Shooter and vs where the bullet actually ends up!

. I will be keeping detailed notes for each round down range so I will try to come back in a month and give my findings in a new thread. I am still getting set up with Scope/rings and a lot of the support stuff that I just never needed for my AR-15 and 9mm CQB drills.
I invested in a TRIAD MODULAR STOCK PACK. It comes with layers of foam strips to build a perfect cheek weld for what ever scope height I end up with. It has room for a note book and a Mildot Master too.

I found a pretty decent 48" rifle backpack/mat combo. It's not as thick as the nice mats but I have enough "stuff". I dont want to need shopping cart to go to the range. The mat portion is not full length. It's 66 L X 35w as a mat. I will do a review with photos. Shoulder, chest, and waist strap. This will come in handy for any tactical course where they make you hump your rifle up a mountain/whatever. I bet it will work nice just to hump the stuff from my car to the firing line which can be a distance depending on which range I use.

**stomp442** · 03-17-2015, 04:15 PM

I guess I am a traditionalist. While I use apps and other devices I don't count on them and put full faith into what they spit out. When developing come ups out to 1000 yards for my rifles I will usually run an app with all my data and start there for an Idea of what I need to dial to. For the most part they will put you on a steel gong but they are rarely centered up. I fine tune from there, then write down the magic number in my note book to print up a range card of actual shot data later. Inconsistencies in crony data and the terrain you are shooting over and what the wind is doing over that terrain can create enough difference in trajectories to make your app seem quite a bit off. Another thing that I always see people have trouble with as well is the scope height. I don't know how many times I have seen people at the range cussing a ballistic app because they can't hit what they want and they are using the standard 1.5" scope height supplied by the app instead of the actual scope height of their tactical 56mm monstrosity optic. Good data in generally results in at least usable data out.

**yobuck** · 03-17-2015, 06:06 PM

Originally Posted by sharpshooter

Spend your money on AMMO, not apps. When I first started shooting long range, we didn't even have computers, let alone a ballistic program. We got along fine with a pencil and a notebook, and got our information firsthand simply by pulling the trigger.

This is exactly right. First realize how short a period of time its been since computers and as a result these type programs have been available to the masses.
Yet 50 years ago at least where im from, long range shooting and hunting was taking place. Charts were made by someone actually shooting the distances.
My first chart was given to me over 40 years ago by a friend and mentor by name of Frank Weber. He was then and still is a Williamsport shooter
setting several records along the way. It was a chart for a 6.5x300 Weatherby which was a popular cartridge at the time. I had a new 7x300 Weatherby
built on a Hart#4 action. Frank said dont worry it will get you very close. You know what it did, and that chart is still varnished onto one of my
portable benches. I should also add that muzzel brakes were never seen then either which meant shooters werent seeing their own shots.
A 2nd person using large tripod mounted binnoculars and acting as a spotter for the shooter is the only answer for long range hunters.
The programs available today have been an enormous help in establishing good information. But as Long Range has pointed out there are many varieables
to contend with on a day to day basis. Today were being told that by using the proper information first round hits at extreme distances can be expected.
Thats simply B S and those that are saying it know it. Is it possible, yes it is, but then so is winning the lottery. Its also not very likely that even a better than average shooter
will be able to make those type shots on first round (every time) using the best data available. Ive got the place to do it with free room and board for anybody wanting to show their stuff.

LongRange · 03-17-2015, 09:57 PM

i have 2 questions for everyone...using the apps or not...that has posted in this thread...first whats the longest cold bore(with a hit on target)shot you have EVER made? second...whats the longest shot and hit you have ever made? targets as big as cars dont count so lets keep it at say 2"x2" target.

i ask because i am curious to hear what different shooters consider extreme long range.