Blackbox Ballistics Range Report
We took a trip to the range today to put the Athlon Rangecraft chronograph through its paces. To keep things grounded, we didn’t bring handloads or match-grade ammo—we brought a few boxes of Fiocchi Range Dynamics 5.56, the kind of affordable factory ammo many shooters rely on for training and casual target practice.
What we found was surprisingly revealing.
Why Use a Chronograph?
Chronographs like the Athlon Rangecraft are designed to measure the velocity of each round as it leaves the barrel. While commonly used by reloaders and long-range precision shooters, we wanted to see how much value it could add to a regular range session with factory ammo.
Short answer? A lot.
What We Saw
The Athlon Rangecraft was easy to set up and gave us consistent readouts with every shot. Across a single box of Fiocchi 5.56, we recorded velocities ranging from the mid-2900s to over 3100 feet per second. That’s a spread of more than 100 fps—significant enough to impact point of impact at distance.
Key Takeaways:
- A 100+ FPS swing is real – That kind of velocity difference will absolutely show up on paper, especially once you start shooting beyond 100 yards.
- Not all flyers are your fault – One noticeably slower round (around 2950 fps) coincided with our lowest impact shot of the day. The data confirmed it wasn’t just poor trigger control.
- Ammo consistency matters – Fiocchi makes solid ammo for the price, but like most bulk factory options, it’s not designed for tight velocity tolerances. The chronograph helped us see just how much performance varies from round to round.
Is a Chronograph Worth It?
If you’re just ringing steel at 25 yards or burning through mags during a training session, maybe not. But if you’re trying to improve accuracy, zero an optic with confidence, or spot trends in ammo performance, a chronograph becomes a powerful diagnostic tool.
Even with off-the-shelf ammo, it answers questions you can’t solve by looking at a target alone.
Final Thoughts
The Athlon Rangecraft made a strong impression. It was simple to operate, reliable even with fast-moving 5.56 rounds, and gave us the kind of data that instantly improved our understanding of what was happening downrange.
Would we recommend one? If you’re chasing precision, diagnosing strays, or just want to geek out on your gear—absolutely.
Let us know if you’ve run velocity tests with Fiocchi or other factory loads. We’d love to compare notes and see what kind of spreads others are seeing with similar ammo.