Getting the Most from Your Kestrel® Shot Timer KST-1000

The KST-1000 Shot Timer is a very capable product. It is designed to accommodate several types of firearms and shooting situations, with many customizable settings to optimize performance for your specific needs. This blog provides insights beyond what the manual covers, focusing on the aspects that help the most users. While I can't address every single feature, I'll hit the most popular topics.

Positioning Your Timer

First is simply holding it correctly. Many new users hold the timer in various positions when timing others. We designed the KST-1000 so that you can see the screen in a natural hand position while pointing the back of the timer at the shooter. The back features microphone symbols as a helpful reminder of proper orientation.

Second is what I may call "standoff" distance. The Range Officer (RO) doesn't need to be too close to the shooter to detect shots. In dynamic competitions like USPSA, this prevents interference and potential safety hazards. The effective range depends on how loud the weapon is, your sensitivity settings, and environmental noise. Competitions often have multiple squads shooting nearby, so you may need to adjust your approach for your specific situation.

For example, a match I shoot has five squads running precision gas guns on a 40-yard-wide firing line with a mix of suppressed and unsuppressed rifles. For such a challenging environment, you may need to lower sensitivity (increase the numerical value) and position yourself closer to the shooter. Also be ready on that mute button once the shooter is finished. The timer is also waterproof, a feature that proved useful earlier this year when my first 4 or 5 matches were in the rain. No need to put it in a plastic bag, which was something I saw a few times.

For self-timing (mainly practice), the typical move is to hook the timer to a holster leg strap, or lower pant pocket. This keeps it out the way of your holster, mag pouches and all that. When I time myself, I try to keep the timer on the sides of my leg vs the front, giving that microphone the best possible position to capture the shots.

Echo, echo, echo

The Echo function is expressed as a length of time—essentially how long the timer "ignores" incoming sounds after detecting a shot. This matters in several situations:

Indoor or enclosed shooting bays with concrete barriers: The initial shot sound registers, and the echo reflects off walls with enough clarity to register as a second shot. If you count more shots than you took, adjust this setting.

Adjusting echo is also common when shooting close-range steel targets. The sound of the bullet impact can be loud enough to register as a shot, especially when using suppressed weapons.

For those of you who can shoot fast, the echo can matter here too. As a "not at all over the top" experiment, I shot my full-auto B&T MP9 with echo at 0.03 seconds, and it perfectly tracked a 10-round burst. The splits averaged 0.05 seconds per round. This, with a little rounding, aligns with the rate-of-fire calculation from my Magnetospeed chronograph. While the timer isn't designed for full-auto evaluation, tracking ˜1,300 rounds per minute demonstrates its speed and precision.

Timer Profiles and Settings

The timer includes six preset profiles and four custom slots—ten total. The presets are:

• Rifle, Pistol, suppressed (rifle or pistol), Rimfire, Suppressed Rimfire, and Dry Fire

Each profile is fully customizable and can be renamed. Sensitivity is the primary setting that differentiates the profiles. Think of the number as representing "the sound energy required to register a shot." A Dry Fire setting uses a very low value, while Rifle uses a higher one. Suppressed is where you will likely need to adjust the figure, as the performance of suppressors on the market and their host firearms can vary greatly. This may also be a good time to mention that no matter what menu or submenu you are in, hitting the green GO button will start the timer.

When on the profile settings page or main menu, the sensitivity value will flash when a shot is registered. This lets you stay on the page, fire a shot, and adjust in real time if needed. Another lesser-known function is the ability to swap profiles in the middle of a run. While timing, if you press and hold the up or down button for about 1 second, it will move to the next profile. So, if 1 is rifle and 2 is pistol, you are best able to capture the run of someone for a 2-gun stage, for example.

Other Important Settings:

Buzzer Mute: Seldom needed, but useful in very quiet situations like dry-fire or suppressed shooting, where the buzzer itself can echo back to the microphone. Enabling this will mute the microphone for a few milliseconds after the buzzer sounds to prevent false detections.

Par Buzz Volume: You can set the start beep to match or differ from the par-time buzzer volume.

Filter: I recommend leaving this at its default setting.

The timer also integrates with Practiscore via bluetooth. When connected to a tablet, the stage time can be pulled from the timer to the tablet with ease, speeding up stage reset and ensuring accurate info.

Dry Fire and Practice

For a lot of shooters that spend considerable time on dry-fire practice. The KST-1000 accommodates this well, though keep in mind that the dry-fire profile makes the timer very sensitive, so ambient noise may trigger false detections. Adjust sensitivity as needed.

Since the microphone is on the side opposite the screen and buttons, I recommend placing the timer on a nearby table with the rear of the timer facing you and using a slightly longer start delay. This may only be needed if there is enough ambient noise to cause issues but helps to prevent the timer from picking up the sound of your draw or other undesirable sources. That said, draw-time information can be valuable for tracking your progress, so you might not want to eliminate it entirely. Running the timer from your belt is certainly possible, especially in quiet practice environments. The top screen makes this very nice. However, having the flexibility to place it on a table provides options for different shooting situations.

That will wrap for today. I hope this article was helpful, and if you have any questions, please reach out to our team. See you next time.