FOG HORN

April, 2016
Twobirds Flying Publication

Kestrel Sportsman and Kestrel Link Ballistics

Your entry to accurate long range shooting

Copyright 2016, Towbirds Flying Publication. All Rights Reserved.

Kestrel Sportsman and Kestrel Link Ballistics

2016

Kestrel Sportsman and Kestrel Link Ballistics Your entry

to accurate long range shooting
By: Sal Palma
Long range shooters confront four challenges:
the shooter himself, the weapon system,
ammunition and the environment. With
exception of shooter related factors, the degree
to which the shooter has control over the
successful shot is limited. Of the four obstacles
to precision shooting, environmental variables
are by far the more difficult. For that reason,
industry developed tools that allow the shooter
to collect real-time accurate environmental
data upon which to calculate a reasonable firing
solution. Enter the weather meter.

Military and Police snipers are no strangers to

the challenges of accurate long range shooting.
The more notable of these are the often
unpredictable and continuously changing
environmental conditions. Forgetting for a
moment the variability inherent in ammunition
loads, ammunition temperatures, bullet seating
depth and how the shooter was holding his
tongue at the time the trigger was pulled, the
reality of long range shooting is that once the
bullet leaves the muzzle, everything is out of
your control. So as proficient marksmen we
collect data and make an estimate of the proper
elevation and windage needed to have a
projectile strike an 18 inch target at 800 to 1000
meters (the generally accepted outside range
for the 7.62 x 51mm round.)

When first introduced to the tactical precision

shooting community, the weather meter only
performed the limited functions of an
anemometer, barometer and thermometer. The
shooter was then required use the data points
to approximate proper windage and elevation.
It certainly was no trifle benefit, and before
snipers started carrying weather meters they
either had to close the target or make a best
guess estimate of what atmospheric conditions
were. They also had to pour through a dope
book to determine the firing solution. Later
renditions of the weather meter would include
a digital compass which provided the shooter
with an accurate wind direction; however, all
this required the shooter to keep relying on his
dope book and experience to arrive at a firing
solution. Industry responded by incorporating
ballistics software in the weather meters
architecture; resulting in a system that provides
Copyright 2016, Twobirds Flying Publication, All Rights Reserved

Kestrel Sportsman and Kestrel Link Ballistics

the shooter with elevation and windage

adjustments calculated using real time
environmental data. For sentimental reason or
in the interest of redundancy, it may never
replace the venerable dope book but it certainly
has accelerated its demise.
The next step in the development process was
to introduce an r.f. communications link back to
a smart device so that the meter calculated
ballistics solution and environmental data could
be displayed remotely on the shooters smart
device. Enter the Kestrel Sportsman LINK and
Kestrel Link Ballistics app.
In this review, Ill be taking you through the
system starting with the Sportsman LINK, a brief
background on Bluetooth LE (Low Energy) and
concluding with the Kestrel Link Ballistics app.,
but first Ill quickly run through the financials.
To gain access to the latest technology, youll
need to invest just north of $1,000 on a meter,
smart device and tripod. You may already have
some of these components and if thats the
case you are in Fat City. If you own or are
considering an Android device, which I strongly
recommend for a variety of reasons unrelated
to this review, youll want to make sure that
youre at Android OS 4.3 or higher. Getting back
to the financial decision, is the investment
worth it?
I guess the answer to that depends on your
shooting skills, and I am not opposed to
someone learning or sharpening Kentucky
windage skills, but even professional precision
shooters achieve more consistent hits when
using a weather meter and ballistic calculator. If
you are limiting your horizons to hitting a target
out to 300 meters you may want to rethink
plunking down a grand; however if you can see

2016

yourself exploiting the limits of your rifle and

caliber to the their full operational range then a
ballistic computer and weather meter are
indispensable.
Lets take a look at one example. Your target is
600 meters out and you have a 12 o clock 13
mph wind, do you use your dope book data of
3.7 mills, do you decrease elevation or do you
add elevation? While youre at it, what effect
does temperature and barometric pressure
have on your firing solution? The answer to my
question is add elevation in a headwind, but by
how much? I think you can see that making an
accurate long range shot is a little more
involved than looking through the sights and
squeezing the trigger, and looking through a
dope book trying to find a firing solution that
approximates current conditions is not practical
and very time consuming. Your $1,000
investment now begins to make more sense.
The Kestrel Sportsman LINK is a member of the
5000 series line of Kestrel wind meters
designated the 5700. The meter integrates
ballistics calculation with environmental
functions that include all of the meteorological
data like station pressure, temperature, wind
speed and wind direction, pressure altitude,
density altitude, etc., etc. The ballistics function
is handled internal to the meter using Applied
Ballistics software optimized specifically for the
Kestrel weather meter1.
Weather or Ballistic modes are selectable via
the options/exit button on the front of the
meter, and selecting one mode, or the other,
does not disable the unselected modes
functionality. Everything is still there, including

The Kestrel Sportsman can also be used with external

ballistics apps like Strelok Pro version 3.1.3 and higher.
Copyright 2016, Twobirds Flying Publication, All Rights Reserved

Kestrel Sportsman and Kestrel Link Ballistics

your ballistic solution; you simply wont see it

on the meters display.
On the ballistics side, Kestrel added spin drift
correction in the 5700 Sportsman. Spindrift is a
gyroscopic effect imparted to the bullet as it
travels through the air. Its a directional point of
impact shift caused by the bullet spin applied as
it moves through the bores rifling. Right hand
rifling imparts right spin drift and left hand
rifling imparts left spin drift; however, spin drift
is the least of your concerns unless youre
shooting 800 meters and beyond. However, it is
there and becomes increasingly more
significant as range to the target increases.
The Applied Ballistics software in the Sportsman
makes accounting for Spin Drift very easy.
Simply scroll to the Environment submenu and
set Spin Drift to Yes. The software will then
correct for spin drift when calculating your
firing solution. Very nice to have, just set it to
yes and never think about spin drift again.
Unless you just enjoy worrying!

Continuing on with the ballistics package, the,

with Applied Ballistics software, supports both
G1 and G7 drag functions. I prefer using the G7
drag function because it is the military standard

2016

for all the traditional military calibers but

beyond that it produces a consistently better
drag curve with correspondently better results.
When using G7, youll notice a lower ballistic
coefficient for your bullet, which in my opinion
is probably closer to what the true aerodynamic
performance of the bullet in flight is.
One very nice feature included in the
Sportsman is the flexibility to independently
display wind and elevation corrections in mils,
TMOA, SMOA or clicks. As much as I like this
feature, one area where I would like to see a
small change is in how the firing solution is
displayed. Taking a look at the picture below,
the ballistic solution displayed as 9.43U 0.97L
(Wind 1) and 0.89R (Wind 2) I happen to know
that my elevation value is expressed in mils and
my wind in clicks, but what if you forget what
you defined it as. A nice addition to the next
firmware revision could be something like
subscripting the units being displayed; for
example, 9.43Um and 0.97Lc to indicate 9.43 mils
up and 0.97 clicks left.

At the current software revision, v 1.05, if you

select to display the firing solution in clicks, the
software displays the value in two significant
digits, for example 0.97L as you can see above.
Copyright 2016, Twobirds Flying Publication, All Rights Reserved

Kestrel Sportsman and Kestrel Link Ballistics

I would like to see Kestrel implement rounding

so rather than showing 0.97L, the software
displays 1L. Ive never encountered a magnified
optic capable of a fractional click value.
In its latest Sportsman, Kestrel made a couple of
physical changes that merit naming. The meter
is now powered by a single AA battery instead
of the familiar 2 AAAs. They also moved the
battery compartment to the rear of the meter
isolating it from the mother board. The change
protects the motherboard from a leaking
battery. The display screen was also improved
to provide a higher resolution and improved
visibility in bright light.
The Sportsman features Bluetooth LE (Low
Energy) which Kestrel markets as Bluetooth
Smart, you may also here it called Version 4.0+.
This version of the Bluetooth specification
offers two relevant features for the precision
shooter. First, the extremely low peak, average
and idle mode power consumption significantly
extends battery life. Second, it allows for some
of the tightest security in the industry with 128bit AES data encryption. Bluetooth LE offers
other benefits that software developers should
consider but are beyond the scope of this
writing. The Sportsmans LINK opens the door
to interfacing with external devices and sensors
like Bushnells ELITE CONX laser range finder.
To take full advantage
of the Kestrel LINK
technology,
the
company developed an
Android app that I had
the opportunity to beta
test last year. The
Kestrel Link Ballistics
application puts the full

2016

power of the Kestrel Sportsman LINK at the

shooters finger tips via a remote smart device.
The app has a number of very useful features;
for example, using the application a user has
the ability to create several bullet/gun profiles.

Using the screen above, the shooter can supply

the app bullet data, gun data, scope data and
muzzle velocity / temperature table data. The
shooter enters parameters like bullet weight,
ballistic coefficient, muzzle velocity, scope
elevation and wind units. I like to use mils for
elevation and clicks for wind, but the app will
support TMOA and SMOA also. Additionally,
the shooter can collect muzzle velocity and
temperature data that will be used in the
ballistic calculations.
Once a shooter has created the profile, he can
save it to the smart device and upload it to the
Sportsman meter. The end result is a database
containing all of the bullet / gun profiles you
intend to use.

Copyright 2016, Twobirds Flying Publication, All Rights Reserved

Kestrel Sportsman and Kestrel Link Ballistics

2016

well worth its cost. Using this arrangement, you

can mount the meter on a tripod and
continuously capture wind data (speed and
direction.)

The Sportsman meter will store 3 bullet/gun

profiles and the Sportsman Elite will hold 16
bullet gun profiles. Although you can build
profiles in the app and store them on the smart
device, the user must select the active profile
on the meter itself. Id like to see that changed
in future releases of the Kestrel Link Ballistics
app so that the operator has full control of
directly from the smart device without having
to interact directly with the meter.
Nielsen Kellerman markets the Sportsman
meter in three configurations

Coyote Brown: $419 (No Bluetooth LE)

Coyote Brown with LiNK only: $519
Coyote Brown with LiNK and Vane
Mount: $559

I strongly suggest that you purchase the

Sportsman with LINK (Bluetooth LE) and the
Vane. Itll set you back an extra $140 but it is

The firing solution is presented with the screen

shown above. Here youll find elevation and
wind corrections for real-time environmental
data. In this scenario I have some light wind
from the 3:30 direction. The wind corrections
displayed also includes the spin drift correction.
Here the user can also adjust range by swiping
the screen or using the designated + or controls.
Range adjustments can be fine or coarse. The
range steps are selected through the settings
screen, under range swipe, and the shooter can
select a variety of adjustment steps. I used 1 to
achieve the finest possible control. Lastly, if you
purchased the LINK version of the Sportsman
the App if free!
Copyright 2016, Twobirds Flying Publication, All Rights Reserved

Kestrel Sportsman and Kestrel Link Ballistics

2016

What's new with the Kestrel Sportsman Weather

Meter with Applied Ballistics over the previous
Kestrel 4500 Sportsman series:

Bluetooth LINK to Smartphones / Mobiel / Android / IOS

Spin Drift - this was not on the 4500 Sportsman
Takes 1 AA battery (instead of 2 AAA)
Battery door is in the back, sealed away from the motherboard,
should your battery leak as was common with all the 4000 series

Improved high resolution screen for any lighting (even sunlight) and
easy on your eyes.

Intuitive user-interface screen navigation

Multiple Languages: English, French, German, Spanish
Scratch and breakage-resistant window
All meters include both options of Red (NV - Night Vision)
& White backlights.

Slightly bigger, not really noticeable difference. Fits same cases.

Roughly 10,000 data points.

Kestrel Sportsman Weather Meter with Applied

Ballistics Features

Nielsen Kellerman (NK) has come a long way

since introducing the wind meter into the
tactical and military space. With the integration
of
ballistic
software
with
traditional
environmental functions, NK has ratcheted the
benefits available to a precision marksman.
With the introduction of LINK technology
theyve added still another layer of
performance.
On the aggregate, NKs
developers have effectively shortened the kill
chain and measurably improved shooter
accuracy. With its Sportsman line, NK makes
professional grade technology available to long
range enthusiasts and hunters.
If your target resides beyond 300 meters or if
you want the ultimate in precision, youll want
to give serious consideration to the Kestrel
Sportsman LINK. Check it out!
-SP
Manufacturer Specifications

Employs the enhanced Applied Ballistics G1/G7 solver, including

Aerodynamic Jump, Spin Drift and Coriolis corrections to achieve
accurate long-range shots.

Muzzle Velocity Truing allows for accurate measurement of bullet

speed without a chronograph.

Optional LiNK connectivity powered by Bluetooth Smart provides

wireless communication to mobile devices and computers. and
integration with LiNK compatible laser range finders for improved
speed and accuracy.

Choice of solution units (Mils, MOA, or clicks)- works with any gun or
targeting scope.

Weather mode offers the full environmental measurements, storage

and charting capabilities of the Kestrel 5500 Weather Meter, including
wind speed, direction, crosswind, temperature, humidity, pressure
and altitude.

Large, hi-res, hi-contrast, graphic display is perfectly readable in the

brightest sunlight. Includes both bright white and night-visionpreserving red backlight.

Kestrel LiNK for Ballistics app on iOS and Android provides

convenient gun management and backup.

Rugged (drop tested to MIL-STD-810G standards), waterproof

(sealed to IP67 standards) and floats.

Protective pouch, neck lanyard and Lithium AA battery included.

5-year warranty

Copyright 2016, Twobirds Flying Publication, All Rights Reserved