Range finder

J

johnwilliamson062

Moderator
Well, I have tried to find hunting yardage by estimating what club I would hit in golf. Pretty amazingly lousy way to think about yardage. What rangefinder are you guys using? Are you happy with it? I would like one that goes to 500yards. That should cover any possible shots easily.
 
I have tried to find hunting yardage by estimating what club I would hit in golf
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No problem, as long as you are hunting on a golf course, just use the range plate on top of the sprinkler head. "Hey, which club do I use for a 10-point buck? A 3 iron? Are you sure?"

What??? No sprinkler heads where you hunt? OK, here's a tip for estimating range: Look at the animal and find a point half way between you and your target, then estimate that. If that doesn't work, split the range again. If that doesn't work, pull out your Bushnell Legend 1200 and put the dot on the sucker, push the button, then aim your rifle according to the flashing number at the top of the viewfinder.
 
I am using these:

http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/templates/product/standard-item.jsp?_DARGS=/cabelas/en/common/catalog/item-link.jsp_A&_DAV=MainCatcat602006-cat20756&id=0047351712853a&navCount=1&podId=0047351&parentId=cat20756&masterpathid=&navAction=push&catalogCode=QX&rid=&parentType=index&indexId=cat601233&hasJS=true

They are nice if I want to not carry seperate binos and range finder, although the bino function is only OK. But man they get heavy after a while. I would like to get one of the one-handed ones like

http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/templates/links/link.jsp?type=product&cmCat=Related_IPL_712853&id=0037625712523a

Just can't justify it right now...

For bow hunting, I tick off 10 yard increments mentally, for rifle - I am point and shoot out to 300, so have never had to worry about it.

Now that I think about it, what the heck do I need a range finder for?
 
Since I max out my off hand rifle shooting at 100yds .30-30 lever gun.
I use my redneck guesstimate of 18 wheeler trailer for close in and 100 foot extension cords for longer shots:o
Brent
 
I use a Nikon Laser 800. It is small and waterproof. I draw up a range card for where I am hunting so when something walks into my field of fire, I don't have to laser it - I check the card.
 
I bought a Bushnell 800, some years back. Very accurate. From my "sittin' and lookin" spot here by my house, it's 836 yards to a friend's house. That agrees with the topo map. :)

I've used it with a reflector on informal survey work; it's +/- one yard in 440.

Picks up bushes and rocks quite readily.

3X magnification.
 
What rangefinder are you guys using? Are you happy with it? I would like one that goes to 500yards. That should cover any possible shots easily
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1) Bushnell Scout 1000 w/ ARC.
2) Yes.

I can range out to 999 yards on reflective targets, 400 on fur. I really don't need or care for the ARC feature in rifle mode, because it uses bullet drop information based on a standard series of cartridges and their drop characteristics. I prefer Leupold's True Ballistic Range system it's based strictly on angles. I just zero 2 1/2" high at 100 yrds and call it good.

But the bowhunting mode may come in handy on of these days if or when I decide to start flinging arrows again, and it does use the angles similar to the Leupold TBR system.
 
Which Rangefinder?

Last year I bought a a BUSHNELL 1000 scout ARC. Very nice rangefinder, especially for bowhunting.

However, I just recently purchased a LEICA Rangemaster 1200. This is the cat's meow I can tell you. Awesome clarity and has a 7x magnification and extended 24 mm objective lens. Plus this is one cool rangefinder. It has an automatic brightness feature for lower lighting. But its greatest feature (other than it's total quality) is it packs up extremely small (about the size of a deck of playing cards.) Easily fits in any pocket. Is a little pricey but its a Leica and if you want the best rangefinder you can get, this is it....
 
I had the same problem estimating distance when I started to hunt the open coulee country of North & South Dakota about ten years ago.
We walk several miles every day and the last thing we want is a heavy backpack full of gear or bouncing pockets.
The same goes for binoculars and rangefinders.
Since I needed both I decided to invest in a Leupold RB800 range finding binocular that hangs from a shoulder harness instead of a neck strap.
It was a good idea from the start - I carry it everywhere.
I highly recommend the combination of the two optics.
After a few seasons I can trust my eye for range estimates,but I still verify the distance for the longer shots.
 
Bushnell 1000 w/ ARC. I don't use the ARC, either. I know what the ballistics are for my rounds so I SWAG the hold-over. It works just fine....And I use it for golf, also. My friend has a Leica- Both showed exactly the same yardages...
 
I want to go with the single optic, not the bino feature. That said the Leica 1200 and Bushnell 1000 w/ ARC. The Leica looks to run about twice the price of the Bushnell and the Bushnell has all the range I will need.

Cabelas brand Bushnell 1200 is on sale today, so I am pulling the trigger today:) $200, so I don't think I can get hurt on it plus I have some Cabelas rewards points stacked up.
 
I bought the Bushnell about 2 years ago, and after realizing that the majority of the game I shoot, I can hit with a rock, I gave it to my son, who likes to shoot prarie dogs.
He says he likes it.
 
I have the Leica,and I like it.

One use for them is setting up targets at known distances for sighting in,etc.

I have tried the route of

Finding game with binoculars

Switching to rangefinder,then switching to rifle.The technical way has merit sometimes,depending on your priorities..

But,suppose you have a 4x Leupold with a duplex that covers 12 MOA post to post,and we assume an 18 inch vertical brisket measurement.

If an 18 in target seems to fit a 12 in reticle,the range is about 150 yds.

From the crosshair to the post,is a 6 moa retical,so if that fits,its about 300 yds.

It is the principle of rangeestimation using a Mildot,adapted to whatever reticle feature you may have.

Now,very skilled and careful folks can use a Mildot to a 10% error factor,maybe we can do +- 20 % with a duplex.

That prevents gross errors,gives a way to know "too far"or "No holdover,shoot where you want to hit"

And,most 308 or better trajectories will forgive a 20% error in range estimation if we hold ourselves to a 300 something yd shot.

My point,lasers are great,but the "gear heavy" thing can get old.

Learn to use a reticle,and you can do pretty well with just a scope.
 
Well, There are two long term objectives for this.
The primary would be varmint hunting, out to whatever. Maybe 500 yards(eventually)
The other is long shots on deer with my TC Thunderhawk. I have limited myself to 125 so far on live game, but the rifle is capable of at least 200 yds with three pellets. I know deer have been taken with it at over 250. I would like to get out to 200. The ballistics are not quite 308:)
 
With optics, including rangefinders, price is a fairly reliable indicator of quality. I have never heard or read even one complaint about the quality of any Leica rangefinder. Some years ago a bow hunting friend bought a "returned" Leica LRF 900 at a Cabela's bargain cave. It has been flawless. Generally, if you need an optical rangefinder while rifle hunting, you are probably going to have time to use it. At least that has been my experience. For bow hunting, I use it to range the distance from my tree stand to trees at 20 yards, 30 yards, etc., and I may mark those trees with trail marking tape.
 
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