I'd like a sanity check here guys. I just got mine on Friday and I'm a bit disappointed with it. The performance isn't what I was expecting. I've tested a couple different places now on targets like I would have in my hunting area out to 1500yds or so and on things like buildings etc. much farther. I don't have a lot of experience with other range finders, but my dad/hunting partner has a Leica 1600b and in side by side testing the Monarch 3000 stabilized is not anywhere as good at picking up less reflective targets.
I can pretty easily range most things out to 400-600 yds, but past that it struggles. I can range trees and boulders to mid 900s (maybe 1 out of 30 trees) and perpendicular dirt, like road cuts to mid 700s. I can't get a reading on hillsides anywhere near that far, only 500yds maybe. Even bigger things that should be reflective like houses I can't get a return on past 1000yds or so. Fifth wheels are apparently ideal targets. I got one at 2250 yds and one I missed part of the number but I think it was 29XX. Only if the end of the camper is facing towards me though, no returns at those distances from the large sides. Performance was much better in low light at dusk. I started getting a lot better results when the lighting was dim, but today even in partial overcast and not direct sunlight I have doubts I could reliably range a deer on a hillside at 800yds.
So, I'm not trying to mess up OP's thread, but I was hoping I could get a couple of answers here. Let me know if this post is too much and I'll start my own thread.
1. What are other people with the Monarch 3000 experiencing in their testing?
2. Related to number 1, is mine just a lemon? Should I return it and get another of the same?
3. If mine isn't a lemon, is there another model in the same price range I should look at for the performance I want (consistently range things out to 1,000 yds), or is there something cheaper I should buy that has the same performance as what I'm getting?
4. Are my expectations from this rangefinder unreasonable?
