Leica or Leupold range finder?

[mtnwrunner]

Thanks for the replies looks like I will be getting the Leica.



Richard

Good decision. Leica 1600B and you'll never look back.

Randy

 

[sanchomaes]

I have been very pleased with my Leica. Good glass

 

[rodney482]

Without a doubt

Leica

 

[Nick Muche]

If I was rifle hunting a lot, I'd get the Leica. For me, the Leupold does everything I need it to. Plus, when I bought it, the Leica didn't have one that did angle compensation if I remember correctly.

 

[drake7]

For what it worth...I have a Leica 900 Rangefinder (it's about 5 years old). I am having some issues with the range button as it does not always come on when pushed. (Kind of a big issue). I called Leica to send it in for repair and their solution are they will possibly repair it for a fee or give me a small discount on a new model if they are are unable to repair it. When you pay as much as you do for Leica products I would expect them to stand behind their products. I have returned Burris and Leopold products before and always received new replacements. I have heard great CS stories about other great brands as well (Swarovski, Vortex, etc.). With all the choices out there I would pick a brand with a better warrantee policy. There are a lot of positive comments for the Leica, I can only assume they have not had to deal with Customer Service.

 

[hntnnut]

For what it worth...I have a Leica 900 Rangefinder (it's about 5 years old). I am having some issues with the range button as it does not always come on when pushed. (Kind of a big issue). I called Leica to send it in for repair and their solution are they will possibly repair it for a fee or give me a small discount on a new model if they are are unable to repair it. When you pay as much as you do for Leica products I would expect them to stand behind their products. I have returned Burris and Leopold products before and always received new replacements. I have heard great CS stories about other great brands as well (Swarovski, Vortex, etc.). With all the choices out there I would pick a brand with a better warrantee policy. There are a lot of positive comments for the Leica, I can only assume they have not had to deal with Customer Service.

Thanks thats something to think about But I've put my rangefinder upgrade on hold when I found the Vortex Kaibabs on sale a Cabelas for for 800.00.

Richard

 

[Chenube]

I apologize for hijacking the OP thread, but it is related. I have read everyone's review of the Leica rangefinders, and I would love to have one. However, I have to have a new rangefinder in the next month to prepare for bow season, and I can not afford the price for the Leica at this time. Do you guys really feel that the Leopold is not worth the money or do you just prefer the Leica. Honest opinion here; is the Leupold 1200 TBR a good piece of equipment? I will use it for bow hunting and hopefully western mountain hunts as well. Another option would be to look at a used Leica. Is this a good idea? Does Leica cover used products? I have purchased used Leupold scopes for years. I know that if there is a problem I can return it to Leupold to have it fixed.

Thanks,
Rees

 

[wapitibob]

The Leupold 1000i TBR DNA works just fine for a $350 rangefinder. Mine is within a cpl inches out to 102 yards, verified with a tape. For bowhunting it's not going to be beat for the price. I also use it for mid range rifle hunting. My next rangefinder will be the Leica 1000R but it's $500 for a refurbished unit, $600 for new. The 1000R is the only Leica worth buying if you bowhunt and need angle comp. For the price of the Leupy 1200 you are close to a refurbished 1000R. I sold my Leica 1600 and bought the Leupold 1000i TBR. I use my rangefinder for archery shoots and need angle comp. If you don't need angle comp, a used 1600 would work just fine.

 

[Chenube]

The Leupold 1000i TBR DNA works just fine for a $350 rangefinder. Mine is within a cpl inches out to 102 yards, verified with a tape. For bowhunting it's not going to be beat for the price. I also use it for mid range rifle hunting. My next rangefinder will be the Leica 1000R but it's $500 for a refurbished unit, $600 for new. The 1000R is the only Leica worth buying if you bowhunt and need angle comp. For the price of the Leupy 1200 you are close to a refurbished 1000R. I sold my Leica 1600 and bought the Leupold 1000i TBR. I use my rangefinder for archery shoots and need angle comp. If you don't need angle comp, a used 1600 would work just fine.

Whatbis the best place to buy refurbished units? Are they covered by a factory warranty? What is the longest shot the Leica will make on a soft target reliably? Does the angle compensation work all the way out to 1000 yards?

 

[wapitibob]

google the refurbished units. A cpl places sell them.
yes they have a warranty
The leica 1000R will probably hit a deer at 800 +/- depending on conditions and how steady it's held. Angle comp on the 1000r is 10-600 yards. The inclinometer tolerances dictate the max range when using angle comp. The leica reportedly has a 2 second delay, the only downside I see. I would google the 1000r and get some first hand experiences. Understand the 1000R has no ballistics functions. It's straight line distance, or cosine angle comp. The Leupolds have ballistics profiles and functions.

 

[dangerousD]

Found this thread and hope I made a decent choice. Wish I could swing a new Leica right now but it's not on the priority list. My cheapo Bushnell rangefinder took a dump this weekend during some rainstorm simulated bow shooting practice (aka my kid squirting me with a garden hose while shooting from 80 yards). Turns out it wasn't as "rainproof" as I thought.

Saw that Scheels has $120 off the Leupold RX-1000i TBR DNA rangefinders in camo so I picked one up for $300. I bow hunt only so hoping this is a good choice until I can swing the Leica. I considered the Vortex also but went with this.

 

[Blockcaver]

DangerousD,

I prefer my Leupold RX-1000i TBR DNA to my Leica 1000 R for bowhunting. It has a smaller frame for the pocket, and reads out instantly vs what seems to be a really long delay on the Leica (2 seconds, and slow to get a repeat reading). That said the Leica has better optics and will reliably read out to 1000 yards in my tests, the Leupold 200 yards less. Since I have both and can choose, I take the Leupold on archery hunts.....including a successful spring grizzly hunt in May and an unsuccessful recent archery stone sheep hunt. (Hope to get back on another sheep hunt in Sept)

If I was prairie dog shooting I'd take the Leica.

 

[dangerousD]

DangerousD,

I prefer my Leupold RX-1000i TBR DNA to my Leica 1000 R for bowhunting. It has a smaller frame for the pocket, and reads out instantly vs what seems to be a really long delay on the Leica (2 seconds, and slow to get a repeat reading). That said the Leica has better optics and will reliably read out to 1000 yards in my tests, the Leupold 200 yards less. Since I have both and can choose, I take the Leupold on archery hunts.....including a successful spring grizzly hunt in May and an unsuccessful recent archery stone sheep hunt. (Hope to get back on another sheep hunt in Sept)

If I was prairie dog shooting I'd take the Leica.

Thanks for the feedback! That's reaffirming and glad to hear you prefer it for bowhunting. I will have it in my hands Wednesday to play with before my September hunts begin. It will certainly be better than anything I've had before and seems to get good reviews so I think it was the right choice for me.

 

[hntnnut]

Well to update where I went with this, shortly after originally posting this I found out that Cabelas had the Vortex Kaibabs on sale for 800.00 and couldn't pass it up so my range finder money went to binos. Then a couple of weeks ago Cabelas had the Leupold RX-1000i TBR DNA on sale for 300.00 and I had about 50.00 in points so I decided to get them as my bushnells are starting to act up. Now with 2 straight weeks of use and I'm quite happy with them. The other night while glassing for deer I spotted a coyote and was able to range the boulder he was standing on at 1017 yards I also really like the red display as opposed to the black one I makes it much easier to see in low light. I still plan on getting the Leica in the future but the Leupold is working out just fine in the mean time.

Richard