Range Finder vs. Range Finding Binoculars

[jwcressman]

What are the pros and cons of using Range Finding Binos vs 2 separate pieces of equipment? I am doing mostly spot and stalk hunting in the west for deer, pig, and elk with rifle and bow.

 

[flesher_2006]

I do both Archery and Rifle Elk and Deer hunting. I live in an area with alot of open ground and have adapted to what some would say “Long Rang Hunting” type tactics while using a rifle. I have taken deer out to 1100 yards with my 338 Lapua and struggled with trying to find animals with my 6X LEUPOLD rangefiner. Spotting animals with my Binos was easy but then locating that animal with my rangefinder was incredibly difficult, especially in lower light. I pulled the trigger last year on a pair of Leica Geovid-3000’s and it was the best gear purchase I have ever made. There is no substitute for being able to glass up an animal and push a button and have the distance instantly without needing to switch to another piece of equipment. An added bonus of the Leicas is the built in ballistic computer that records air temperature and barometric pressure and calculates a ballistic solution after you have entered in all your data. So now instead of three steps to engage an animal (Spot, Range, Enter info into ballistic computer) it’s all done with the press of a single button. This time savings is critical when hunting Whitentail in the Rut in my opinion. For Archery hunting I actually still carry my handheld rangefinder as it’s easier to wield single handed and less magnification is actually more desirable to me in that situation.

 

[handwerk]

For rifle hunting I have been using RFB for many years and don't plan on going back.
My old Geovids have never given me a bit of grief and one thing that that doesn't get mentioned enough is how much easier it is to range with binos vs. a small, less steady handheld unit.

 

[Nethero]

While I can’t touch on western hunting, I can tell you that eastern whitetail hunting in thick timber was near impossible for me with a rangefinding bino.

I bought a pair of Vortex Fury rangefinding binos (which are only offered in 10x42) thinking they were the greatest thing in the world. That was until actually using them while hunting.

While holding my bow, and grabbing my binos with my free hand, I found I was unable to use the range button without almost dropping the darn things. Let alone keeping them steady enough to even see or get an accurate range.

I sold them within the week and went back to a handheld rangefinder and separate binocular set up.

 

[7wssm]

For me while hunting I’m on my binos half the time so and rangefinder bino makes it a whole lot easier for me. Typical ranges we see deer can be from 100-1400 yards. Just really nice option to see game and instantly range it.

 

[flesher_2006]

While I can’t touch on western hunting, I can tell you that eastern whitetail hunting in thick timber was near impossible for me with a rangefinding bino.

I bought a pair of Vortex Fury rangefinding binos (which are only offered in 10x42) thinking they were the greatest thing in the world. That was until actually using them while hunting.

While holding my bow, and grabbing my binos with my free hand, I found I was unable to use the range button without almost dropping the darn things. Let alone keeping them steady enough to even see or get an accurate range.

I sold them within the week and went back to a handheld rangefinder and separate binocular set up.

I totally agree with you. For archery hunting, RF Binos are cumbersome. They are the cats meow for rifle hunting though!