Range finders

[Gunning5]

Hey guys,

Looking for my first range finder and not sure what to be looking for. I see the prices are all over the place. I will not be hunting the mountains with a rifle, but mostly hunting from tree stand with bow and then shotgun.

What are some brands and good options to be looking for?

Thanks

 

[hollarhorns]

I've owned a handful of what I would consider the "economy" line rangefinders. I've had my SIG for two years and its by far, top notch compared to the others Ive used (Halo, Bushnell, Nikon, and Redline). The glass quality is pretty decent as far as magnification and low light conditions and it has stayed consistent.

 

[Gunning5]

Great to know! What model is the SIG?


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[hollarhorns]

I have the Kilo1000, I believe.


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[CO-AJ]

I have the Nikon 4k black and absolutely love it. Glass is clear, controls are easy and the range return is really pretty good. I have ranged over 2000 yds with no problem.

 

[lonedave]

I hadn't ever had one until my daughter and son-in-law bought me a Nikon Aculon AL11 for Christmas a couple years ago. I finally used it some last year and it works very well.

 

[DaveS]

Another SIG fan. I got the Kilo 1800BDX because at the time it was the lowest price one with an LED display.

 

[Oso]

I have a Nikon Monarch 2000. Works great with the bow. But the lack of magnification means you may want something different for long range out to hundreds (or thousands) of yards.

 

[tallsdyotehunter]

i would say its worth a look at older models, that have range compensation for the angle in them. Fi your not mountain or out west no need for one that will range you 1000+ and it will save you a ton of money not getting the newest and shiniest. I think Euro optic had some nikon models under $200, Vortex and the warranty has always been good to me

 

[snel6424]

I am late to the thread, but I have just got done doing some research into rangefinders. For me, I only considered brands with lifetime warranties on their electronics (this eliminated a lot of companies), had an LED display, had angle compensation, and had scan mode. The rangefinder I decided on is the sig Kilo (1800 I think). Other options were the new Maven RF as well as the Vortex Ranger.

 

[Attacking Mid]

From looking at their site, I believe Sig only offers a 5 yr. warranty on the electronics of their RF's. They guarantee the optics for life, but that's not where failures seem to occur in RF's. Still, 5 yrs. is pretty good compared to say, Leupold, with only a 2 yr. warranty. I don't understand why an historically solid company like Leupold doesn't fix their LED problem. I have eliminated them from my consideration based on the abundance of online reports of LED failure. I'm looking pretty hard at the Sig you got - if only I'd caught that sale at SW earlier in the year!

AM.

 

[406unltd]

I’ve used some decent ones and this year I opted to use the new leupold rx1400. It has a great price and gives a lot of value. Feature rich performance, and durability. In the end you’ll find the one that fits you best. Lots of great options you can look at in the stores.

 

[nobody]

When I bought my first RF back in about 2017, I went to a gun shop in Idaho Falls and had them empty the case of all the rangefinders in every brand, from cheap to expensive, and we went outside and tested them. I picked out a telephone pole at about 300 yards and a billboard at about 800, and I proceeded to test every tier from every brand and compare them. Almost every brand had some variance in the accuracy of their rangefinder depending on the tier (price), with the Leupold being the biggest difference of about 40 yards between their cheap and their expensive tier at the 800 yard mark. Along with that, depending on the tier, sometimes the rangefinder would return a different range if I ranged the same spot time after time. And I'm not talking a difference of a yard or 2, I'm talking double digit discrepancies with lots of them. Every brand's high end returned the same range as one another, so I came to the conclusion that the more money spent, the more accurate ranges I would get.

Then I tried the Sigs. Everything from their now discontinued $130 Kilo850 up to their high end (I think it was the Kilo2500 at the time) gave the same range as every other rangefinder in Sig's lineup. The glass and overall construction got better as you spent more money, but the ranges didn't vary at all. In other words, from what I experienced, Sig puts the same electronics into their entry level rangefinders as into their top end. I ended up going home with the Sig and haven't looked back.

Every brand has their strong suit, and for Sig, it's their rangefinder. They make the best in the game as far as I'm concerned. Leica and Vortex came in tied for second in my test. Both had better glass at each tier by a good margin, but you had to get to the top of the line to get consistent ranging performance from both brands. Nikon's had good glass all the way through, but their ranging abilities were abysmal. The Leupolds came in dead last on ranging abilities, and their glass was about on par with Sig. Although their glass isn't the best, I say buy the Sig and don't look back! Spend glassing money on your binos and spotter, buy a rangefinder as a rangefinder. As long as you can make out the silhouette of whatever you're trying to range, that's what matters. Use your top dollar binoculars to verify your trophy, use the rangefinder for finding ranges. I would rather have sub-par glass with dead on ranging capabilities.

 

[Attacking Mid]

For some reason, Sportsman's Warehouse still has a much better price on the SS Kilo 1800BDX at $239 vs. 399 most everywhere else. I signed up and got emailed the 10% coupon so was able to complete my purchase for about $215 with free shipping. Not the incredible steal that others got at $179 earlier in the year, but still the best bang for the buck I have come across in my search over the past few weeks.

I really liked that Leupy 1400 with its LED display, and I hope it turns out to be reliable. After more research, I just couldn't go with a Leupy based on all the LED failures reported on various sites. The only other thing I didn't like on it was that it's only 5X magnification. Not a deal breaker, but more is better for rifle hunting.

I'm looking forward to receiving this Kilo and learning how to use it. I'm not sure if I'll get any use out of the BDX technology, but I plan to download the app and play with it a bit.

AM.

 

[bayoublaster7527]

Leica. Your desired features and budget should dictate which model.

 

[406unltd]

The newest rangefinder came in the mail today. It’s the new leupold rx 1400. Man this thing is killing me. I put the brand new battery in it and ran it against my oldest rangefinder I have. It’s a 7+ yr old Nikon prostaff 5. Having some snow here today so I did some testing against each other at the house. I was able to range some houses across the way that are about 280yds. Only the old Nikon could pick it up. The leupold didn’t even get close and was giving me 7,8,10 yd ranges. So I ranged a closer object. I took aim at the sidewalk that is approximately 70yds away hoping that this would yield better results from the leupold. Once again the old Nikon worked flawlessly and the leupold couldn’t even give me a remotely close reading. Again shooting me a 7,11,10yd reading. Very very disappointed right now. Returns aren’t being accepted by leupold yet but should soon and they will find this thing back in their hands. Beware to anyone that is considering the rx 1400. I will likely post this up in a separate thread just so it gets some views and warns people before making the mistake I did. Below is a video I just made really quick to show what I’m talking about.

 

[jhansen546]

I have the g7 and really like it


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[Spiral Horn]

Leica CRF hands down! Been using them exclusively for quite a while now. Precise, rugged and dependable. My experiences with other brands just didn’t measure up. Biggest differences are optics, ability to differentiate targets, low light performance, and most importantly the quality of laser and software - it cuts through mist and fog that others won’t. Was on a mountain just a few years ago when there were 2 other brands in camp, but my Leica was the only one that consistently worked despite rain and mist. The owners of the other brands were shocked.

With a Leica in hand there’s just one less thing to worry about.

 

[Attacking Mid]

I have no doubt those CRF Leica's work great! For me, having hunted my first few years without any RF, I just couldn't justify spending a bunch on something I don't view as mission critical. Next fall will be my first hunt using this new Sig Sauer and maybe my thoughts will change afterward. For now, I feel like I spent more than I planned just on the Sig.

Sorry to hear the Leupy arrived defective. From what I've read, most brands have a "dud" here or there. I tried one of those out at Bass Pro and was tempted to take it home with me. Then I read online about all the LED failures and decided I needed to consider a different brand. I'm sure Leupold will swap you out for one that works.

AM.

 

[ARMY_GREEN]

Leica 2700 B here. very clear glass, small / compact, lightweight

Try Doug at Camerlandny, he might have something to help you.