Ranging Binos or Binos plus a Rangefinder?

[shooterrdy]

Seperate for Me I like being able to take the rangefinder in a pocket when I dont need the harness. Dark timber, whitetail tree stand etc.

 

[AaronMColeman]

Archery seems like a no brainer to have a separate range finder. I couldn’t hunt the way I want with RF binos.

Rifle I could see an all in one working well. Especially with some ballistics info.

personally I’m not a gear nut (I only have a few rifles, sounds like most of you have more binos than I have rifles). I like to keep my set up simple and basically same from archery to rifle. So separate bino and range finder are perfect for me.

 

[wtx]

I'll be upgrading to alpha glass soon and I'm in a similar dilemma. Currently have the Nikon Laser forces 10 x 42 which have served me well for the past few years and really enjoy the combo unit but leave me wanting better glass and possibly a bump up to 12x. I'll be utilizing a tripod this year (outdoorsman's stud/panhead) which makes my decision more difficult. I'm down to a few options:

(new) Swaro EL RANGE TA 10x42 - have ballistics which is a huge plus.
Zeiss Victory RF 10x42- also have ballistics and get great reviews

OR:

Swaro EL 12x50 and a separate range finder (sig or leica, something that can BT to a a kestrel)

Hunting mainly far west Texas so the jump to 12x seems like a benefit. Also hunt south Texas where the first and last few minutes of the day are critical to judging animals so the slight loss in pupil might make a case for the 10x. Not concerned at this point about weight and usually someone has a spotter along for the ride.

Has anyone been in the same situation and what are your thoughts?

 

[JGRaider]

12x is never a good idea if you're going to be doing hand held glassing. I'm not talking about looking through it for 10 seconds, serious glassing.

 

[roberteifert12]

Like others have said, i prefer the separate rangefinder. Specifically for archey out of a tree stand. The animal can move several yard closer or further before a shot is presented. Easy one handed range, back in pouch, draw back...

I encounter that scenario wayyyy more often than i would encounter a scenario where its inconvenient to pack/use the separate rangefinder

 

[MtnW]

I thought pretty hard about the recent Leica RF Bino releases and looked at the new offerings. I have given away a few Leica rangefinders to guides and without a RF at this time. I agree with some of the comments about the technology of the RF’s Binos getting outdated in a year or two. I tend to buy higher end optics without buying the very top model ,I take care of them and tend to keep them 10 years or so. I have pretty much decided my best option is to add a stand alone Leica RF, add a quality pair of something like a pair of 8X30’s Binos to go along with my current 10X42 BN Trinovods. One of the deciding factors for me is I hunt some thicker country that can offer shots at 50-300yds , thus the want for a 2nd pair of binos the 8x30’s. While I have a few extra rifles I never had a lot of different binos. My current Leica 10x42BN’s are proven in wet, cold and extreme conditions. Leica’s short term warranty on their new line of RF binoculars also kept me away. The Swaro’s RF’s just have more technology than I need and the cost is more than I want to sink in binos .

 

[antlerz]

I thought pretty hard about the recent Leica RF Bino releases and looked at the new offerings. I have given away a few Leica rangefinders to guides and without a RF at this time. I agree with some of the comments about the technology of the RF’s Binos getting outdated in a year or two. I tend to buy higher end optics without buying the very top model ,I take care of them and tend to keep them 10 years or so. I have pretty much decided my best option is to add a stand alone Leica RF, add a quality pair of something like a pair of 8X30’s Binos to go along with my current 10X42 BN Trinovods. One of the deciding factors for me is I hunt some thicker country that can offer shots at 50-300yds , thus the want for a 2nd pair of binos the 8x30’s. While I have a few extra rifles I never had a lot of different binos. My current Leica 10x42BN’s are proven in wet, cold and extreme conditions. Leica’s short term warranty on their new line of RF binoculars also kept me away. The Swaro’s RF’s just have more technology than I need and the cost is more than I want to sink in binos .

I find the 2700LRF has enough tech to get you on target with one click and no drop-chart. I agree, I dont want my main optics getting outdated by their electronics and I am free to update each independently. An 8x30 will be way handier than a RF Bino.