Re: Rangefinders for mountain hunting???
Met a fellow goat hunting a couple weeks ago who had a Leica bino/rangefinder combo. Holy Smoke! So Clear! We ranged a prominent rock on the mountainside from camp determining it to be almost exactly a kilometere away. Beautiful. That's how we determined that a three-point buck was 2 km away on the next scree over, out in the open in the blazing sun at mid--morning.
Re: Rangefinders for mountain hunting???
Quote:
Originally Posted by
MichelD
Met a fellow goat hunting a couple weeks ago who had a Leica bino/rangefinder combo. Holy Smoke! So Clear! We ranged a prominent rock on the mountainside from camp determining it to be almost exactly a kilometere away. Beautiful. That's how we determined that a three-point buck was 2 km away on the next scree over, out in the open in the blazing sun at mid--morning.
I am leery of bino/rangefinder combos..if the electronics malfuntion you must send away the binoculars too..
But yes they are an amazing items of kit.
Cheers
Srupp
Re: Rangefinders for mountain hunting???
Most rangefinder"s ratings need to be cut in half if you want to range a non-reflective target (animal) reliably. As a cheap guy, I can tell you, the money you save on inexpensive optics is a false economy. Buy a bone stock 300WM Savage at Cdn Tire, mount a scope worth 2X the rifle's cost and spend the same on a rangefinder. Will leave you much better off than a $2500 rifle, results wise.
Re: Rangefinders for mountain hunting???
Have a set of Leica Geovid HD-B binoculars with the range finder and absolutely love them.. the glass is amazing and the rangefinder is even better, make sure to buy a rangefinder that compensates for angle.
As Srupp said, the one downside to the combo, is if there is service needed, you loose 2 items. Have been dealing with this in a friends pair of Geovids, luckily Leica turned them around in under a week.. pretty great service.
Re: Rangefinders for mountain hunting???
Wow a lot of great info and tips. Thanks to all of you. I ordered a Nikon monarch 2000 laser range finder. found it on the cabelas site on sale. I was thinking like a lot of you. Take a guess at the range and then range find it, to get better at rangeing. Now It just needs to come in the mail (I hate waiting for stuff) Then out to the field. Again thanks for all your input I love to soak up knowledge. Hopefully my first elk will be in range for a perfect shot. :)
On a side note I read a good book from vortex on how to range with your scope. just incase electronics fail. (Vortex the ultimate guide to rifle shooting) Great read.
Re: Rangefinders for mountain hunting???
Congrats. Nikon makes good stuff
Re: Rangefinders for mountain hunting???
I use a Leopold 1000i TBR. FANTASTIC rangefinder. The downside is that the display is red. Great in low light conditions, terrible mid day.
Re: Rangefinders for mountain hunting???
I disagree with buying a rangefinder limited to the distance you’ll shoot. As with anything, get the best one you can afford and with the greatest accuracy/distance. I find that ranging distances farther than you intend to shoot tells you how much ground you need to close before you’re comfortable shooting, and can tell you how far you’ll have to travel to ‘get to that tree’ so you can stay behind the hogs back so the animal doesn’t detect you....etc. Ranging farther than you shoot has many uses.
Re: Rangefinders for mountain hunting???
Quote:
Originally Posted by
RugDoctor
I disagree with buying a rangefinder limited to the distance you’ll shoot. As with anything, get the best one you can afford and with the greatest accuracy/distance. I find that ranging distances farther than you intend to shoot tells you how much ground you need to close before you’re comfortable shooting, and can tell you how far you’ll have to travel to ‘get to that tree’ so you can stay behind the hogs back so the animal doesn’t detect you....etc. Ranging farther than you shoot has many uses.
I like the way you think. It can help in a lot of scenarios
Re: Rangefinders for mountain hunting???
Quote:
Originally Posted by
montec assassin
I use a Leopold 1000i TBR. FANTASTIC rangefinder. The downside is that the display is red. Great in low light conditions, terrible mid day.
Thats interesting to hear. I bought a Sig Saur rangefinder and it has a black display, which a lot of reviews complain about. I guess you have to pick your poison. Probably more shots taken in early/late light, than midday? Someone needs to make a rangefinder with selectable lcd color. I have a scope with an illuminated reticle that you can have off (black) or illuminated in either red or green. It’s pretty dang cool. It’s not a Nikon or Leica, so the glass is average at best, but the technology is out there.
I also agree that buying a rf that only ranges out to your maximum comfortable shooting distance is a pretty dumb idea. I won’t shoot past 400 yards unless conditions are absolutely perfect, so if I’m at 700, knowing how far to move is key.