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Rangefinder, who has one, any good?

burmjohn
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burmjohn Newbie

burmjohn

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Heya,

Just been contemplating over the idea of getting a rangefinder.  Anyone have one? Find it useful?

I thought it would be great to have to at least help mark some of the tree's on the treestands / blinds.  I like the one from Redfield, the Ranger 550.  It's new so there are not a lot of reviews, but the ones I found were positive.  Plus it seems to be pretty affordable compared to others out there...

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Caveman Contributor

Caveman

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My biggest problems with rangefinders are 1) It's excess movement bringing it up to your eye and 2) I find myself so distracted with trying to see the yardage in the bottom corner that I forget to pay attention to the deer.  He could be looking right at me at full attention and I wouldn't notice.  We all know how dangerous that is. 

My best advice (and the advice of others I know) is if you're going to get one use it to range landmarks in your shooting lanes and then use that to estimate your range.

If you want one though the Scout Arc 1000 by Bushnell is a very good one.  It runs about 200 bucks but has a $50 mail in rebate at the moment.

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nybuckboy Enthusiast

nybuckboy

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I think they're great but like stated above... don't try and use them while the deer is coming in to you.  The way I like to do this to go to your stand(s) 6 weeks in advance, mid day. Measure and mark several trees at the max distance in your shooting lanes. I sight my one pin at 25 yds so I mark my trees at 25 yds. That way, any deer inside this radius you are all set. There are a few good ones for $200.

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nyslowhand Enthusiast

nyslowhand

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Wish you'd brought this up ~2 weeks ago, just sold my 3 year old Bushnell Scout for $75.

I'm only 15' up in my treestand, so I feel the same about it's use and movement.

If I were 20'+, you may get away with movements.

I do the same thing as nybuckboy with orange surveyors tape.

Happens all too often, all of a sudden there they are and not time to range distance.

Easy to judge distance if you have a 25yrd reference.

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Doewhacker Newbie

Doewhacker

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I got one of them Bushnell Sport 450's last x-mas. It seems to work well and was cheap, @130 I think. I also see no need to range a deer that is under 30, my pins are close enough together that it doesn't matter if I am off a couple of yards. However I will deff use it on deer that are at a farther distance where I need to know exactaly how far they are.

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Mr VJP Newbie

Mr VJP

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I've had a Bushnell for years and use it mostly when scouting or setting up a shooting range on my land.  I would use it for hunting only if I wanted to check the range on an animal I think is over 300 yards away.  If it's closer, I don't need to worry about where my bullet is going to hit.  If it's farther, the movement of using the range finder is not going to be noticed by the deer.

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vipertech Newbie

vipertech

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I have an older Bushnell.  Works great but the battery life is a bit short.  I bring along a couple extra batteries with me every time.  I also religiously remove the battery after every hunt.  I too follow the procedure's outlined above.  I get to my stand, range several rocks, trees, etc at 20 yards all around my stand.  Then I use those features to range the deer. 

BTW, I'm not 100% sold on the whole arc technology yet as it applies to bowhunting.  I can't really see where it benefits at bow ranges.  I've used mine without this feature for several years and never had an issue.  When I set up my bow, I set it up to match what my range finder tells me.  I guess I can see where it could help on longer shots via gun.  Can anybody who has this feature on their rangefinder comment?

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Buckstopshere Newbie

Buckstopshere

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I use a rangefinder when I am rifle hunting and bow hunting. I wouldn't be without one. When I was in Africa, I had to make some long range shots...with the rifle (200 to 387 yards.) And it taught me how valuable it can be. That was in 1999. When rifles were legalized here, it has come in handy a number of times on long range shots. And when I am on stand during archery season, I use it to mark trees so I know distance without walking around and stinking up the scene.

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Fantail Newbie

Fantail

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I got one of them Bushnell Sport 450's last x-mas. It seems to work well and was cheap, @130 I think. I also see no need to range a deer that is under 30, my pins are close enough together that it doesn't matter if I am off a couple of yards. However I will deff use it on deer that are at a farther distance where I need to know exactaly how far they are.

I have the same rangefinder I believe. Got mainly for Archery & Turkey for stand & spot checking. And so I don't usually take it with me if I know the stand - lanes. But it is handy at times when I'm in a fresh spot.

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orion Newbie

orion

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I use one all the time. They are not that big and it cant be beat. No more walking around just climb a tree and start ranging. When I am board I will often just pick it up and guess ranges.

Also when walking I will quite often stop and guess ranges at whatever and then just take it out and see how I did.

When/If a deer comes buy I already have everything ranged so no need to take it out then.

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WNYBuckHunter Experienced

WNYBuckHunter

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I have a simple Bushnell Yardage Pro 400 (I think thats the one) with no ARC or anything like that. I do not look at deer through it except for long range shots (100+) during gun season. I use it mostly to range different trees, etc before I get settled in so I can get a good idea of how far deer are when they come in.

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  • 3 weeks later...
fasteddie Grand Master

fasteddie

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You have to be careful bidding on EBAY . A friend goes on there and buys stuff (so do I) and gets caught up in the bidding . He sometimes bids more than what he could pay for locally . I told him to see what he could purchase it for plus tax . Then look at the shipping costs on EBAY and figure out what his top dollar would be and make his maximum bid and leave it alone .

The idjit sees someone has out bid him and bids more . He thinks he won !

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