Colorado Elk Hunt--Need Range Finder But Which One?

[DirtyMo]

Guys

I have ready one too many review and have still not come to a solid conclusion. Can I get your feedback on what you use?

Appreciate any feedback.

 

[Tim McCoy]

Leica CRF 1000R I think it is, has the angle comp the 1600 lacked at the time I got it. It is great. Used an older Leica 800 before that. The new Leupolds are good too, not so much the older ones, my brother got the 1000i TBR with DNA I think they call it, so far it has been excellent. The Leica is better, but usually more $. Have not used one, but Sig came out with one that seems very solid. There are more good ones than ever, well up into many thousands of dollars if you wish.

 

[mcseal2]

Leica is hard if not impossible to beat from my research and experience. I have the Geovid HD-B binos with the rangefinder built in and love them. I'd get a newer model with the angle compensation whatever brand you choose.

 

[Extractor]

Leica 1600, won't regret it.

 

[Team Kabob]

Leica 1000 here and it's true on non reflective material such as fur. My bushnell 1000arc was great for under 200yrs. But won't range past 250 on fur. Where the Leica will. So I would test it, so your not disappointed like I was on a hunt.



TK

 

[CoHiCntry]

I use the Leica 1000 like others have mentioned. If your only ranging short distances for shots on animals, you can get away with a much cheaper unit. Maybe one of the Nikon's? Leica is one of if not the best but you may not need the best?

 

[cmbbulldog]

I have a vortex one that I like a lot. Nice and small, fits the hand nicely, light, and I have ranged stuff out to 700 yards or so. Leica is known to be great, but the vortex is a nice option at a better price.

 

[ivorytip]

Lecia seems to be hard to beat. everyone I ask or talk to that name pops up at top every time. sure are a pretty penny though! are you archery or rifle hunting? if rifle, unless you plan to be taking 400+ yrd shots I don't know if you really need one. you are from VA though and may not be used to wide open distance shots. if you get one get quality, my Nikon has been disappointing me! I too am looking at Lecia or vortex.

 

[JimP]

How are you hunting, archery or rifle? If you are archery hunting there is no reason to get a range finder that will to to 1000 yards with angle compensation.

Sometimes I wonder how we ever killed a animal before all this fancy range finding stuff cam onto the market.

 

[CoHiCntry]

Sometimes I wonder how we ever killed a animal before all this fancy range finding stuff cam onto the market.

Lol! That's for sure...

 

[jerm8352]

Leica 1600 is on Camofire for $600.

 

[DirtyMo]

We are going out to CO elk hunting for the first time this year. My dilemma is I dont want to go out there half cocked...but here in VA we rarely shoot over 100-150 yds.

 

[JimP]

100-150 or even 200 yards would be more of the norm here in Colorado also. There are a lot of hunters that say that they took a 600 yard shot and hit the elk buy just holding over a few inches when in reality it was less than 400 yard and more likely 300. Most common hunters can not judge ranges that well when it comes to looking across a canyon or even flat terrine. And their shots are always about twice as long as they actually are.

 

[Mountain10mm]

I have a nikon 550 and it's good out to 550 yards. It's an older model and has served it's purpose well. When I bought it, I figured 550 yards was more than I'd ever shoot so why pay for more distance. Hind sight being what it is, I wish I bought one that goes to 1500 or more. We often see elk in the distance and know they are beyond our reach, but the question of how far beyond are reach is very important. Do I need to sneak up another 50 yards or another 500 yards? The terrain in the Rockies really distorts my perception of distance. What looks like it might be 1000 yards away on the opposite face of a mountain, might only be half that, or vice versa. The lighting, a river flowing in the valley below, not sure why the distance estimation is so hard, but it is.

 

[droptine]

I just bought the nikon Prostaff 7i. Spose to go to 1300 yds. Ranged hay bails out 1050 yds. Holy cow that's a long way!! Lol

 

[hoshour]

Remember that the ranges they quote are for reflective targets. Actual effective range on animals can be quite a bit shorter.

I try hard not to shoot over 300 yards or a little more and I can pretty easily tell the difference between 200 and 300, so I don't need one that goes over 400 yards, although some people like knowing how much distance they have to close.

 

[kybuck]

I really like my older Leica rangefinder, except for the size

 

[rjroberts15]

Whichever one you buy, I would suggest ranging alot when you get there. Big country can be really deceiving.

 

[Silentstalker]

Get the Sig Kilo 2000. State of the art new laser technology, updates 4x per second, auto adjusts its brightness based on daylight. It is the best rangefinder on the market right now. Check one out, you wont regret it.

 

[rackpack]

DirtyMo, I have the bushnell 1200 arc and love it. Before that I had the Leupold RX models and they didn't work that great at longer yards especially on non reflective targets. Bought the Leupold rangefinder to go bear hunting and had problems with ranging. I returned it when I got home thinking there were problems with that one. I returned two more so all three in total had the same issues. I gave up and bought the bushnell and never looked back or had any issues.

good luck