Maybe this should be in optics,dunno but I'd like to hear from forum members on what brand and model of lazer range finder they use.My old Bushnell bit the bullet and it's time for a new one. Magnum man

I started with a Leica 800 and moved up to a Leica 1200. Sold it and a bought a set of Leica Geovid 10x42's off this site.

I started with a Bushnell 1000 yd model. Terrible optics, but excellent ranging capabilities. Moved on to a Leica 1200 CRF, great optics not as good at ranging as the Bushnell. Then moved to a Leupold RX1000i TBR, mediocre optics and mediocre ranging. This summer I will be back to the CRF 1600B from Leica. If you're in flat country or don't shoot over 350 yds, then there is no need for a ballistic program. I shot over the back of a black bear last spring at 515 yds because of the steep angle. I won't have that happen again if I can help it.

Leica.

I've used a Nikon 400 for years. It's seldom that it'll reach out to 400, though, usually around 375 unless conditions are just right. It's good for any distance I'm going to shoot but it would really help to have a longer range one to tell me how much closer I need to get.

My Lieca 1200 LRF scan's work great unless it is foggy and snowy only time I can't get a reading usally!

not sure any will due to refraction

I'm useing a Lieca 1600. If there was anything better in that price range, I'd be useing it.
I'll keep the Lieca for hunting but my next range finder is going to be a Vector, for long range target shooting.

I sold my Leica CRF1200 to get the Vortex Ranger 1000 with the angle compensator. Although it worked out well on a stock just a few days ago, it is not the LRF the Leica is/was and I fear I am going to regret it.

I have been using a Nikon Monarch 800 for several years. So far, I haven't needed anything more, but I keep looking at the Leica CRFs and thinking that I will get one sometime.

Jon Graham (jmgraham1986) was down hunting with me this fall and he had a Leupold RX1000 that worked very well for him. He was calling out ranges before I could even get my Nikon out of my pocket.

+1 For the $200 I paid, it does everything required.

I saved up for a Leica and stumbled across a Swaro for 550.
So now I use a Swaro. The glass is good enough that my binos go in the pack instead of on my chest.

Leica here.

I bought a Zeiss PRF about 3 years ago.

Don't use it very often but it works great.

Got mine this spring. Absolutely love it.


Travis

They are fast!

And good in schitty weather. That's what I've noticed anyway.


Travis

The Bushnell Fusion is surprisingly good in terrible conditions like fog, darkness, and snow covered prairie with the sun shining brightly. After using the Leica 1200's, Zeiss PRF, and some lower end RF's, I'm EXTREMELY impressed by the Fusion. The optics are mediocre, and if they had excellent optics it would be a hard unit to beat for the price! The next meaningful step up would be a Vectronix, which is what I'll get some day.

I have a Nikon Monarch 800 and it gave me problems these past couple years....I reset the peramiters to "G"

I hope I fixed it....

keep the comments coming , I really appreciate the imput. Magnum Man

Leica, Leica, Leica. We have tested a few side by side and time after Leica has been the most accurate and most dependable.

George,

You'd love the range finding abilities of the Fusion!

Have an Leica 900 that's got 9 seasons going on it, and still working great.

Leica 1200 here, works great. However, I hope to buy a set of rangefinding bino's over the next year.

This one...excellent range finder.

gary

Leica 1200. Zero issues and zero complaints.

Do yourself a favor and take a look at the range finding binoculars. Saves packin two pieces of equipment, and saves time , while you're looking at a critter punch the button and know what you need to do to take the shot.

I've gone from leica, to zeiss and back to leica. The zeiss ranged well, but the leica was brighter and much handier to have along.

I have one of the nikon 550's. My buddy had a Leica and we would range targets side by side and they were consistent with each other.

Leica lrf 1200 here.

I use Leica Geovid 10x42 binocs with built in rangefinder.
The more I use this setup, the more sold I am on it. One less gadget to carry around, not to mention less time for use- spot your game, range it, shoot.

This season, I was able to look over the bull elk I ended up shooting, at last legal light, clearly see antler points, range it, and put him on the ground. The optical quality of Leica is very hard to beat.

I use the reticle subtentions in my scope to estimate range. But I'm not shooting much over 200 to 300 yard ranges either.

For compact, easy to use, the Leica CRF is about the best. Along with compact Ultravids, they are a great bow-hunting combination. But for the best of the best in Rangefinding binoculars, the EL's do shine. Geovids are good, but the Swarovski is better...

Swarovski. Like them very much

Leupold 600. I've ranged deer out to 525, and reflective objects to 594.

I hunt big ag fields and wish it had more range, but what it does, it does well.

I wish someone would make a rangefinding binocular with an inclinometer, ballistic program, and superb optics. I'd sell blood until I could afford one.

I have the Leica Geovid's in 8x42. The glass is excellent but I am a little dissapointed in the rangefinder. It's not bad under optimum conditions but...hard to hold steady on a target of any distance. The laser box seems small compared to some other brands. Also, I've never got it to read anything over 600 yards. So..love the glass..but thinking of carrying a smaller rangefinder for the more distant targets.

I've used Bushnell, Nikon, Leupold, Vortex and now, the Leica CRF 1600B. The Leica is, hands down, the very best in all weather conditions and against all background types. All of them are pretty good in good weather and against hard backgrounds. The Leica is the one that I have found to be by far the most reliable against foliage and grass backgrounds, and it blows away the others at longer ranges, plus it is clearly superior in rain and snow. And its as light and compact as any of them and lighter and smaller than most.

This fall I tested the latest from Leupold, Vortex and Leica (thanks to a friend that owns an optics store). After actually using them side-by-side, outdoors, against varying targets at varying ranges and varying lighting conditions, I grabbed the Leica 1600B and never looked back.

While antelope hunting in Wyoming in October, I ranged targets out past 2000 yds with the Leica. One of my hunting partners had a Nikon and the other had a Bushnell and neither could range half that distance consistently. Although I wouldn't shoot much past 400 yds, it was really nice to be able to range out to around a mile and a quarter or so to see how far it was to a hill, rock, tree, coulee, or some other terrain feature when planning a stalk on a prospective goat. We were surprised how often we were wrong about which terrain feature was closer than another one when hunting uneven country. That Leica saved us a lot of unnecessary hiking.

On the last day of our hunt, a rain storm, which quickly turned into a near-blizzard of snow, blew in. The Leica was the only one of the three range finders that would give readings in that weather.

In addition, the 1600B has uphill/downhill angle compensation built-in, which I found was confidence inspiring when I had to shoot off the rim of a canyon down into its bottom. This is a feature that I didn't think that I needed, but now I'm glad it's there.

I'd say grab the Leica and forget the rest. To me, the Leica is certainly worth twice the price of the Nikon or Vortex and 1.5 times the price of the Leupold.

Hi Plainview,

The laser box or reticle is small for a reason. It helps you be more certain of what it is that you are actually ranging. The laser beam is 2.5m wide by .5 m tall at 1000m. You need both a small beam and a small reticle to be certain of what it is you are ranging. Just like shooting a rifle (but not as bad) it is going to be tough to hold steady on objects at long distances.

As to your Geovids not ranging anything past 600 yards, if that is the case, there is definitely a problem. Send them back to Leica and ask them to check collimation of the laser. Email me if you need any help.

Sdog:

Thanks for the advice. The other problem I have is that the box is about the same size as a deer at 300 yards. Any movement off the target at all and I get no reading what-so-ever. I find that I have to cycle the laser switch twice to get a reading.

Leica CRF 1200 works well and compact enough to carry in a shirt pocket

I got a Swaro a few years ago, it has been without issue.

I appreciate all the input from you guys on models and brands and their features. Would anybody care to tell of their experiences with using or needing any warrantee services.? with the brands they have had. Magnum Man

A good friend bought a Nikon 6-8 years ago. He threw the box in his pickup and drove out the the Breaks to bowhunt with us. Didn't work from the minute he took it out of the box and Nikon pretty much told him to get bent. They would fix it for almost as much as it cost. Shop wouldn't take it back either. Expensive lesson learned - Nikon sucks (and so does that shop)!!

I've had a Nikon Riflehunter 1000 for 3 years and it works well for me. IMHO, I think it has one of the better displays and responds as quickly as any range finder I have used tried at a store. Very happy with mine.

Mman . Won't do much good for me to tell you how much I like my Burris RF bino's as they don't make them anymore. But they have served me well for the past 5 or 6 years, and the rangefinder part has been able to range antelope at 900 yds on sunny days.

I've used the Nikon 1200, the Bushnell 1000 w/ARC, and several Leupold models.

My current favorite is the Leupold RX-1000, for bow and rifle. Optics are good enough to replace my binos in the arhcery treestand in the Virginia hardwoods, where visibility for me is limited to 80-100 yards tops. I've used the same model in Idaho, ranging about anything I wanted to out to 950+ yards for two seasins now, no issues. Carry size is great, fits into about any pocket. The small size can be a bit tricky to hold steady at further ranges, but I haven't had enough issues to say it's a problem. Love the three-output levels of red display, easy on the eye, adjusts well, and fast to read.

The Nikon unit is nice, accurate, but just BIG! It doesn't fit well in a chest pocket, and is a big bodied unit to get a hand around. It does have a tripod mount and a flat surface to rest on, so I like it more for the range, scouting from the road, than for daily carry. The unit feels solid, and I like the quickness of the returned range reading.

Bushnell is my least favorite, just feels cheap. I almost stripped the battery cap threads when I installed the first battery. If you notice the Bushnell sales ads, the rangefinder is almost always paired with another higher dollar item to keep the price point about $300. Just sell me the darned rangefinder for a better price, I don't hunting DVDs, cheap China knives or bootom end binos with it....JMO. It has a tripod hole, so it does range and field duty for archery.

If Santa is feeling kind, I may be able to try the Leica line this coming year...

Fwiw, I have a pair of the Leica Geovids in 15x56 and the Leica 1200's for general work. I find their ranging abilities not as good as their optics as others have mentioned. In fact they are not as good in that function as the Bushnell Fusion 10x40s were but then my eyes could just not get past the Bushnell's optics and I sold them.

Leica 1200 is fantastic.

Had Nikon 400's which worked great and fit easily into my shirt pocket. Would often range out to 500 rather than the 400 advertised. Really liked them but wanted more range, gave them to my brother.

Bought a Leupold RX IV and can't say enough bad about them . Supposed to be good to over 1,000 yards but considered myself lucky to get 500. Bigger than the Nikon and not as capable. Lost the damn things while elk hunting three years ago. (Thank goodness!)

Bough a Nikon RifleHunter 1000 and really like them. Consistently reads over 900, which is further than I'll take any shots. Has the ability to automatically adjust the readout to effective range for up/downhill shots. Really like them.

My hunting buddy's Leupold just died. It has made in China on the bottom. I told him to send it back as Leupold has great CS. So, he'll probably get a new Chinese RF to use till it bellies up.

My go to RF has for years been the Leica 1200. It ranges to 600 yds on soft targets, a bit further on hard targets. It's pretty worthless in fog and spotty in rain.

I just got a set of Zeiss Victory RF binocs from Doug and company on special. Still pricey but, very good. The glass is really good, I can't say better than Swaro or Leica, but in the ball park. The RF is the best I've seen. According to Zeiss ads the laser beam is the smallest in the industry. That's good when ranging long distances over flat ground. It will range in the rain and about half the distance I can see in a fog. For example, if I can make out a shape at 300 yds, this unit will range to 150-160 yds. Clear weather will give 1,500-1,600 yd repeatable readings.

And it's really fast. Ranging binocs are the quickest way to ID game, get the range and make the shot.

What's that worth? Potentially a bunch.

DF

Was out to the local Cabela's on saturday. Checked out the RX-1000 TBR model of Leupold's ,Vortex 1000, the Bushnell Scout 1000 with ARC, Bushnell Fusion Bino's. I didn't ask to see the Leica Geovids(they cost more than my truck is worth). I think I eliminated the Bushnell Scout right of the bat for its all dark display. So I think I'm down to the Leupold and the Vortex. Leupold has a 2 yr warrantee on the electronics does anyone else offer more? Magnum Man

Don't know much about the Vortex, but have heard and seen some less than optimal accounts of the Leupold.

I'd get a used Leica before a new Leupold.

Just saying...

DF

I use a set of Bushnell 1500 with the ARC. ARC only works for really close stuff so it's great for bowhunting, can range decent out to 1350 or so if I can keep it stable enough. used it alongside EH76's Leicas and was consistent to within a yard or two at most. his were faster, clearer and nicer since it was built in the binos. for the price and what they do I can't complain about the Bushnells.

1135 I looked thru the Fusion at Cabelas, they looked ok and they had them at 699. I just figured if they won't warrantee past 2 years, spend less. Magnum Man

With all due respect DF, the RX1000i DNA is a different animal than the other piece of crap Leupold RF's. It is outstanding actually. I've heard great things about the Zeiss too.

I sold brand new Leica 1600 and bought Leupold 1000i TBR. Leica's are worthless for archery.

I have to disagree JGRaider. I bought a new Leupold 1000i TBR this year, optics aren't very good in low light at all. Ranging is weak compared to the Leica CRF 1200 I had previously and neither were as good as the Bushnell 1000 I used prior. I don't recommend the Leupold at all, mainly due to the poor optics and the fact that it doesn't range nearly as well as either of my previous RF. It's the Leica 1600B for me. Just too useful a piece of gear to compromise on the optics or ranging abilities. If you only shoot short distances or on flat ground, there's no need for a ballistic program in the RF. If you do, the 1600B is the only answer short of a G7 BR2 or a Vectronix.

Thanks, JG, for that clarification. I haven't studied Leupold RF's, just saw the one my buddy had. As you can tell, I wasn't impressed. Maybe I need to look at their other offerings.

I still think a used Leica 1200 would be a good RF at a reasonable price. I think my buddy paid $400 for the Chinese Leupold that went belly up on him. For $400, I think I could get him a lot more RF than what he showed me.

DF

I picked up the Leupy after two of the crf 1200's wouldn't range anything in challenging light, and anything but a reflective target it wouldn't range past 400. I was very disappointed in the Leica's I had so they went down the road. Conversely I've used the 1000i hundreds of times now and it's done quite well, much better than the Leica's. I'm not representing they're all like my sample of 2 though. I will wholeheartedly agree that every other leupold rf I've ever used was a piece of garbage.

At least the Leica 1200 keeps on keeping on. I had heard people say they could get reads at longer ranges, but IME, around 600 yds. was tops and that in good weather.

I guess the Zeiss Victory 8x45 T* RF has spoiled me, as the Leica RF stays home. Zeiss glass is good, but their RF is outstanding.

I would love to see side by side comparisons with other quality RF binocs, like Swaro and Leica. I've read that the RF feature takes a bit from glass performance, but not enough to make a big difference. I have an older set of Swaro 7x50 binocs that are super. I think that glass is every bit as good, if not better than the Zeiss. They're heavy and don't have a RF, so they stay home.

DF

Same experience here! I had a hunter with me last week with the Leica 1200 RF and my new Leupold 1000i was ranging deer that his couldn't. They were standing in a wheat field at over 700 yards and I got a range twice and he couldn't get one

Also, as much as I like Vortex their rangefinders suck

Drummond

From what I've learned, the best long range RF's have narrower laser beams. That's important at long distances over flat ground. The Zeiss, reportedly, has one of the narrowest laser beams in the industry, especially vertically. I would like to see the specs on the Leupy 1000i. Based on what you guys are saying, I'll bet it's pretty narrow, thus more specific and repeatable at longer distances.

DF

My Leupold RX 1000i TBR won't range much of anything beyond 600 yds. The ranging ability of the unit is substandard, don't know how to put that much clearer. The optics also suck, not as bad as the older Leupolds or the Nikon and Bushnell, but they still suck. Terrible edge clarity and light transmission. Save your money and buy something better.

Thanks for that info, Ranger.

Is that one made in China?

DF

I've seen this posted here a few times in the last few days, and thought I'd clarify that the Zeiss Victory RF binos have one of the smallest beam divergences at 0.5x1.6 MRAD, but the PRF is one of the largest at 2x4 MRAD.

No idea - I can take a look when I get home from work.

You need to send it to Leupold and have them check it then. I know mine is accurate at least to 900, because my CDS/7mag verifies it every time kill those rocks. Obviously the more reflective the better, but it's no problemo.

Could be that there's something wrong with it. I can't get any kind of range off of the prairie grass that my old Leica would range every time out to 8-900 pretty easily. I wish it was a great rangefinder, just isn't. It's going to go down the road this spring/summer and I'll be back to Leica.

Makes you wonder what kind of variances these rangefinders have as some seem to work better than others and I'm not talking about different brands of rangefinders, I'm talking about the same brand and models working differently.

It weird that my Leupold worked better than my hunters Leica just 10 days ago and your experience is the opposite.

I think part of it boils down to just getting a good one no matter what the brand

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