Range Finding Binoculars
Contributors to this thread:Equipment
From: bighorn
30-Oct-17
Anyone use the range finding binoculars for bow hunting? How accurate are they ? And what brand. Trying to carry less gear.
From: SonofButch
30-Oct-17
Leica because they go down to 15 yards. Swarovskis are a little clearer to my eyes but they only range down to 33 yds.
From: bighorn
30-Oct-17
which Leica's?
From: BOHUNTER09
30-Oct-17
A friend has bushnell combo. He has recently gone back to a small range finder because he can hold it steady in one hand.
From: BOHNTR
30-Oct-17
I've had the Leica Geovids for years......have the Geovid R's that are angle compensating now......great glass and RF, IMO.
From: Matt
30-Oct-17
I personally prefer separate units, easier to raise/lower my RF in close.
From: BTM
31-Oct-17
I'm a HUGE fan of combo RF/binos. I'd never go back to dealing with two separate units. My Bushnell Fusion has worked well for five years or so and shows no sign of slowing down.
From: Blacktail Bob
02-Nov-17
I have a Leica geovid ranging binocular with angle compensate that are about a year old I'll you for $750, less than half price. I'm using them right now in a Iowa treestands but they'll be available after thanksgiving. Great glass, very accurate, a bit slow and button on left side.
From: Mike Castillo
02-Nov-17
How do you guys do it one handed bowhunting? I would LOVE to ditch the separate unit, but don't see how it is practically possible. Any input would be welcome...
From: petedrummond
02-Nov-17
8x one handed fits bino harness and stays centered in chest. Cheaper too.
8x one handed fits bino harness and stays centered in chest. Cheaper too.
Use swarvo monocular
From: hardcore247
02-Nov-17
The new Leica's the button is on the right side so you can run them one handed. You need to make sure you find the right bino harness as that seems to be one of my draw backs. Getting them in and out of the harness with one hand can be challenging. I believe Kota has done some reviews and may have more input on the harnesses.
Another problem is hoping you don't have a warranty claim they can't fix in the US. Been waiting 16 weeks for my to return.....
From: Blacktail Bob
02-Nov-17
New Leica don't angle compensate less than 100 yards. Worthless for bowhunting.
From: hardcore247
02-Nov-17
THe HD-R type 402 and 403 angle compensate down to 10 yards. They also have the button on the right. I guess I have to be careful with the new statement as they are constantly changing.
From: t-roy
02-Nov-17
I have the older model Leica Geovid with the button on the left side, which is perfect for me, being a lefty. I wish they had the angle compensating feature, but wouldn’t say they’re worthless.
Mike Castillo.....I don’t have a problem running them one handed. If need be, you can rest them on the top of your bow to help steady them more if you can’t get a range off hand.
From: sticksender
02-Nov-17
The newer Leicas (HD-R edition 2200) are spec'd to work in the Equivalent Horizontal Range (EHr) mode, down to 10 yards, and out to 1200 yards. You have to specifically set the unit into the EHr mode before this function will work. The default setting is standard line-of-sight range mode. Normal line-of-sight ranging is from 10 yards to roughly 2000 yards. Buttons are on the right. Great glass. I bought mine as a demo set after this years winter/spring hunting conventions.
From: BTM
03-Nov-17
"Mike Castillo.....I don’t have a problem running them one handed. If need be, you can rest them on the top of your bow to help steady them more if you can’t get a range off hand. " Spot on! That's exactly how I do it. Another reason I like the combo RF/bino is when coyote calling. When I spot a wary dog (often at 2-300 yards), there's no time to drop the binos, pick up the RF, try to re-acquire him, and then pick up the 22-250.
From: Matt
03-Nov-17
On thing I've learned with a RF is if you wait until your quarry is in view before you start ranging, it is often too late.
From: Blacktail Bob
04-Nov-17
I almost never take a Shot unless I've ranged the distance on the animal or it's under 30 yards. In a treestand like I'm in right now in Iowa it's a different story. You have way more time than you need to acquire distance knowledge to every damn thing in sight.
From: pointingdogs
04-Nov-17
My thoughts: I have the Leupold rx-1000i TBR. 6X which works fine as binos. Had angle compensation. Great clarity. Can be used one handed. I hunt the woods and field edges of Iowa. Most of the time when a deer appears it is within 100 - 200 yards and the 6X works just fine in identifying how big he is. Easy to use, small and light weight. I checked and see that it is discontinued "online". I have had this for many years and would not trade it off. Also works good out to 800 yards when hunting antelope in Wyoming.
From: FLhntr
04-Nov-17
Love my new Leica geovids had a pair with the button on the left that I sold to get a new pair with button on the right. Now it's not a problem to operate with one hand.
From: BTM
04-Nov-17
FWIW the back page of the latest Bowhunter mag has a good discussion of the merits of combo RF/binos.
From: Dooner
04-Nov-17
Dooner's Link
If I was in the market for range finding binoculars, I'd definitely look at the Vortex...
From: Beendare
05-Nov-17
I too thought that the combo unit would be great. I ran the Leica geovtids for about 7 years but then went back to a bino and separate RF.
I prefer the versatility and less weight of separate units. I run different 8x and 10x binos deg on the hunt- now I'm not locked in to a heavy 10x.
Plus, the RF in my Leicas was only guaranteed for 5 years...I didn't want to end up having a very heavy bino with broken RF....though Leica may just fix it for ya....don't know.
