bushnell rangefinder

[ADKhunter]

hey guys..im looking into a range finder...im very fond of Leupold stuff...and have been thinking about the RX-750 TBR  Bass Pro and Cabelas has it for $279...but while i was cruising around cabelas..i found a combo of the Bushnell Scout 1000 ARC which also includes Bushnell 10x42 Binos...and a knife and DVD blah blah..the combo sells for $299...i just got Leupold Cascade 10x42 binos for xmas so the binos i wont be using...but my dad needs a new set...he doesnt need anything high dollar..im mainly concerned about the rangefinder...anyone know much about the Bushnell range finders??..they any good?..any info would be appreciated!

[royaltine]

My old one was a Bushnell - seemed to work just fine

[ADKhunter]

thanks for the reply!..i have been searching the web up and down for reviews on the bushnells....and i havent found many bad reviews at all...almost anywhere i look everyone seems to love them especially for the price

[Steve]

I've heard you usually get what you pay for with range finders.  I've never owned one for rifle hunting.  I know you can spend a lot of cash for one.

There are other ways to estimate range, that can work fairly well.  Jack O'connor had a Lee dot in one of his scopes.  He'd use that to estimate range in comparison to the size of the animal.

I have a 3X9 Leupold scope on most of my rifles.  What I've done many times is compare the size of an animal to the distance between the duplex recticles on 9 power.

I took a cardboard box that measured close to 18 inches.  I set this up at 300 yards.  It should measure the distance almost exactly, from the top heavy duplex reticle to the bottom one.

At 400 yards it will be about 3/4 of that distance.

At 500 yards a deer sized animal will fit almost exactly from the horizontal cross hair to the heavy duplex reticle.

I then test out my handloads at those distances to fiure out drop.  I sight my rifles about 2 1/2 inches high at 100 yards.

I memorize all that.  I know all this sounds complex, but it actually is a simple system.

One time there was a wounded antelope getting away.  It had a broken leg.  Someone else had wounded it.  It finally stopped about 500 yards off.  From a prone position I quickly estimated the range and made a perfect shot on it.

I'm not a big fan of long range shooting, because it is just too easy to wound an animal.  But sometimes a long shot is needed.  Knowing some tricks, like this, can make a big difference in extending your effective range.

[saddlesore]

For the  money,the Bushnells work. I have a Lieca 1200 and there is a marked differnce in the two. If was in the market for one, I'd look closely at the bino/range finder combos, as it is one less piece of equipment to carry. They all work in the 100-200 yd  relam, but stretch that out to 3-500 yds and you start to seriously see the distance.These cheaper ones are great for for bow hunters who are looking for less than 50 yd stuff

The Bushnells are quite a bit better than theTascos,but not as good as the Leupod or Lieca.
There is an old addage about buying anything with optics in it." Buy as good as you can possibly afford" . Optics are one thing that you do only get what you pay for.

[ADKhunter]

Thanks for the replies guys. I ended up ordering that bushnell combo. Just made the most sense for now since dad needed a new set of binos for a hunting trip to Alabama we took about a week after I posted my original thread.  The rangefinder I got seems to work great. Haven't had it long or used it much so I can't say to much. But we shared the Thompson center encore I bought my dad for Xmas and whoever had the smoke pole used the range finder cause some of the fields we hunted over you could easily get shots out to 450 yrds.  It worked good when my dad ranged a bobcat at 96yrds and shot it haha. The Thompson center shoots amazing as well!! 

But for now the bushnell will work  I have no doubt at some point I will end up investing in a better brand of higher quality but that's the future

thanks again for you insight fellas

[Steve]

Rangefinders can help tremendously.  If you are off fifty yards in range estimation, you can easily miss or have a wounded animal.  I've heard the cheaper range finders are often off at longer ranges.

I'd like to throw in some opinion on all of this.

You can extend the effective range of your rifle greatly using various tricks.  A range finder is one of them.  I know there is a video out about extending your range beyond belief.  There is also a fascination many hunters have with long range shooting.  Most hunters have a tale or two about a long shot that was way out there, but you usually don't hear the story of how somebody wounded an animal.

As hunters we all wound an animal once in a while.  I've never felt good about that.  Ethics are an important part of hunting.  I'll be honest....I've wounded several animals over the years, and I've tried to learn from that, so it doesn't happen again.

Let me give an example of what can happen.  Most of my rifles are fine tuned for extreme accuracy.  I shoot out to 500 yards so I know how far my reloads will drop.  I used to shoot a lot, so that I was in practice to make a tough shot.  I even connected on a couple of one shot 500 yard kills.

One evening I was out hunting.  There was a nice buck out in the middle of a wheat field.  Using my own system, I estimated the range to be about 500 yards.  I had a bipod on my rifle.  Legal shooting light was about gone.   I knew I could make that shot.  So, I touched one off.  It must have went barely over the top of his back.  This started the buck walking.  Anyone out there know how much to lead a walking animal at 500 yards.  Believe me it's more than you think.  So, I fired again.  The shot hit it square in the hind quarters.  What a lousy shot!  I ended up firing four more times.  Most of those shots hit the animal, but they were too far back.  Finally I killed it.  I was disgusted with myself.  I never should have shot at that range.

There are a ton of variables to long range shooting.  Wind is a big factor.  Knowing the exact range is another.  And the list goes on and on.   I really think that if a hunter can't get within reasonable range, it is a good idea to come back tomorrow.  I'll get off my soap box, but I just hate to wound game or cause unneeded suffering.  Don't get lulled into the idea of taking long shots!  You're going to wound a bunch of game if you do.  Just my two cents worth.

[ADKhunter]

thanks for the advice steve...i havent had any thought of shooting an animal any farther than 300yrds...i dont get enough practice for those types of ranges...theres no place to shoot that far where i live haha...im no sharpshooter but i like to think im fairly knowledgeable on the subject...and from what i know..shooting animals over 300yrds just gets to risky..unless of course your extremely good and get alot of practice at long ranges....but thanks again steve i appreciate all advice and opinions

[Steve]

I usually sight my rifles about 2 1/2  to three inches high at 100 yards.  That way I can shoot center of mass, on the lungs and still hit the vitals out to almost 300 yards on a deer or elk.  But that gets me in trouble some times.  At 200 yards the bullet hits almost four inches high.  I've clipped the top of the back on a couple of deer that were standing at 200 yards.  I've also completely missed coyotes.  So, it's important to be aware of the mid range trajectory, (if you sight your gun in three inches high at 100). 

A few inches high at a hundred yards can make some longer shots, a lot easier.  I know people who sight their guns in to hit right on at 100 yards.  That means they will hit way low at 300 yards. 

I also like a flat shooting rifle like a 270, or 300 Win., or  A 7mm. mag.  There are many other cartridges that I could mention, that are flat shooters....

The important thing is to know your limitations, and to stay well within those limits..... (Again this is my opinion on all this).