i need a ranggefinder for this year becuase im not good at judging distances. all i do is bowhunt. so should i really spend the extra little money to get a angle compensating rangefinder? i ussually set my stands about 24 ft.high, and shoot out to 50 yards.
If all you do is hunt, you are that high and you are going to be spending the money on a good range finder anyways then I say yes. Go ahead and spend the few extra bucks. It will be worth it. Especially being that high up.
IMHO, angle compensating range finders are a total gimmick. Unless your shooting extreme angles 45* or more, I see no need for it. For the money I would recommend the Nikon Prosatff 550. Will run your $200. But this range finder is the only one in it's class that will measure a true 550 yards, reflective or non reflective. To expand on this, be careful when buying cheaper range finders (Bushnell, Simmons, etc.) as they will only range there marketed distance on a reflective surface.... Unless you want to be putting little mirrors everywhere 24' is way up there!
Hunting that high can throw one off. I would suggest moving your stand height down to around 18-20 feet unless the deer are ultra spooky or you do not have sufficient back cover. I played sports for a long time so judging distances within 20-25 yards are not that difficult for me, unless I am extremely high (like you) or under immediate reaction pressure to shoot a deer that is coming through quickly. Here is something that helps me. Once I get up into the tree to hunt I start scanning my environment. I predict where the deer will travel and more times than not, I am pretty close as I imagine many of you are as well. I look at trees that are close to those travel zones and then trace those trees up to eye level. I then make predictions as to how far those trees are by looking straight at them at eye level. That is the most accurate way my mind has of estimating distance to an object on the ground from an elevated position. Trying to stare from your perched position to the base of a tree and estimating distances can be difficult, whereas looking at eye level is a lot easier and then just trace down to the ground. Do this 4-5 times and your brain will remember when the moment of truth arrives. Practice tip...get a target(s) and place them out in the woods. Get up in the treestand. Mark the targets with signs close by as to their actual distance. That will help you get familiar with the distances to your intended target. Practice looking at the trees that are close to those targets, look at them at eye level, and then make a prediction of distance before you shoot. After a couple of weeks you will be doing great. Just my thoughts. Best of luck.
Walmart has the Chuck Adams Edition Bushnell ranger finder with angle of arch with it for just $224. Not a bad buy.
Exactly what i whitnessed also ..........theres a chart floating around somewhere i dont remember where it is , its on the web somewhere , may even be on here , with the stand height and actual animal distance and computes the actual distance. I'm thinking if i remember correctly that 25 feet up and 20 yards to the target its actually 22 yards , and the # gets greater the further out .
I do something similar except I use the rangefinder. The eye level distance is the shooting distance so I just range all the trees that are close to where I think the deer will be. I keep my shooting distance under 30 yards so, even if the deer is not exactly by the ranged tree I don't need to adjust my aim point.
Arc You do not really need it. Just take a reading at the base of the tree at a given yardage and then take a reading at the tree at eye level. You will only see a slight difference in yardage 20yards from your stand and 20' high. By taking a reading at the base of the tree you are getting one distance and by aiming the rangefinder at the tree at eye level you are getting the true distance that you should be shooting at.
I'm usually up atleast 24 feet with my climbers , i have a spot where my 30 foot pull rope is just off the ground .........out of sight out of mind is what i say !!!
