Is a range finder really worth it?

I have been looking at the Nikon archers choice and I can not decide if I should spend the money on a range finder or on a new sight for my bow. I am planning on moving around a good bit this season but I will only be around 12 feet in any tree. Would I be better off buying the range finder or getting good at estimating my ranges? Any opinion will help.

 

I use mine for more than just ranging shots. If all you are going to do is range shots once you are in the stand and you keep your maximum range below 25 yds, it may not be worth it. If you will use it for other things then........

Edit: I would not buy the archer's choice. While I am sure it is a very good rangefinder I want one that will go a farther distance.

 

I have the Nikon Pro staff 550. As Bruce said getting one with a longer range is nice for other things in life. I use mine for bow hunting, rifle hunting, my job, around the home, and for fun.

If you get the Nikon Archer's there will be one and only one use for it.

Sometimes if I get real bored in my stand I will pick something and try to guess the distance and then range it. Not only does it break up the day but I get better at judging distances both near and far.

 

Not a fan of Nikon in general anymore. Bought a long range range finder (can't remember the model) that adjusted for elevation change like the Archer's Choice one does. Used it one fall. Got it out this past fall and it didn't work at all. I had bought it 14 months prior so my 1 year warranty was up. Nikon told me to suck it! So, my choices were pony up $180 to fix it, or buy a new range finder. Since a new one is $250+, I had it fixed. Worked for one season. Not one year... one season.

 

The new leupold RX 1000 with the TBR (elevation compensation) is probably the best you can buy. it will go along way and it is super clear and worth the money if you got it, close to 400 or so...... i couldnt pony up that money and got the Bushnell Scout 1000 with ARC,(elevation compensation). It was new this summer for bow season this year and have used it all year for all hunting. i actually started carrying only that instead of that and my binoculars. The bushnell has a magification of 5x and i have gotten the distance on a deer of over 400 yards. it does its job and you can use it for anything, bow, rifle, blackpowder, and even golf becuase it has different settings.

The only downfall i have seen is the problem of darkness...while all optics need light it can get difficult to see those last 20 minutes of hunting... all in all, i got mine for a touch over 200 and it has done great for me.

Take a look at it.

 

Compared to shooting from a tree and shooting from the ground how much of a difference is it going to make on where my arrow hits if say I am 12 feet in the air and my deer is at 20 yards?

 

Let's do a little math.

a2+b2=c2

a=12'
b=60'

So c=61.18'

So after converting back into yards, your range finder is going to tell you are shooting 20.39 yards instead of the 20 yards of actual horizontal distance you are away. I don't think any of us are good enough to make that matter. :D


Edit: This is assuming flat ground. I suppose if you had MAJOR changes in topography and were shooting long distances this could be significant. Not with the variables you gave however.

 

not to much...12 ft isnt a height that would effect the distance to much. like someone said earlier, they do a great job in establishing distance, they can serve in place of binoculars, and they are fun to play with while on the stand.

 

Thanks for the responses guys I have some more thinking to do now.

 

I got the Leupold that is a step down from the one mentioned above and it is worth the money. One of the issues I had with my old rangefinder was in the morning I had to wait until it was fairly light out to start ranging trees to get my distances, which is exactly when the deer start showing up. This new Leupold gives me an extra 5-10 minutes to start ranging trees out which can be a big help if you are in a new spot in the morning.

 

If you're only 12 ft up, not enough diff to worry about.
I have a nikon 550 and like it a lot. Like it was said earlier, you can use it to train yourself to better estimate yardage. You will be amazed at how far off you are sometimes.

 

If you're hunting out of a treestand and your shots are less than 25 yards, like Bruce mentioned, then you're better off spending your money on something other than a rangefinder.

If however you plan on doing any spot and stalk hunting and your shots look anything like this, you better have one, and it better have the ARC function, unless you're a genius at range and angle estimations as well as a fast math wizard...

 

i use 2 bushnells, one for hunting and one for work. Both of them work awesome. I'm lost without them

 

I can't imagine hunting with a rangefinder at this point, esp if I am going to be moving. It's a sound investment.

 

That's a sweet photo KodiakArcher.

I have an older bushnell with no arc feature. When I get way up in a tree or overlooking a low spot, I try to range trees at the same level as me. (for instance, if the deer trail goes past the base of tree - I range that tree but 20 ft up) That's my 'cheater' arc method.

If I were buying a rangefinder today, I'd probably get one with the arc feature.

 

If you already have a sight, get the range finder. For normal whitetail hunting, no arc needed.

 

I have the older Bushnell with No arc. If I were to buy a new one I'd probably look at the New Bushnells with the Arc because it would Not hurt to have it.

I'd be lost without mine! :-)

Dan

 

you wanna kill something

or you want to mess around?

 

I don't ever plan on buying one unless I am hunting in wide open terrain.

 

I do that also... I use it to set my targets up in the yard also.

Mine eats some batteries, 2nd set in one season so far. Nikon, can't remember the model.