Single Pin Sight and Range Finder Pros and Cons

So I am thinking about upgrading to a HHA Optimizer Ultra sight from a regular pin sight. With this setup I would also buy a range finder. Obviously a major pro would be accuracy. My concerns are that using these would complicate things. Taking the time to range the deer, the movement it would take, then the movement to move the dial to the correct yardage. What are your experiences....good and bad? By the way, I am shooting a Golden Eagle Hawk bow.

 

What is your typical range for a shot? I used a HHA slider for years set it at 25 yards and never moved the pin, never used a range finder. Gives you a reason to practice.

 

Ive used a single pin for over 30 years ... started out with the old Sightmaster and have upgrade as years went by ... now using a Tetra/HHA ... overall a single pin can be more accurate once you know the distance and you adjust the sight .. HOWEVER .... I range around my stand location so I KNOW what distance a specific tree, dirt clump, brush pile, etc. prior to any deer showing ... I usually leave the sight set at 25 or 27 yds as my effective range without adjusting, at those settings it is 33 yds ... this past season, I had much time to range two bucks as they fed on acorns 42-53 yds away(kill shot never came as it was).. I'll take a 40-43 yd shot, but not a 53 yds shot, thats a tad far for me on a live critter .... 98 % of the deer I kill are 30yds or less, usually closer hence the 25/27 yds setting .. my back up bow (Elite Ritual 33) has 3 fixed pins,(20/30/40 yds) but I may put another Tetra I have on it this year as that is what I prefer ... using a single pin and leaving it at a specific setting, shoot the hell out of it at various ranges, get to know your trajectory to the farthest distance you feel comfortable shooting a deer at.. the 33 yds for me will keep me with in the kill zone with out moving the sight at a fast 282 fps/430 gr arrow @57lbs/30"draw... faster means a lower trajectory and a longer distance one can stay within the kill zone .. Ive killed multiples of deer using a single pin this way .. if there is time, I will range, then adjust, but generally I set it and dont move it ... not sure what speeds your getting with that old Golden Eagle, but I consider 250-260fps being a minimum for a single pin 25/27 yds setting when I used the older bows waaaay back then ... I owned various Golden Eagles until they went defunct, they were my go to bow company back then ... now its Bowtech is my go to Bow company .... YUUUUGE difference tech wise between those then and now ...

 

I too have been using a single pin slider from HHA for as long as I can remember, know your bow and shots. I keep my pin at 20 and shoot 0-30 without moving it. I use a range finder, but don’t move slider until it’s over 30 yds. Like anything practice, most people don’t shoot their bow enough. I have been guilty of this over the years.

 

I would concur with posts above. I shoot single pin (non dial) and have my bow set to 25 yards. I just make sure to know my rig and what it does out to 40.

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I get around a 8-9" drop at 40yds with the 25/27 yds setting .. that equals holding level on a deers back straight up from the heart/lung kill zone, it drops right in there .... at distances under 30 yds, I just hold where I need to and kill the critter.. I know my trajectory very well out to that 40yds distance .. Ive had deer come in close at 5yds, then move out to 37/40 yds and just held high where I needed and pin wheeled the critter .. know your trajectory and you can only do that by shooting and measuring ... set the sight at a specific distance(25 yds), start shooting at 5 yds, then 10 yds, then 15, then 20, etc. learn exactly where you will hit and figure out where the arrow will drop out of the heart lung area, THAT will be your effective distance with the setting you have without moving it ... a 3 d target works well for this ... shoot from a height also so you know where to hold on a live critter ...

 

I'm not far off but close to the 7-8 inch. So midline shoulder back is heart. But the important part is knowing your weapon.

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Right on!

 

I shoot a single pin slider but have never used it.
Got it set for 20 yards. At 30 yards, it's about 4" low, at 10 yards its 2" high.
I don't shoot past 30 yards so middle lung hold works well.

 

I concur with the above statements. Knowing your weapon and POI at different distances is more important than anything else. I shoot a Black Gold single pin.

 

I personally don't like the limitations of a single pin. Yes, you can split the different and still making killing shots within a range of distances, but for me, I just prefer to be more precise without messing with a sight. For the last couple of seasons, I used a Spot Hogg Fast Eddie with the double vertical pin. I could set the sight at 25 yards and have killing accuracy out to 30, and the second pin fell somewhere around 38 yards, depending on arrow speed. My thoughts were, if I came to draw on a deer and coudn't get it stopped, I had that second pin to get the shot if the deer was 35-40 yards. This without having to let down and adjust the sight. With that said, I rarely ever touch the wheel on my sight to adjust and am rethinking if I need an adjustable sight at all.

I like fiddling with the slider sights in the backyard and shooting long range, that is probably what will convince me to stay with a slider. However for hunting, I just don't like the nonsense of them really. I believe I'm going to go to a three pin slider and set my pins accordingly. This way I have the best of both worlds for hunting and long range practice.

As for ranging animals. I never do it. I will range objects around my tree when I first get in and memorize their distances. Thats it. Now if I deer comes into my range, I know what the distance is without monkeying with a rangefinder when what I should be doing is focusing on making a good clean shot.

 

A three pin slider would be the way to go for a hunt out west.

 

It sounds like you're envisioning a deer coming in, you pull your rangefinders out of your pocket, zap it, return them to pocket, adjust single pin to exact yardage, draw, and shoot.
I would wager that isn't how most encounters are happening with a majority of archery hunters.
Instead, like many said above, they set their single pin to a fixed distance somewhere between 20 to 27 yards, get their rangefinders out as soon as they get in the tree and zap several things around them to know their distances, and then wait for a deer. When the deer comes in they already know the distance to within a couple yards, and they just get drawn on the deer and then hold their pin as needed for their pin distance setting and the actual distance.

So, a single pin isn't really a big accuracy improver over a fixed pin in a hunting situation. But you get the awesome clean sight picture of a single pin, and the rest of the year practicing or going to 3d shoots you do get the improved accuracy of dialing to exact yardage.

 

This is exactly right IMO. Its also why I think the Spot Hogg Triple stack pin, and I think CBE makes a triple vertical pin sight as well, are superior to the others.

 

I would also add the Option sights to this, although the price of some of the models isn't for the faint of heart lol.
I found mine used, was still the same price as a brand new Triple Stack.
It is a great setup for the person that has one bow and set of arrows for hunting, practice, and 3d shoots.
They are a bit different though, the pins are horizontal and the mover pin moves within the housing, the housing stays stationary when you dial the mover pin. Makes it important to always match your peep and sight housing up every shot. I got used to it pretty quickly.

 

I've run a single pin slider for the past 5 years out west and for whitetail at home. Like others I find myself with my pin set at 20-30 most of the time I'm hunting and will adjust on the fly, like you might if you were gap shooting.

On a sit for deer, I range landmarks (a stump, tree, branch) and am seldom an ranging deer. They're often to twitchy and minimizing movement is key.

Out west, I've had opportunity to range animals, but often am ranging landmarks.

Practice, I'll pick arbitrary distances and shoot, just to practice dead reckoning distances...I may confirm after shooting this is what you may encounter in 3d or hunting...even on a hike/walk, I'll pick a tree or mailbox, swag a distance and pace it off...

 

I have a spot Hogg double FE stacks and two BG doubles as well.
I much prefer the BG because can adjust the pin gap. I set it 20/35 and then either leave or move it to 25/40

I am not a single pin fan. There is nothing I can’t do with a floating double or triple pin sight that I can do with a single pin set up. However there is plenty I can’t do with a single pin without making an adjustment .



A three pin sight with the middle pin floated is gives you the most options for pretty much any situation you will encounter.

 

I don’t use a rangefinder. I don’t shoot past 30 yds. Ever. I can shoot my one pin out to 30. So I have no use for a rangefinder or multiple pins. Simple way to hunt

 

Same here Vabowhunter.

 

Same as others. Never move it unless the shot is beyond 30. I think I may have moved it once this year. At that range you have time and if you don't you probably shouldn't be shooting beyond 30 anyway. Either way, you should probably have a range finder regardless.