Range finder?

[Duckman91]

Anyone use a range finder. I use a .22 daystate x2 and I have missed a few rabbits lately due to not using the correct hold over or under due to not knowing the distance that the rabbit is from me. I've seen the cheap golf range finders available but am wondering if any one has used one or what do you recommend???

[robbiep]

In all honesty, you just need to learn how to judge range.

 

After all, if it's windy, you already have to compensate for that, and it's a bit of an art too. Just pace out some distances, and then try to learn roughly what you're looking at. It just takes a bit of practice.

[belly47]

I use hawke lrf 600, miles more distance that I could ever need as it will range to 600m

 

would not be without it, takes the guess work out of your shooting, as long as you know your rifles POI at different ranges.

[fruity]

In all honesty, you just need to learn how to judge range.

 

After all, if it's windy, you already have to compensate for that, and it's a bit of an art too. Just pace out some distances, and then try to learn roughly what you're looking at. It just takes a bit of practice.

+1 some practice on targets at set distances should help you learn, just my opinion but I would say you dont need a rangefinder with a standard air rifle

[bullet boy]

I always take my Rangefinder with me cos it's in my Shooting Kit Bag.

[FalconFN]

It is very easy to misjudge range especially when shooting in different places - 30 yards in a wood can look much further than 30 yards in an open field. Rangefinders are probably useful but the extra time and movement needed to use them probably looses as many rabbits at it gains, practice (and changing to .177 ) will make a massive difference.

[Theskyfox]

Hi,

 

I've got a Hawke LRF600. They are handy bits of kit and work pretty well. Its a good "toy" to have if you've got the spare cash, but I wouldn't spend a huge amount

of money on one. They certainly aren't a necessity though - a scope with adjustable parallax will let you accurately find the distance of anything you are looking at.

 

The good points are the fact that you can look at pretty much any object and find out its exact distance from you (usually with the option to switch between

Yards/Metres).This is useful because you can use items around you as points of reference. For this to work properly in your favour ideally you need to spend an

hour or two at a range and put some targets out at each distance whilst noting your Point of impact at each.

 

The only downsides really are the price (most LRFs seem to be £120+) and the fact that rangefinding small items (e.g. a rabbit) at over 30 yards is going to be difficult.

Your hand shake and any objects that block the line of sight will make you to struggle to get a reading at times.

 

In conclusion...I'd recommend getting one, but try and get a discounted one (or Xmas/Birthday pressie!).

 

-Andrew

[Jega]

Try setting your scope so its just losing pinsharp clarity at 50 yds ,i find this gives me a good idea of what 50 yds looks like and therefore its straightforward to guesstimate half of this 25yds.

Just takes some practice and it works just as well for .22 as .177 .

[team tractor]

Buy a scope with a parallax and 16x+ maybe 24 x zoom

Crank the mag on full and turn until it's clear then read the range .

Turn the mag back to 10 after to shoot and avoiding wobble.

 

This is how the ft comps are shot .

 

You will need to set your scope up first by putting a blank white tape over factory markings and then write your own on after at ten yards intervals

[dadioles]

I would not be without my laser rangefinder as I regularly shoot areas that I am not too familiar with. It is indispensable for assessing new areas and ranging landmarks or ground features..

 

When you buy one, ignore all the nonsense about ranging hundreds of yards, when did you last shoot something 600 yards away? You need to get one that works at 10 yards and small steps thereafter. Manufacturers are very good at advertising maximum range but often fail to tell you the closest that it will operate.

 

Even better if you can find one that has a backlit screen for use at night.

[Bobba]

I use one I bought fro MTC years ago. Invaluable. When shooting from a static position I range, say, clumps of grass or other features to give me my 20, 30, 40 yd points then put it away. In this way you avoid excess movement by trying to rangefind the rabbit.

[Duckman91]

I think I will invest but ill wait for one to come up second hand on here or on the bay at a cheap price. thanks for the advice guys.

[bruno22rf]

Range finder for a gun that's only effective to 45 yards? I'm sorry but if you cannot zero for 30 yards and memorise the approx. aim points 15 yards either side then you should not be shooting-or even driving, I find it incredible what gun shops will sell to the gullible-be honest with yourself next time you visit a gunshop-what percentage of items for sale are actually essential and which are just a pry bar on your wallet-sporting shops are getting worse by the minute in a never ending attempt to sell you the latest Tat-the 2 Airgun mags are their perfect catalogue of bullplop.

[team tractor]

Range finder for a gun that's only effective to 45 yards? I'm sorry but if you cannot zero for 30 yards and memorise the approx. aim points 15 yards either side then you should not be shooting-or even driving, I find it incredible what gun shops will sell to the gullible-be honest with yourself next time you visit a gunshop-what percentage of items for sale are actually essential and which are just a pry bar on your wallet-sporting shops are getting worse by the minute in a never ending attempt to sell you the latest Tat-the 2 Airgun mags are their perfect catalogue of bullplop.

Please don't take this the wrong way but have you ever shot an ft comp ?

 

A 30 yard zero is 5" low at 55 yards and 2" low at 5 yards . Using a .22 at 12ftlb

I used to shoot a lot of comps and each 5 yard increment is a massive difference .

[Duckman91]

thanks team tractor. with .22 air rifle at 12lb you are so right that as little as 5 yards distance guessed incorrectly can mean the difference between a kill and a miss.

[FalconFN]

That's why .177 is so popular.

[happyshooter]

using a range finder is an excellent idea , i use the MTC Rapier /2 a

great piece of kit, i use my range finder for my fac air and my rimfires.

atb brian

[bruno22rf]

Point taken team tractor but I still say that if you cannot judge the range then don't shoot the target-I have been fortunate enough to shoot Airguns, .22lr's and .17 for nearly 40 years and never found the need for a Rangefinder-I may have missed plenty due to bad range estimation but that's down to me and is part of the art of hunting.

[Whitetail]

I think a accurate lazer rangefinder is a excellent piece of kit, what's the point of having a mildot reticle or the like and not knowing the precise range ,your back to guessing , is that rabbit 40 or 45yds oftentimes it will make the difference between wounding something and killing it . For me on your average range shot a rangefinder is not needed, on the longer shots you often have a little more time and a using a rangefinder is just as quick as eyeballing the distance . Get a rangefinder that's reliable is the key , I've used a couple of low end makes that were less than accurate under different light conditions , they ended up in the bin , what's the saying buy cheap buy twice

[dadioles]

Point taken team tractor but I still say that if you cannot judge the range then don't shoot the target-I have been fortunate enough to shoot Airguns, .22lr's and .17 for nearly 40 years and never found the need for a Rangefinder-I may have missed plenty due to bad range estimation but that's down to me and is part of the art of hunting.

 

I put your comment down to lack of sleep bruno22rf (posted 01:10).

 

If you have 'missed plenty due to bad range estimation' you will also have wounded plenty and that is not 'part of the art of hunting'.

 

It is up to us to do whatever we can to shoot humanely and accurately and if the technology is there, use it. When shooting at targets it can be fun to guess the range but not when shooting wildlife.

[bruno22rf]

Posted at 1:10 am dadioles because I I was off lamping-but thanks for your concern . Your reply, whilst making a valid point, missed out the word "MAY" i.e. "I MAY have missed....." I'm afraid that we all miss - and more often than we care to admit, but the important thing is that we then strive to discover why and ,once the lesson is learned, we move on ( that little better for the experience). Lets look at this another way-are you confident that using a rangefinder means that you have NEVER missed a shot. What happens when you come across a rabbit that obviously knows that you are there-its ears are pricked and its sat on its haunches about to bolt-there is no way that it will sit while you fanny around trying top put a laser on it so what do you do-not take the shot??

[dadioles]

Hi Bruno22rf

 

We are now both in a post caffeine state - and in my case 6 custard creams as well.

 

While I cannot claim never to have missed a shot and regretfully over the years have also wounded, or at least not found, quite a few rabbits, I have done my best.

 

Sometimes I will 'fanny around' with the laser prior to taking a shot. Often the rabbits are sitting their quite happily munching away and I have all the time in the world to get the distance and my accuracy spot on, I enjoy technology.

 

As you know, some calibres are really loopy while some are very flat shooting. My .22lr puts everything within a half inch kill zone from about 25 to 55 yards, my .17 air rifle is good for 12 to 30 yards and the .17hmr is more or less on the cross hairs from 50 to 110 yards. Outside those ranges I really like to know the distance as accurately as possible. Unless it is pure pest control, everything is head shot and my maximum range is determined by my ability to put every bullet or pellet within the area of a 1p coin. That gives a bit of room for error.

 

When setting up targets at set distances to evaluate the trajectory of a bullet, either use a tape measure or a laser. Any guestimate is meaningless.

 

When calibrating a scope side wheel to measure distance, you need to accurately measure the distance in the first place. Easiest with a laser.

 

Most of the time, I arrive at a site and use the laser to read distances to a range of landmarks. Sometimes I am able to guess distance accurately but I am also surprised at how far out my guess is sometimes. This is probably why some shooters report extraordinary shooting ability - every bullet in the same hole at 100 yards - put a laser on it and 100 yards magically becomes 70 yards.

 

At night I find estimating distance extremely difficult and frequently resort to the laser when using the .22lr. It is, typically, to measure the distance to a hedge or a tree and then guess that the rabbit is 3 yards this side of the hedge rather than try and measure the distance to the rabbit.

 

I am also very happy to leave a shot. If the rabbit is about to bolt, so be it. That is not a reason to snatch a hurried shot. Rabbit 1.... Me 0.... I will get another chance. By shooting and missing (or wounding) it just means a longer wait as the noise will have spooked them. Better to chill out and enjoy the fresh air or look at the stars, or curse a bit because it is cold and wet (smile).

 

On flat ground, it is very difficult, if not impossible, to measure the distance to a rabbit. The rabbit is too small and the angle too acute, particularly if prone. Hence the need to measure distances to nearby objects instead.

 

Never miss a shot, no. It is pretty rare that I do though.

[bruno22rf]

"Never miss a shot, no, but its rare that I do though"-I'm guessing we can expect to see pics of all your trophies any day soon then-as if that statement were not bad enough-you then try and have us believe that you, a mere mortal, can handle 6 custard creams !! Hobnobs Sir !!

[LeadWasp]

An RF is a useful tool - even just to learn to judge distance - but expensive. The more you use one the better you get at judging distance with the MK1 eyeball.

I use one for air, RF and CF mainly to build a picture in my head of ranges around the areas I shoot. As a previous poster mentioned similar distances can appear deceptive under different conditions - and I say this after a lifetime of measuring distances with everything from catenary wire to lasers for map making.

 

Nothing wrong with one but like everything there's a time and a place for it. I do find that it makes all the difference where 5yds extra are concerned with an air rifle....but maybe I'm a measurement freak!

 

Oh...and Zeiss Victory 8 x 26 PRF but to be honest anything with a 1m accuracy is good. The main difference is how much energy they chuck out and how much they reflect from matt backgrounds.

Edited May 28, 2014 by LeadWasp

[dadioles]

"Never miss a shot, no, but its rare that I do though"-I'm guessing we can expect to see pics of all your trophies any day soon then-as if that statement were not bad enough-you then try and have us believe that you, a mere mortal, can handle 6 custard creams !! Hobnobs Sir !!

 

A mere mortal - huh! now I am insulted. How dare you make assumptions. Tomorrow it will be 8 custard creams - and from the co-op. I also roast my own coffee beans. That is not a task for mere mortals. (are we off topic?)