LRF Question: Leica vs Bushnell

[JW74]

Hello all, I am starting to get into some longer range shooting, steel silhouettes ect. I am looking to get a rangefinder that will range my silhouettes and steel gongs out to 1000-1200 yards or so. I do have a budget so unfortunately the sky is not the limit on price. So far the two that I have it narrowed down to are the Bushnell 1 Mile ARC and the Leica Rangemaster CRF 1600-B. I have read many good reviews about both so far. My question; is the Leica worth the extra money and would the Bushnell do the job on ranging steel out to 1000 yards or so? If anyone has experience with these the feedback is greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

 

[el si]

Not many people will have both so a side by side comparison in exactly the same conditions will be unlikely. You will have to go off reviews of each unit and decide for yourself.

I have the Elite 1600 ARC and it has served me well.

 

[geo4061]

The 1600B is a great rangefinder. I am more than happy with the glass and its ranging ability. Do not let the B (ballistics) in this rangefinder sway your decision. Simply put they do NOT work.

 

[JW74]

Thanks for the input guys. I have the Ballistic AE app on my iPhone and that it was I have been using thus far and it works well for me. I have heard from others as well that the ballistics that come with the Leica 1600B are not great. el si how far have you been able to consistently range targets with your Bushnell? For the price it seems to be the best bang for the buck out there. I guess the ting that has me wondering is all the threads I have read were people talk about miss-ranging long targets due to the large beam divergence of the laser.

 

[SA1000]

I have a Leica 1600b and really like it.I've ranged out to 1680 yards on trees with leaves and a house.Ranged beef cows out to over 1200 yards thats as far as I've had a chance to range an animal so far.

 

[JW74]

I have a Leica 1600b and really like it.I've ranged out to 1680 yards on trees with leaves and a house.Ranged beef cows out to over 1200 yards thats as far as I've had a chance to range an animal so far.

That's impressive and honestly about as far as I see myself ranging anything right now as I am shooting a 6.5 Creedmoor and 308.

 

[4xforfun]

My experiance with anything Bushnell was to give it to my grade school kids to use when they play ARMY. Now that my kids are all grown up, I give them to the neighbor kids!! Of course, in todays PC enviornment, the kids can't use play guns anymore, so they are resorting to actually throwing the optics at each other instead of pretend shooting each other. I may need to start issuing something a little beefier..like from Night Force!!! Failing to do so may result in getting sued by the neighbor parents for issuing substandard toys...the result to a very litigious society!!!!

Just my .02, of course!!

Tod

 

[BergerBoy]

The 1600B is a great rangefinder. I am more than happy with the glass and its ranging ability. Do not let the B (ballistics) in this rangefinder sway your decision. Simply put they do NOT work.

I agree. Do not count on the Lieca to be a BC calculator but it is a great rangefinder and I love mine.

 

[Bob lee]

Beam divergence plays a big role in getting accurate readings, especially at longer ranges. The leica wins in this department and is the main reason i would choose the leica.

 

[JW74]

Thanks for the info guys. I have been reading a lot of reviews since I posted this the other day and the consensus seems to be the same. Looks like the Leica it is.

 

[JW74]

I ended up getting the Leica 1600b. So far it has worked well with my limited experience. I was able to range a church steeple at 1475 yards today will I was testing in out. Also discovered that it ranges just as well in the dark too! Well at least out to 300 yards while I tested it on my street last night.

 

[royinidaho]

I ended up getting the Leica 1600b. So far it has worked well with my limited experience. I was able to range a church steeple at 1475 yards today will I was testing in out. Also discovered that it ranges just as well in the dark too! Well at least out to 300 yards while I tested it on my street last night.

Rest it on a steady rest, tripod, tree, sand bag, rock, back pack and you'll extend the range several hundred yards. Really!

Next trick is to "sight it in" so to speak. Range something on a horizon, hill top or some such. Range above it then lower the red square until the small object on the hill top. You'll learn a lot.

You'll also find where in the red square the beam is impacting. I had a 1200 that the bottom of the red box split the beam. I could do some nifty ranging with that one but not quite far enough.

My 1600, not a B I think, hits the target in the bottom half of the red square.

Just say'n.

 

[JW74]

Rest it on a steady rest, tripod, tree, sand bag, rock, back pack and you'll extend the range several hundred yards. Really!

Next trick is to "sight it in" so to speak. Range something on a horizon, hill top or some such. Range above it then lower the red square until the small object on the hill top. You'll learn a lot.

You'll also find where in the red square the beam is impacting. I had a 1200 that the bottom of the red box split the beam. I could do some nifty ranging with that one but not quite far enough.

My 1600, not a B I think, hits the target in the bottom half of the red square.

Just say'n.

Thanks for the info Roy. I do have a question, when you range something on the hilltop or horizon and lower the target square until you get a reading, is this done in "scan mode"?.

Also, has anyone else noticed that you can range through glass if you are standing right by a window? I was surprised by that.

 

[royinidaho]

Thanks for the info Roy. I do have a question, when you range something on the hilltop or horizon and lower the target square until you get a reading, is this done in "scan mode"?.

Also, has anyone else noticed that you can range through glass if you are standing right by a window? I was surprised by that.

I guess that's what it is called. I hold the button and lower slowly and range from above to below the object a couple of times till I confident I ranged the desired object.

Way back in 2007 we missed the shot at a 1465 yard bull elk. My Leica 1200 wouldn't range beyond 1214 and the other hunter's Bushnell ranged a closer tree at 1425, due to large beam. It was a real bummer.

Thus I went to the 1600 but it would take some darn good conditions before I'd take a shot that long. That day the conditions were perfect..