Leica 1600 thoughts

[MSLRHunter]

Its good to know that there is a LRF available for the guys that are able to shoot that far, I hope to be there one day. I will be upgrading from a bushnell this year either to the swaro or leica 1600 and right now I am leaniing towards the leica.

 

[Pdvdh]

Its good to know that there is a LRF available for the guys that are able to shoot that far, I hope to be there one day. I will be upgrading from a bushnell this year either to the swaro or leica 1600 and right now I am leaniing towards the leica.

Maybe bigngreen will have details on the beam size and a projected release date for the Leica 1600. Pretty sure I won't be using one for sheep next month. All of my seasons are basically over by September 20th. At that point I'll probably just await feedback from others before purchasing one for Kodiak brown bear next April - IF others report favorably.

 

[jeff 300]

my swaro has been a big pain in the ***$$$ only works when it wants to ranges way to slow if at all a little fog and it only goes 46yrd and the O sucks big time!!!!!!!! i'm sending it back to have it checked out. But for 900.00 you would think it would work way better than it has. so i can't wait for the 1600 to come out as long as the beam is not to big

 

[Eaglet]

bigngreen,

do your self a favor and do not buy the Bushnell. Don't forget I told you!

 

[Eaglet]

phorwath,

you got my curiosity going, what rifle scopes do you use?

 

[Pdvdh]

Eaglet,
The NightForce scopes don't suit my hunting simply because they're too heavy and I'm too old to wanna carry that excess weight. Virtually all of my hunting is backpack hunting. Everything is carried on my back. Five to 10 miles one way in, and then back out is about average. Three mountain hunts last fall. 4 miles, 11 miles and 10 miles, one way, respectively. These miles are measured as air miles on the USGS maps. Dunno how far across the ground.

I carried an IOR 3-18x42 mm scope for a couple hunting seasons. They weigh about 30 oz and I'd finally had enough. If my completely outfitted rifle weighs more than 10 lbs, then it's too heavy for my use.

I have no 14 - 18 lb outfitted rifles in my arsenal. They are really nice to shoot. I simply won't pack them on my hunts.

I'm currently using Sightron SIII 6-24x50mm LR Mil Dot scopes. These scopes weigh 21.9 oz, have excellent glass, and cost about $750. Turret tracking is on the money. I have nothing but good to say about them. The glass in one of these SIIIs provides better light transmission and resolution than my $1400 IOR.

http://www.sightron.com/index.php?action=view_document&did=1201816362&cat_id=6&id=4

 

[Eaglet]

Eaglet,
The NightForce scopes don't suit my hunting simply because they're too heavy and I'm too old to wanna carry that excess weight. Virtually all of my hunting is backpack hunting. Everything is carried on my back. Five to 10 miles one way in, and then back out is about average. Three mountain hunts last fall. 4 miles, 11 miles and 10 miles, one way, respectively. These miles are measured as air miles on the USGS maps. Dunno how far across the ground.

I carried an IOR 3-18x42 mm scope for a couple hunting seasons. They weigh about 30 oz and I'd finally had enough. If my completely outfitted rifle weighs more than 10 lbs, then it's too heavy for my use.

I have no 14 - 18 lb outfitted rifles in my arsenal. They are really nice to shoot. I simply won't pack them on my hunts.

I'm currently using Sightron SIII 6-24x50mm LR Mil Dot scopes. These scopes weigh 21.9 oz, have excellent glass, and cost about $750. Turret tracking is on the money. I have nothing but good to say about them. The glass in one of these SIIIs provides better light transmission and resolution than my $1400 IOR.

Sightron Riflescopes / Binoculars / Sighting Scopes product pages. SIII Series - SIII SS 6-24x50 LR MD

For many moons I've read good reports about the Sightron SIII, I was lucky to buy a used NF 5.5-22 x 56 NXS in like new conditions with a set of NF rings for $1000.00; I don't think that'll happen again so the sightron is probably my next bet. I have also thought about the new weaver tactical.

Thanks for answering!

 

[bigngreen]

Maybe bigngreen will have details on the beam size and a projected release date for the Leica 1600. Pretty sure I won't be using one for sheep next month. All of my seasons are basically over by September 20th. At that point I'll probably just await feedback from others before purchasing one for Kodiak brown bear next April - IF others report favorably.

Talked to Dave at Leica and he said the 1600 and the 1200 beam are both the same, .5 x 2.5 mrad.
Next hour Bushnell gets a call!

Called Bushnell and talked to Todd he didn't have the spec for the Fusion yet but for the Legend 1200, which he said should be the same it was 2 x 4 mrad so it's the fat girl in the croud!

 

[royinidaho]

bigngreen,

I can still vividly recall the look of amazement and the feeling of "What the hell happened" when the only shot of the year at a really nice bull was missed when the Bushnell said 1425 and the distance was actually 1465.

That single pine tree screwed up the only shot of the month.

The Leica wouldn't range that far at that time. 1217 was the max it would go. Sun was coming up as a backdrop to the shot.

The neat thing was that once range was verified the drop chart fully explained what happened.

The Leica I have ranges consistently beyond 1200 and out to 1700 before sunrise. Great for creating range chart. Other than that time 1217 is the maximum ability.

I don't know exactly what its worth for anyone to eliminate that error potential but for me it's gotta be in the PLRF $ range. In as much as there is a 375 AM in the near future (expecting word on finish date any moment), my last act of defiance will be a PLRF.

 

[Pdvdh]

Talked to Dave at Leica and he said the 1600 and the 1200 beam are both the same, .5 x 2.5 mrad.


Called Bushnell and talked to Todd he didn't have the spec for the Fusion yet but for the Legend 1200, which he said should be the same it was 2 x 4 mrad so it's the fat girl in the crowd!

Thanks for the research and reporting. The Leica 1600 could have potential to meet my needs.

Bushnell = fat girl in the crowd... ... good sense of humor!

The glass on my Swaro LRF is crystal clear. Just like my Swaro 8X30 SLC binoculars. The glass on the Leica 1200 Scan I had was good enough, so that won't hold me back. But certainly not up to the quality of the Swaro LRF glass. I often use the Swaro LRF alone (pack no other binoculars or optics) for some mountain day-hunts for black bear. Only handicap is monocular vision. But what I see with one eye, I see very clearly.

 

[Pdvdh]

bigngreen,

I don't know exactly what its worth for anyone to eliminate that error potential but for me it's gotta be in the PLRF $ range. In as much as there is a 375 AM in the near future (expecting word on finish date any moment), my last act of defiance will be a PLRF.

Based on Broz's description, the PLRF sounds like a glove fit as a companion to that 375 AM. If you've got the open spaces to stretch that 375 AM out to it's full potential, the PLRF should be able to match it yard for yard. Looking forward to reading of your 375 AM field experiences once that puppy is lasering the lead down range.

You may have to walk/drive half way to your targets and LRF in both directions with most of the other LRF's.

 

[bigngreen]

Do the Lieca's have a tripod mount in the bottom now, I used one a couple years ago and can't remember. The two I use a lot are the older one and you have to sand bag them or get some strap-on adaptor. The Bushnells have them I know.

 

[Broz]

Do the Lieca's have a tripod mount in the bottom now, I used one a couple years ago and can't remember. The two I use a lot are the older one and you have to sand bag them or get some strap-on adaptor. The Bushnells have them I know.

My 1200 CRF does not and I will say the size can make it a trick to steady at times. I don't use a tri-pod on any of my RF's. If I am serious about engaging a target. I will be prone and the same bag I use for the back of the stock is used to steady the Rf... works great, you can hold it steady and it is less likely to move when you push the button. A lot more stable than any tripod I own... But I will admit I have not invested much in my tripods.

Another feature of the PLRF is you get your readng upon release of the button and it fires like a Jewell trigger. I can hold the button down, center the crosshairs and slowly start the release. The number pops up before I ever realize I moved my finger. Recoil is light too and if you hold steady for the shot follow through you can hear the report of the impact on steel.... OK... maybe you will not hear it but sometimes I think I do..

Jeff

Jeff

 

[groper]

looks like SWFA has just got to play with a demo model and have written a review on it on thier site.

the long and short of it was this;

"Tightest beam divergence in the industry" without saying exactly what it was...
"ranged out to 1900yds without resting it on anything"
"choice of 12 ballistic curves" bummer, looks like the LRF companies still have no idea...
"will be THE LRF to beat in this price range"

sounded like they were very happy with it, the only thing that doesnt sound good to me is the ballistic function will be probably useless as the likelihood of it matching your rifles trajectory EXACTLY will be next to nil, Esp when your talking about ranges out to 1900yds... hopefully good enough for some popular calibers out to 1000yds... hopefully...