How to Choose a Rangefinder: a Guide for Buying a Hunting, Archery, or Shooting Rangefinder

The main objective of a rangefinder is to calculate the distance between yourself and an object. Most rangefinders use unit of measurements that include yards, meters, and feet. To use a rangefinder, you simply hold up the eyeglass to your eye, aim at the object you want to measure your distance and push/hold down the trigger on the finder and simultaneously a measurement appears on the display screen telling you the distance.

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When looking to purchase a rangefinder one should consider their application first. Are you bow hunting where shots will be under 100 yards or are you rifle hunting where you will need to be able to range long distances? Answering this question will help you focus in on what features to look for on a rangefinder.

1. Quality of Optics

One of the primary considerations to make when looking at rangefinders is the finder’s ability to find the object. Most of us have used binoculars before, so you can think of a rangefinder as similar to binoculars. Some binoculars have poor quality glass and magnification making it tough to get a clear picture compared to binoculars that have high quality glass and greater magnification capabilities. Of course, you will pay more for greater magnification in most cases but it will be well worth it if you are needing long range readings. When looking at possible options be sure to check out the aperture size of the finder or better known as the receiver optic. A larger receiver optic makes readings more clear and helps the finder make an accurate reading when that information is sent to the sensor in the finder.

2. "Priority": Choosing Between First or Second Priority

The next consideration to make is how the rangefinder reads objects. The most common finders are known as first priority or second priority. A first priority rangefinder ranges the first object in its' path while ignoring further objects. A lot of first priority rangefinders are used on golf courses, because there are rarely any obstructions in view of the flag. First priority finders can cause issues for hunters though because there is a lot of obstructions such as leaves, limbs, trees, etc. For this reason, many hunters will opt for a second priority range finder which will focus in on the furthest object ensuring leaves and limbs do not obscure the distance you are actually trying to range.

3. Distance Rating

Lastly you will want to consider your range needs. Many rangefinders list their maximum distance capabilities, but in reality you may not be able to achieve those results. For example a rangefinder that is rated out to 1,500 yards would require perfect weather conditions to actually range something at that distance.

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The reason for this is the beam divergence, which refers to how focused the beam is on the finder. A smaller beam divergence will result in better long range readings because the beam is better able to focus in on the target. Typically speaking if you are hunting game at 500 yards or less beam divergence may not be as important of a factor to consider, however beyond 500 yards beam divergence may be the difference between success and failure in the field.

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