Start Using Rangefinders for Hunting Today

How Do Hunting Rangefinders Work?

• Time of Laser Beam

The rangefinders for hunting have a laser beam that travels at the speed of light. Once that beam falls onto the target, it scatters but a huge portion of it reflects back from where it came from. Hence, what a rangefinder really does is it calculates the time of the laser beam, from when it left to when it came back. Then the distance is shown over the rangefinder’s lens after its conversion from the estimated time that a laser beam took.

• Hardware & Software

In simple words, the work depends on the hardware and software. The hardware provides mechanisms to get the data while the software processes the information to provide you with measurement. That’s just how a rangefinder for hunting normally works but there are certain factors that play their role in the whole distance measurement process. For that, we need to go further down in the depths to see how the rangefinder works.

How to Use Rangefinders for Hunting?

• Angle Compensation

The best models have a function that gives you the line-of-sight distance as well as the horizontal distance. Imagine yourself sitting 25’ up in a tree while looking at a squirrel that’s fifteen feet from the base of the tree. The line of sight distance to the squirrel is just over 29’, while the horizontal distance is only 15’. When shooting, the horizontal distance is all that matters.

• Acquiring the Target

The thing that really differentiates a good rangefinder for hunting from a bad one is the device’s ability to detect a small target. Range finders might boast 1,000-yard capabilities, but then it only works when you’re trying to range house-sized objects at that distance. Before buying a rangefinder, test it out.

• Range finders as a Tool for Stalking

Range finders can come in handy when planning stalks on distant animals. By taking a reading on the animal itself, as well as various topographical features between you and it, you can select prime shooting locations that lie within an optimal shooting distance of your prey.

Four Good Reasons to Use Rangefinders for Hunting

1. Eliminate Guesswork

The fundamental feature of a rangefinder is to provide the distance between you and your target. At the push of a button, a laser beam is sent out to bounce off the target and back to you. During this process, an internal clock in the unit is measuring the distance. Other than not wanting to miss your target, every hunter with integrity wants to make a clean shot to prevent tracking of a wounded animal, let alone inflicting any unnecessary pain and suffering to the prey. If you don’t want to miss it, don’t guess.

2. Get Closer

Bow hunting rangefinders like these tend to have a maximum range of around 800 yards, whereas rifle hunting rangefinders such as these can vary between 600 to 1300 yards. If you’re a serious long-distance marksman, there’s no way you can go without a rangefinder again. You can get a unit that can range to a true one-mile distance without the fear of spooking your prey.

3. Replace Binoculars

Some high-quality and high-performance monocular rangefinders are encroaching in on binocular territory and for good reason too. You’re essentially getting two advantages for the price of one: magnification and distance, not to mention all the other benefits of owning a rangefinder.

4. Improve Your Estimating Skills

No matter how ideal it is to be able to have just the perfect amount of time to range your target, it doesn’t always happen like this. Sometimes, that unexpected deer just sneaks up on you and you don’t have time to pull out the rangefinders for hunting.

Having prior knowledge of certain factors that may affect the performance of rangefinders for hunting helps greatly when buying one. Doesn’t matter if the rangefinder you are looking for is for precision shooting, bow hunting, or rifle hunting. If you know the right qualities to look for, there are very rare chances of choosing the wrong one.

Optical Quality of the Rangefinders for hunting

The first thing to always note in a rangefinder is the optical quality; the magnification and its glass. There are some rangefinders with less power, not saying that they are the worst kinds, but they will only work best for shorter ranges. However, for rangefinders with a higher power, always expect a good result even for longer ranges. They come with comparatively higher prices as well. Moreover, they will come with a tripod and you could easily mount them.

Receiver Aperture

The accuracy of a laser rangefinder greatly depends on the receiver aperture as well. With a greater aperture, there will be a better collection of data at the return of the laser beam. Not only that, but it is also a necessary feature for brightness and optical resolution.

Atmospherics

Weather and almost every kind of temperature will affect a rangefinder’s performance. Whether you step out in the rain, fog, shiny sun, or in any other atmosphere, they will all cause minor differences in the results. For instance, let us say it is raining, the laser beam’s passage can get interrupted or it can collide with a rain droplet and give a completely different distance.

This is the kind of factor that we have almost no control over, some weather can be more fatal to the results than others so you might want to choose the day wisely in order to prevent inaccuracies in results.

Targets from where it reflects

There are different targets that give different results. Take a target like a tree and a rock, such targets are considered to be medium reflective targets. Usually, these targets won’t affect the accuracy of the rangefinder as such.

Targets like animals are soft reflective ones, there might be a bit greater effect by the color of such targets in results. For example, if there’s a black cow, most of the laser beam would get absorbed by the black color and only the laser beam that’s left will reflect back.

Position and size of the target

The position, shape, and size of the targets will also affect big time. If there’s a deer standing at 400 yards and with broadside facing you and there’s a steel surface of only 10 inches at 1000 yards. Of course, the steel surface would reflect but there would be more divergence on the way, and what if that surface is facing sideways, where do you think the beam would reflect to?

Vibrations

Holding a rangefinder steadily and without any shakes, tremors, or vibrations is hard. When finding ranges for far-off targets, a high-power rangefinder that is rod mounted is preferable and it wouldn’t bother you as such.

But for the ones that are handheld, it is better to lean against some solid support to get stable easily. Once your laser beam goes without any vibrations, there is noticeable accuracy and precision in your results.

Beam Divergence

Small beam divergence specs work well with smaller targets. Since vibrations cannot be tolerated with such rangefinders, so rod mounting a small beam divergence rangefinders will lift the accuracy pretty higher.

However, for large beam divergence rangefinders, using a free hand is not an issue. You can trust the result that the rangefinder would give. But the results are not reliable of large beam divergence, because with the distance it will travel, more and more energy will keep on dissipating.