Anyone varmint hunt and use a rangefinder? I am about to buy one and need some opinions. I like taking those long range shots out to about 500yds. and need to know if there are some rangefinders that work better for finding the range of small furry animals better.... I was looking at a Nikon Prostaff 550
Varmint Hunting with a rangefinder
- Thread starter mgrych
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ken22250
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i use a leupold RX-II, its got angle compensation, and is good to 700 yards, might be impractical for prarrie dogs, but on woodchucks its breat.
ken
ken
gbran
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Rangefinders don't work so well on long shots at small furry creatures, especially shots of opportunity. The longer the distance, the harder it is to hold them still. I also suspect they were made for larger targets. If you are shooting down on them, you may be able to range the ground, you might find a large rock or a stump even.
fineredmist
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I have been shooting prairie dogs for 10 + years and have found that laser ranger finders are not very effective. Lasers need a reflective target to bounce the signal back and p ds and their surrounding area do not provide that. If you are after critters in a wooded or rocky area they will provide good information. To use them effectively you need to set up a stand and range to specific areas and use that information when a target appears. It is very dificult to rang a target, go for the gun and then locate the target in the sights.
Birdhunter1
Member
It is difficult to range a target, get your gun setup then fire, but it can be done.
I have a Bushnell Elite 1500 that is good at picking up trees, houses barns and the like out to about 1450 yds. I have pickedup deer, cattle, and coyotes out to 800 easily, I might have hit the ground near them I may have ranged them, don't know for sure. I have never tried anything beyond a cow at 800 yds, so it may work further out on some game animals.
What I find best to do on long range varmints is most likely to take a 500 yard shot you are laying on the ground or at a bench of some sort. What I do is I have a little 9" table top tripod (like a $10 item on ebay) and I attach my rangefinder to that, then when I find a target I range it then set up and throw a bullet down range. Most of the time when doing this I also have a spotting scope set up the same way and that is how I find my varmints.
I have a Bushnell Elite 1500 that is good at picking up trees, houses barns and the like out to about 1450 yds. I have pickedup deer, cattle, and coyotes out to 800 easily, I might have hit the ground near them I may have ranged them, don't know for sure. I have never tried anything beyond a cow at 800 yds, so it may work further out on some game animals.
What I find best to do on long range varmints is most likely to take a 500 yard shot you are laying on the ground or at a bench of some sort. What I do is I have a little 9" table top tripod (like a $10 item on ebay) and I attach my rangefinder to that, then when I find a target I range it then set up and throw a bullet down range. Most of the time when doing this I also have a spotting scope set up the same way and that is how I find my varmints.
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