Swaro Laser Guide Problems ??

[jwp475]

Originally Posted by Broz

I have noticed this as well. I found it helps me if I hold it a bit farther away from my eye. But this is not the same problem I am having. The reticle is gone, and the unit needs to re-boot. The only wat to get it to function again is remove and replace the battery.

Thanks for the reply!

Jeff

Yes eye postion is critical, I've owned my Laser guide for about 4 years now if memeory serves

[mudbug]

I was using it, and it just quit... No reticle, nothing, no matter how many times I pushed or held the button. So I removed the battery, then replaced it and it was working again. I then installed a new battery. Still every once in a while it did it again. R & R the battery and it was fine.


Broz, I had this same thing happen with my first swaro rangefinder I bought in 2006. I returned it to Bass Pro and got another the following year. I have only had it "freeze up" once and it happened when I was trying to range an antelope last year in Wyoming and like you I removed the battery and replaced it worked fine afterwards. I think it happened because my buddy was trying to range the antelope to many times to fast. This year in Wyoming i had no problems with it.

And, yes I position does seem to be critical to see the reticle well.

Mudbug

[ss7mm]

I guess maybe I got lucky but I bought mine 04-06-05 and all I ever do to it is clean it and put in a new battery each spring and another new battery each fall just before hunting season starts. I never try and run the battery as long as possible and figure it's a cheap investment a couple of times a year for as much as I use it.

It's never skipped a beat and has ranged millions of times. Well, maybe not millions of times but it seems like it.

I don't know if it's the earlier model or just the way I look through it but I've never had a problem with the reticle disappearing. Since reading this I can make it disappear but I have to really get it way out of alignment with my eye to make it fade away.

Hind sight is great but I sure wish I would have purchased two at the time I bought this one. The price has really gone up.

[phorwath]

No problems with mine yet either. Used it for about 2 years now. BTW, my original battery lasted ~ two years also, and that would be the equivalent of about 12-15 hunts. I carry a spare battery in my backpack with me. When I received the low battery signal on a mt goat hunt two weeks ago, slipped in the new replacement battery and off to the races again. Simply replacing the battery once per year is probably a good SOP though, in case the backpack and LRF end up separated in the heat of the moment.

Hope you get it figure out & corrected.

[7mmSendaro]

Other than sensitivity to eye position others have noted, I've had issues with mine. I've had it about a year.

[Broz]

Thanks guys, but rest assurred this is not an eye alignment problem and this is a one week old unit. I really was looking forward to having one I could trust... But this is not the first time I was ranging game and a swaro failed me. That is why I carry a spare. In fact I now own 2 Laser Guides and a Leica CRF. They get comparred a lot in the field. Trust me I am not abusing them and the batteries are NOT the problem. I guess some laser guides have a circut problem that causes them to freeze and need re-booted. Looks like "Mudbug" has had two of them do it also. I will talk to Swaro again on monday (we are on a first name basis) Then I will report in here. Now please don't think I am trying to knock a great company like Swarro,,, I am not. They WILL take care of this I am sure. I just insist on being able to trust my equipment and I will NOT take a long range shot until a get a few repeated ranges on the quary. I feel I owe that to the animal.

Jeff

[NJS]

This thread is a good reminder that although we think of laser range finders as "Optics"... they are a combination of optics and electronics... That is why they are warranteed for two years... not longer. We wouldn't expect a computer to have a long warranty... but we think a rangefinder should have a 5 or 10 year warranty like true optics do...

If they were engineered well enough to warrent a longer warranty, we wouldn't be buying them for the price we are now... NJS