For those who have used the new Swaro EL Range TA

The Oregonian

Well-Known Member
Joined
Jul 20, 2012
Messages
2,307
Location
Missoula, Montana
Can you share what your biggest gripes were? I just got mine today (been on order since like March) and have less time to play with them preseason than I would like. So wanting to fast track my learning a bit and hear shortcomings on here rather than figure it out the hard way. I can then focus on those next time out and see if they are or aren't an issue for me, My initial experiences, which was very limited and with 300 yard max ranging, we're positive, but they were so limited that they would not surface many things that may show up in the field.

I've entered my ballistic info for one rifle and changed settings to my liking on the app, and was able to easily link and transfer. The unit seems like it is kind of basic, but I attribute that to how easy it was to set up. My last unit was a G7 BR2500 and and I usually pushed the button twice as often as I should have bc I would have to relearn the interface again. The G7 worked great once you knew how to play with it but it wasn't the easiest to program early on. The Swaro is easy, but part of that is due to the fact that you don't appear to be able to program on the unit. So if you don't have your phone (with a decent charge) in the field and need to make an adjustment, you are SOL. I haven't ever had to update in the field before but it is worth calling out.

The EL-Range matched my G7 and the Shooter app at 300….that's the farthest I could get in my neighborhood this afternoon. I'll obviously play with that A LOT between now and hunting, but first experience was positive. The mountains on the edge of town are over 2 miles away so I didn't even expect it to give me a distance, and it did not.

This is my first pair of LRF binos so I need to get used to that. I am left eye dominant and the display is in the right side. With the G7 being a monocular it was always on my dominant eye. That isn't an issue with the Swaros as most people are right eye dominant, I just need to play with it and get used to it. I was able to get the diopter dialed in easily and quickly to sharpen the display.

It will take getting used to but the laser seems to be above the midpoint of vision in the binos, so I was having to aim a little unnaturally. Not sure if that is normal or not, but my G7 is pretty much dead center so it may be nothing other than getting used to it….or it could be a gripe after I get more time in the field, I'm not sure yet.

The unit isn't the smallest or lightest, but again, I'm new to LRF binos. It doesn't appear to be anything that would bother me in the field as it will be better than having binos and the G7. It seems on par +/- with Vortex and Leica specs.

I'm assuming it is due to the coatings and any other changes needed due to the display, but the right and left definitely have a different tint to them. I'm guessing that is not unique to Swaro, but that is a guess.

The glass is obviously superb, but I am stepping up from 6 yr old Leupold BX4 Pro Guides so not the best comparison. I haven't put them side by side to compare but will drive up into the mountains this weekend.
 
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