Ranging coyotes

[jaybic]

Hello all,

I am new here and looking to purchase a new rangefinder. I have an older Nikon 800 and a Leupold RX IV w/TBR and neither one seems to pick up a coyote much farther than 300 yards. As a tournament coyote hunter in western ND/SD and Montana, I NEED a rangefinder that will, with reasonable consistency, pick up coyotes at least twice that far. It is usually snow covered and somewhat flat so there is not much to bounce a beam off other than the coyote himself.

I do try to range objects near my stand prior to calling my first series so if they appear, I already have an idea of how far they are but I also find myself on plenty of spot and stalk opportunities where I end up guessing because me Leupy wont range a sleeping coyote balled up on a snow covered hillside. And it has cost me on a bunch of occasions. On several of these occasions after all was said and done, I found out that these coyotes were under 350 yards and I just really think the my rf should have picked them up.

Has anyone used anything made by anyone that has proven reliable on coyotes in similar scenarios as mentioned above? Any and all advice/tips and ideas would be very much appreciated.

Thanks and have a great day folks,

Jamie

 

[Browninglover1]

Buy a Leica 1600. Problem solved

 

[FEENIX]

Buy a Leica 1600. Problem solved

Ditto!

 

[LouBoyd]

Hello all,
Has anyone used anything made by anyone that has proven reliable on coyotes in similar scenarios as mentioned above? Any and all advice/tips and ideas would be very much appreciated.
Jamie

Most fur covered animals are not nearly as reflective as foliage, particularly in infrared light. If your rangfinder can't detect the animal it may be able to detect the leaves on a nearby bush or tree. Flat snow doesn't provide a good reflectivity either.

+1 on the Leica 1600. It's a best buy for a combination of range, price, and small size. It won't make 1600 yards to a coyote's (or deer's) body though. I'd expect 500 to 600 yards as practical.

 

[Broz]

Leica 1600 , I have ranged deer, antelope and elk to 1200 yards in decent conditions. Coyotes at 800 too depending on sunlight and such. It is important to get the RF solid on sand bags to get the full potential of the unit. Any movement in the rf will shorten the distance it will reflect.

Or if you have the budget a Vectronix will fill the bill perfectly. I have ranged coyotes at a mile in wheat stubble where there is nothing else out there. And I was indeed on the yote. But this type of performance comes at a price, as with any upper end equipment.

Jeff

 

[87predator]

Buy a Leica 1600. Problem solved

+2 I've only had mine a month, and have only tested it on brush ect., but not sure what I did before I got it.

 

[FEENIX]

Leica 1600 , I have ranged deer, antelope and elk to 1200 yards in decent conditions. Coyotes at 800 too depending on sunlight and such. It is important to get the RF solid on sand bags to get the full potential of the unit. Any movement in the rf will shorten the distance it will reflect.
Jeff

I have similar experience as Jeff's with my Leica 1600.

Ed

 

[jaybic]

I was thinking of a Leica but things I have read here on the forums also mention that the Zeiss and the Swaro may do a better job. How about the G7 unit? Maybe not as I don't see any pro-Zeiss/Swaro/G7 votes as of yet. Any of them have to be better than my Leupold which is certainly better than my Nikon.

I have read some comparison/review type posts and I was hoping to hear some "coyote on the snowy hillside at 800 yards" stories that would show one outshine the others consistently.

Thanks for the help fellas and if anyone has any other thoughts, I am all ears. I am spending ridiculous money and building a brand new long range coyote whacker on a Stiller Predator action but even that is useless if I cant get an accurate range on them....

Jamie

 

[newmexkid]

I went with a Zeiss instead of the Leica because of the size. I simply could not hold the Leica steady. The Zeiss is just borderline for steadiness, (don't get old) so I went with it. Saturday I ranged a dog at 420 yards and was very happy. However, it was my first time out with the Primos trigger bipod. Just as I pulled the trigger, my left hand trigger finger pressed on the bipods trigger. I have no idea where the shot went! gun) Laughed most of the way home.

 

[FEENIX]

I was thinking of a Leica but things I have read here on the forums also mention that the Zeiss and the Swaro may do a better job. How about the G7 unit? Maybe not as I don't see any pro-Zeiss/Swaro/G7 votes as of yet. Any of them have to be better than my Leupold which is certainly better than my Nikon.

I have read some comparison/review type posts and I was hoping to hear some "coyote on the snowy hillside at 800 yards" stories that would show one outshine the others consistently.

Thanks for the help fellas and if anyone has any other thoughts, I am all ears. I am spending ridiculous money and building a brand new long range coyote whacker on a Stiller Predator action but even that is useless if I cant get an accurate range on them....

Jamie

Do a custom search on the top right corner and you'll be overwhelmed with previous posts about all the mentioned RFs. lightbulb

 

[sscoyote]

As a long-range coyote popper wanna be myself, I have found that a BRF of some make is considerably better for getting the range quickly than any separate units I ever used to ranges of 600-700ish or so. When it comes to sniping dogs at intermediate ranges like this I would put quickness of ranging as one of the most important considerations, and that means a BRF (I have the 10X Leica BRF's myself and love them, though I admit to not keeping up with the latest technology the last several years). The Bushnell's get a pretty good review for the money if you can't go for Leica, Zeiss, etc.

Have a buddy of mine that I hunt with who uses a 243 AR-10/87 V-Max combination, and with our system (me ranging him shooting...most of the time), he has killed more LR dogs than anyone I've ever known out to ~800 yds., on 1st shot kills.

 

[jt183]

I was in your same situation a couple years ago. I love to hunt coyotes in the wide open spaces but found that my rangefinder wouldn't range coyotes in a bare field or snow covered ground. I did some research and shopping and ended up bringing home the Zeiss PRF. It was a definite improvement over my previous rangefinder (Leupold) but after a year of use while coyote hunting I spend more time cussing it than praising it. It was just the right size and had a lightning-fast response time but it simply wouldn't hit small targets at anything over 400 yards (I'm talking coyotes or crows in snow covered fields). A lot of coyotes got away because I couldn't get a range on them and that made me angry. So I did some more thorough research and bought a Vectronix Terrapin. It was a lot of money but it was well worth it. It will range a lone coyote in a snow covered field at distances well over 1200 yards. The only down side is that it is big and bulky. Plenty of coyotes still get away but it's not because I can't get a range on them. It's hard to beat for rockchuck hunting too!