goodgrouper
Well-Known Member
I could sum up my review in one word: dissapointing.
If you're into details, then I can give you a few.
Tested a brand new RX4 unit today on various objects in my local canyon including trees, cliffs, rockslides, hillsides, brush patches and so on. Also took along my Leica 1200 (non scan model) to compare to.
First thing I noticed pulling the RX4 out of the box was the green ring around the eyepiece. THis is Wind RIver's color not Leupold's which means it was probably made in CHina. Sure enough, next thing I noticed was that it was stamped, "made in China" on the bottom. Not good I thought.
Then I read the destructions to figure out the rather busy menus on the unit. After about an hour of using the process of elimination to figure out the best "combo" of functions that would best serve my purposes, I had to set the unit down before I threw it down. WAAAYY to much %&$* going on in that screen! Truthfully, even after playing around with it for an hour and then testing it in the canyon for another hour, I can only get the thing to do about 80% of it's functions. I'm starting to think that this particular unit does not have all it's wires hooked up!
Comparing it's optics to my LEica, I can say that the Leup has as good of resolution but to my eye is half as bright as the Leica. The Leica would give at least an extra half hour of use in the evenings. The Leup also has a "yellowish" tinge to it's contrast.
In ranging objects, I never got the Leup to bounce a reading back farther than 850 yards and it is supposed to go to 1500! I even bounced a huge cliff that my Leica said 1010 yards three times in a row and the Leup never gave me a reading! I started to think that the laser or circuit board in my particular unit may have just been robbed from the RX2 or RX3 and would not go past 900 yards.
The RX4 was good at giving identical readings as my Leica to things under 500 yards but was twice as slow to display them.
The digital inclinometer worked flawlessly and was a good idea as was the compass. However, to use some things like these, you have to shut off other functions.
I finally got the TBR function to work but I think that it only corrects for targets no further than 800 yards away. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/frown.gif
The readout is kinda fuzzy, and the backlight functioned only so-so. It illuminated only parts of the view similiar to the old Casio watch corner lights before Indiglo backlights.
The Moa, holdover, and Bal functions I got to flash, but never got them to work. I have no clue how they are supposed to function. Very frustrating.
The multiple aimers are a good idea, but you have to toggle through each one every time you run the mode function and I think there were 13 to choose from.
The thermometer was nice but seemed to be effected slightly by direct sunlight on the black housing of the unit.
On some of the functions, you have to use a combo of bottons to get them to be used. I would have liked to see several more buttons in the design rather than have to use combos of the only three buttons to operate 20 different modes. This just adds to the frustrations. I felt like if I had been trying to range a 2point deer, by the time I actually got the unit to give me a range the deer would have become a 4 point or would have died of old age!
The size of the unit is great and it is lightweight. And the carrying case is far superior to the **** thing Swaro sends with their rangefinder.
The RX4's threaded tripod adaptor bottom also kicks the crap out of the Leica tripod adaptor.
All in all, I would rate the Swaro rangefinder a 9 out of 10, the Leica 1200 (non-scan model) an 8 out of 10, and the RX4 Leup a 4 out of ten. I have not played around with the Bushnell 1500 as extensively but I would rate it a better unit than the Leup for pure ranging capabilities although it does not have some of the extra features of the Leupy.
I am a tried and true Leupold fan (yes, I said Leupold Pete!)but I don't think I could back this product. Of course, it has more genes from Wind River than it does Leupold and I've always hated Wind River stuff.
In Leupold's defense, I could point out that ALL the major manufacturer's first attempts at rangefinders were troubled at best. The first Leica 800's that came out all had to be sent back for system failures and were late on re-introduction. Swaros first unit had a "dissappearing" readout with funny orange colored mirage objects in the view. Not to mention the aimer was bigger than Rosie O DOnnels butt. It has since been shrunk (the aimer, not the butt). So maybe Leupold is having the same beginner problems. I would have liked to see them make a unit that truly ranges out to 1500 or 1700 yards and have brighter glass without so many busy features and have it cost a little more. I would gladly pay $900 for an American made ranger that had the same glass as Leupy's riflescopes and could give me readings to 1 mile and only have an inclinometer as an extra feature. The thermometer and compass are nice but probably forced Leupy to reduce the quality of the laser or glass. We don't need that!
Anyhow, I ain't sellin' my Leica or my Swaro that is in transit to buy a Leup RX4 at this time. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif
If you're into details, then I can give you a few.
Tested a brand new RX4 unit today on various objects in my local canyon including trees, cliffs, rockslides, hillsides, brush patches and so on. Also took along my Leica 1200 (non scan model) to compare to.
First thing I noticed pulling the RX4 out of the box was the green ring around the eyepiece. THis is Wind RIver's color not Leupold's which means it was probably made in CHina. Sure enough, next thing I noticed was that it was stamped, "made in China" on the bottom. Not good I thought.
Then I read the destructions to figure out the rather busy menus on the unit. After about an hour of using the process of elimination to figure out the best "combo" of functions that would best serve my purposes, I had to set the unit down before I threw it down. WAAAYY to much %&$* going on in that screen! Truthfully, even after playing around with it for an hour and then testing it in the canyon for another hour, I can only get the thing to do about 80% of it's functions. I'm starting to think that this particular unit does not have all it's wires hooked up!
Comparing it's optics to my LEica, I can say that the Leup has as good of resolution but to my eye is half as bright as the Leica. The Leica would give at least an extra half hour of use in the evenings. The Leup also has a "yellowish" tinge to it's contrast.
In ranging objects, I never got the Leup to bounce a reading back farther than 850 yards and it is supposed to go to 1500! I even bounced a huge cliff that my Leica said 1010 yards three times in a row and the Leup never gave me a reading! I started to think that the laser or circuit board in my particular unit may have just been robbed from the RX2 or RX3 and would not go past 900 yards.
The RX4 was good at giving identical readings as my Leica to things under 500 yards but was twice as slow to display them.
The digital inclinometer worked flawlessly and was a good idea as was the compass. However, to use some things like these, you have to shut off other functions.
I finally got the TBR function to work but I think that it only corrects for targets no further than 800 yards away. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/frown.gif
The readout is kinda fuzzy, and the backlight functioned only so-so. It illuminated only parts of the view similiar to the old Casio watch corner lights before Indiglo backlights.
The Moa, holdover, and Bal functions I got to flash, but never got them to work. I have no clue how they are supposed to function. Very frustrating.
The multiple aimers are a good idea, but you have to toggle through each one every time you run the mode function and I think there were 13 to choose from.
The thermometer was nice but seemed to be effected slightly by direct sunlight on the black housing of the unit.
On some of the functions, you have to use a combo of bottons to get them to be used. I would have liked to see several more buttons in the design rather than have to use combos of the only three buttons to operate 20 different modes. This just adds to the frustrations. I felt like if I had been trying to range a 2point deer, by the time I actually got the unit to give me a range the deer would have become a 4 point or would have died of old age!
The size of the unit is great and it is lightweight. And the carrying case is far superior to the **** thing Swaro sends with their rangefinder.
The RX4's threaded tripod adaptor bottom also kicks the crap out of the Leica tripod adaptor.
All in all, I would rate the Swaro rangefinder a 9 out of 10, the Leica 1200 (non-scan model) an 8 out of 10, and the RX4 Leup a 4 out of ten. I have not played around with the Bushnell 1500 as extensively but I would rate it a better unit than the Leup for pure ranging capabilities although it does not have some of the extra features of the Leupy.
I am a tried and true Leupold fan (yes, I said Leupold Pete!)but I don't think I could back this product. Of course, it has more genes from Wind River than it does Leupold and I've always hated Wind River stuff.
In Leupold's defense, I could point out that ALL the major manufacturer's first attempts at rangefinders were troubled at best. The first Leica 800's that came out all had to be sent back for system failures and were late on re-introduction. Swaros first unit had a "dissappearing" readout with funny orange colored mirage objects in the view. Not to mention the aimer was bigger than Rosie O DOnnels butt. It has since been shrunk (the aimer, not the butt). So maybe Leupold is having the same beginner problems. I would have liked to see them make a unit that truly ranges out to 1500 or 1700 yards and have brighter glass without so many busy features and have it cost a little more. I would gladly pay $900 for an American made ranger that had the same glass as Leupy's riflescopes and could give me readings to 1 mile and only have an inclinometer as an extra feature. The thermometer and compass are nice but probably forced Leupy to reduce the quality of the laser or glass. We don't need that!
Anyhow, I ain't sellin' my Leica or my Swaro that is in transit to buy a Leup RX4 at this time. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif
