I've just taken hold of my first range finder, I've never even held one before
so this one has in one way nothing to live up to, on the other hand it has to
be as good as i hoped that range finders could be - So on with the story
Ordering
TheOpticZone were great, the shipped me the item in record time, they
emailed me the USPS Global Express shipping number so I could track it
without bothering them, price as you could guess was good enough to
allow me to buy it (being a poor and rather tight sod).
Now, when it got to customs it was passed onto an 'on forwarding agent'
which took it from customs to me. I won't name them, but you won't need
to worry about this - they are a small local bunch. I got email from USPS
saying that they failed to deliver, 2x and they didn't leave a note or slip
or anything.... I GUESSED who the agent would have been, and phoned
them and they said 'its in the depot, we couldn't deliver it' No
manors or service, nothing.
long story short, i drove back to get it.
Packing
From the optic zone, the boxing was perfect, no complaints, well sealed
and padded.
Opening the box
First thing I noticed is this whole box is damn light, about 1/2 what I was
expecting, if not less. Second thing was, NO BLOODY BATTERIES!!
Box contains:
- Lens cloth
Strap
Padded Bag
Range finder
Manual
Warranty card
Some advertising crap
The Yardage PRO 800 appears well made, tight joins, thick plastic,
slightly rubbery 'warm' feel to it, tho not 'rubberised' as I know it.
I was totally unimpressed with the battery cover which came off
as I was inspecting the device. This part will pop off and get lost,
count on it.
Next thing I noticed is that when held to the eye, the right side
of the body presses against my nose in an uncomfortable way
(could read this to say I have a big nose).
Buttons feel good, tactile but not noisy, firm but not hard to push.
First Peek Thru it
Lenses appear to give a good, clean image, slight yellowing of the
image to my eye, not at all a problem - just being harsh because
I'm sharing the thoughts/
Buttons line up under the fingers without a thought, even when not
intending to push them
In go the batteries and...
It works like a charm, fast, almost instant on anything < 400yards.
First instinct was to range EVERYTHING, its kinda fun in a nerdy way,
the range markings and text is not too busy, its not too thick or thin,
color is a dark blue for the reticle image.
Ranging in standard mode was easy (provided you hold it reasonably
still - it was blowing like a $20 hooker out there) nevertheless I ranged
with ease trees blowing in the wind at 812yards with 300-400ms lag
as perceived by me, quick and easy..
I'm yet to try it in the field, but lets just say, I'm VERY pleased, it will
be without a doubt of great assistance.
Pros:
Price was right
Model is light and small
Cheap batteries
Works like a dream
Fast ranging
Effective on shrub sized objects to 800yards
Cons:
Crap battery retainer cover.
Didn't buy one earlier, its very good.
-Arch
