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Vortex Ranger HD 3000 - The Working Man's Rangefinding Binocular
In 2018, I bought a Vortex Ranger 1000. It was a very basic rangefinder that gave me angle-compensated ranges, and that’s about it. I can’t remember a time when it failed me. It wasn’t the fastest rangefinder on the market, and it didn’t have the most features, but it was perfect for my budget. I used it for many years, then decided I needed something a little more “high speed.” My dad still uses it to this day, and if I had to guess, the number of whitetails that it’s been used on, I’d probably start in the triple digits. I have never heard a complaint out of him about it, either.
The Vortex Ranger HD3000 has a similar feel to my old range finder, with a handful of key upgrades. It ranges out to 3000 yards on reflective targets and well past 1000 yards on trees or deer. It’s a standard size for a 10x42 binocular, which is a welcome change from most of the extremely bulky rangefinding binoculars on the market. It features an OLED display, which is easily visible in low light, and the glass is much better than I anticipated.
Rangefinding binoculars tend to have fairly degraded glass due to an issue of design. When you have to add a display to the binocular, it automatically adds a level of blurriness, but from my use with the new Ranger, the optical clarity is not much different from other binoculars in its price range. I don’t believe there is another range-finding binocular on the market from any of the major companies that is anywhere near this price point of $799.99
The Ranger HD 3000 is extremely easy to set up because it doesn’t do any ballistic calculation. Some may view that as a drawback, but it sure saves a lot of money, and all you have to do is make sure that the brightness is good for your eyes and your conditions, and you’re good to go. Besides, you can use your phone for applied ballistics or another app, and some folks prefer it that way.
If you’re looking to enter the rangefinding binocular lifestyle, this is absolutely a great starting point. For $800–the price of many decent binoculars without rangefinders–you’ll have a tool to use for many seasons and maybe even pass down when you’re ready to step into something a little more feature-rich.
The Ranger HD 3000 is available now.
