If you are looking for a multipurpose rangefinder made by a classic manufacturer, look no further than the Nikon RifleHunter 1000 rangefinder.
With the number 1000 in its name, you would expect that you can range up to 1000 yards with the RifleHunter. Let’s see if you really get what that number seems to promise.
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Contents
Important Note about the RifleHunter 1000
The RifleHunter 1000 has been “archived” by Nikon. This means that they are no longer selling new units to their resellers.
However, there are plenty of them already in the market, so you shouldn’t have any trouble finding one if you decide that this is the rangefinder for your needs.
What Are the Features You Get with the Laser Rangefinder 1000?
A feature that Nikon seems especially proud of, even though it’s kind of a small thing, is its Active Brightness Control Viewfinder.
The unit is able to detect the brightness of your target and then adjust the reticle inside so you can see it better. The reticle will either be a gray LCD or orange LED, depending on which one contrasts best with the object in sight.
Every maker has its own name for giving you the angle compensated distance to the target. Nikon calls theirs “ID technology”. I think that, instead of standing for “identification”, “ID” here means “Incline / Decline”.
You can receive angle compensation up to 89 degrees, plus or minus, with the RangeHunter 1000. As far as I can tell, you would only ever need that much if you were shooting from the top to the bottom of a cliff or the other way around.
You need just a single button to operate the laser rangefinder. Some owners think that’s a great thing. Others think it’s asking too much of just one button and would prefer two. It’s really a matter of personal preference.
After using the button to activate the rangefinder, it will power down after 8 seconds of disuse.
You can see above that there are 2 buttons on top of the rangefinder. One is used for powering on the unit and doing the actual ranging.
The other button is used to set the various options, most of which I describe for you below.
You can display your target distances in either yards or meters. They will be accurate to 0.1 of either measurement unit out to 1000 (actually 999.9) yards.
With the Nikon Tru-Target™ ranging system, you can switch modes between First Target and Distant Target priority, depending on the conditions surrounding the objects in question.
From the RifleHunter’s manual:
“First Target Priority mode, for example, has applications for golf, while Distant Target Priority is useful when hunting in heavily wooded areas.”
For example, if you were looking at a tree in front of a house and had the Nikon RifleHunter set to First Target, you would range the tree. When you switch to Distant Target, the rangefinder would do its best to ignore the tree and look through it to range the house.
What Are the Specifications of The Nikon RifleHunter 1000?
The lenses on the Nikon RifleHunter are fully multi-coated, as you should expect from Nikon. You get a magnification factor of 6 times actual size. The objective lens is 21 millimeters in diameter. So you may occasionally see this rangefinder referred to as a 6×21. Spotting what’s really out there will be easy to do.
The unit (except for the battery chamber) is waterproof and fogproof. Again, quoting the manual…
“The Nikon RifleHunter 1000…is waterproof, and will suffer no damage to the optical system if submerged or dropped in water to a maximum depth of 1 meter for up to 10 minutes.”
The field of view (FOV) is 7.5 degrees. That translates to about 393 feet at 1000 yards. That distance should be plenty for finding your hunting target easily.
The eye relief is a generous 18.3 millimeters, especially nice for those who need to wear glasses. You can adjust the focusing diopter to plus or minus 4 degrees.
The unit, with its adjustable strap, measures 4.6 by 2.9 by 1.6 inches and fits nicely into its neoprene case.
Below is a rather long amateur video of the Riflehunter 1000 in use. You get a decent idea of what this rangefinder can do for you.
What’s the Verdict on the Nikon RifleHunter 1000 Laser Rangefinder?
Based on evidence supplied by users, it seems you can normally range hunting targets consistently to around 500 yards. The owner who shot the video above generally could not range out to 1000 yards either.
One owner says this.
“My 1000 will give a range almost 90% of the time under 500 yards, for over that you have to be able to hold it very still and point it at a flat surface.”
Another has used it like this.
“I use it for everything from bow hunting, rifle hunting/shooting and even at work, I have used it to position equipment on anchors in rivers and lakes.”
So it looks like it’s quite difficult to get the full 1000 yards mentioned in its name, but if you don’t normally need that distance, the Nikon RifleHunter could be the rangefinder for you.
If, however, you think there’s one that fits your needs better, take a look at this article that discusses several others. You’ll probably find one amongst them that you like better.
