Do Rangefinder Reticles Work?
Yes, but in terms of providing an exact yardage, they aren’t as accurate or fast as a laser rangefinder. There are three basic operating systems used in rangefinder reticle scopes. The first—and simplest—involves comparing a measuring device in the scope’s field-of-view against a known-sized portion of an animal (or target). This means placing a circle, set of bars, dots or tick-marks on an animal. These measuring marks are scaled to match a given number of inches on an animal, usually 16 or 18 inches. There might be a number of measuring marks in the field-of-view that represent apparent image size at various ranges. Another method of correlating measuring marks to a known-dimensioned part of an animal is to simply vary the power ring so the animal appears larger or smaller. Marks on the power ring will then indicate distance. This works with the simplest rangefinder reticle design: the duplex with 16- or 18-inch spacing between the ends of the posts. It’s also employed in Leupold’s B
