Can't range 1K with Kilo 2200 BDX

[35Remington]

I have about another week to return my Sig Kilo 2200 BDX laser range finder, and need to figure out if it's me, or the unit. I have a sheet of 18x24 AR500 steel painted white hanging at 1,000 yards. I cannot get a return from my 2200 BDX after trying several times on several days. I cannot range trees at this distance either. The gigantic circle Sig decided to use for the aiming aperture is part of what makes this difficult. After reading some reviews on here, I am seeing that the laser itself is smaller than the aiming circle, but even in Scan mode I never got a reading back from the LRF.

Is it me? Is it the unit?

 

[Pvt.Donut]

First, are you lasing it from a tripod? I've found trying to range any rangefinder past 300 yards handheld is difficult. Get more stable and it will help. Second, verify where your laser is in relation to your reticle. Use the top of a telephone pole and range it from different spots in the reticle to find out exactly where the laser is going. Both of these should help a ton.

 

[35Remington]

First, are you lasing it from a tripod? I've found trying to range any rangefinder past 300 yards handheld is difficult. Get more stable and it will help. Second, verify where your laser is in relation to your reticle. Use the top of a telephone pole and range it from different spots in the reticle to find out exactly where the laser is going. Both of these should help a ton.

Tripod-ish, I guess? My gun is on a tripod, and I'm putting the BDX on top of that to hold steady. I can get handheld readings at 800 no problem, so doubtful a tripod is my problem.

To your second point, I've scanned the target in HyperScan mode (4 scans per second) and never get a result from the unit.

 

[35Remington]

Bump

 

[loveha]

I would return or exchange it. Maybe RMA it? Not much more you can do if you can't get a reading off a solid white object.

 

[nightman]

I have gotten out to 1500+ with mine.

 

[35Remington]

At my lease I have steel set up from 100 to 1,000 yards. Should I get a different range finder anyway? I am just starting out into LR shooting.

 

[CrabsandFootball]

Chyna!

Take it back if you can and get a Leica. Night and day difference. Returns are way more accurate as well. Just becuase you get a return doesn't mean its correct.

 

[Blowby]

Set it to BDU to use the built in bullet engine and it has a limit on range, I think it’s 800 yards. Set to AMR, LOS and ABX and the limit is the environment or range finder max distance if I recall on my 3000.

 

[Lowlight]

Depending on the conditions, IE: Bright sun,

With most consumer rangefinders you cut the marketed range in 1/2 when it comes to practical application.

You can find some that perform well past their ratings, but most, especially in daylight are 1/2 of the advertised range.

With lasers to do it right you want to spend about $1 a yard/meter in order to ensure consistency in the ranging.

 

[35Remington]

I currently have a gun that's capable of making 1K yard hits, and a good scope. That's really it. I don't have or even really know what a Kestrel is, other than I've seen lots of pictures of guys using them. I just guess the wind. I really like LR shooting and plan to do it for a long time.

Knowing what you know now, tell me what to buy instead of this BDX 2200.

 

[Lowlight]

If you want a consumer laser stick to Leica

I do think they limit the BDX system to 800 yards unless you get the maxed out model.

 

[jolofree]

Vortex Fury HD 5000 LRF binos will do 1000+ yds "all day long"

 

[kenny1773]

Read on page 5 of the manual

https://www.sigsauer.com/pub/media/sigsauer/resources/20SIG3038_KILO2200BDX_Manual-7401006-01-R03_HR.pdf

KEY FEATURES: • SIG SAUER’S Patent Pending Ballistic Data Xchange™ Technology utilizes, low energy Bluetooth with embedded Applied Ballistics Ultralight and the free BDX™ App to sync custom gun profiles and environmental conditions to your KILO® and pair your KILO to any BDX enabled riflescope or sight for shots out to 800 yards


Then look at page 13



APPLIED BALLISTICS ULTRALIGHT (ABU) Your rangefinder has an embedded ballistics solver developed by Sig Sauer, Applied Ballistics and nVisti. By pairing your KILO with the free BDX App you can enter custom ballistics information for up to 25 bullet profiles and sync one at a time to your KILO. The active ballistic profile is now saved on your KILO, and when in ABU mode, will provide an accurate ballistic solution out to 800 yards maximum




If you are stuck at 800 yards this is your issue. I had the same problem, you need to turn the ABU off

 

[SepticDeath]

Read on page 5 of the manual

https://www.sigsauer.com/pub/media/sigsauer/resources/20SIG3038_KILO2200BDX_Manual-7401006-01-R03_HR.pdf

KEY FEATURES: • SIG SAUER’S Patent Pending Ballistic Data Xchange™ Technology utilizes, low energy Bluetooth with embedded Applied Ballistics Ultralight and the free BDX™ App to sync custom gun profiles and environmental conditions to your KILO® and pair your KILO to any BDX enabled riflescope or sight for shots out to 800 yards


Then look at page 13



APPLIED BALLISTICS ULTRALIGHT (ABU) Your rangefinder has an embedded ballistics solver developed by Sig Sauer, Applied Ballistics and nVisti. By pairing your KILO with the free BDX App you can enter custom ballistics information for up to 25 bullet profiles and sync one at a time to your KILO. The active ballistic profile is now saved on your KILO, and when in ABU mode, will provide an accurate ballistic solution out to 800 yards maximum




If you are stuck at 800 yards this is your issue. I had the same problem, you need to turn the ABU off

This

 

[CrabsandFootball]

Vortex Fury HD 5000 LRF binos will do 1000+ yds "all day long"

If you like half assed chinese optics that give questionable returns....sure.

 

[35Remington]

If you are stuck at 800 yards this is your issue. I had the same problem, you need to turn the ABU off

Thank you for posting this. That's fucking ridiculous. The unit should still give a range past 800, just not a correction value. Or, their manual could have mentioned "If you want to range past 800, turn ABU off and use the other modes." Or, their FUCKING TECHNICAL SUPPORT PEOPLE who I talked to on the phone could have asked whether I was using ABU mode instead of one of the others. The guy I talked to was so lame that his only real suggestion was that I set the unit to "last" instead of "best." I had already tried this in the field and it of course did not work. The longer I talked to him the more I realized he knew very little about his own product.

 

[kenny1773]

You are welcome, I feel your pain with this, I thought mine was broken too until I just screwed around with it enough that I accidentally figured it out. Only then did I go back and look at the manual because I thought, this can't be right, they limited it to 800 yards on purpose? and yes they did.

I would spend the extra 1/8 of a penny to put a sticker on the unit that says ABU mode limited to 800 yards. That would probably help a lot of people out.

To hear that you called tech support and they didn't know is a bit surprising, but most likely an offshore call center guy that is reading from a script and has no idea what the product is or does...

 

[35Remington]

To hear that you called tech support and they didn't know is a bit surprising, but most likely an offshore call center guy that is reading from a script and has no idea what the product is or does...

It was some dude named Jake in Massachusetts. Disappointing.

 

[Johnny00K]

My advise on just getting into long range, don't plan on JUST shooting 1000 yards. You need to plan on shooting past 2k or not do it at all. You don't want to keep buying products that will limit you, that's how you buy twice as much gear and still not have what you need. Trust the guy that did it the wrong way. Sig rangefinders will limit out around 1k, I don't care what the box says or what people online say. I've been around enough of them to know that their reliability limit is 1k. I like the Kilo 2400 for hunting but that's all I use it for. Vectronix Terrapin will get you past 2k, I don't have any real experience with other brands.

Just buy the Kestrel with Applied Ballistics. You might think the app on your phone is good, but when you only have to use a Kestrel for the entire firing solution and it takes 27 seconds you will look back at all the wasted time on apps. The Kestrel is the easy button for long range shooting and I find it to be more accurate than the apps, probably user error or laziness.