Picked up one of the new KIlo5K rangefinders yesterday and after playing around with it for a little bit I've got some first impressions. First, why did I get the Kilo5K? I needed a decent rangefinder that would:
1. Range steel out to 1000yds and hopefully beyond.
2. Connect to the Garmin Tactix Delta w/AB.
3. Not have onboard AB (see above, already have it and don't want to pay for it again).
Ideally, I wanted a Terrapin X but I just don't have the budget for it right now. The Sig is new and should give me the capabilities I need but wasn't sure since I haven't seen any hands-on feedback on them yet.
The unit arrived yesterday afternoon and I got it started up and updated the firmware after syncing to the BDX app on the iPhone. Other than changing the Mode to BDX-X (external AB solver) and making sure range was in yards and solution was in Mils I left everything as is although I did cycle through the different reticle options. Next, I tried to pair it to the Tactix Delta which didn't seem to be successful but nevertheless worked, the watch never said it found the Sig but "Vectronix" popped up on the sensor list following Applied Ballistics (I don't recall ever seeing that before). Maybe a future software update from Garmin will clear it up, my last update was a couple of weeks ago and I haven't looked for a new one since then. I'm happy, it connects to the watch and updates the range field, as it should, and gets the ballistics solution back from the watch, which I wasn't expecting.
Optics look okay, nothing spectacular and nothing too horrible; there seems to be more "blue" to the image than to the naked eye. The big question is, how does it range? It looks to range pretty well but it gets into the primary thing I don't like about the unit, no threaded socket on the bottom to mount it to a tripod. All of my ranging so far has been handheld and rested on top of the spotting scope to steady it. Unscientifically, the beam looks pretty well centered in the reticle circle, I need a more solid rest to map it out better. All of my testing has been from my patio looking out across terrain and structures (vehicles, houses, barns, power poles, etc. Lighting and weather conditions: sun at or just past its zenith (central Arizona), cloudless sky and 57F & 31% humidity. Targets were all to the south of my position and rangfinder was in direct sunlight.
The Ranging is quick, on closer targets with a single press of the ranging button, minimum range looks to be 5yds which could be interesting the next time I have a rabbit or chipmunk in close like that. Longer and smaller targets benefit from holding the ranging button down (not having a solid rest doesn't help here). The longest range I took it out to was 2660yds on a small structure, that was the furthest I can really test from the patio. I was able to walk the range out on a series of wood power poles to 1750yds by targeting the pole body and making sure I wasn't getting any of the background terrain. This makes me think it will be able to measure steel plates out to a similar range. My next tests will be to take a couple of steel plates (8"x8" and 12"x12" I think) out into the National Forest and see how far out I can get a repeatable range on them.
Overall, my impression of the Kilo5K is favorable. It looks like it may do what I want for 1/4th the price of the Terrapin X. My biggest complaint right now is the lack of the threaded port for mounting to a tripod.
Update: Just did another test after the sun went down. Ranged a house at 3440yds, couldn’t get a read on this one in the bright sunlight due to the Harvey reflections.
1. Range steel out to 1000yds and hopefully beyond.
2. Connect to the Garmin Tactix Delta w/AB.
3. Not have onboard AB (see above, already have it and don't want to pay for it again).
Ideally, I wanted a Terrapin X but I just don't have the budget for it right now. The Sig is new and should give me the capabilities I need but wasn't sure since I haven't seen any hands-on feedback on them yet.
The unit arrived yesterday afternoon and I got it started up and updated the firmware after syncing to the BDX app on the iPhone. Other than changing the Mode to BDX-X (external AB solver) and making sure range was in yards and solution was in Mils I left everything as is although I did cycle through the different reticle options. Next, I tried to pair it to the Tactix Delta which didn't seem to be successful but nevertheless worked, the watch never said it found the Sig but "Vectronix" popped up on the sensor list following Applied Ballistics (I don't recall ever seeing that before). Maybe a future software update from Garmin will clear it up, my last update was a couple of weeks ago and I haven't looked for a new one since then. I'm happy, it connects to the watch and updates the range field, as it should, and gets the ballistics solution back from the watch, which I wasn't expecting.
Optics look okay, nothing spectacular and nothing too horrible; there seems to be more "blue" to the image than to the naked eye. The big question is, how does it range? It looks to range pretty well but it gets into the primary thing I don't like about the unit, no threaded socket on the bottom to mount it to a tripod. All of my ranging so far has been handheld and rested on top of the spotting scope to steady it. Unscientifically, the beam looks pretty well centered in the reticle circle, I need a more solid rest to map it out better. All of my testing has been from my patio looking out across terrain and structures (vehicles, houses, barns, power poles, etc. Lighting and weather conditions: sun at or just past its zenith (central Arizona), cloudless sky and 57F & 31% humidity. Targets were all to the south of my position and rangfinder was in direct sunlight.
The Ranging is quick, on closer targets with a single press of the ranging button, minimum range looks to be 5yds which could be interesting the next time I have a rabbit or chipmunk in close like that. Longer and smaller targets benefit from holding the ranging button down (not having a solid rest doesn't help here). The longest range I took it out to was 2660yds on a small structure, that was the furthest I can really test from the patio. I was able to walk the range out on a series of wood power poles to 1750yds by targeting the pole body and making sure I wasn't getting any of the background terrain. This makes me think it will be able to measure steel plates out to a similar range. My next tests will be to take a couple of steel plates (8"x8" and 12"x12" I think) out into the National Forest and see how far out I can get a repeatable range on them.
Overall, my impression of the Kilo5K is favorable. It looks like it may do what I want for 1/4th the price of the Terrapin X. My biggest complaint right now is the lack of the threaded port for mounting to a tripod.
Update: Just did another test after the sun went down. Ranged a house at 3440yds, couldn’t get a read on this one in the bright sunlight due to the Harvey reflections.
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