Re: BUSHNELL FUSION 1600 LRF
I own both the Bushnell Elite 1500 7x26 monocular LRF, and more recently the 10x42 Busnhell Fusion 1600 ARC LRF binos.
Last December, I used my grandfather's 1600 fusions while out riding 4-wheelers and observing the landscape and wildlife around the Black Hills of SD. I noticed then that they had a blue/green tint to the lenses, but it was nothing horrible, and they were very clear, and seemed to range further than my 1500 back home. I didn't do any real serious testing with them, but the inclinometer was enough to get my mind ticking about whether or not I needed a pair.
Fast forward to June this year, and I went back to go on a fishing trip to Canada. I stayed before and after the trip to hang out with my grandparents because I'd only seen them twice in about 10 years. This time, however, I brought along my 1500 elite LRF, and took it and my Gpa's 1600 Fusions to a hilltop overlooking a valley and the town of Blackhawk, SD. I gave both units a pretty thorough run through, and here's my results.
1500 Elite:
Grass- 900-1000yd with reliable, quick readings. 1200-1300 with delayed readings or trying several times
Large rocks/tress- 1300-1400yd fairly reliably, some took 2-3 attempts.
Cliff faces- 1500-1600 occasionally, if I got lucky. Not reliable.
1600 Fusions:
Grass- 1300-1400 quick reliable readings. Often out to 1500-1600 would work, also, but not 100%.
Large rocks/tress- 1500-1650 pretty reliably, didn't struggle too much until around the 1700yd mark. Even then it worked more often than not
Cliff faces and buildings- 1700-1850yd. I think 1856 was the farthest I got.
Basically, almost anything closer than 1700yd, they ranged it. May have taken 2-3 tries but they got it. Mostly the first try.
Don't forget, they're also 10x binoculars, and tell you the incline/decline very accurately. Again, you notice the blue tint, but it's nothing horrible.
That test was enough to motivate me to buy a pair. The set that I got has performed almost identically to my grandfather's. I'm stationed in DC (3000ft lower with much more humidity), and still get hits on buildings just over 1800yd, hits on grass to 1200-1400yd etc. These things are awesome, IMO, and worth every penny to the long range shooter/hunter. From the few times I've used them in low-light conditions, they've performed great. Much better than the elite 1500, however, I don't have any comparable stand-alone binoculars to compare them to.