Review: Nite-Site Mountable Rangefinder

Time Well Spent June 15, 2022

This innovative device catapults Nite-Site to the leader of the pack, says Phill Price

As much as night vision (NV) has some advantages over traditional lamping, it’s always had one major failing for me: I find it almost impossible to estimate the range to my quarry through the flat image.

This isn’t peculiar to any brand or type of NV unit. If you’re ratting in a yard where the distances are well known to you, it isn’t an issue, but it becomes very difficult as soon as you go into open farmland. It’s especially challenging for airguns – they’re short-range tools because of their curved trajectories.

What we need is a rangefinder that works in the dark, and NiteSite appears to have the answer.

It’s a module that fits beside the screen on your NiteSite unit and projects a laser beam you can see in the scope’s view. You place the dot on your target and the display on the rangefinder tells you the precise distance.

At first, I wondered how you’d zero the laser on the cross hair, until somebody pointed out you don’t need to. As long as you can see the dot, you just place it where it’s needed and take the reading. It also shows you the angle you’re shooting at.

To mount the rangefinder, you attach a small plastic arm to the mount that holds the screen onto your scope. Because this and the module itself are so light (150g), you barely notice them. I noted the arm has some flex, which is good when you inevitably bang it against the car or a barn door.

As a change to most rangefinders, this one reads constantly for a minute before shutting down to conserve battery life. This means once you spot something, you give the power button a press and let go, unlike other systems that require you to keep ‘pinging’ if there’s more than one target or if the quarry moves. The display is bright and clear, making reading easy, even on the darkest nights.

The ‘ping’, as NiteSite calls it, appears in the screen as a quickly-moving, vertical stripe.

I gave the unit a quick wiggle until it appeared behind the cross hair. That’s not necessary, I just preferred it.

Distances appeared instantly as I moved the rifle and I got accurate readings first time when ranging objects I know the distance to. There is, of course, the matter of viewing things by pointing your rifle, but with the bolt open and the mag’ out, reasonable safety was maintained.

I feel this is a huge step forward for NV users. The rabbits I shot all dropped cleanly, showing I was at the correct distance. I’m sure this will create an arms race as other manufacturers try to catch up, but for now, if you want rangefinding at night, NiteSite is the only choice.

Manufacturer: NiteSite

Model: Mountable Rangefinder

RRP: £299.00

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