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Bushnell Tour X Rangefinder Review Thread

SuperStroke
Great Reviews guys. I have been waiting to hear about this one since THP first showed it at the PGA Show. I have been putting off buying one of these for a long long time. After this past weekend of using a GPS unit that was more than 20 yards off on occasion, I think its time. I'll be putting it at the top of my christmas wish list.
 
tpluff said:
Ugh. That's what I wanted to hear, but not what I wanted to hear. It's going to be a long winter with this sitting on my mind.
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Laser the other vehicles in front of you on the way to work. You'll find fun uses for it.

Oh, one other thing.. The battery life is pretty good. I've had mine since mid June and it hasn't dropped a click on the battery life indicator. So that's kinda nice.
 
jdtox said:
Great Reviews guys. I have been waiting to hear about this one since THP first showed it at the PGA Show. I have been putting off buying one of these for a long long time. After this past weekend of using a GPS unit that was more than 20 yards off on occasion, I think its time. I'll be putting it at the top of my christmas wish list.
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This may read like a shameless bushnell plug, but I'm ok with it.

I also use a Bushnell Neo XS and I cannot get anymore data. The only excuse for my shots to be off is operator error.
 
Mward said:
Not to make this ponder tough on some people, but... They do have a trade in program that uses 2nd swing golf to do it. You send your stuff to 2nd swing, including range finder.. They cut you a check. Hard ponders commence.
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$70 for a v2 isn't too shabby. mine is missing a button cover but everything works, wonder if they will try to knock off some of that $$...
 
sparksjr said:
$70 for a v2 isn't too shabby. mine is missing a button cover but everything works, wonder if they will try to knock off some of that $$...
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Eh, who knows. If you're sending it to them, you're already committed anyway right?
 
Mward said:
Laser the other vehicles in front of you on the way to work. You'll find fun uses for it.

Oh, one other thing.. The battery life is pretty good. I've had mine since mid June and it hasn't dropped a click on the battery life indicator. So that's kinda nice.
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Yeah same here, it's great! Like others said this thing picks up flags so damn easily it's incredible. My hands can be shaky at times this has no trouble finding. Plus that jolt gives you the little extra "yep that's it" confirmation haha. Blu was going into details about the grip and I'll agree, it's like it was molded to my hand haha. It fits soooo well and comfortable.
 
Mward said:
Eh, who knows. If you're sending it to them, you're already committed anyway right?
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Basically. Unless that button knocks $40 off trade in. Ha
 
I have been using a Tour X for a few months, having upgraded from a V2 after I had the chance to use Howzats in Minnesota. I was impressed mostly with the target acquisition speed. The unit was so much faster and seemed much easier to lock on. I havent played much with the replaceable fronts because I havent been a situation where Slope was not allowed so I can't comment there. The red/black optics are awesome and have worked well in early AM/Late PM rounds. Also, the battery life appears to be better for me but it may be a subjective viewpoint.

Is it worth 500.00? I think so, especially if you dont rely on GPS devices. I havent needed Golfshot once.
 
tpluff said:
We solved that problem for a forum member the other day. Not that quick or easy to figure out if you haven't experienced it before or read the manual.

This thing definitely has all the bells and whistles you could ask for. Is Bushnell doing any trade ins for V3s towards a Tour X? You guys aren't helping this ponder.
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http://www.bushnellgolftradein.com

There ya go buddy!
 
I was going to wait till Saturday while on the course to turn the devise on and start using but I just couldn't help myself as the Tour X just stared and stared at me when I got home from work yesterday. So I decided, let's have a little fun while dinner was cooking.

I took the Tour X outside after installing the battery and immediately noticed how crystal clear the images were in the viewfinder. I mean, it was enough to make me go back through the manual to see if there was some special lenses on the Tour X. It was also enough for me to grab my iphone 6+ to see if I could capture anything:

39A45884-60DA-41BB-8B68-157D270C467D_zpsgkm21exf.jpg


Probably not doing it the full justice here, but even going back through the pictures on the phone the image stood out. Almost HD like. Very impressive.

So after figuring out how to work the trigger on top, I played around with the black and red lighting. I'll admit, I totally thought it was going to be a menu thing I would have to figure out in getting them to switch back and forth. I may have even gone that route to begin before noticing the black and red toggle switch right under the viewfinder. But once I did, it was a breeze switching between the two.

Black

B66E29E7-793B-4A54-8221-056EDE730C48_zpsefh2sfqu.jpg


Red

8219386A-EEFE-4BA9-8841-CA0AE67603B5_zps4dxqcsa4.jpg


Both shots were taken in the evening as the sun was going down but the tree still had sunlight shinning on it. Compare it to being in the trees (shade) and getting distance to a pin in the sun.

Both displays were really nice and clear with the red winning the evening sun battle based on looks and brightness. BTW, brightness was set on 4 which is the highest and brightest. But overall, was really impressed with the lens and picture quality of the Tour X during this activity. For those looking at differences between a $150 rangefinder and a $400 rangefinder, the picture quality of the Tour X will be one that separates them from the pack.

A little later will have some thoughts on the pin seeker and jolt technology as I gave it a spin for the first time.
 
Nate said:
I was going to wait till Saturday while on the course to turn the devise on and start using but I just couldn't help myself as the Tour X just stared and stared at me when I got home from work yesterday. So I decided, let's have a little fun while dinner was cooking.

I took the Tour X outside after installing the battery and immediately noticed how crystal clear the images were in the viewfinder. I mean, it was enough to make me go back through the manual to see if there was some special lenses on the Tour X. It was also enough for me to grab my iphone 6+ to see if I could capture anything:

39A45884-60DA-41BB-8B68-157D270C467D_zpsgkm21exf.jpg


Probably not doing it the full justice here, but even going back through the pictures on the phone the image stood out. Almost HD like. Very impressive.

So after figuring out how to work the trigger on top, I played around with the black and red lighting. I'll admit, I totally thought it was going to be a menu thing I would have to figure out in getting them to switch back and forth. I may have even gone that route to begin before noticing the black and red toggle switch right under the viewfinder. But once I did, it was a breeze switching between the two.

Black

Red

Both shots were taken in the evening as the sun was going down but the tree still had sunlight shinning on it. Compare it to being in the trees (shade) and getting distance to a pin in the sun.

Both displays were really nice and clear with the red winning the evening sun battle based on looks and brightness. BTW, brightness was set on 4 which is the highest and brightest. But overall, was really impressed with the lens and picture quality of the Tour X during this activity. For those looking at differences between a $150 rangefinder and a $400 rangefinder, the picture quality of the Tour X will be one that separates them from the pack.

A little later will have some thoughts on the pin seeker and jolt technology as I gave it a spin for the first time.
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I tried to do this yesterday, and you did a far better job of capturing how the red looked than I did. I didn't post them because the picture wasn't doing it justice, it looked too washed out. Excellent job Nate. I agree on the optics as well - the image is definitely clearer than in my previous rangefinder.

Hoping to get this to the range and shoot some targets today, then out on the course tomorrow.
 
Really good update Nate. Captured a lot of what I was trying to say earlier.
 
Really good update Nate. I'm happy you got the pictures of the display. As a heads up, you're in meters, and you need to change that because as a Texan, you can't use meters.
 
Hahah sweet job Nate! I couldn't get the photos to come out. And like JB eluded to. I couldn't quite get the words to truly define the quality of the optics. The 6X magnification seems to be perfect for me.
 
blugold said:
Really good update Nate. I'm happy you got the pictures of the display. As a heads up, you're in meters, and you need to change that because as a Texan, you can't use meters.
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Haha I noticed that too, but Texas is like its own country and since the US is the only one to use imperial....

Anyways, those pictures are an awesome illustration Nate. I may be able to try one out tomorrow and then, that may be the dagger in the ponder-mode.
 
Nice job on those pics Nate. Looks sharp. Really looks like a solid rangefinder all around.
 
I did notice the M after I took the pictures and there was no way I was going back and redoing! It took awhile to get the camera and viewfinder to agree with each other.
 
Impressive photos, buddy. Nicely done
 
A little tid bit from Bushnell.com


Because rangefinders "bounce" a laser beam off the target in order to take a measurement, their range is partially determined by the reflectivity of the target. In other words, hard or "reflective" targets - like a rock cliff or semi-truck - can be measured at greater distances than soft surface targets. Ranges for moderately reflective targets, and trees, fall somewhere in the middle. Smaller targets, like flags, have been very difficult to target until now - thanks to PinSeeker Technology.
 
Got to use Rbarthle17s Tour X for the round today. All I can say is: Wow. This thing is awesome. Ergonomic, light, stylish, and boy is it quick. Going from the Tour X back to the V3 for the last hole, it seemed like a few seconds went by before I got the number. It's something small, as has been said before, but for shakey hands like mine it helps. I also loved the focus on it, so easy to use and make sure you can see what you're hitting to. I didn't play with the display colors, but I found that I liked red a lot. This will be on the bag next year, that's a guarantee.
 
tpluff said:
Got to use Rbarthle17s Tour X for the round today. All I can say is: Wow. This thing is awesome. Ergonomic, light, stylish, and boy is it quick. Going from the Tour X back to the V3 for the last hole, it seemed like a few seconds went by before I got the number. It's something small, as has been said before, but for shakey hands like mine it helps. I also loved the focus on it, so easy to use and make sure you can see what you're hitting to. I didn't play with the display colors, but I found that I liked red a lot. This will be on the bag next year, that's a guarantee.
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Agree. I think this is what JB let me use at the KY Invitational one hole and it was definitely an improvement over my v2. When used units start to show up for sale I will probably pick one up
 
tpluff said:
It's something small, as has been said before, but for shakey hands like mine it helps.
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You're too young for shakey hands!! :D

Glad you enjoyed your test spin around the course with it. Great feedback!
 
I'm not sure if I love the red display. Best part, with a push of a switch I can go to my preferred black display.
 
Nate said:
You're too young for shakey hands!! :D

Glad you enjoyed your test spin around the course with it. Great feedback!
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It's only shakey with 1 hand usually but the little notch on the underside where the thumb wraps around, wow did that help steady me a bit. Really, really solid unit. Almost flew one in on the fly today thanks to slope, otherwise I would've been over as I'd have taken a club more without it.
 
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