I'm not one to argue and look for battles and opinions but let me state something...(Only my opinion)

If you are a bowhunter you may do one of the following:

1) Pace off some trees and have an idea of range in your area..
2) Hope for the best and use your instincts (and your fast bow) to make its mark
3) You only take shots at 20 yards so you have no worries
4) You're afraid range finders will cause movement that could destroy your hunt.
4) You hunt with a range finder and use percision in your shots and know how to handle a range finder based on the situation (relaxed deer, or the moment is too fast to use one)

Buy a bowtech 82nd, Hoyt Katera, or Matthews (DXT or whatever is fastest)..
Bottem line is ...archery equipment throws an arrow out to its prey........and their is alwaystrajectory!

You shoot all summer in the happy world and know your bow inside and out...

Important note: Do you ever ask yourself at full draw if the deer is 24 or 29 yards?

If you do... and release the arrow you're opening up a window of "some" variation on your shot placement..This variation could be a 2 inch "sway" from drilling the lungs or hitting the dead spot high in the back below the spine...or some other bad shot...

My Opinion...Tuck a range finder tight around your neck....learn your trees and woods with it...just in case you can't mark the deer with it.....depending on the situtation.....

As the deer enters... get yours hands on the range finder...read the situtation...if 32-36 yards is all you got....mark the deer and make it happen...by then you will know your sights....

Have confidence in your equipment and plan ahead...you can use a RF on deer in close...you have to be confident...Remember...a slight mis-judgment could cause your arrow to fly just outside of the zone...When you stack up nerves, the moment, etc...its all up in the air...

Picture the trajectory and use a RF to get your arrow into the "hair" you're aiming at...

And remember...when you mark the deer...grab your release...and reach full draw...now you're confident...you feel like you're back home on the target....it is times like this when you will realize 30-40 yards is nothing....and open field broadside shots at 48 yards are nothing....hold firm...and do what you do on the 3D range....

WOW...long post but absorb it

I agree with you, once I set up a standI always take the RF the first time or two if it is really open. Good tool if used correctly.

I carry a RF in my pack at all times, my shot placement drastically improved once I started using it.

Well I haven't hunted in any real open area yet but I do plan on getting one as soon as I can. So far it's been that I just pace the trees in my area all within 20 to 40 yards.

I'm not disagreeing, because knowing the range of your target is critical, especially with a stick and string. But......how many answers and comments are "politically correct" but not really as important as it seems?

Hang on, don't get excited...hear me out. When shooting a 3D target, PINPOINT accuracy is the name of the game. But a deer has, realistically, an 8" circle to hit that will kill the deer quickly and humanely. You just don't have to hit the "12 ring" to kill a deer efficiently.

Do I think about the range while at full draw? No, I have that determined before I get that far. I'll see the deer coming in, think ahead a little, when the deer gets "there" I'm going to shoot it, and that range is...........

I sight my hunting rig in @ 25 yards, and leave it. I am 1 1/2" high @ 20 yards, and 1 1/2" low @ 30 yards. If I miss the "12 ring" on a deer by 1 1/2"........who freakin cares? I've punched both lungs, dead deer quick. Does it matter that I guessed 27 yards and he was 23? No, because I hold my 25 yard pin right behind the shoulder. Little high or low just isn't going to matter. We can "what if" that scenario to death, but I can "what if" that same scenario when used w/ a rangefinder to death as well.

If you hunt out here in the west, you'll want one for sure. Many of times I don't use them on the animal, but I will range a few trees, rocks, or whatever I can get a reading on, before the animal comes into range.

I use a rangefinder but I use it to establish distances before my shot. I distance to things that are easy to see like a stump or that crooked tree. Then when a deer shows up I can use those items as a guide to distance the deer. It allows me to focus more on my shot and I don't have to worry about handling my rangefinder at the moment of truth.

I keep my RF tucked under my bino harness on my bow arm side. VERY rarely do I ever range a deer. In fact, I'm pretty sure that I haven't done it in at least 3 seasons. I range spots and lots of them... trees, rocks, cow pies, trails... whatever. Peopletell me that I'm going to confuse the distances of my spots, but somehow I have this... uncanny ability to remember numbers, so I use it. As soon as a deer is remotely close to in range and I plan on shooting, I'm clipped on and ready to rock, no time for anything else.

I'm way different than mobow. I still want pinpoint accuracy when I shoot a deer. I pick a single spot where I want my arrow to exit and that's where I shoot. I shoot multiple pins because I want to know EXACTLY where I'm shooting. Aim small miss small. When I shoot an elk at 47 yards, I don't want to be guessing where my 25 yard pin will hit. I want to set my 50 pin on the bottom of my spot and let it go...

I always carry it and range trees rocks etc as soon as I climb into my stand. If a deer walks into these predetermined zones then I'm good to go.

I bought a RF a couple of years ago, and my kill percentage went up drastically.