Hillman Laser Range Finder TM-800

[munro007]

Re: Hillman Laser RAnge Finder TM-800

Cant fault it. 100% happy. Its the user that needs a steady hand sometime. lol

 

[AmandaJR]

Re: Hillman Laser RAnge Finder TM-800

Cant fault it. 100% happy. Its the user that needs a steady hand sometime. lol

Me too. I'm rubbish with it so don't use it that often and then not sure I'll trust the number. I have it in the scan mode - is that the best way to get accuracy??

 

[chris661]

Re: Hillman Laser RAnge Finder TM-800

The long term:

OK so nearly a year since I got it and I had a problem. After a dodgy batch of batteries which ran out super quick I got a new one from a shop. From the minute I put it in I was faced with a low battery symbol and scan mode wouldn't work properly. Oh dear. Nearly a year what sort of back up will I get. Will they ask me to prove the fault? Contacted the seller. They quickly got back to me saying asking if the fault affected the use (I only reported the low battery symbol coming on all the time). In the same email they offered me a number of choices. a) if it still worked but had the symbol they would give a partial refund. b) or I could replace. I chose to replace. So they arranged courier pickup for Tuesday. Today a brand new range finder with upgraded rigid carry case arrived.

Apparently a small number of the TM-800 with the old style case have this issue. Customer service was excellent and I can't fault them at all. I'll take much better care of this one (only buying quality batteries, keeping it clean and dry, removing it from my bag before loading it into the car etc). In reality my handling of it may have been the cause but I can't be 100% sure. Will keep you guys updated though.

How is anyone everyone else getting on with them?

What I thought 5 or 6 readings was good value for your hooky batteries :rofl: Not so bad that they seem top have decent service as well. Might stick one on my santa list

 

[Luulox]

Great review and subsequent updates. I have been considering a laser rangefinder, but i was put off by the prices. These seem a very good price combined with good performance. May very well give one of these a go.
Cheers
Pete

 

[palindromicbob]

Re: Hillman Laser RAnge Finder TM-800

Me too. I'm rubbish with it so don't use it that often and then not sure I'll trust the number. I have it in the scan mode - is that the best way to get accuracy??

Yup you basically wave it around the flag and look out for the lowest number. Another useful thing is that if you have trouble locking on to the flag then move to look on to the front of the green instead. Usually if the flag is hard to lock then a yardage to front of green is more than enough in to pick a club as I find this usually means >150 yards meaning a lower level of predictable shot than say 100 yards.

 

[Alex1975]

Re: Hillman Laser RAnge Finder TM-800

I love mine its a really good bit of kit and I am totally happy with it!

I dont really use scan mode on mine as I find it unnessasary.

 

[Davey S2]

Re: Hillman Laser RAnge Finder TM-800

Thanks for a really good review. Ordered one today.

Having a knock after work on Wednesday so hope it arrives by then.

 

[Alex1975]

Re: Hillman Laser RAnge Finder TM-800

Thanks for a really good review. Ordered one today.

Having a knock after work on Wednesday so hope it arrives by then.

Should come quick, they are pretty on point and you will be happy with it!

 

[Davey S2]

Re: Hillman Laser RAnge Finder TM-800

Just a bit of an update on this.

Had mine for a few weeks now and am really impressed. It does everything the Bushnell does but at 1/2 the price.

I find I dont need to use the scan mode much as the normal 'point and shoot' mode is fine. The only time scan mode is handy is when the flag is a long way off (200 yds +) and its dificult to line the cross hairs up on the flag.

Its been brilliant at helping club selection and is a bargain at £110.

Highly recommended.

 

[NWJocko]

Re: Hillman Laser RAnge Finder TM-800

Any long term user updates on this?

Looking at getting a rangefinder and wondering how these are standing the test of time. Seem exceptional value for money....

 

[palindromicbob]

Re: Hillman Laser RAnge Finder TM-800

Just a bit up the page and you'll see my long term update. Post #105

 

[NWJocko]

Re: Hillman Laser RAnge Finder TM-800

Just a bit up the page and you'll see my long term update. Post #105

Cheers, I'm an idiot and was reading the dates if the later reviews as 2011 not 2012!

 

[Iaing]

Re: Hillman Laser RAnge Finder TM-800

I've just stumped up for the 1500 and it arrived today. A good looking bit of kit.
I'll try it out at the weekend.

Has anyone successfully threaded the wrist strap through the wee holes or is it just me who doesn't have the patience?

 

[Brent]

Re: Hillman Laser RAnge Finder TM-800

Hi Buddy. Great write up/review. I purchased one off the back of it and had mine about the same time as you have. I'm sure it's as old as my daughter so over 18 months at least and its been faultless despite taking some serious abuse. My case is now wrecked and upon trying to find a replacement , stumbled again upon your excellent thread. I noticed in a later post , that you recieved an upgraded hard case from uk sports imports. Could you possibly send me a picture of it as I would like to compare it to the Lowe pro camera bags or whatever I can find on eBay. Problem with these is that the zipper type closure is not easily accessible out on the course. Hopefully then uk sports can ( at my cost) supply me one.
Seems like you've become somewhat the spokesperson for the tm rangefinder.


Cheers
brent
byronelvis@hotmail.com

here is my quick review having owned my tm 800 for over 18 months.

used 3/4 times per week. Case strapped to side of my carry bag it takes a lot of punishment thrown in the back of the van and stand bag getting blown over in big winds.
constantly getting soaked in heavy rain with only the original canvas carry case as protection the unit itself is still in mint condition and fully accurate working order.
I'm a 12 h/capper and trust the yardage reading implicitly.alongside my mates bushnell v2 we get near identicle read outs and I find that I only use the unit in "scan" mode as even on the windiest days or shakey hand days, sweeping left and right past the pin , the unit always give me the same number at the point of the crosshare passing the pin. This never fails from 220 yards ,in and if steady enough I can easily pick out a pin from a 350 yard tee, but lets face it,why would you. One example I recently used it for was:- at a new course, standing on the tee, I was unsure as the distance to a stream crossing the fairway. I know I hit a decent lengh drive (about 270 carry) . It looked to be about 230 yards ( my 5 wood distance ) .the Hillman swept 240 front of hazard to 250 back of stream. If I'd chosen to lay up with my 5 wood ,I'd of had no decent second shot round the dogleg. I confidently pulled my driver , carried the brook easily, and with my 6 iron , promptly "fatted" my second shot 100 yards ...: haha. Point is the rangefinder did its job..
. The Cr2 type battery seems to last forever ( 4/7 months at a time , probably longer) I use Duracell which are expensive at Tesco ( £8 for one ) but now I get them from eBay (£4 for 2).
I found that the first battery died within a few weeks .i soon realised that the "power on" button was accidently getting pressed on through the soft case when my bag was rolling round in the van.now at the end of my round, I undo the battery clip and turn the battery round ( reverse the polarity) and replace the battery clip. This ensures I don't lose the battery and it doesn't wear out when not in use.the auto off funtion does its job but in equall measure , the power on does if knocked unintentionally but I'm just picking hairs.
Aparently , the only issue I have is the the soft case is not a durable as I need it to be although, I think this issue has been sorted with a new hard case supplied with the new / later units.i even looked into getting a Bushnell case but these are no better than I have.

great piece of kit , highly recommended,
10 out 10 after heavy useage.

 

[Glfmagic TechnicalTeam]

After this was mentioned on the main forum there was very little feedback. Probably because no one had one.

In a moment of madness I bit the bullet and took the risk. Could a range finder in the £100 price point really do the job when most would opt for the >£200 known brands.

I bought this item through Ebay to make use of Paypal but in the 3 places I found this for sale they are all from the same supplier, UK sports imports. It is also for the same price of £99.95 with free delivery. I soon discovered that free delivery excludes N. Ireland so was asked to pay an additional £15 with Citylink. To be honest I think this was a bit of confusion on the suppliers part as they say they use Royal Mail for the rest of the UK and this would have been equally suitable to post to N.Ireland. But I'll not go into the failures of Citylink here.


WHAT YOU GET:
TM-800 key Features from the websites:
Ranges 5-900 yards
Range 300 yards to flag
7x Optical Magnification
Monocular Adjustment
Pin seeker Display Function
Scan Funtion
Rain-proof

Now first thing first. The item arrived well packaged. Protected by a wall of bubble wrap this wasn't getting damaged in transit. A nice black box opened to revel the range finder in a nicely made padded nylon carry case with belt strap, web pocket for cloth, spare batteries etc and the important range finder itself. It also came with a shoulder strap, wrist strap and a CR2 3V battery. The instruction are written in Chinese and decent English and easy to understand. Obviously a few translation issues but nothing confusing.

The range finder itself was very compact and light weight. Construction quality is good and a rubberized outer shell assists with grip. It also has simple 2 button controls. One for mode the other for turning the laser on and off. The company state that the TM-1500 model has a higher quality finish and if so it must be very good.

The rubber eye piece is comfortable and focus can be adjusted by a simple twist.

One flaw I have read about other cheap range finders is the battery compartment being difficult to open. This is not the case with this. It is very easy to open and close.

Distance is displayed in either Meters or Yards and simply holding the mode button for 3 secs changes this. It will also convert an existing reading if you do this.

Do not confuse Pin seeker display function with pin seeker or similar technology used in higher end ranger finders. It is actually simply referring to the target reticle display and I don't count this as a feature since the item would be useless without it.

It has 2 working mode. The first is a simple point and shoot mode. This works very well if the target is close but I found at distance it would often display the wrong yardage. Fortunately this is easily rectified using the scan mode. In this mode it continuously updates readings and you can scan onto the target which will give the lower yardage reading. This worked brilliantly when trying to get a yardage at distance when the target is quite small and hand shake is a problem.

THE TEST:
To test the range finder I hit the course at 8pm. This was in a light rain with the wind blowing fiercely. The light wasn't great but I found the display easy to read despite this. I tested the finder from the yardage markers on my course and on 2 different holes. One in which the wind blew the flag sideways giving a big target the other the wind blowing the flag straight at me giving a much smaller target. Both flags where yellow. The instruction do say that best results are with red surfaces.

The markers gave distance to center of the green. I have previously checked them with a Bushnell and friend stood in center of green so know them to be accurate enough.
The holes are also very flat giving the best chance for accurate readings without worrying about slopes.

The first flag was cut front of center the second cut behind the center.

From the 100 yard marker the point and shoot mode was sufficient to get a reading on both flags. A bit of shake required me to make a second attempt on the harder flag but still I was given good yardages. 98 yards for the first, 105 on the second.

Next at the 130 yard mark again the point and shoot was grand for this. This gave consistent results, 128 and 135. Perfect going by the first readings.

Next 150. This was a little more difficult for the small target and I needed to use the scan mode on the smaller target. Still gave consistent results. 148 and 155.

From 200 yards the 7x scope gave a good view of the flag but hand shake required me to use scan mode for both targets. This was still easy and quick to use. The results 199 and 206.

Then the big test. Test it outside it range. I went to the tee box of another hole at 333 yards. The system is rated to max of 300 for the flag. I got a reading of 366 and only once did it flash up 328. The target was small through the scope but the 366 was consistent with the distance to the trees behind the green. Maybe with a steadier hand and the flag being still I may have got a steady reading. Still a good result considering.

Next test was gauging distance to hazards. I choose a bunker I know from experience my drive usually ends up level with it. My average distance calculated with Golf Mentor GPS app based on 4 drives is 219 (Max 230 Min 215. Using the point a shoot mode I got a reading back of 200 yards to the front of the bunker. Consistent with my experience of that sandy little monster. The scan mode was nice here because it allowed my to sweep the area and gauge my layup without repeatedly pushing the button.

Lastly I tested it within it minimum range. I stood at the back of the first green. The reading showed 17yards. I paced out using even strides. 17.5 paces later I was at the pin. Not a bad result at all.

CONCLUSION
Overall I was very impressed with the speed of response to targeting. Quick to update and easy to read. The display also shows the quality of the signal it is receiving using arrows and the continuous light rain had no noticeable effect on performance. The scan funtion is excellent but is likely to effect battery life. The auto shutdown thankfully was reliable.

Some may prefer the styling of the slightly more expensive TM-1500 and the fact it uses 2x AAA batteries rather than the more expensive 3V lithium CR2 may be a plus. But with the same specs it should perform equally.

I hope to test it during a playing session soon but first impressions are very positive. If you are after a laser range finder but find the big boys outside your price range, I can say you are unlikely to be disappointed by the TM-800.

On a side note I also found UK Sports Imports very good to deal with. Communication with them was easy via email and they had a number which was always offered as an alternative contact at the bottom of emails. They were quick to respond and very helpful. Despite problems with Citylink they kept me updated and chased up the issue for me. Very good customer support on their part. I'd be happy to deal with them again. They have a showroom in the Westmidlands as well for anyone that may be local.


Interesting post.. for me anyhow

 

[bluewolf]

If I still had mine you could have it for nowt. It lasted approximately 6 months before the eyepiece seperated from the body whilst in use. The focusing element was distinctly average as well. It found its way into the bin and was replaced by a GPS unit from a well known manufacturer.

 

[Foxholer]

You don't seem to have got the hang of 'Reply with Quote' over here! :rofl:

PS: I trust you realise there's a 60 day membership requirement before posting in For Sale/Wanted forum is allowed - so simply racing to 100 posts won't work!

 

[palindromicbob]

If I still had mine you could have it for nowt. It lasted approximately 6 months before the eyepiece seperated from the body whilst in use. The focusing element was distinctly average as well. It found its way into the bin and was replaced by a GPS unit from a well known manufacturer.

Mine is still going strong 3 years after having been replaced. I've not been taking that much care with it either. No longer use the case and usually just shove it into my bag.

Now I have posted this I'm in no doubt it will break on my next outing.

 

[bluewolf]

Mine is still going strong 3 years after having been replaced. I've not been taking that much care with it either. No longer use the case and usually just shove it into my bag.

Now I have posted this I'm in no doubt it will break on my next outing.

Yup, you've cursed it now

 

[Glfmagic TechnicalTeam]

You don't seem to have got the hang of 'Reply with Quote' over here! :rofl:

PS: I trust you realise there's a 60 day membership requirement before posting in For Sale/Wanted forum is allowed - so simply racing to 100 posts won't work!

I do not want to post there, i wanted to ask a question on a thread there, but have asked elsewhere..

I can work the quotes perfectly well, see this post for an example.