The team at Sightlok are big fans of the Sig Sauer BDX platform, and we use it ourselves. Applied Ballistics, the main developer of the Sig BDX platform, is an awesome company that builds awesome software.
But there’s still room for improvement. Sig and Applied Ballistics need to change their policy of remotely disabling Sig BDX devices when the Sig BDX app detects that you’re not running the latest firmware.
We’ve been very vocal about this forced-update policy, both publicly and privately, with Sig and Applied Ballistics management.
Applied Ballistics Denies Remotely Disabling User Gear
Below is our exchange with Nick Vitalbo, CEO of Applied Ballistics. For the record, Nick vehemently denies that Sig/AB is remotely disabling devices:
“Regarding Sig’s BDX application: As the primary author of its codebase, I can confirm that neither Sig nor any company we partner with has ever forced a firmware update and remotely shut down a device. (although to be 100% accurate in such a statement – the device enters a bootloader mode and does restart – but I think that is different from what you are stating in your email). I’m not sure where this information is coming from, but it’s categorically incorrect.”
Our Own Experience Conflicts With AB’s Denial
But our own experience as BDX users suggests Nick is not being entirely transparent. Our small team at Sightlok owns 8 BDX rangefinders, and the Sig BDX app has disabled every one of them at one time or another. Every time, the app demanded a firmware update. At least once, an update almost bricked a rangefinder, and we had to go through a series of steps with Sig support to get it working again. The process took 2 hours and disrupted a day of shooting. Sig Sauer rangefinders stop calculating ballistic solutions when the Sig BDX app detects older firmware on them, so the BDX side of the rangefinder is functionally disabled. These disabled BDX rangefinders don’t display the dope, and they can’t send dope to BDX scopes. On top of that, the app also remotely disables BDX scopes, so they can’t receive dope from any BDX rangefinder until their own firmware is updated. How could Nick not know this?
Mount Your BDX Rangefinder on Your Rifle
The Sightlok RF-1 mounts your Sig BDX rangefinder on your rifle’s rail and keeps an accurate co-witness between your rangefinder and scope. The RF-1 works with almost any handheld rangefinder, so you’re not locked into one brand.
See how to turn the rangefinder you already own into a weapon-mounted laser rangefinder
AB Claims That Updates Benefit Users
Nick went on to say this:
“Firmware updates are critical for fixing software issues, ensuring devices remain functional, and delivering new features that evolve with technological capabilities over time.”
So while Nick denies that AB is remotely disabling devices, he also supports a forced-update policy and calls it a benefit for users. Honestly, we think this policy is outrageous. It makes us furious as Sig BDX users, and it makes us feel shame as a Sig Sauer dealer.
Our Rebuttal
So we didn’t mince words when Applied Ballistics tried to dismiss our concerns and pass this policy off as one that had the interests of Sig BDX users in mind. Here’s a portion of our emailed response to Applied Ballistics:
“This comment is particularly irritating because not only does it show denial and disregard for the problem, you’re turning things upside down and implying Sig/AB are doing people a favor as you fuck up their devices. Imagine what would happen if Microsoft sent out a mandatory update that bricked machines and/or made them functionally unusable. You’d have complete chaos across the business world and a billion dollar class-action lawsuit.
And I’m sure you don’t pull this nonsense with your military devices, but if you did, American soldiers would probably be dead as a result, and you’d probably never win another military contract.
Stop with the mandatory updates already. The devices are working, Sig/AB firmware updates are breaking them.
And by the way, it’s customary and standard practice in the software world to post a public record of firmware updates, what firmware version X fixes or enhances, etc. You don’t just send random unannounced unknown shit out and ram it down the throats of customers. lol.”
The Issue of Bricked Rangefinders
Remote disabling isn’t the only issue. Sig’s firmware updates also brick BDX devices. Here’s a user, for example, who has had to send his BDX rangefinders back to Sig 3 years in a row because Sig’s firmware updates kept bricking them.
Applied Ballistics’ Response to the Bricked Rangefinder Issue
Nick explained that the hardware design was partly at fault for these failures:
“I’m familiar with the “stacked updates” mess on those devices. The hardware manufacturer’s two-chip design made the firmware process a nightmare—upgrading both processors was fragile as hell. Users, Sig, AB, and even me—we all felt the pain. Those double upgrades (needed for some bug fixes) were the culprit, and that’s why some functionality, like ranging, hung on when one chip survived the update. I’d never recommend a dual-processor setup if it can be avoided. In fact, that’s why Sig dropped BDX for the K-Series—moving to a single-processor architecture fixed most of it.”
Our Appeal
Our response: if you know the hardware is “fragile as hell,” why in the hell are you taking chances with it? Can’t you just leave users alone with their fragile but functional devices and let them update if they choose to, instead of forcing an update that has a decent probability of breaking their devices?
Nick was a gentleman about it and took our criticism in a mature and respectful way, and we appreciate that. But to the best of our knowledge, Sig and AB haven’t changed the forced-update policy. We’re still fearful, every time we open the BDX app, that it will try to force an update that could disable the rangefinder, screw up our ballistic profiles, or brick our hardware entirely.
Sig Sauer Is Silent on This Issue
One final note: the only time we’ve messaged Andy York, the head of Sig Sauer Electro-Optics, was about this problem. Unfortunately, he didn’t respond. Frankly, his silence is understandable, since Sig Sauer (and AB, for that matter) are big defense contractors, and Andy’s hands are probably full with DoD contracts. We also spoke with another Sig Electro-Optics executive, who echoed Nick’s claim that mandatory firmware updates ultimately benefit the end user.
So Why Are We Putting This Information Out There?
Because the damage this policy does to end users is immeasurable. What does it cost when a forced update wrecks someone’s day of shooting? What does it cost when it wrecks a hunting trip? Surely thousands of dollars in many cases. And AB/Sig management seems to give no consideration to these losses.
Rangefinders and Riflescopes Are Mission-Critical Devices
And it’s not just about money. AB/Sig need to take a moment and reflect on the fact that BDX rangefinders and riflescopes are mission-critical devices. This isn’t someone’s vacuum cleaner. People’s lives can depend on these devices working properly. You don’t just casually disable someone’s rangefinder and riflescope remotely because you feel like it, or because you think you’re doing them a favor by updating their software. This policy defies common sense and reason, and that’s why we’re making as much noise as possible to get it changed.
When Are They Going to Stop? Are They Really Gonna Pull This Nonsense on a $10,000 Sig KILO WARP Rangefinder?
Sig Sauer is moving upscale with its BDX products. The new Sig KILO WARP WMLRF models cost $2,000 and $10,000. The new BRAVO8T-BDX scopes cost $2,400. Is Sig/AB going to continue this destructive and nonsensical policy and remotely disable $2,000 and $10,000 devices? If so, they need to be prepared for even louder backlash, because users of a $10,000 rangefinder are going to go ballistic (pun intended) if their high-end WMLRF gets remotely disabled in the middle of a day of shooting because Nick decided they could use a firmware update.
We hope that by giving this issue more exposure, we’ll get Sig and AB to drop forced updates for good. Dropping them would be a win for BDX users everywhere.
Yes, We Still Recommend Sig Sauer BDX Rangefinders
And by the way, yes, we still recommend Sig Sauer BDX rangefinders, because they’re awesome gear in spite of our gripes.
We welcome responses to this post. Anyone can post here anonymously. You don’t need to register or leave your email address or real name. Your comment appears right away, and we don’t censor comments.
Ready to Build a Better WMLRF?
Keep the rangefinder you already own, mount it on your rifle, and co-witness it to your scope.
Try the Sightlok RF-1 for 30 days. If you don’t like it, send it back for a full refund, with no restocking fees, no return shipping fees and no questions.
New here?
Mount your rangefinder to your weapon
The Sightlok RF-1 is a Picatinny / Weaver rail mount that turns the handheld rangefinder you already own into a weapon-mounted laser rangefinder.
This happened to me on Nov 13th 2025. Sierra 3 BDX 2.0 and Kilo 2800. I used this combo last in early 2025. Went to check zero for the opening day of our deer season on Nov 15th, opened the app and it forced an update, after which I had no holdover points in the Sierra 3. Fresh batteries in everything, re-paired the scope and rangefinder and re-bonded, nothing worked. The bluetooth led and the level indicators illuminate, but no hold-over points regardless of mode. To Sigs credit they sent me a new Sierra 6 BDX within a week, but I had to mount and zero a back-up scope I had on hand for deer season. I’m hopeful this won’t happen again, but nervous now that I have come across this information. Feel free to contact me if you would like additional details.
It’s good to hear they at least took care of you with the equipment replacement. But this is yet further evidence that Sig and Applied Ballistics have made no changes to their forced update policy, and continue to wreak the shooting and hunting plans of their customers as a result. And it’s not just that the updates are breaking functional equipment. The very fact that they can send out changes via the BDX app that can disable customer scopes and rangefinders is disturbing. As we noted in this blog post, if Sig and/or Applied Ballistics pulled this on the U.S. military, they would probably be permabanned from participating in military contracts. But if you’re a lowly civilian, apparently your time, and your planned shooting and hunting trips, are worthless in the eyes of Sig and Applied Ballistics. And Nick Vitalbo has the audacity to lie about and minimize the problem. The only consolation perhaps is this blog post is showing up on the front page of Google when you search for “Nick Vitalbo” or “Sig BDX problems” on Google. And we’re mentioning the problem on all of our reviews of Sig BDX rangefinders, and these reviews also show up on the first page of Google. We’ll continue to give this as much exposure as we can until it’s resolved.