Problem #1: Firmware Updates Can Brick the KILO8K-ABS, and Sig Disables the Rangefinder if You Don’t Update the Firmware
You’re heading out for a day of shooting, you connect your KILO8K-ABS to the BDX app, and suddenly you’re forced to either update the firmware, or Sig disables the rangefinder. Many Sig users have reported this problem. Forced updates have also bricked rangefinders, which can ruin a planned day of shooting or a hunting trip. What we most object to is Sig disabling the rangefinder until the firmware update is complete. Disabling a customer’s rangefinder is bad enough, but it’s especially bad because rangefinders are mission-critical tools. Someone’s life could depend on their Sig rangefinder or riflescope working properly, but Sig feels that, at that exact moment, a firmware update is more important. And you can’t simply decline the update or put it off until later. And it’s also disturbing and concerning that Sig can remotely disable its rangefinders and scopes. All it takes is for your rangefinder to connect to the BDX app on your phone over its built-in Bluetooth. We have spoken repeatedly to Sig about this problem, but Sig is adamant that the forced updates are a “benefit” for the user.
Use Your Sig KILO8K-ABS as a Weapon-Mounted Laser Rangefinder
The Sightlok RF-1 mounts your Sig KILO8K-ABS on your rifle’s rail, so you range exactly where you’re aiming.
See how to turn your Sig KILO8K-ABS into a weapon-mounted laser rangefinder
Problem #2: Real-World Range Is Up to 4,000 Yards, Half the Claimed 8,000 Yards
Sig advertises a maximum range of 8,000 yards for the KILO8K-ABS. Users report effective ranges of about 4,000 yards in ideal conditions. That 4,000-yard range is enough for most practical shooting, but don’t buy the KILO8K-ABS expecting 8,000 yards.
Problem #3: Total Dependency on a Smartphone
The KILO8K-ABS usually works as it should if you have a charged, modern smartphone with a recent operating system, an internet connection, and all the firmware updates Sig wants to ram down your throat. What if your phone battery dies? Well, then you’re stuck. You have no way to update the ballistic profile in your KILO8K-ABS. What if your phone’s operating system is a couple of years old? Then the latest BDX app can fail to install or stop working on your phone. There are a lot of potential pitfalls when you rely on mobile electronics to manage a device your life may depend on. In a SHTF scenario, things don’t always work out beautifully. In our opinion, excessive reliance on technology is a risk. If you can live with the KILO8K-ABS’s phone dependency, you’ll likely find the KILO8K-ABS fine.
Problem #4: Easy to “Lose” Critical Ballistic Profiles, and There’s No Way to Back Them Up
Say you update or reinstall the BDX app on your phone. Either way, you lose all the ballistic profiles stored in the app. When you sync the app with your KILO8K-ABS again, the KILO8K-ABS “loses” all your ballistic profiles too. What if you spent 15 hours out in the field truing your ballistic coefficient? Well, you need to go do it again, because the KILO8K-ABS lost your info. If you use a KILO8K-ABS, write down every ballistic profile in a notebook so a glitch can’t wipe it out.
Overview of the Sig KILO8K-ABS Rangefinder
The Sig KILO8K-ABS is a premium tool with a steep price of $1,500. The KILO8K-ABS comes with its own wind meter, so you don’t need the very expensive Kestrel 5700 Elite Wind Meter.
What’s Included in the Package
When you buy the Sig KILO8K-ABS, you get:
– The rangefinder
– A wind meter
– A carrying case
– A holder for the rangefinder
– A tripod mount
Main Features and Advantages
All-in-One Solution
For long-range shooters, the KILO8K-ABS replaces two other pieces of gear:
– Kestrel wind meter: measures wind conditions.
– Ballistic solver: normally used through a smartphone app.
Advanced Ballistic Features
The KILO8K-ABS stores custom ballistic profiles. You enter your rifle’s details in Sig’s BDX app, and the KILO8K-ABS then gives you accurate holdovers and firing solutions for that rifle. Older rangefinders used generic ballistic charts, so custom profiles are a big step up.
Easy to Use
Once you’ve entered your ballistic data, you just range the target, and the KILO8K-ABS shows you the firing solution immediately.
The Sig KILO8K-ABS is compatible with the Sightlok RF-1 rangefinder mount, which lets you use the KILO8K-ABS as a weapon-mounted laser rangefinder (WMLRF). You can quickly detach the RF-1 from the rail when you want to range a target you don’t want to point your muzzle at, and reattach when you’re done, while maintaining an accurate co-witness between your rangefinder and scope.
Our Verdict on the Sig KILO8K-ABS
Do we use the Sig Sauer KILO8K-ABS rangefinder ourselves? Yes.
Do we recommend this rangefinder? Ultimately, yes.
Is it flawless? No.
WMLRF Options
An increasingly popular solution to the “WMLRF problem” is mounting a handheld rangefinder to your rifle using a Sightlok RF-1 rangefinder mount. The approach has some disadvantages. Overall, however, it’s a more flexible, modular, and cost-effective solution that, depending on the rangefinder you deploy, can actually deliver more accurate results in the field. The finished setup looks like this:
The advantages of using a Sightlok RF-1 mount with a handheld rangefinder instead of a dedicated WMLRF include:
- Use superior handheld lasers with superior ballistic software (Premium handheld rangefinders like the Sig Sauer KILO5K offer longer ranging, a better ballistic engine, and integration with Kestrel wind meters for real-time windage calculations.)
- Quick Detach to range objects you don’t want to point your muzzle at
- Keep rangefinder warm in your pocket until needed to avoid cold weather failures
- No light from the rangefinder display shining on your face and revealing your position during night-time engagements
- Full integration with electro-optic systems like the Sig Sauer BDX rangefinder and scope system, which calculates the firing solution and shows a holdover point in your scope reticle, so you don’t need to dial your elevation turret
- Roughly $1000 cheaper
The Sightlok RF-1 setup has one con: no remote. You press the range button with your support hand. On a bipod or bag, the missing remote is a minor issue, but when standing, kneeling or braced, you break your hold to range. Pressing the button by hand is still better than waiting on a Bluetooth remote, but not as good as a wired remote.
What about recoil? Can’t it damage my rangefinder?
Handheld rangefinders are designed to survive drops of about 3 feet, and the impact from a 3-foot drop can generate several thousand psi of pressure. The RF-1 spreads recoil so evenly that no spot on your rangefinder takes more pressure than your thumb puts on the range button, a few dozen psi at most. A few dozen psi is well under 1% of the pressure your rangefinder is built to survive in a 3-foot drop. At that margin, the chance of a .308 shot damaging a healthy rangefinder in the RF-1 is effectively zero. In two years of selling the Sightlok RF-1, no customer has reported a rangefinder damaged by recoil. Here’s a documented test of the Sightlok RF-1 holding a Sig Sauer KILO1000BDX rangefinder on a .308 rifle:
Here’s the same test with a 6.5 Creedmoor rifle:
Read our full analysis of the recoil question and watch recoil test videos.
If you don’t need a ballistic calculator, the Laserworks LE-032 is a low-budget rangefinder that works with the Sightlok RF-1 as a WMLRF. The LE-032 costs about $160, instead of about $1,500 for a dedicated WMLRF. The mount that comes with the Laserworks LE-032 is floppy and unusable, but the LE-032 itself works well enough when the Sightlok RF-1 holds it steady. The finished setup looks like this:
Learn more about the Sightlok RF-1 mount for the Laserworks LE-032.
Click here to learn more about the Sightlok RF-1
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The Sightlok RF-1 is a Picatinny / Weaver rail mount that turns the handheld rangefinder you already own into a weapon-mounted laser rangefinder.
