Johnson Laser Distance Measure

Question for everyone.  What is this?  Dude we have to do the LDM, Dude we have to dude the LDM, Dude we have to do the LDM.  No its not a dance.  Its Dan annoying the hell out of me to do this review.  So as always I gave in and finally started to write this review.  Seems a little funny since I only got to use the Laser Distant Measuring (LDM) tool for about two months and now for some reason he gets to keep it.  All I can say is that this is one of my favorite meaning tools around.  Simply turn it on and press the measurement button and your good to go.  No messing around with extra buttons, holding this, doing that.  Just press and go.  My kind of tool, idiot proof.

As you know we have done a lot of reviews by Johnson levels, such as the Big J Series Level, the Digital Level and Cross Line Level and we have been very impressed with their products.  The 40-6001 Distant Laser Measuring tool is no different.  This does everything from Adding and subtracting (which Dan loves because he hates taking off his socks to count) to area and volume, even three Pythagoras functions: 2 point, 3 point and 3 point partials.  As you can see by the pictures, this tool is very compact with few buttons to learn and mess around with.  Most of the buttons do have a multi purpose function so pressing and holding will do some other functions.  The tool weighs 1.5 lbs, so easy to carry around and work with.

The range of the measuring tool is up to 165′ with an accuracy of 1/16″.  In case you were wondering the protective case and pouch do come with the tool, along with a strap.  Measruements can be taking from the front, back or from the tripod thread, so naturally you can mount this to a tripod.

The LDM offers a lot of different functions that some other LDM offer, but for a fraction of the price.  The unit is powered by a 9V battery which the laser will shut off automatically after 30 seconds and the unit will shut off in 3 minutes after no use is detected.  There are numerous measuring types which include single distant, min/max, continuous measuring, sound activate and 2 types of stake out functions.  The sound activate feature is pretty cool.  The first time I heard about the sound activated I couldn’t stop laughing.  Dan came over and was working with the LDM.  I had nothing better to do, so I watched him.  He was standing by the workbench clapping.  At first I thought the mental hospital gave him the wrong meds.  Then I thought he was actually testing the clapper and not the LDM.  Once I verified with him that he was on the right meds and my laughter stopped, he told me about the sound activation.  I have to say this is a very cool feature.  You can just clap or make a loud noise and it will take a measurement for you.

On the top, towards the side, is a vial to make sure your LDM is level and provide a more accurate measurement.  The unit also stores the last 10 measurements in case you need to go back for reference.  The backlight works extremely well and makes reading the display much easier in different light conditions.  The warranty on the unit is 2 months parts and labor.

We took a lot of different measurements with this unit.  The buttons on the unit were responsive, so we didn’t have to press them multiple times like we have seen with other units.  After pressuring a button, the unit went right to work without having to wait a couple of seconds for the screen to change and catch up with what you were trying to do.  The numbers were easy to read, but the fractions were a little more difficult.  We could get a good reading in most light conditions, except when it was very bright, then it was hard to see the laser at 150′.

This is a great distant measuring tool and can be a valuable asset to any contractor, real estate agent or anyone else who relies on accurate, fast measurements.  The tool is very easy to use and provides a lot of different options for different situations.