Help! Browning BTC5HD850C big disappointment

[Mennoniteman]

I just got my first Browning BTC5HD Strike Force sub micro trail cam, with such high expectations because of their top ratings from many people and I'm in disbelief. The battery tray pops out of the bottom with the slightest bump, after the batteries are loaded. The weight of the batteries seems to be to much for the chintzy looking latch. What am I doing wrong? How can these things get such high ratings from everyone?

 

[Mennoniteman]

 

[swat1018]

I've always recommended the 2016 Browning BTC5HDE. It is the best I've ever owned. Not sure about the newer Brownings. These companies aren't smart enough to leave well enough alone. I bought 15 back at the end of 2016 and haven't bought any cameras since, except a few Cuddelink cameras. I'd send it back to Browning.

 

[FL Plotter]

Send it back or fix the latch. I'd run my Brownings with duct tape holding up the batteries before I bought another Bushnell. Every Browning I own is at least 2 years old and still running....can't say that about any other brand I have bought.

 

[IkemanTx]

Looks like a defective unit. It happens with any manufacturing process.
I echo the praise for browning cameras (specifically the 2016/17 dark ops sub micro). I run mine year round on public land and have never had a single issue.
Contact browning and I would bet they swap it out asap with a good unit.


Sent from my iPhone using Deer Hunter Forum

 

[Boone]

I cant say enough positive about Browning. Great reliable cameras. I had a small issue with one and they sent me a new camera. Awesome company and service. I do have my eye on the Cuddelink system though.

 

[Mennoniteman]

I've always recommended the 2016 Browning BTC5HDE. It is the best I've ever owned. Not sure about the newer Brownings. These companies aren't smart enough to leave well enough alone. I bought 15 back at the end of 2016 and haven't bought any cameras since, except a few Cuddelink cameras. I'd send it back to Browning.

So, does the BTC5HDE have the same looking latch on the battery tray, and if so, have you never had a problem with it?

 

[swat1018]

So, does the BTC5HDE have the same looking latch on the battery tray, and if so, have you never had a problem with it?

No, and no. I have a bunch and have never had a problem with any of the BTC5HDE. I have had a few SD card issues with the older BTC5HD's from 2015.

 

[Mennoniteman]

Just got an 18MP Browning Strikeforce HP pro sub micro camera for the same price, the latch is good, and it has an adjustable mounting bracket on the back so you don't need to put a stick behind it to tilt. My high hopes for Browning are back...

 

[Mennoniteman]

Just got an 18MP Browning Strikeforce HP pro sub micro camera for the same price, the latch is good, and it has an adjustable mounting bracket on the back so you don't need to put a stick behind it to tilt. My high hopes for Browning are back...

I liked this above mentioned camera so good that I purchased several more Browning BTC5HD Strike Force sub micro trail cams in Sept of 2019, now one of them is dead, and there doesn't seem to be anything in my powers short of a miracle that I can do to perform a resurrection. I know that it's out of warranty by a year, but it seems like its useable life should be a bit longer than 2 years? I am going to send it back to Browning with a nice note saying the following:
I know this Browning camera is out of warranty, but can you check and see if it needs a reset? If it's beyond repair you can throw it away for me. Thanks in advance. Allen

I will update with my results from the company.

 

[Drycreek]

I like Browning cams, but I like the picture quality of Bushnells better. My three newest Bushnells were bought in 2016 as replacements for some that failed after 4/5 years. I’ve had pretty good luck with them, but having said that, the one Browning that I’m running has been mine for four years and I bought it used. I don’t know when it was made but it has been a good one. Battery life is nothing short of great !

 

[OkieKubota]

Best camera I have ever bought is a Moultrie M-80 Black I bought in October 2011 that has been on a tree in the woods since then...never has blanked a photo and everything still works perfectly.

 

[Elkaddict]

I’ve posted this before. I run 30+ cameras for wildlife observation and to track/deter trespassers. Until their QC took a nose dive, the most reliable of the non-reconyx cameras were the older Coverts. Their pictures were not great, nor was the detection circuit particularly quick. What they did was last about 30 months on average. I gave up on Bushnell’s after tracking their longevity (about 16 months on average) for 3 years. They’d did take great photos. Today, all new purchases are the cheapest Brownings I can find on Amazon. This typically means models that are a year or two old. Detection circuits and photo quality are a big step up from the Coverts. As with the Bushnells and Coverts, I have had a couple that never functioned (early brownings had a battery tray problem). Last time I checked, the brownings were lasting 27 months on average. I still run some 5 and six year old coverts, as well the first of the brownings. My point is, if you run them 24/7/365, the average camera life span isn’t great (this is not my experience with Reconyx).

 

[buckdeer1]

Buy from trailcampro.com and they are a great help when an issue

 

[KSQ2]

I just got my first Browning BTC5HD Strike Force sub micro trail cam, with such high expectations because of their top ratings from many people and I'm in disbelief. The battery tray pops out of the bottom with the slightest bump, after the batteries are loaded. The weight of the batteries seems to be to much for the chintzy looking latch. What am I doing wrong? How can these things get such high ratings from everyone?

Put a zip tie around it, I had to do the same thing with ours. It works great, and goes FOREVER on alkaline batteries.

 

[Mennoniteman]

Put a zip tie around it, I had to do the same thing with ours. It works great, and goes FOREVER on alkaline batteries.

That's a great idea. Since it was Amazon I sent the Browning camera with the falling out battery tray right back and got a slightly different model and haven't had a battery tray issue before or after with any Browning camera and we have at least a half a dozen.

 

[dale lockwood]

Not a fan of Browning-sent browning back twice-once it detection distance was 10 feet

 

[Mennoniteman]

Not a fan of Browning-sent browning back twice-once it detection distance was 10 feet

Welcome to the forum!
A detection distance of 10 feet sounds like the cuddeback cameras of 15 years ago. After an issue with that one particular model of Browning camera we have had really good success with all of the other models that we have. They are still my favorite non-cell camera. We are slowly switching to Tactacam Reveal cell cameras.
What is your favorite brand of camera?

 

[SwampCat]

I have been having a fair bit of trouble with my tactacams. I have had one quit sending altogether. One sends all day long. One will only send on instant and two seem to be working fine. All two yrs old or less. I only use them for hog hunting because I need the instant send. At least they still are useful as a stand alone trail cam if they quit sending. I use the cuddelink system as my main deer cameras - this will be my third year using them with no failures. They, too, have their problems - but since over half my ground has no cell service - cuddelink is about the only thing that will send pictures out of that ground.

 

[dale lockwood]

Welcome to the forum!
A detection distance of 10 feet sounds like the cuddeback cameras of 15 years ago. After an issue with that one particular model of Browning camera we have had really good success with all of the other models that we have. They are still my favorite non-cell camera. We are slowly switching to Tactacam Reveal cell cameras.
What is your favorite brand of camera?

Actually, a fairly cheap camera Garde pro models-excellent pictures, sensitive 100 feet plus, and over a year of about 10 Gardepro and zero breakdowns. The same time period I had about 7 Moultrie quit altogether, or the flash quit working. For the price try one Garde pro.