night vision
- Thread starter easttexasoldman
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I am SO not an expert on NV, so take this post for what it's worth. I'm saving my shekels for at least a Gen 3 NV scope based upon all I've read on other forums and customer comments from those who bought the later technology. There is an excellent comparison between Gen 1 and Gen 3 here:
Gen1 vs Gen 3 Night Vision - YouTube
The only gen 1 scopes I'd look at are the ones with multiple tubes in cascade. Something like those surplus Zeiss Z51 or PVS-2.
They are frickin huge and heavy though. And the life of the tubes is a fraction of the latest gen 3s. No warranties either since they are surplus.
I have a Z51 and while you can see pretty far even without an active IR source it still doesn't compare to the PVS-14. Plus it's gigantic and there's no easy way to mount the thing on a picatinney or weaver rail without spending more money on adapters.
If you just need something to look around and spot critters with thermal cameras are really coming down in price lately with the FLIR phone attachments and handheld scopes etc...
These rebuilt PVS-4 scopes with 1yr warranty could also be an option:
https://tnvc.com/shop/tnvpvs-4-gen2-weapon-sight/
If all you plan on doing is shooting at short range with an IR source turned on, that Armasight would probably do. Better than nothing but $750 is a lot of money for mediocre performance with a short life span.
They are frickin huge and heavy though. And the life of the tubes is a fraction of the latest gen 3s. No warranties either since they are surplus.
I have a Z51 and while you can see pretty far even without an active IR source it still doesn't compare to the PVS-14. Plus it's gigantic and there's no easy way to mount the thing on a picatinney or weaver rail without spending more money on adapters.
If you just need something to look around and spot critters with thermal cameras are really coming down in price lately with the FLIR phone attachments and handheld scopes etc...
These rebuilt PVS-4 scopes with 1yr warranty could also be an option:
https://tnvc.com/shop/tnvpvs-4-gen2-weapon-sight/
If all you plan on doing is shooting at short range with an IR source turned on, that Armasight would probably do. Better than nothing but $750 is a lot of money for mediocre performance with a short life span.
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Thanks for all the info. I work nights by choice, running around dfw and northeast tx delivering cryogenics to hospitals and manufacturing plants. By doing this it has made me a night owl. I live in the country, and I want to see what's roaming around in the dark. I'm a newbie to NV, so I went on bought me the Armasight Vampire out of the cost of it, and my curiosity. I'm very happy with it so far. I can easily go behind my house and see my barn about 75 yds away, like daylight. I scoped a target out at 100 yds, no problem. The IR is like turning on a spotlight at night. Like I said, I'm happy with it, however I've never used another to compare it too. I'm sure the expensive ones are much better, but I had to get my feet wet first. I have a yearly lease on nearly 500 acres I'm going too tomorrow and really test it out at total darkness, and hundreds of yards shooting lanes. Then I wiy know you get what you pay for. I'll keep on reading the forum.
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rushthezeppelin
TGT Addict
I might have another option for ya...gotta get to my comp and link you a thread on an alternative to the pricey stuff.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
shooterfpga
TGT Addict
http://www.atncorp.com/x-sight-night-vision-rifle-scope-3-12x
This is what im waitin to hear about. Same thing you were gonna post?
I have some of the Vampires in stock and ready to go.
Here is my little assessment. I don't generally sell Gen 1 because I don't feel like it is a useful tool, but rather a toy. I decided I would carry the CORE line after using it though. Like Gen 1 and digital, it does require illumination, otherwise you cant see anything. However, it comes with a pretty good illuminator.
It has far less distortion than most gen 1 units, and distortion is limited to the edges of the image. The center is very crisp and has very high resolution, unlike traditional Gen 1.
It has a good solid QD mount.
It has very nice finger adjustable turrets.
It is not as good as Gen 3, there is no way it will ever get there. But, I feel like it is the first sub-$1k scope that is worth the money.
In this picture, the cows are just over 200 yards, the first tree line is 523 yards. No illuminator, BUT there was a lot of moon. I don't want this to be deceptive and make someone think this is how it performs without an illuminator on very dark nights. The distortion is far more evident in pictures than it is in person.
It's hard to beat for $700!
Here is my little assessment. I don't generally sell Gen 1 because I don't feel like it is a useful tool, but rather a toy. I decided I would carry the CORE line after using it though. Like Gen 1 and digital, it does require illumination, otherwise you cant see anything. However, it comes with a pretty good illuminator.
It has far less distortion than most gen 1 units, and distortion is limited to the edges of the image. The center is very crisp and has very high resolution, unlike traditional Gen 1.
It has a good solid QD mount.
It has very nice finger adjustable turrets.
It is not as good as Gen 3, there is no way it will ever get there. But, I feel like it is the first sub-$1k scope that is worth the money.
In this picture, the cows are just over 200 yards, the first tree line is 523 yards. No illuminator, BUT there was a lot of moon. I don't want this to be deceptive and make someone think this is how it performs without an illuminator on very dark nights. The distortion is far more evident in pictures than it is in person.
It's hard to beat for $700!
rushthezeppelin
TGT Addict
http://www.texasguntalk.com/forums/showthread.php?t=55606
DIY IR night vision. There you are. An excellent alternative to spending big bucks on prebuilt systems if you are a cheapskate and love to build stuff. Certainly not for everyone and not the most durable setup ever but it gets the job done for me.0
DIY IR night vision. There you are. An excellent alternative to spending big bucks on prebuilt systems if you are a cheapskate and love to build stuff. Certainly not for everyone and not the most durable setup ever but it gets the job done for me.0
shooterfpga
TGT Addict
Those certainly look a lot better than half the pvs14s ive had to use. Some were so bad i couldnt see any hand signals once you were past 15ft from me. I pretty much had to cover part of the lens in order to see properly.
Yeah, that can happen when you get a set of issue nods that a few 18 year olds have had before you. I had a 14 issued that was absolute garbage. It had giant black spots all over the image. I took it back to the arms room and got one that was slightly better. A short time later I was issued a set of PVS-15's that had some of the most gorgeous tubes I had ever seen. Sometimes you win, sometimes you loose!
Armasight Vampire
Just purchased my Armasight Vampire with "core IIT" technology It 's great On clear Texas East-Texas nights out to 75 yards with out added illumination,but beyond 75 out to 150 I use an illumunator (Streamlight 88704 Super TAC) I purchased a couple years ago,that throws a fantastic beam.The included illuminator from Armasight is fine on moonless nights out to 50/60 yards,but I'm old school "more is better" so I use the Streamlight.
Just purchased my Armasight Vampire with "core IIT" technology It 's great On clear Texas East-Texas nights out to 75 yards with out added illumination,but beyond 75 out to 150 I use an illumunator (Streamlight 88704 Super TAC) I purchased a couple years ago,that throws a fantastic beam.The included illuminator from Armasight is fine on moonless nights out to 50/60 yards,but I'm old school "more is better" so I use the Streamlight.
I have 4-setups from Gen-1 to Gen2+. Two I have had for a several years they are the best ATN Gen 1+ I think they are 440's that were $600 each. They have stayed zeroed but you have to zero them in the dark, you cannot zero at a range shooting with the pinhole filter cap on during the day. On clear 3/4 to full moon night they work well out in the open but hard to see in the shadows without an illuminator, but the illuminators have gotten a lot better. Factory illuminator gets you to 125 yards or so on a dark night, some others will get you to 300 yds+. Also have a Pulsar 550 digital day or night, it was $1,500+ tax locally. With a little over 1/2 moon you can see well without illuminator. Most people don't read the instructions and do not set it up right. The plus points it is day/night has over exposure limiter and compared to the other Gen 2's it is 1/3 the weight. It has stayed zeroed. Last is an ATN Night Arrow 6 that listed for $1,799 bought it for $1,349. It is big and heavy and clear but night only. Has safety limiter. If a hog turns right I can tell you if it's a boar or sow easily to 250-yards. Of course the view is green unlike the black/white Pulsar 550. The Pulsar has a video out and I bought a Micro DVR that is smaller than a pack of cigarettes that goes in your shirt pocket and you can record your hunts and shots. The new ATN X-Sights had problems at their release which gave it a bad rap, software upgrades reportedly have fixed that. The dealer told me off the record they are clear on the lower powers but is a digital zoom so 9-12x gets grainy but they are $600 not $6,000. He also did not stock the 6-18x for that reason. I looked through a Gen 3 Saturday night when the sliver moon was down and you could see everything but it was almost $4,000 used. I guess it depends on how much you hunt and how much you can spend, if you can hunt whenever you want you can hunt on fuller moon nights and get by cheap. All the ranches we were hog hunting on have sold in this crazy real estate market we are in now to Non Texans that don't hunt, so now we have to hunt whenever we get the chance so if someone has anytime access to hunt I will sell the Gen 1+ scopes cheap-$250 each and upgrade those two to a higher Gen unit because now we don't get to choose when we hunt. When that is done and any safe TXGT member has a place to hog hunt I'll have 4-rifle set-ups and a Stealth Willy's M38 Army Jeep we call the H.A.V. (Hog Assault Vehicle) You provide the place, I provide the stuff and we all fill our freezers. Oh the rifles are a DPMS SSAS AR-10, Custom Bulit 20" AR-10, AR-15 in 7.62 x 39 and a Bushmaster Lady 3.9 lbs AR-15 in .223 with 60 gr Accubonds for the Ladies and kids. Got one of the 6-freezers empty and turned off so I'm ready.
I have recently purchased an ATN X-Sight and think it works very well. I may replace the IR illuminator with something better later. I like being able to switch between day scope and night scope. It is heavy and large is my only complaint so far. I really like the WiFi option which I plan to use this fall when hunting with my kids. With it I can see what they are seeing through the scope.
Huntindoc, is there a brightness setting for the background like other night vision? I went to a gun shop at night and went outside and looked around and found the brightness for the crosshairs but not the scope. If it is day or night it has to have that. Focused it was incredibly clear but could not intensify it to use away from ambient light in town. The young salesman did not know much about it.
Alternatively, you can buy british surplus gen 1 cascade tubes for pretty cheap these days. Like 100 bucks or something, IIRC for unissued units. They're big and bulky, but they do give good results for not alot of money.
Not so bueno for a gun mount (though I have seen people do it for a .22) or wearable optic, but excellent for a spotting scope.
I've got the stuff to do it, I just need to sit down and do it.
