Can people relay their experience with nightvision...gen1 or gen2 specifically. I don't have 3-4k to get into gen 3 or 4. What range is gen1 or gen2 effective out to? what's the biggest differences? Are they even worth having?
I'd be interested in feedback on both bi-monoculars and rifle scopes.
I would say if you are looking from a survival perspective there are probably a lot more critical things that should be purchased beforehand. I didn't go that route, I'm sure there are things I still need / would like to have. But I wanted to get myself plenty of time to become familiar with them, get my mounts right and have plenty of experience using them. Are they worth it? Not if they sit in your safe all the time. You need to get out and use them, once you are out in the dark you will realize the value of being able to see while others cannot.
I have a Gen 3 ITT Night Enforcer monocular that I can mount on my AR. For me, its worth it. I also paid to have my tube hand selected. The main reason I went with gen 3 over gen 2 was the clarity was a bit better, but more important the tube life was 4x as long for roughly $1000 more. Last year we were out at a class and our group all had high quality gen 3 units. The other camp had a store bought gen 3 unit and I think an older gen 2 unit. One night we set out to look for them and we spotted them from a long distance away because they used an IR light. Because all of our units were high quality we did not need IR to move around. So if you want to stay hidden, and still be able to use your NV, get the best you can afford. Being able to move around freely and not need IR lights is pretty high on my priority list. If you just want to identify targets 150ish or so yards I'm sure a Gen 1 unit would be fine. I use the GG&G Multi Flex mount because I also can run a Aimpoint 3x with the same mount behind the T1.
Most of my experience comes from the military and the military quality equipment night vision thermals and the new mix breed. I have some cheap monoculars that I have taken to the filed with me for fun. They are no PVS-14s but I remember the PVS-5s and they aren't much worse than those. Also I have a NV rifle sight that surprisingly is really nice. I'd say a little worse than PVS-7s but again it is no ANPAS-13. Maybe I’m just spoiled but I agree there is no way I’m spending $15,000 to own what I play with at work. BTW these are all for sale I'll be posting a page with all my extras here in a little bit. You know stupid Xmas always getting in the way of my gun stuff
If you want to know anything else just ask...
Sean
I've got a gen .5(starlight scope) and a gen 1+(monocular) and I can reach out and drill holes at 150m with the scope and drive with the lights off confidently at about 50kph with the monocle going. From what I've seen gen 2, 2+ is great for night hunts, clearly seeing your way on the move, but gen 1 will get you there as well.
I have an Aries Mk 208 that is pretty awesome and though not magnified would allow good combat hits out to 100-150 yards pretty easy. I haven't even put batteries in it in probably 4 years so not getting much use out of it. If you or anybody is interested I would be willing to sell or trade for something cool that I might actually get some use out of.
To have a realistically effective system, you need to run a peq/headset combo. Having your only NVD mounted to your weapon means pointing your weapon at everything you look at. Not acceptable in any environment, especially not a domestic one.. and very easily hazardous to your own health.
I was looking at purchasing One of these for a price of $470 new. I understand they only work out to 200 yards max for shooting. Based on all the reviews it sound very good for what you get. One thing I couldn't find was what is the expected life of the tube and will it handle 300wsm loads?
Nightvision
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