So its been less than a year since I started purchasing night time predator hunting tools after years of hunting them with red lights.
I started out with a Night Vision Sightmark 320RT monocular and a NV Sightmark Photon RT scope. These both worked well for me, especially the scope because I was using a Predator Tactics XXL Infrared Illuminator instead of the stock unit that came with it. I could see 800+ yards with the scope. Though within a couple of weeks of using them for hunting, I got sick of them. I was sick and tired of every time I looked in a certain direction there was a twig hanging and the infrared would reflect off of it and not allow me to see past it. This kind of happened the night it was snowing and I shot a fox. It was reflecting off the snow. Needless to say I realized that Night Vision wouldn't work if I was hunting inside a woods. So I sold them on Ebay.
After having a friend stop over and show me his thermals that he kind of permanently borrowed from his father. I decided to look into buying some. I did a little research but not nearly enough. I bought a Pulsar Axion XM30 mono and a Pulsar RXQ30V scope. I loved them both when I got them, this was before actually using them for hunting. When I was out hunting and not seeing anything I thought what I bought was great,, until............The night I spotted a fox at a distance of roughly 200yds away with the mono. Went to look at it through the scope because I was planning on shooting it and couldn't see it. I looked at it again through the mono and I could see it plain as day. It kept sitting up and laying down on a rock pile in the hedgerow. Looked at it again through the scope and I could barely, barely get a heat signature. I was pissed.
This scenario happened again 3 weeks ago with a coyote but it was only about 150yds or less away from me. It did get close enough where I could make out a heat signature but it was very pixelated. I took the shot anyways and missed.
So another week goes by and I got brave and decided to go back to the same spot. Didn't think I would call one in being that I just recently shot at one at this property but sure enough after a couple of calls one came out of the woods right where the one the week before came out of. It ran 90mph around the pond that was blocking him from the caller and then popped out of the woods and ran directly for the caller and I had to bark to get it to stop. I had a great heat signature at a 100yds away but it was really fuzzy,,,Pixelated. I took the shot and missed. WTF
So that night I decided I wasn't having fun anymore and tried to think of a million things to blame it on and 2 things stuck out. Adrenalin was through the roof and I had a scope that was crap for what I was using it for. I say this because people down South hunting hogs love it. They love it because most of their shooting is under a 100yds.
The next day I decided to buy a new scope. At least I think I decided or maybe someone from this board talked me into it. No matter what actually happened, I wanted a new scope with longer range vision. My buddy from this forum told me to check out the Bering Optic Super Hogster. He said this was the unit his buddy has been using and loved it.
So I went on the internet and checked it out. It had a 2.9x11.6 power rating with a 35mm lens. A 384x288 12um sensor and a LCOS 1280x960 display with a heat sensitivity of 40 NETD. Some of you might be thinking that the specs I just gave you are meaningless. Well after my saga and my research they mean more to me than they use to. What kind of sold me was the higher starting magnification. 2.9 instead of 1.6. Having low magnification is good but when it comes to thermals it depends upon what you are hunting and how far your shots will be because any adjustment to go higher you lose image clarity.
The only difference in sensors between my old scope and this new one was the pixel pitch. 12um for the new 17um for the old. Which is still kind of lost on me for determining which is better and why its better under a certain magnification. One other thing that was different was the heat sensitivity. 50 NETD old 40 new. The lower number of the new one is better for heat sensitivity.
The other thing that was HUGE was the fact that the new scope had a focus ring and the old one didn't, it was fixed focus. Having a focus ring will make the pixilation not as prominent when shooting at longer ranges.
So anyways, I ordered it knowing that there would be a waiting period before I received it. Why? Thermals are not easy to come by right now. Stock is seriously low or non-existent because of this Covid crap.
The way the thermal market was, actually helped me make my mind up whether to sell my old scope now or later. I sold it in 24hrs on Facebook for $150 less that what I paid for it with tax!!!! That made me very happy.
So as I keep going with my Night Hunting Tools story,,,,,,,,,,,,I got the new scope in yesterday, sighted in today and went out hunting with it tonight.
My feelings???? Its freaking awesome. I use to love my monocular because it had good heat sensitivity, decent magnification, recorded video, picture clarity was decent. Now?????? Cant say my mono sucks but this scope blows it out of the water and I will show you.
These videos don't do what you actually see through either one of them justice. What you see when looking through them is always better but you can see the difference between the 2.
Videos music was being sung by Lanie Gardner and she was singing Fleetwood Mac songs
1st Video was done with my Mono the Pulsar Axion XM30 with a 320x240 12um sensor,,,starting power 4
2nd Video was shot with my new scope and will be in next post,,388x284 12um sensor,,,,starting power 2.9
Yes I saw nothing Tonight, not a deer, rabbit, fox or anything. It was a baron wasteland in both locations I went to.
For those wanting to get into thermal. DONT BUY LOW END UNITS. At least shoot for the medium price range, which is basically 3 grand plus
I started out with a Night Vision Sightmark 320RT monocular and a NV Sightmark Photon RT scope. These both worked well for me, especially the scope because I was using a Predator Tactics XXL Infrared Illuminator instead of the stock unit that came with it. I could see 800+ yards with the scope. Though within a couple of weeks of using them for hunting, I got sick of them. I was sick and tired of every time I looked in a certain direction there was a twig hanging and the infrared would reflect off of it and not allow me to see past it. This kind of happened the night it was snowing and I shot a fox. It was reflecting off the snow. Needless to say I realized that Night Vision wouldn't work if I was hunting inside a woods. So I sold them on Ebay.
After having a friend stop over and show me his thermals that he kind of permanently borrowed from his father. I decided to look into buying some. I did a little research but not nearly enough. I bought a Pulsar Axion XM30 mono and a Pulsar RXQ30V scope. I loved them both when I got them, this was before actually using them for hunting. When I was out hunting and not seeing anything I thought what I bought was great,, until............The night I spotted a fox at a distance of roughly 200yds away with the mono. Went to look at it through the scope because I was planning on shooting it and couldn't see it. I looked at it again through the mono and I could see it plain as day. It kept sitting up and laying down on a rock pile in the hedgerow. Looked at it again through the scope and I could barely, barely get a heat signature. I was pissed.
This scenario happened again 3 weeks ago with a coyote but it was only about 150yds or less away from me. It did get close enough where I could make out a heat signature but it was very pixelated. I took the shot anyways and missed.
So another week goes by and I got brave and decided to go back to the same spot. Didn't think I would call one in being that I just recently shot at one at this property but sure enough after a couple of calls one came out of the woods right where the one the week before came out of. It ran 90mph around the pond that was blocking him from the caller and then popped out of the woods and ran directly for the caller and I had to bark to get it to stop. I had a great heat signature at a 100yds away but it was really fuzzy,,,Pixelated. I took the shot and missed. WTF
So that night I decided I wasn't having fun anymore and tried to think of a million things to blame it on and 2 things stuck out. Adrenalin was through the roof and I had a scope that was crap for what I was using it for. I say this because people down South hunting hogs love it. They love it because most of their shooting is under a 100yds.
The next day I decided to buy a new scope. At least I think I decided or maybe someone from this board talked me into it. No matter what actually happened, I wanted a new scope with longer range vision. My buddy from this forum told me to check out the Bering Optic Super Hogster. He said this was the unit his buddy has been using and loved it.
So I went on the internet and checked it out. It had a 2.9x11.6 power rating with a 35mm lens. A 384x288 12um sensor and a LCOS 1280x960 display with a heat sensitivity of 40 NETD. Some of you might be thinking that the specs I just gave you are meaningless. Well after my saga and my research they mean more to me than they use to. What kind of sold me was the higher starting magnification. 2.9 instead of 1.6. Having low magnification is good but when it comes to thermals it depends upon what you are hunting and how far your shots will be because any adjustment to go higher you lose image clarity.
The only difference in sensors between my old scope and this new one was the pixel pitch. 12um for the new 17um for the old. Which is still kind of lost on me for determining which is better and why its better under a certain magnification. One other thing that was different was the heat sensitivity. 50 NETD old 40 new. The lower number of the new one is better for heat sensitivity.
The other thing that was HUGE was the fact that the new scope had a focus ring and the old one didn't, it was fixed focus. Having a focus ring will make the pixilation not as prominent when shooting at longer ranges.
So anyways, I ordered it knowing that there would be a waiting period before I received it. Why? Thermals are not easy to come by right now. Stock is seriously low or non-existent because of this Covid crap.
The way the thermal market was, actually helped me make my mind up whether to sell my old scope now or later. I sold it in 24hrs on Facebook for $150 less that what I paid for it with tax!!!! That made me very happy.
So as I keep going with my Night Hunting Tools story,,,,,,,,,,,,I got the new scope in yesterday, sighted in today and went out hunting with it tonight.
My feelings???? Its freaking awesome. I use to love my monocular because it had good heat sensitivity, decent magnification, recorded video, picture clarity was decent. Now?????? Cant say my mono sucks but this scope blows it out of the water and I will show you.
These videos don't do what you actually see through either one of them justice. What you see when looking through them is always better but you can see the difference between the 2.
Videos music was being sung by Lanie Gardner and she was singing Fleetwood Mac songs
1st Video was done with my Mono the Pulsar Axion XM30 with a 320x240 12um sensor,,,starting power 4
2nd Video was shot with my new scope and will be in next post,,388x284 12um sensor,,,,starting power 2.9
Yes I saw nothing Tonight, not a deer, rabbit, fox or anything. It was a baron wasteland in both locations I went to.
For those wanting to get into thermal. DONT BUY LOW END UNITS. At least shoot for the medium price range, which is basically 3 grand plus
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