Night Vision or Thermal?

[hlb14]

I've been selling off unused items lately in an effort to go all in on a good night vision setup.  The main reason I'd like to be able to see in the dark is to be able to watch over our animals at night.  Our main threat is coyotes.   However I've started to wonder if thermal would be better for what I'll be doing. 

Eventually I'd  like to get both, but initially that won't be feasible. 

[Alleycat72]

That depends on exactly what you're doing. You are driving around looking at your animals, night vision is perfect for this. A lot can hide from NV. If it's hard to see in the daylight, you will not see it in the dark. Coyotes at distance will be near impossible to see unless you catch movement or IR glinting off an eye. We sometimes stalk coyotes an hogs from as far as 800 yards using thermal. 

Thermal is much much faster for seeing what's out and about. Targets are easier to find and track as you shoot. NV guys let us scan and find targets. We usually light up their targets with an IR laser until the get on it and see it. The downside is the learning curve with thermal. To a new guy a coyote and a dog look the same (there is an easy way to determine the difference). Identifying targets takes a little getting used to. At first glance a skunk, opossum, and a raccoon look the same.  After a few hours behind the the scope they look completely different. Think of it as learning a new language. You can also hide from thermal, but it's much harder for an animal. It's actually easier for a human. Glass or a silver thermal blanket will do it.

Your best bet is to find someone that'll let you look at both so you can find out what's best for you. I have been running thermal for years now. I am biased, but I find myself needing some NV for driving. 

 

[hlb14]

At this point, driving isn't necessary.   Do you find either to be easier on your eyes to be behind for extended periods of time? 

[Alleycat72]

If both are setup properly, they are both fine. Most of the problems with dual tube NV are because it's not adjusted to the user properly. On a terminal, guys run the brightness up too much. 

Set a thermal to where the brightness looks perfect and then go one step lower. Your pupil will dilate in that eye if the intensity is too high. When you take the scope away from your eye, you'll have night blindness in that eye for a few minutes. It'll cause your depth perception to run amok.

[Ironhandjohn]

Does anyone in middle TN stock NV or thermal? I sold my old Harley a few weeks ago, and the idea of getting a super-power(seeing in the dark) is intriguing. I’ve been kicking around thermal/NVG/helmet-mounted/weapon sight for awhile now, and it’s enough to make a man go crazy. 

[Alleycat72]

2 hours ago, Ironhandjohn said:

Does anyone in middle TN stock NV or thermal? I sold my old Harley a few weeks ago, and the idea of getting a super-power(seeing in the dark) is intriguing. I’ve been kicking around thermal/NVG/helmet-mounted/weapon sight for awhile now, and it’s enough to make a man go crazy. 

Most of the big places are online. You can rent NV or Thermal from some of them. It's expensive, but it'll let you know if this is your new addition. 

[felinesNfreedom]

11 hours ago, Ironhandjohn said:

Does anyone in middle TN stock NV or thermal? I sold my old Harley a few weeks ago, and the idea of getting a super-power(seeing in the dark) is intriguing. I’ve been kicking around thermal/NVG/helmet-mounted/weapon sight for awhile now, and it’s enough to make a man go crazy. 

See if ChuckTshoes still has his NVG set up for sale, it was a solid deal.

[Chucktshoes]

51 minutes ago, felinesNfreedom said:

See if ChuckTshoes still has his NVG set up for sale, it was a solid deal.

I do not. I sold it to a friend of mine in Athens.

[Ironhandjohn]

Dang. 

[Gunner4570]

After a night pig hunt I am terribly impressed with thermal. They glowed like a light 

[hlb14]

On 3/9/2022 at 10:21 AM, Chucktshoes said:

I do not. I sold it to a friend of mine in Athens.

That was a solid deal that I probably should've jumped on

[Chucktshoes]

3 hours ago, hlb14 said:

That was a solid deal that I probably should've jumped on

We kept trying to tell folks here that it was a deal.

 

I imagine you aren’t the only one realizing they missed out. 

[Links2k]

On 4/10/2022 at 3:40 PM, Chucktshoes said:

We kept trying to tell folks here that it was a deal.

 

I imagine you aren’t the only one realizing they missed out. 

I really wanted that setup, but all of my toy money keeps going into my sxs.  It’s my new addiction. 

[Starlord376]

[BigK]

I got to play with some Trijicon thermal monoculars this weekend at the convention. I was floored by how good the tech has gotten. It's almost like they show it in the movies now. The IR-Patrol will really blow your skirt up if you get to try one.