Hi there, am new to this so will have to excuse me being a bit pf a gear head but was wondering if any of you bods have experiance of using night vision devices. Am thinking of investing in one now that the dark season is almost upon us. Cheers 
re: use of night vision optics
- Thread starter greeneggcat
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There are quite a few ex forces personnel on here so I would think that there will be one or two who have experience using NVD's of one form or another.
If you have land or the permissioin to use land/woodland to observe wildlife of an evening/night then they can be very good, but be aware that they really come into thier own when it is moonless and clouded and you have an active light source (IR torch)
You can pick up ex mil ones quite cheaply, but be aware that some of the earlier generation of veiwing aids let out quite a high pitched whine that will alert every dog within a mile radius of your location and military ones will probably hav recieved a bit of a pasting (they will probably of been refurbished before they are sold on though).
There are also obviously devices now which are totally aimed at the civilian market which compare very well with the military veiwing aids.
If you go down the ex-military route try and get second generation optics or later if possible, the clarity is better (they don't appear so grainy) and don't whine like the first generation stuff did (not all did, but from what I can remember a few did). You will also find second generation and later will be smaller and lighter than the older stuff.
If you have land or the permissioin to use land/woodland to observe wildlife of an evening/night then they can be very good, but be aware that they really come into thier own when it is moonless and clouded and you have an active light source (IR torch)
You can pick up ex mil ones quite cheaply, but be aware that some of the earlier generation of veiwing aids let out quite a high pitched whine that will alert every dog within a mile radius of your location and military ones will probably hav recieved a bit of a pasting (they will probably of been refurbished before they are sold on though).
There are also obviously devices now which are totally aimed at the civilian market which compare very well with the military veiwing aids.
If you go down the ex-military route try and get second generation optics or later if possible, the clarity is better (they don't appear so grainy) and don't whine like the first generation stuff did (not all did, but from what I can remember a few did). You will also find second generation and later will be smaller and lighter than the older stuff.
I have an old 1st gen unit and it's a lot of fun to use. The biggest drawback however is anything moving fast tends just to be an indistinct blur. I've used 2nd and 3rd gen andthe improvement is staggering. You can pick up 2nd gen units quite cheaply now and if you want new, a good place to start is Alana Ecology
Greeneggcat,
Would you like to know something?
If you're hiking in the night, you might not even need NVG's!
Here's what to do:
Instead of looking straight ahead of you at the path, turn your head, and look at a 45 degree angle. This allows the light waves to hit much more of the retina, and utilize more of the rods, which are more concentrated towards the outside perimeter of the eye.
And by jove, it works!!!!!
Good luck!
A.
Would you like to know something?
If you're hiking in the night, you might not even need NVG's!
Here's what to do:
Instead of looking straight ahead of you at the path, turn your head, and look at a 45 degree angle. This allows the light waves to hit much more of the retina, and utilize more of the rods, which are more concentrated towards the outside perimeter of the eye.
And by jove, it works!!!!!
Good luck!
A.
Aaah, happy memory of NVG...
A colleague was ex REME in the first Gulf War and was tasked with repair and maintainance of the then best on the block 2nd generation. He cunningly obtained enough spare bits to create a whole new one.
It was a strap on the head binocular version and I drove a car with them on with this guy in the passenger seat.
The moon was coming through the trees like sunlight and the view was terrific.
Only thing that ruined the experience was the screaming of the guy next to me as I drove down this pitch black forest track at 40 mph
A colleague was ex REME in the first Gulf War and was tasked with repair and maintainance of the then best on the block 2nd generation. He cunningly obtained enough spare bits to create a whole new one.
It was a strap on the head binocular version and I drove a car with them on with this guy in the passenger seat.
The moon was coming through the trees like sunlight and the view was terrific.
Only thing that ruined the experience was the screaming of the guy next to me as I drove down this pitch black forest track at 40 mph
Danceswithhelicopters said:Aaah, happy memory of NVG...
A colleague was ex REME in the first Gulf War and was tasked with repair and maintainance of the then best on the block 2nd generation. He cunningly obtained enough spare bits to create a whole new one.
It was a strap on the head binocular version and I drove a car with them on with this guy in the passenger seat.
The moon was coming through the trees like sunlight and the view was terrific.
Only thing that ruined the experience was the screaming of the guy next to me as I drove down this pitch black forest track at 40 mph
Night vision equipment has been around, even on the surplus market, for a surprisingly long time. In the late 1950's, the US Army had something called a sniperscope that was, I believe, an infrared light-based equipment. All of it together was somewhat bulky, judging only from a photograph of set up on an M1 carbine. I've never examined one in person.
Naturally, as soon as something like that becames available, there is a call to make them illegal because someone will want to poach deer with them. However, the most intelligent comment I ever read about them was that anyone who can stalk within shooting distance of a deer, in the woods, at night, deserved the deer, even using night vision equipment.
Naturally, as soon as something like that becames available, there is a call to make them illegal because someone will want to poach deer with them. However, the most intelligent comment I ever read about them was that anyone who can stalk within shooting distance of a deer, in the woods, at night, deserved the deer, even using night vision equipment.
BlueTrain said:
I have seen these in the flesh, they are large heavy and cumbersome.
Deer in woods of a night are probably laying up trying to get some sleep, the theory is it would be easier to try and sneak up on a sleeping deer than one that is awake and fully alert
.The reality is that deer are more in touch with thier sixth sense than we are and can normally sense people through a combination of all of thier senses.
There is also the factor that we are stumbling around blindly using a scope that gives a small amount of magnification and no depth of field, so we are falling down every hole possible
. For depth of feild you need binocular vision and there are not that many vewing aids which fit the bill.Dawn and dusk are better times for shooting
.
I have both a night vision scope (russian) and some very good night vision goggles (simrad).
I`ve never found any real use for them.
I`ve spotted a fox one time at ca. 200 meters in winter with the rifle scope (snow on ground) and used the goggles to watch some mooses feeding in the evening one fall, and thats it.
And I`ve had the scope more than 10 years and the goggles for about 5 years. They are not much in use as you can see.
My suggestion is that you spend your money on some more useful equipment.
By the way, the russian scope is no good without snow on ground and/or full moon.
Tor
I`ve never found any real use for them.
I`ve spotted a fox one time at ca. 200 meters in winter with the rifle scope (snow on ground) and used the goggles to watch some mooses feeding in the evening one fall, and thats it.
And I`ve had the scope more than 10 years and the goggles for about 5 years. They are not much in use as you can see.
My suggestion is that you spend your money on some more useful equipment.
By the way, the russian scope is no good without snow on ground and/or full moon.
Tor
Thanks for your replys, sorry i couldnt answer sooner but i dont spend much time at a computer.
First of all to say that the main use i would have for them is for observing wildlfe etc. I live quite close to a forest so am thinking of the need for an ir lamp but the noise issue is also a concern as i had previously heard that some units do give out a high pitched wail!
The link to alana ecology was really useful thanks (they have some really good stuff, bat detectors etc), nice one.
I have had some other links so cheers to all.
Conclusion: I am looking at the small 1st gen commercial units to test before investing copius ammounts of dosh in some electrickery! Primarily the "Yukon" , "bushnell" and "cobra" ranges. Also looking at "Seben" stuff on the e.bay. Has any one used these?
First of all to say that the main use i would have for them is for observing wildlfe etc. I live quite close to a forest so am thinking of the need for an ir lamp but the noise issue is also a concern as i had previously heard that some units do give out a high pitched wail!
The link to alana ecology was really useful thanks (they have some really good stuff, bat detectors etc), nice one.
I have had some other links so cheers to all.
Conclusion: I am looking at the small 1st gen commercial units to test before investing copius ammounts of dosh in some electrickery! Primarily the "Yukon" , "bushnell" and "cobra" ranges. Also looking at "Seben" stuff on the e.bay. Has any one used these?
The model I have is the Bushnell something or othergreeneggcat said:
it has no noticable whine and my hearing goes further up the scale than average. It also has screw on lenses which are the same thread as the Russian Zenit camera lenses so in theory that should give some options although I've never got round to trying it
Spacemonkey said:
Oh yessss, thats what i WANT! what i'll get is a cheapish 1st gen nv scope. sulk sulk sulk
Did a bit of rooting around as my mate wants a thermie cam and found one for $8000 which is give or take just over 4 grand. Not bad considering how much they wanted two years ago! His night scope is absolutely tiny, but I find it quite grainy and twinkly, even though it cost a bomb. Are there any cheapies that give a clear image?
maybe the russians never needed it any other way, after all they do get alot of snow
Hey, the other one you might consider is digital night vision in particular the Yukon Ranger. I believe they now have an upgraded version out as well as a 'pro' one. Not used one myself but I know an airgunner who after spending daft amounts on Gen 2 / 3 / DEP adapted one to fit his scope and loved it, looking at some clips taken through them on youtube I'd say they're pretty good bang for the buck
Hope that helps
Hope that helps
Well, I think someone hit the nail on the head when they said Gen 1 was for fun. I have a Gen 1 with a Russian tube and, when you see the stuff on the telly, the performance is quite poor...but it's fun to use!
Gen 2 and Gen 3 (I only have experience of UK MoD aircrew goggles and US Army kit) is soooooooooooooo much better! But very expensive indeed.
Gen 2 and Gen 3 (I only have experience of UK MoD aircrew goggles and US Army kit) is soooooooooooooo much better! But very expensive indeed.
btw if you have a Gen 1 and want to add range relatively cheaply an IR laser is superb. They cost £100ish for a half decent one but it increased the range I could spot rabbits from about 30m to a good 70 or 80, well outside what I was happy shooting at with an air rifle. You can generally spot animals' eyes shining further out too, they just don't become recognisable until then
Hello all.... been a while since i put this one out there!
I have been using one of those digital rangers by yukon for a while now and i can say they really are bang on for the money. Being digital the image quality is astounding and i very rarely need to engage the built in ir lamp. I have used these in total darkness to watch the forest beasts at night ( well badgers, hedgehogs, foxes, rabbits and the odd owl) and am really pleased with them.
The only problem i have found is that because of the digital viewer basically being a small screen in the eyepiece and the display being in black and white/grey they really fry your night vision in one eye. At first i was finding this very disorientating, esp as i was using them on moonless nights. Really affected my spatial awareness. I have over come this by fiting a red filter into the eyepiece.
The red filter seems to soften the damage to my natural night vision but i dont lose any of the detail. So now that i have sorted that out i reckon they really are top notch for the cash. The image quality and detail really is astounding. Try them if you get a chance. I bet if i had the time i could count the hairs on a foxes back. The detail really is that good (thats the 5x42).
Hope that helps some other gadget freak who reads this!
I have been using one of those digital rangers by yukon for a while now and i can say they really are bang on for the money. Being digital the image quality is astounding and i very rarely need to engage the built in ir lamp. I have used these in total darkness to watch the forest beasts at night ( well badgers, hedgehogs, foxes, rabbits and the odd owl) and am really pleased with them.
The only problem i have found is that because of the digital viewer basically being a small screen in the eyepiece and the display being in black and white/grey they really fry your night vision in one eye. At first i was finding this very disorientating, esp as i was using them on moonless nights. Really affected my spatial awareness. I have over come this by fiting a red filter into the eyepiece.
The red filter seems to soften the damage to my natural night vision but i dont lose any of the detail. So now that i have sorted that out i reckon they really are top notch for the cash. The image quality and detail really is astounding. Try them if you get a chance. I bet if i had the time i could count the hairs on a foxes back. The detail really is that good (thats the 5x42).
Hope that helps some other gadget freak who reads this!
Get the same problem with the sony camera which has a night vision facility really ruins your night vision. Good idea about a red lens over view finder I may try that. Got to say get reasonable results close up with the sony....bit of a novelty really though.
Dave
Dave
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