I was wondering if gen1+ is any better than gen 1. I am looking for a night vision scope for a gun and have no knowledge of night vision what so ever. Also if i was out hunting at night without an IR illuminator what distance would be expected to see a hog. We will say no moon and stars out.
night vision
- Thread starter BigBore45
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OpticsPlanet
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Gen 1 night vision is very poor quality. Gen 1+ does not offer much improvement.
If you haven't looked through a Gen 1 device you will be disappointed when you finally do.
Gen 1 night vision is like looking through a blurry fishbowl, the image is very distorted and its hard to see anything.
Generally the max effective range of Gen 1 unit is 100 yards under 100% perfect conditions - being a clear cloudless night with a full moon. Under less then perfect conditions the range of the device is shortened significantly.
There is an exception to Gen 1, and this is the Armasight CORE product line.
Armasight CORE units use a ceramic compound fused metal alloy tube instead of the glass tube traditional Gen 1 uses.
The result of this is image quality that is closer to Gen 2 then Gen 1. The CORE tube has much less distortion. The only noticeable distortion is around the edges of the image.
The best night vision scope for under $1000 is the Armasight CORE Vampire: http://www.opticsplanet.com/armasight-vampire-3x-night-vision-rifle-scope-3x-core-iit-60-70-lp-mm.html
Armasight puts the CORE tubes in a monocular and goggles:
CORE monocular:http://www.opticsplanet.com/armasight-spark-core-night-vision-monocular.html
CORE goggles: http://www.opticsplanet.com/armasight-spark-x-dual-tube-night-vision-goggle-core-iit-60-70-lp-mm.html
The goggles give a picture so clear you could drive at night with them. You wont be doing that with any other Gen 1 night vision device.
Tim G.
If you haven't looked through a Gen 1 device you will be disappointed when you finally do.
Gen 1 night vision is like looking through a blurry fishbowl, the image is very distorted and its hard to see anything.
Generally the max effective range of Gen 1 unit is 100 yards under 100% perfect conditions - being a clear cloudless night with a full moon. Under less then perfect conditions the range of the device is shortened significantly.
There is an exception to Gen 1, and this is the Armasight CORE product line.
Armasight CORE units use a ceramic compound fused metal alloy tube instead of the glass tube traditional Gen 1 uses.
The result of this is image quality that is closer to Gen 2 then Gen 1. The CORE tube has much less distortion. The only noticeable distortion is around the edges of the image.
The best night vision scope for under $1000 is the Armasight CORE Vampire: http://www.opticsplanet.com/armasight-vampire-3x-night-vision-rifle-scope-3x-core-iit-60-70-lp-mm.html
Armasight puts the CORE tubes in a monocular and goggles:
CORE monocular:http://www.opticsplanet.com/armasight-spark-core-night-vision-monocular.html
CORE goggles: http://www.opticsplanet.com/armasight-spark-x-dual-tube-night-vision-goggle-core-iit-60-70-lp-mm.html
The goggles give a picture so clear you could drive at night with them. You wont be doing that with any other Gen 1 night vision device.
Tim G.
OpticsPlanet
Member
For a clip on unit you are going to want a Gen 2, the price is going to be around $2000 regardless of manufacture:
http://www.opticsplanet.com/armasight-co-mr-sd-gen-2-day-night-vision-clip-on-system.html
Tim G.
http://www.opticsplanet.com/armasight-co-mr-sd-gen-2-day-night-vision-clip-on-system.html
Tim G.
how about digital night vision? that is what sparked my interest in the first place. i watched a shot show rep. talking about the ATN X-sight scope coming out and he says 300 yards in the right conditions. and was comparing it to gen 2 equipment. so that would put me in the idea that 100 yards would be easy to see and shoot at.
OpticsPlanet
Member
I haven't used the new ATN digital scope yet, but my experience with digital night vision is that digital is just a little better then Gen 1. You don't have the distortion but the effectiveness is similar.
Because digital is not damaged by light like IIT night vision is, digital is popular for environments with lots of visible light.
Tim G.
Because digital is not damaged by light like IIT night vision is, digital is popular for environments with lots of visible light.
Tim G.
Run a search on taliv and read his numerous posts on the subject. It will be well worth the effort.
thx Robert, 
but i more or less went straight to gen3, which has been out a very very long time now. (eons in the electronics world) i don't like to spend money any more than anybody else, but gen 1-2 seemed pretty useless to me. some people seem to do ok with them though, so ymmv. I've got some digital NV but haven't really had time to play with it that much.
i will give you a few very brief lessons learned though
1. nv scopes suck. (I've seen ONLY ONE NV scope i would use, but it is $60k... a little out of my reach) clip ons are far more usable. however, they are $$$$$.
2. conditions are everything. when clouds come overhead during the day, you notice it but it doesn't really change much. at night, you'll go from being amazed at how you can see everything to suddenly seeing nothing. the moon at night is like the sun in the day. you will quickly start to pay attention to moon rise and set.
3. even with good equipment, in bad conditions, IR illum is a must.
4. with cheap equipment, IR illum is a must in almost any conditions.
5. if you are starting out, get a good helmet, a used PVS-14 and a cheap laser. if you've got extra cash, you will love something like a dbal-d2 but any old pistol laser will do as long as you can attach it to your rifle and zero it.
derek (the guy who runs THR) wrote a great intro to NV. everyone interested in purchasing should read this http://www.shootingreviews.com/the-shootingreviews-night-vision-overview/
but i more or less went straight to gen3, which has been out a very very long time now. (eons in the electronics world) i don't like to spend money any more than anybody else, but gen 1-2 seemed pretty useless to me. some people seem to do ok with them though, so ymmv. I've got some digital NV but haven't really had time to play with it that much.i will give you a few very brief lessons learned though
1. nv scopes suck. (I've seen ONLY ONE NV scope i would use, but it is $60k... a little out of my reach) clip ons are far more usable. however, they are $$$$$.
2. conditions are everything. when clouds come overhead during the day, you notice it but it doesn't really change much. at night, you'll go from being amazed at how you can see everything to suddenly seeing nothing. the moon at night is like the sun in the day. you will quickly start to pay attention to moon rise and set.
3. even with good equipment, in bad conditions, IR illum is a must.
4. with cheap equipment, IR illum is a must in almost any conditions.
5. if you are starting out, get a good helmet, a used PVS-14 and a cheap laser. if you've got extra cash, you will love something like a dbal-d2 but any old pistol laser will do as long as you can attach it to your rifle and zero it.
derek (the guy who runs THR) wrote a great intro to NV. everyone interested in purchasing should read this http://www.shootingreviews.com/the-shootingreviews-night-vision-overview/
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