The 2021 Thermal and Night Vision Thread

[Outdoor Legacy]

Best thing to do cuz is call Jason and make sure you got time to Jaw. He’s from deep east Texas and can talk longer then me [emoji23]

But he’ll get you on the right rig for budget/use, there’s a ton more options since the trails came out.

Who me? Talk a lot? Oh come on, you must be talking about someone else?

Jason

[Russ81]

The 2021 Thermal and Night Vision Thread

Who me? Talk a lot? Oh come on, you must be talking about someone else?



Jason

It’s not as alluring as “Shave and a haircut” but don’t make me bring up tiger striped cows [emoji23]


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[Anon]

If by people you mean 2-3 people who have actually owned and used them, I'll buy that and if you mean people who've never looked through them but can't wait to bash them, I'll buy that too. What I don't buy is that very many people who own one and are using it are dumping on it.

There have been a ton of Rico 640's sold in the last 3 weeks, more than any high end thermal scope ever sold in that short of a time period. The reason is simply because iRay had the inventory sitting there waiting for the launch and other manufacturers don't have those kind of quantities available on Day 1. The closest thing would the Thermion XG50 launch because Pulsar had stockpiled them waiting for the release and supplied several of us with really good quantities of them.

I sold a very large amount of XG50's and Rico 640's both in a very short time period. Trust me....there will always be people who buy a scope and aren't happy, don't like it, have a small problem or have a big problem and you'll hear about it from a lot of them. What you won't hear is how great it is from the other 98% of users. That goes for many brands. I've seen nothing from the Rico launch or usage that is any reason for concern.

The scope that was posted on the YoutTube video as possibly having the lag or delay....it's been tested by iRay and has no issue at all. I sold that scope to a very good long time customer of mine but his test was flawed and he was mistaken, which is not the end of the world, we all make mistakes. I have video proof the scope is not defective (willing to share if people would like the proof) and that exact scope is about to mounted on my rifle and I will be using it as my own personal scope. It's had no updates and no changes made to it at all and I'm 100% confident in it.

The Rico is a heck of a scope. It is not (in my humble opinion) the best scope ever made or the best image quality available but I do believe it's a very good value and has an absolutely amazing image quality and feature set for it's $6,000 price tag.

The great thing is we have more options than ever in the high end thermal category, the Thermion XG50, Rico 640, N-Vision NOX's, Halo LR, Halo-X models and all the Trijicons.

Just my 2 cents having been using all these scopes in field, including the Rico for many months.

Yes, that’s exactly what I mean, thanks for elaborating....
And I think you do hear how good scopes are, from regular users, the cream will rise to the top!



Just replace Holosun with Iray lol

[Dale Moser]

The unit we've been using is a Pulsar Trail XQ38. What is the most comparable current unit to that one?

[Fordnandez]

If by people you mean 2-3 people who have actually owned and used them, I'll buy that and if you mean people who've never looked through them but can't wait to bash them, I'll buy that too. What I don't buy is that very many people who own one and are using it are dumping on it.

There have been a ton of Rico 640's sold in the last 3 weeks, more than any high end thermal scope ever sold in that short of a time period. The reason is simply because iRay had the inventory sitting there waiting for the launch and other manufacturers don't have those kind of quantities available on Day 1. The closest thing would the Thermion XG50 launch because Pulsar had stockpiled them waiting for the release and supplied several of us with really good quantities of them.

I sold a very large amount of XG50's and Rico 640's both in a very short time period. Trust me....there will always be people who buy a scope and aren't happy, don't like it, have a small problem or have a big problem and you'll hear about it from a lot of them. What you won't hear is how great it is from the other 98% of users. That goes for many brands. I've seen nothing from the Rico launch or usage that is any reason for concern.

The scope that was posted on the YoutTube video as possibly having the lag or delay....it's been tested by iRay and has no issue at all. I sold that scope to a very good long time customer of mine but his test was flawed and he was mistaken, which is not the end of the world, we all make mistakes. I have video proof the scope is not defective (willing to share if people would like the proof) and that exact scope is about to mounted on my rifle and I will be using it as my own personal scope. It's had no updates and no changes made to it at all and I'm 100% confident in it.

The Rico is a heck of a scope. It is not (in my humble opinion) the best scope ever made or the best image quality available but I do believe it's a very good value and has an absolutely amazing image quality and feature set for it's $6,000 price tag.

The great thing is we have more options than ever in the high end thermal category, the Thermion XG50, Rico 640, N-Vision NOX's, Halo LR, Halo-X models and all the Trijicons.

Just my 2 cents having been using all these scopes in field, including the Rico for many months.

Very well said, especially the part about how you never hear from the vast majority of folks that dont have an issue but the few that do make it seem worse than it actually is. Sounds like these guys are not going to have a hard time selling any scopes anyhow lol.

Jason, I am going to put you on the spot. In your opinion which optic has the best image quality on an average night? I know average is different from place to place but a night where it isnt the worst or best conditions. I would assume it would still be one of the N Vision scopes but wanted to hear your opinion.

[imyomama]

AGM taipan tm15

quick backyard video of the Taipan TM15 .. not bad for an entry level spotter ... working on the helmet mount now ... [ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dboKgzw5wy4&ab_channel=standbackitsgonnabl o"]AGM Taipan TM15 thermal monocular - YouTube[/ame]

[Fordnandez]

quick backyard video of the Taipan TM15 .. not bad for an entry level spotter ... working on the helmet mount now ... AGM Taipan TM15 thermal monocular - YouTube

Nothing wrong with that for $1,300.

[MUZZYSLINGR]

They’re definitely a bit large, but not overly so for most purposes. This a smaller CZ 457 Rimfire, and while a little large on this rifle it’s more at home on centerfires.



[ATTACH]1042304[/ATTACH]

Ok, this rig gets points for just looking cool. What is the suppressor on it?


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[dbelcher269]

The unit we've been using is a Pulsar Trail XQ38. What is the most comparable current unit to that one?

Probably the Thermion XQ38 if your staying in the Pulsar line. Slightly higher base magnification but pretty similar specs otherwise. The Berring Optics Hogster 35 would be similar as well and cheaper, but I think it lacks the onboard video recorder. If you aren't scared of ATN then the THOR 4 2x8. Several others out there, but just the three off the top of my head. Something to think about, several models have wifi so if you and your son are sitting in the same blind you or he can see what the other is doing on your smartphone or tablet.

[Lip]

The unit we've been using is a Pulsar Trail XQ38. What is the most comparable current unit to that one?

Probably the Thermion XQ38 if your staying in the Pulsar line. Slightly higher base magnification but pretty similar specs otherwise. The Berring Optics Hogster 35 would be similar as well and cheaper, but I think it lacks the onboard video recorder. If you aren't scared of ATN then the THOR 4 2x8. Several others out there, but just the three off the top of my head. Something to think about, several models have wifi so if you and your son are sitting in the same blind you or he can see what the other is doing on your smartphone or tablet.

When you say most comparable, it depends on what you're talking about. If you're looking only at functionality, the Thermion XQ38 is the direct replacement. If you're looking at size and functionality, I'd say the AGM Rattler TS35-384 which is very similar in size and features as well as magnification. It's around $800 less than the Thermion and also includes an ADM quick attach mount. You would need to buy a QD mount for the Thermion at around $189 for an ADM. If money is an issue, go with the AGM Rattler TS25-384 which is also similar except with a 1.5 power base instead of 2.2 power of the TS35.

Pulsar Thermion XQ38 $3299.97 + QD mount
AGM Rattler TS35-384 $2495 (mount included)
AGM Rattler TS25-384 $1995 (mount included)

The Hogsters are another option but a bit more expensive than the Rattlers and do not include onboard recording.

If you're going with a Thermion, at this point I think I'd hold out for the Thermion 2 XQ38. Same price with some slight upgrades. My guess is if you get on a waiting list now for the Thermion, the "2" is probably what you would get anyway due to backorders.

[kkp005]

that exact scope is about to mounted on my rifle and I will be using it as my own personal scope. It's had no updates and no changes made to it at all and I'm 100% confident in it..

Jason, you don’t want that junky Iray. I’ll trade you even for my XG50....it even comes with a cool custom outdoor legacy adm qd

[TX03RUBI]

Ok, this rig gets points for just looking cool. What is the suppressor on it?


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SilencerCo Sparrow. That thing started it all for me lol it was my very first can in 2010.

[TX03RUBI]

Ok, this rig gets points for just looking cool. What is the suppressor on it?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

SilencerCo Sparrow. That thing started it all for me lol it was my very first can in 2010. It’s still actually really competitive today, which is saying something as far as technology has come in the last 10+ years.

[Jethro]

Made a test run last night with the Hogster 35R mounted up in a remote mount on the roof of the pickup, streaming to a screen in the cab. Worked pretty good, need a few tweaks but it is going to help a lot.

Chewed up one sounder pretty good, killed 9, still have lots of targets left. Planting season coming soon, it is time to get serious about numbers.

I took the image out. For some reason TBH makes it 5 miles wide. Don't have trouble on any other sites, it posts up fine on them.

[gingib]

When you say most comparable, it depends on what you're talking about. If you're looking only at functionality, the Thermion XQ38 is the direct replacement. If you're looking at size and functionality, I'd say the AGM Rattler TS35-384 which is very similar in size and features as well as magnification. It's around $800 less than the Thermion and also includes an ADM quick attach mount. You would need to buy a QD mount for the Thermion at around $189 for an ADM. If money is an issue, go with the AGM Rattler TS25-384 which is also similar except with a 1.5 power base instead of 2.2 power of the TS35.

Pulsar Thermion XQ38 $3299.97 + QD mount
AGM Rattler TS35-384 $2495 (mount included)
AGM Rattler TS25-384 $1995 (mount included)

The Hogsters are another option but a bit more expensive than the Rattlers and do not include onboard recording.

If you're going with a Thermion, at this point I think I'd hold out for the Thermion 2 XQ38. Same price with some slight upgrades. My guess is if you get on a waiting list now for the Thermion, the "2" is probably what you would get anyway due to backorders.

Very good analysis!

Dale: trust me, buy a step up from what you currently want