colin lad Posted May 26, 2014 Report Share Posted May 26, 2014 well my starlight arrow arrived last week and i finally got to take it out last night, before i write my findings you have to know a little about me, i am a typical bloke who when putting up a flat pack never reads the instruction's lol, in fact on most things night vision included, so when starlight phoned to say it was on it's way and if i wanted to phone them so they could run me through how to set it up i could, not this bloke i don't need instructions, well i took it out of box and first impression's were it's a nice neat well made piece of kit, 1st job was to move scope forward so when i mount it so i can shoot pretty much as i would normally with out having to hold it too far from my shoulder, the bushes you get with the arrow didn't seem too strong but after mounting it they seemed to do the job fine, i was told by the chap at starlight that if you put some tape round the end of the scope it will stop bush from slipping when mounted, mmmm not sure about sticky tape on my scope so i wrapped some of the camo tape you get the stuff that has no adhesive and only stick's to it's self which turned out to do a fantastic job and i did not have to do the securing nuts up too tight another thing i was not too keen on, the securing nut's were Allen key which meant if you wanted to adjust it in the field you would have to carry a small Allen key with you so they got changed for wing head nuts for ease of use, an idea i got from another forum member who also kindly sent me some, also if you wish to change the batteries in the field the Allen key nut for that was even more fiddly, it was Thursday in my back garden i first tried it out and the firefly illuminator i got with it stopped working after 30 seconds great start, so 1st thing friday morning i was on the phone to starlight who said a new one will be in the post, so i ordered a T20 torch of another forum member to use as a back up which arrived Saturday morning. so arrived d day last night, myself and mungolee were all set to try out the new toy, before leaving the house about 7pm i made sure i had everything nv unit spare torch's and mounts in case anything went wrong with nv unit, we 1st arrive at a farm where the 1st job was to zero my lr in daylight as i had not done it since moving the scope, 3 shots and it was bang on the money, so we moved to another farm where we would be shooting that night, eager to get at some we had a walk around while it was light to bag a few bunnies all the time i could not wait for it to get dark to try out the new toy, so as darkness fell we made a hasty retreat back to the car to fit on the nv unit and have a quick cuppa, by now it was 10pm and the sun had set and i was restless waiting for my 1st nv rabbit, so we set of all the time i kept trying to look through my nv to see how it was not realising you 1st need to tune it all in haha just as the chap from starlight had said, by about 11.30 it was dark and i was getting quite annoyed as it was not a very clear picture as it was promised and i started to wonder if the 5 month wait for it to arrive was worth it, then i had a brain wave tee he try to adjust the parralex as it said you need a pa scope so i did and hay presto i could see things i could even see a rabbit at about 75-80 yards away which so ran off when i let out a "wahoo i can see a rabbit" to lee, so moving on a bit i started to scan the fields to see what else was about all the time saying to lee it's good but i don't think it's as good as they claim, then came another brain wave the T20 has a adjustable focus too so on turning the end of the torch all of a sudden i could see even further lol it was only half way focussed doh, so now i have a bit of kit i could see out too well over 150 yards with to which i was much more happy with, by this time lee was stood next to me with the head torch on looking on as if to say "your a muppet" lol he then noticed the the eye piece has a thread and said to me why don't you try adjusting the eye piece too as it's threaded and may help a bit so i did and what do you know it did haha all of a sudden everything was not only visible but very clear too, so with my now properly working and set up arrow we headed of to a paddock which i know would have rabbits in and on arriving i could see 3 through my arrow about 60 yards away so i knelt down and rested the gun on a post a little play with the brightness button and click ****** i forgot to chamber a round, so quickly pulled the bolt back to chamber a round but couldn't on looking i noticed that pulling the scope all the way back as far as i could the bolt was hitting the arrow and not travelling the full length to chamber a round, double doh doh, back to car to move scope forward half an inch, so moved scope rezeroed scope under lamp fitted everything back on this time maybe this time i will get my 1st nv rabbit, so back to paddock by now it was 1.30 am and i was getting tired turned on nv unit and t20 chambered a rouned and got comfortable yippe there was a rabbit at about 55-60 yards put the cross hair on it and pop one dead rabbit and one big smile on my face as as i scanned round there was more out that didn't even know i was there, finally i am a nv shooter, then the next thing after all this faffing about the battery in the t20 was running low and was starting to flick between high mode and low which meant every time i got on a rabbit i would be just about to shoot and it would suddenly drop to low mode and i could hardly see a thing lol or treble doh, so to sum it up i if you do decide to get a arrow then listern to the guys at starlight take your time to set it up correctly take some spare batteries and you will have a great little add on for your scope capable of clearly seeing and shooting rabbits well beyond the distance of my lr shooting ranges and easily to the edge of my hmr shooting ranges for not too much money, can't wait for the firefly to come as it could well push them distances even further thanks for reading what a plonker i am hope you enjoyed thanks colin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bazzab Posted May 26, 2014 Report Share Posted May 26, 2014 Great write up mate. Made me chuckle. I could see the pair of ya out there! !!! Have to have a look see mate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave-G Posted May 26, 2014 Report Share Posted May 26, 2014 Good first arrow review - good on you for relating the issues you found in your learning curve mate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Davyo Posted May 26, 2014 Report Share Posted May 26, 2014 (edited) Good review,and you cant beat a bit of comedy in the field lol we've all done it at least you had a bolt to pull back.By the way that T20 how long did it take for the battery to die,was gona order one of the bay tonight to use on a 2nd nv rig. Edited May 26, 2014 by Davyo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
colin lad Posted May 26, 2014 Author Report Share Posted May 26, 2014 Good review,and you cant beat a bit of comedy in the field lol we've all done it at least you had a bolt to pull back.By the way that T20 how long did it take for the battery to die,was gona order one of the bay tonight to use on a 2nd nv rig. if i am honest i think i left it on from when i was setting up at home and having a play with it you can't tell its on unless you look into the end lol i would say it was on a good few hours not sure what mode though i didn't know at the time that that was why it was flickering it was only when i got home and pmed the guy i got it from that he told me that they do that when the power source runs low that i put 2 and 2 together as i thought it had a fault colin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
al4x Posted May 26, 2014 Report Share Posted May 26, 2014 Sounds just like the archer Colin, takes a bit to get the best out of it. Sounds handy though I look forward to more reports about it though it's the wrong time of year to get it near the longest day! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
malkiserow Posted May 26, 2014 Report Share Posted May 26, 2014 (edited) Great read - sounds like Stan and Oli Glad it all works well now and you will get much pleasure from it Edited May 26, 2014 by malkiserow Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pigeonblasterian Posted May 26, 2014 Report Share Posted May 26, 2014 Sounds like a decent bit of kit.I had the same problem with setting up my archer when i got it. Once you get the firefly you should see a big improvement. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
welshwarrior Posted May 26, 2014 Report Share Posted May 26, 2014 I love to hear from someone who tries on of these on a fixed not pa scope like a S&B 6x42 or 8x56 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
colin lad Posted May 26, 2014 Author Report Share Posted May 26, 2014 I love to hear from someone who tries on of these on a fixed not pa scope like a S&B 6x42 or 8x56 i found for best result i had scope with paralex turned way down and on 6 mag the only thing i would change though i did not mention it as it was a arrow review and that is i need a scope with a thicker cross hair as my eyes ain't what they use to be and i was finding it hard to see cross hair as i do when lamping normally so will be in the market for a PA 3 x 9 x 40 with thicker cross hairs colin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mick miller Posted May 26, 2014 Report Share Posted May 26, 2014 Righto, let me know when you have a free (dry) evening and I'll come up and look if possible Colin, I'm keen to see how it compares to my ohmlaut jobby. Glad to hear you're using a t20, I think you'll find it'll give a better picture than you'll get with a laser although the laser may well give you the edge on distance. You finally got it though. Not long til autumn Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peskyfoxs Posted May 27, 2014 Report Share Posted May 27, 2014 Glad to hear it arrived and great write up. The firefly batteries last forever, mine have been in months so that's one thing you won't need to worry about (ps the firefly has adjustable beam too, thought id best say in case you didn't read instructions ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
colin lad Posted May 27, 2014 Author Report Share Posted May 27, 2014 Glad to hear it arrived and great write up. The firefly batteries last forever, mine have been in months so that's one thing you won't need to worry about (ps the firefly has adjustable beam too, thought id best say in case you didn't read instructions ) lol yeah shame it didn't last long enough to find that out colin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
malkiserow Posted May 27, 2014 Report Share Posted May 27, 2014 (edited) As this was such an auspicious occasion, I decided to mark the day with a photo of Colin and Lee out looking for rabbits ........ Edited May 27, 2014 by malkiserow Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
colin lad Posted May 27, 2014 Author Report Share Posted May 27, 2014 As this was such an auspicious occasion, I decided to mark the day with a photo of Colin and Lee out looking for rabbits ........ that just about sums us up though when we in the buggy it's usually me driving not lee as in pic colin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oscarsdad Posted May 27, 2014 Report Share Posted May 27, 2014 Good write up...I could really imagine you out with it and the issues mate lol! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ben0850 Posted May 28, 2014 Report Share Posted May 28, 2014 Great write up. Would you be kind enough Colin to give a "kit list" for the Starlight arrow? I have been tempted with NV for some time and have read so many differing reports on Yukon / Pulsar etc etc. I purchased a second hand Yukon from the dreaded bay but the seller went back on the deal and I was refunded and still none the wiser.. The starlight arrow seams to be the better option for an add on NV at reasonable costs? The number of second hand yukon and pulsar kits coming up for sale would seem to suggest they are less user friendly or just not of the same quality as the Starlight kit? I would really welcome your opinion as the whole NV thing seems a huge web of confusion and empty cheque books at the moment?? Thanks Ben Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
colin lad Posted May 28, 2014 Author Report Share Posted May 28, 2014 Great write up. Would you be kind enough Colin to give a "kit list" for the Starlight arrow? I have been tempted with NV for some time and have read so many differing reports on Yukon / Pulsar etc etc. I purchased a second hand Yukon from the dreaded bay but the seller went back on the deal and I was refunded and still none the wiser.. The starlight arrow seams to be the better option for an add on NV at reasonable costs? The number of second hand yukon and pulsar kits coming up for sale would seem to suggest they are less user friendly or just not of the same quality as the Starlight kit? I would really welcome your opinion as the whole NV thing seems a huge web of confusion and empty cheque books at the moment?? Thanks Ben it's all new to me too i got the entry level arrow and the firefly illuminator but the firefly had a fault so went back so i mounted a t20 with ir on top of it i have borrowed bazzab's 501b to try on it will try that next though i feel the t20 will be better, when the new firefly comes i will try it with that and put a post up on how it went, the chap at starlight said it will reach even further with the firefly, so all you need is the arrow and some form of illumination all the brackets and bits come with the arrow colin DaveG off here can sort you out with the illumination he's a good bloke Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
magman Posted May 28, 2014 Report Share Posted May 28, 2014 Any pic's of the unit on and off the scope please Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FOXHUNTER1 Posted May 29, 2014 Report Share Posted May 29, 2014 Great write up Colin , felt like I was out with you .... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
colin lad Posted June 1, 2014 Author Report Share Posted June 1, 2014 went out again tonight think i am getting to grips with it now getting a great image even to 150 yards and beyond just cant quite get a great focus on cross hair colib Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
al4x Posted June 1, 2014 Report Share Posted June 1, 2014 Play with the scope focus ring on the eyepiece more, that's what makes most difference on my archer Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eccles Posted June 1, 2014 Report Share Posted June 1, 2014 As Al said play with focus ring, if its got the same bayonet fitting as the Archer moving it back or forward a little bit at a time will make a big difference . A mill or 2 makes a hell of a difference. atb Terry Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
colin lad Posted June 1, 2014 Author Report Share Posted June 1, 2014 thanks will do colin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
colin lad Posted June 1, 2014 Author Report Share Posted June 1, 2014 had a good play with it tonight and got it bob on now thanks chaps, also tried with the firefly on and would highly recommend getting one of these, i could clearly see and identify a cat at 150 plus yards i could see a lot further even rabbits at well over 150 yards, i picked the cat up at nearer 250 and could easily see eye shine and head sat in hedge but walked up about 100 yards to tell it was a cat and not a small fox a big thumbs up starlight colin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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