telf Posted August 4, 2013 Report Share Posted August 4, 2013 (edited) quick review of the yukon photon 5x42 i received my photon last wednesday,but only got out with it last night,on opening the box and taking it out,i was very impressed with the quality of the unit,packaged well and sturdy construction mounted the unit on high mounts,good amount of eye relief,easy instructions and simple to operate,i had bought myself a scope mount for it from e-bay which is both windage and elevation adjustable,unfortunately when i tried to fix it to the scope,although it is quite high the front of it was hitting the top of the photons battery compartment,(this mount would be perfect for a normal scope)so i thought i would mount it behind the elevation knob of the photon,only to find it was hitting the top of the turret ? plan b next, put the mount in the for sales section and order a nitemaster adjustable mount to fit on the front side weaver rail system,mount arrives put it on,great,out last nite,i shoot off quad sticks,when the rifle is on the sticks,where does the beam of the ir torch shine right on the front stick, i am now in the process of sending the mount back to nitemaster for hopefully a refund,but no further forward to the mounting issue as yet. nitemaster do a top mount for the scope but i find the price somewhat off putting to say the least,anyway thats enough about mounting problems(steady) now the unit itself,basically a scope with a nv monocular fitted on it so its just like looking through a scope,perfect,i zeroed the unit at 70yds for my .22lr in daylight,i found this a bit of a chore as the image is black and white and the target just shows itself as one big black circle,i found the best way of doing this was to put some of the small black cicles from shoot n see targets down and aim at them as the illuminated dot on the reticle seems to cover the dot so you know your on target,once zeroed which was quite easy after i did this i watched rabbits out to 130yds in daylight they appear as a black shape against a white background,i shot 2 rabbits at 70 yds without a problem after dark the photon proved to be worth the money as a further 6 rabbits were shot at 70-80 yds the image with the inbuilt ir is a little grainy but still quit useable at these distances and possibly further although a better ir unit such as dave gs modified torch(which i have) or the nm800 would give a better and clearer image,distance wise i would say with the better ir you could probably have a shootable distance of 200yds all in all for the price i think the photon is a quality piece of nightvision equipement,which when they come into the country in any great numbers will knock the sales of nite eye,nitesight and a few others for six atb dave mounting problem now solved using deben lamp mounts i had in the other sales section,not adjustable but hopefully be ok Edited August 4, 2013 by telf Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve_b_wales Posted August 4, 2013 Report Share Posted August 4, 2013 Thanks for the write up. I'm seriously thinking of getting a Photon in the next month or two. It would be used on one rifle only, probably my .22-250. I looked through one while at the Shooting Show last February, but would love to see one 'out in the open'. Good luck with your future shooting with the Photon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bikemad24 Posted August 4, 2013 Report Share Posted August 4, 2013 it looks a very good piece of nv for £400. please can you do a review once your up and running Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joe soapy Posted August 4, 2013 Report Share Posted August 4, 2013 just whish Scott country would come on here and say available for dispatch now Although they are going to be a nightmare for landowners and gamekeepers.. In the meantime i have got a pir wireless door bell set up in the field out front 2.30 this morn was woken up by fox ringing the bell!.. Not more than 5 mins from sound asleep shoot fox and back to bed Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
telf Posted August 4, 2013 Author Report Share Posted August 4, 2013 steve,if your thinking of getting one get your deposit down on one now,otherwise it could be god knows how long as there only coming in ,in dribs and drabs Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matone Posted August 4, 2013 Report Share Posted August 4, 2013 Good to hear from an actual user ! Thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve_b_wales Posted August 4, 2013 Report Share Posted August 4, 2013 steve,if your thinking of getting one get your deposit down on one now,otherwise it could be god knows how long as there only coming in ,in dribs and drabs Yeah I know. Still undecided yet if I'll buy one or not, but will decide soon. No hurry for it though, as I have my NS200 to use. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bikemad24 Posted August 4, 2013 Report Share Posted August 4, 2013 Has anyone else got one? i live in the north west and would love to look through one before i go and buy it. iv just sent my rfd a text asking if he can get a demo. i had the pulsar thermal on demo a few weeks ago and really didnt want to give it back! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
telf Posted August 4, 2013 Author Report Share Posted August 4, 2013 (edited) if you phone scott country they are having demos around the country,they are having one in carlisle sometime where all their nightvision is on show Edited August 4, 2013 by telf Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnny Posted August 14, 2013 Report Share Posted August 14, 2013 Be interested how your getting on with it as I've just ordered one. Cheers John Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
telf Posted August 14, 2013 Author Report Share Posted August 14, 2013 hi john never got out last weekend as i had man flue,hope to get out this weekend,weather permitting,if i do i will report my findings,however i dont think you will be dissapointed when you get it,ive never seen one up for sale yet although i thought there might have been some videos put up from people who are capable of that,im not still learning to ype, oops Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnny Posted August 14, 2013 Report Share Posted August 14, 2013 Scott's said I may get it September but iam not holding my breath. I've gone for the nm800 aswell. Looking to put it on a 22.250 and 17hmr Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave-G Posted August 14, 2013 Report Share Posted August 14, 2013 Excellent news Dave. you;ll be getting lots of sleep loss now. Anyone thinking about an IR illuminator for it, you don't need the huge NM800ir. Apart from it costing an arm and a leg it is waayyyy too much IR for the range you can shoot quarry at 5 times mag. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
activeviii Posted August 14, 2013 Report Share Posted August 14, 2013 modified t20 torch which you can adjust the beam works prefect. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
malkiserow Posted August 14, 2013 Report Share Posted August 14, 2013 modified t20 torch which you can adjust the beam works prefect. From what I can see, you can change the pill easily from Red Led to White to IR easily and they are all are adjustable focus which is a big plus in my opinion. The 501b is very good but this is even better Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
telf Posted August 14, 2013 Author Report Share Posted August 14, 2013 as said hopefully i will get out this weekend and see what its like with dave gs ir on seeing as i have overcome the mounting problems,if its anything like the 501 with the a horton kit fitted it will be the dogs johnny,a little bit of hope for you,scotts told me it would be this month before i got mine but they got a delivery in that i dont think they were really expecting,so you never know cheers dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matty thud Posted August 14, 2013 Report Share Posted August 14, 2013 it looks a very good piece of nv for £400. please can you do a review once your up and running only 350 up here out off stock at moment tho at redbeck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mick miller Posted August 14, 2013 Report Share Posted August 14, 2013 Although the concept looks great the photon is of no use to me, how the hell can you consistently head shoot rabbits at 100 plus yards at night with only five times mag? Ive tried with my set ups and I either end up shooting them through the shoulder or worse, snouting them. Maybe its me but the bare minimum I need is eight times mag? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave-G Posted August 14, 2013 Report Share Posted August 14, 2013 (edited) Although the concept looks great the photon is of no use to me, how the hell can you consistently head shoot rabbits at 100 plus yards at night with only five times mag? Ive tried with my set ups and I either end up shooting them through the shoulder or worse, snouting them. Maybe its me but the bare minimum I need is eight times mag? I'm with you there, 100 yards is nearing my maximum for reliable head shots on bunnies at 5 mag. Possibly good news for you around the corner though regarding 8 mag... Edited August 15, 2013 by Dave-G Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave-G Posted August 14, 2013 Report Share Posted August 14, 2013 (edited) Its not very easy to swap T20 modules in the cold and dark, you need light and tools to dismantle it too. They are focusable though, so swings and roundabouts really: Depends if you want to use a dedicated illuminator or a versatile lamping torch/illuminator. It's common knowledge on the night vision forum UK that someone who specialises in making IR illuminators with big lenses has tried all sizes of the current crop of them, built with Oslon Black SFH 4715S LED's, and found they are all too much for the new Photon, though some - such as the T20 with it's more moderate lens size may be used at reduced potential for the standard five mag version. There is very likely a 'mag doubler' screw on lens accessory for the front of the Photon coming to the market soon that converts it to about 8 mag: That lens is likely to reduce it's incredible light gathering ability to the extent that the T20 and some of the others might get used to their full potential at higher mags. Loads of people already have a 501B torch they can convert, or one that wasn't powerful enough for rear add-on rigs, but anyone with a 1 watt ebay IR module tucked away in a drawer somewhere could get a lovely lovely lovely surprise if they try it with the Photon, even with a cheap DX aspheric lens which has been discussed at great length elsewhere on this forum. Unlike the currently more common rear add-on rigs, the dedicated Photon and N550 digital night vision rigs are very much more capable of seeing nocturnal quarry at ambient light levels. Most users will be able to use it at half moon or more with zero IR at all at practical 5 mag rabbit head shooting ranges. Edited August 15, 2013 by Dave-G Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
telf Posted August 15, 2013 Author Report Share Posted August 15, 2013 Although the concept looks great the photon is of no use to me, how the hell can you consistently head shoot rabbits at 100 plus yards at night with only five times mag? Ive tried with my set ups and I either end up shooting them through the shoulder or worse, snouting them. Maybe its me but the bare minimum I need is eight times mag? i use my .22lr with the photon,which is zeroed at 70yds,so really my max range on the dot is 80yds which i find adaquate for my night shooting Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnny Posted August 15, 2013 Report Share Posted August 15, 2013 Head shootings not a problem for me as I don't pick any up so tend to shoot body only anyway. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mick miller Posted August 15, 2013 Report Share Posted August 15, 2013 That answers it then, I'm not sure why they didn't give it more than five times mag, that's often at the minimum end of the scale for most optical variable zoom scopes. Presumably because it's range is quite limited? Looks great but I'll be waiting for Photon mk.2 to come out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
al4x Posted August 15, 2013 Report Share Posted August 15, 2013 it will be purely down to what is visible but realistically bunnies to that range and foxes to 100 plus make it quite an interesting bit of kit at the price. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mick miller Posted August 15, 2013 Report Share Posted August 15, 2013 No doubt about that, the price is good, I would be happier to have paid a little more for a little more though. But as an entry, dedicated unit, it's not too shabby. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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