Thermal imagers.

[old man]

What do you know?

Best buy?

Thanks

Edited May 8, 2021 by old man

[Mice!]

Lots of the new units coming out with new tech, I'm really impressed with my second hand Pulsar XQ23V it can pick things up way beyond shooting range.

Definitely best to try and have a play with one before buying if possible,  problem is now as its getting warmer in the mornings they soon red out, you will be amazed by what goes on around you though, and don't forget the rats at night.

[Rewulf]

48 minutes ago, old man said:

Best buy?

Depends on budget , a basic thermal is around £800 and upwards from there ?

[old man]

5 hours ago, Rewulf said:

Depends on budget , a basic thermal is around £800 and upwards from there ?

Difficult to evaluate the use factor versus cost?

[villaman]

Been told entry level would be pulsar xm30 

[Rewulf]

3 hours ago, old man said:

Difficult to evaluate the use factor versus cost?

Depends how far you want to ID at. 

An entry level £800 should ID a fox at around 200 yards, whereas a £2000+ should at 4 or 500. 

XM 30, Iray E2, hik 15 or Hti a3/4 £800 to a grand. 

More you spend, the more you see. 

 

[powler]

I cant say to much on other makes as not tested any but I bought a Pulsar Axion XQ38, this works very well and is nice a compact so fits in the hand well, as Mice said its getting warmer in the mornings now so it does not help but I find the Axion still able to distinguish between a hot tree and a squirrel sat in said tree.

I can look across a gully some 800yds and spot lambs on a cooler day easy enough, identification would not be that easy at that range if I didn't know they were lambs.

Another occasion parked up and watching through thermal some 300yds away spotted a squirrel on the ground, had to use rifle scope to see it. So the Axion works well for me and I'm very happy with the performance, but one thing the axion could do with is a rubber eyepiece as spotting in daytime can lead to sunlight bleeding in around the eye.

I did look think about getting a Guide TK35 but was put off by the fixed internal battery

[oldypigeonpopper]

Hello, I have no knowledge of thermal but see many posts on various shooting forums including PW , so what are the advantages against a normal night vision spotter like my Pard 019 

[Mice!]

1 hour ago, oldypigeonpopper said:

Hello, I have no knowledge of thermal but see many posts on various shooting forums including PW , so what are the advantages against a normal night vision spotter like my Pard 019 

Your night vision spotter just allows you to see at night, the thermal works day or night if the temperature is right, you can scan an area and heat sources will show up, might be pigeons in a tree, squirrels,  deer or like powler says above sheep or lambs, I was looking through some trees a few weeks back and picking up the sheep and lambs beyond them, it really through me for a minute. 

Best thing to see how they work is take a look on YouTube at a few videos. 

[oldypigeonpopper]

8 minutes ago, Mice! said:

Your night vision spotter just allows you to see at night, the thermal works day or night if the temperature is right, you can scan an area and heat sources will show up, might be pigeons in a tree, squirrels,  deer or like powler says above sheep or lambs, I was looking through some trees a few weeks back and picking up the sheep and lambs beyond them, it really through me for a minute. 

Best thing to see how they work is take a look on YouTube at a few videos. 

Hello, thanks mice,any particular videos, ?

[Mice!]

1 minute ago, oldypigeonpopper said:

Hello, thanks mice,any particular videos, ?

The latest Robin Foxer videos show brand new thermal technology 

[Sciurus]

@oldypigeonpopper As I understand it, night vision works by magnifying light. As mice mentioned thermal spotters work by detecting heat compared to surrounding areas. So in the right conditions a thermal will also detect something that can’t be seen, ie a squirrel in a drey or hole in a tree. I used my thermal to detect the layout of my central heating pipes under the floor and carpet. They are that good.

@old man Thermals are improving all the time and price falling as more companies enter the market. The Hik vision 15 mm has more clarity than the Pulsar that mice and I have but is £500 cheaper although it has a smaller field of view. The benefit of thermals is that it will get you out shooting more often (dull days), you will shoot squirrels you wouldn’t normally have seen and you will get more enjoyment being outdoors as you will pick up birds and animals that are around you but wouldn’t normally see.

Squirrels throw off a lot of heat and just a head is easily detected. Practice makes perfect. If you can afford it, get one. I don’t know anyone who regrets buying one.

[oldypigeonpopper]

5 minutes ago, Sciurus said:

@oldypigeonpopper As I understand it, night vision works by magnifying light. As mice mentioned thermal spotters work by detecting heat compared to surrounding areas. So in the right conditions a thermal will also detect something that can’t be seen, ie a squirrel in a drey or hole in a tree. I used my thermal to detect the layout of my central heating pipes under the floor and carpet. They are that good.

@old man Thermals are improving all the time and price falling as more companies enter the market. The Hik vision 15 mm has more clarity than the Pulsar that mice and I have but is £500 cheaper although it has a smaller field of view. The benefit of thermals is that it will get you out shooting more often (dull days), you will shoot squirrels you wouldn’t normally have seen and you will get more enjoyment being outdoors as you will pick up birds and animals that are around you but wouldn’t normally see.

Squirrels throw off a lot of heat and just a head is easily detected. Practice makes perfect. If you can afford it, get one. I don’t know anyone who regrets buying one.

Hello, thanks for that, what model Hik vision are you suggesting ?

[Walker570]

I think it all boils down to two things.  1) how deep are your pockets   2) How often do you need the technology.  As most of you know there is rarely a day/night I am not out with a rifle. I looked at thermal and decided I really could not justify the money(purchased a new shotgun instead).  I have a NV unit, one of those which looks like a pair of binoculars,  £125.  On a nights foxing this unit will spot any animals withing my shooting range and beyond.    I think if you are hunting tree rats during the day on foot in woodland then the thermal will be a boon, but otherwise personally I would stick with a NV unit and spend the money on something else. 

[oldypigeonpopper]

10 minutes ago, Walker570 said:

I think it all boils down to two things.  1) how deep are your pockets   2) How often do you need the technology.  As most of you know there is rarely a day/night I am not out with a rifle. I looked at thermal and decided I really could not justify the money(purchased a new shotgun instead).  I have a NV unit, one of those which looks like a pair of binoculars,  £125.  On a nights foxing this unit will spot any animals withing my shooting range and beyond.    I think if you are hunting tree rats during the day on foot in woodland then the thermal will be a boon, but otherwise personally I would stick with a NV unit and spend the money on something else. 

Hello, I think it is the same with me but I am only out 1 or 2 nights a week, what night vision unit is that ? seems a reasonable price, have you a link you can put up, cheers

Edited May 10, 2021 by oldypigeonpopper

[oowee]

21 hours ago, oldypigeonpopper said:

Hello, I have no knowledge of thermal but see many posts on various shooting forums including PW , so what are the advantages against a normal night vision spotter like my Pard 019 

More than just see it's about detection too. With a good thermal you can spot just the ears of a fox laid up in a field, or juat the mearest speck of a body in cover. A NV spotter must have a clear line of sight to the target to see it and can be hampered by IR bounce back from ground cover. A thermal is simply detecting heat so will detect targets in cover. 

It's all down to budget and needs. There is no doubt they have the potential to increase effectiveness but the hunter still has to do the rest. 

 

[oldypigeonpopper]

3 minutes ago, oowee said:

More than just see it's about detection too. With a good thermal you can spot just the ears of a fox laid up in a field, or juat the mearest speck of a body in cover. A NV spotter must have a clear line of sight to the target to see it and can be hampered by IR bounce back from ground cover. A thermal is simply detecting heat so will detect targets in cover. 

It's all down to budget and needs. There is no doubt they have the potential to increase effectiveness but the hunter still has to do the rest. 

 

Hello, thanks oowee, yes but I do not realy need one but never say never, and there are so many to choose from 🤔

[old man]

Thanks all. Still mulling over.

One of my main problems is that whenever I scale up for something the goal posts seem to be moved, rendering my effort void.

How much kit can we get?...... not enough?

[oowee]

10 minutes ago, old man said:

Thanks all. Still mulling over.

One of my main problems is that whenever I scale up for something the goal posts seem to be moved, rendering my effort void.

How much kit can we get?...... not enough?

If what you have works for what you do, stick with it. 

[Walker570]

4 hours ago, oldypigeonpopper said:

Hello, I think it is the same with me but I am only out 1 or 2 nights a week, what night vision unit is that ? seems a reasonable price, have you a link you can put up, cheers

Elite  as per photo.  I had another very similar which was cheaper and only lasted about a year. This one was from my local gun store (Solware) and came with a two year guarantee.  Works off AA batteries and they sem to last a long time.  Inbuilt IR which easliy gives me 200yrd viewing and as a magnification facility which I rarely use. Will also take photos/video which i never use.  No heavier than a pair of binos and you can use it in daylight and it is superb in half light.  Can't fault it.

Heads up for all battery powered units... be carefull not to buy the useless low power batteries suitable for only clocks and alarms as they will not work in these units.

Edited May 10, 2021 by Walker570

[Sciurus]

13 hours ago, oldypigeonpopper said:

Hello, thanks for that, what model Hik vision are you suggesting ?

It’s the HikVision Vulcan Lynx 15 mm monocular currently £899. 99. Special offers do come up, now and again.

I am not exactly recommending it, I think it is all personal taste. I prefer my pulsar as it has a wider field of view and I am used to it. The full time squirrel rangers have gone over to Hik vision and seem happy with them. What is good about the HikVision is you can clearly see which branch the squirrel is on. With the older Pulsar like mine, you can see the grey at a distance but not always sure which exact branch it is on.

2 hours ago, old man said:

Thanks all. Still mulling over.

One of my main problems is that whenever I scale up for something the goal posts seem to be moved, rendering my effort void.

How much kit can we get?...... not enough?

The age old problem! Why not take a trip out to Solware at Tamworth and have a play?

[Mice!]

5 hours ago, oowee said:

It's all down to budget and needs. There is no doubt they have the potential to increase effectiveness but the hunter still has to do the rest. 

 

That's the thing, you see more but still have to do your part, its going to be missed through the summer.

[oldypigeonpopper]

1 hour ago, Walker570 said:

Elite  as per photo.  I had another very similar which was cheaper and only lasted about a year. This one was from my local gun store (Solware) and came with a two year guarantee.  Works off AA batteries and they sem to last a long time.  Inbuilt IR which easliy gives me 200yrd viewing and as a magnification facility which I rarely use. Will also take photos/video which i never use.  No heavier than a pair of binos and you can use it in daylight and it is superb in half light.  Can't fault it.

Heads up for all battery powered units... be carefull not to buy the useless low power batteries suitable for only clocks and alarms as they will not work in these units.

Hello, thanks for that, is that the 200 or 400 model, ?

[Walker570]

It does not say on the unit and I don't have the original paperwork to hand.

[oldypigeonpopper]

7 minutes ago, Walker570 said:

It does not say on the unit and I don't have the original paperwork to hand.

Hello, ok thanks for that, the 200 has 4 batteries the 400 has 8, that may help identify yours,