Ep. 312 | BUYING A NEW OPTIC **5 DON'TS**

[@TheLateNightVisionShow]

Thank y'all for watching, subscribing, and commenting! Call Hans and Jason if you are interested in purchasing a new Night Vision or Thermal Optic from Outdoor Legacy. 877-350-1818 outdoorlegacygear.com

[@number40Fan]

Congrats on 6 years of this show!!

[@TheLateNightVisionShow]

Thank you very much!!👊🏼👊🏼

[@Mark_Offerman]

I like the various topics the show covers and the pointers this video. I hunt with both bolt action and AR style rifles. A previous comment about having more offset mounts would be great such as the one offered by Sightmark Wraith NV. Covering this and the possibility of changing a bolt rifle stock for a chassis might make for some interesting discussions. Cost would definitely get brought up. Keep up the good work fellows!

[@TheLateNightVisionShow]

Thank you for watching and the comments we appreciate it!

[@mikecross2435]

On #5. My problem with the tube style is that they are way heavier. I only have the tube scope to fit on a bolt gun. I really wish they would put off-set mounts on the compact thermals.

[@TheLateNightVisionShow]

Thanks for watching Mike and for the comment. Your correct about tube style being heavier, it's definitely one of the biggest negatives about that style of optic...

[@danielthompson3837]

Your #1 was #1 for a reason! I unfortunately made the same mistake not once, not twice, but with three different optics- 2 N/V and a thermal monocular. Too much base magnification! I know, slow learner. 😆And this is the reason Jason and Hans spend so much time determining hunting experiences, so the same mistakes won't be made.
Now, when I bought my first N/V 5 years ago (Sightmark Photon RTS) as you know the market was a drastically different landscape from what it is today, quite limited and affordability considered. I even called and talked to Jason. This was the third and last generation, 4.5X base, the lowest option available (other was 6X). I used (attempted to use) this exclusively for night hunting pests, but the magnification was too much. Soon after the Wraith HD debuted, again with a 4X base, but a day-color option. Good for daytime, terrible again for night.
Then I bought a Pulsar Axion XM30 thermal monocular (again 4X base). This is great for scanning but makes it hard to equate real time distances and locate with N/V. I then bought a Pulsar Thermion XP50 (base 2X). In my opinion the perfect base magnification. I also bought a Wraith 4K Mini N/V with a 2X base. This is perfect.
Bottom line, I think originally N/V manufacturers were trying to meet the daytime hunters in the middle with 4X base. And then listened to the industry feedback and began to reduce the base magnification on future models, including thermal. As we know, N/V and thermal FOV and nighttime vision and perception is completely different from daytime. I will say there are some hunters in the flat and wide-open fields who may want more base magnification; but in my opinion, less is more.
Great show as always!
Best,

[@williamgaines9784]

A thermal monocular(160 res, 1x) was the first thermal I bought, when I was first using night vision. I could scan the area from inside my blind without having to worry about washout from the illuminator, or bumping the rifle against the blind frame. Once the game was spotted, I could bring the night vision up and then fire up the illuminator before taking a shot. That monocular still works fine for that purpose, even while using a thermal weapon sight as you pointed out, much lighter and more compact.
If I were to hunt in a place that had a shot longer that 110 yards, I would certainly upgrade my monocular, but not sure I could go helmet mounted.
Your points on base magnification are excellent. Thermal and night vision are a whole 'nother world from day scopes. With day scopes, one still has their 1x eyes for detection, with NV/Thermal your base magnification is the only view you get. If one looks at "field of view" at 100 yards, then realizes that view is NARROWED as you get closer, 4x is A LOT.
Great discussion as always.👍👍

[@TheLateNightVisionShow]

Great comments and yes sir it’s hard to explain to people how different a thermal or NV optic is compared to their daytime scope. But once they see it for themselves they are pretty shocked. Thanks for watching!

[@chrisross1657]

Love the channel ! I have learned more do's & don'ts & everything gear related listening to you guys then all other channels combined. THANK YOU !!!

[@TheLateNightVisionShow]

Thank you so much!! We really appreciate that. We’re glad someone can find something useful from all our rambling!😂 Thank you again!

[@wagnerfamily4229]

Thank You guys for being honest with your recommendations.

[@TheLateNightVisionShow]

That’s very kind, we greatly appreciate it!

[@cbaker5129]

I’d like to expand on number 2 based on my experience. I totally agree with getting a monocular, especially if you are hunting other people’s properties. You don’t want to be pointing a gun at everything you are trying to look at. But I would also add that I think you should spend the bulk of your money on the best monocular you can get and then get the best scope you can with what you have left. You will spend 95% of your time looking through the monocular and if you can be confident of identifying your target after seeing it through your handheld, even a scope with a below average image can be all you need to take a shot.
Thanks so much for the great info guys! 👊

[@cbaker5129]

Oh, and I’d love to hear Jason’s other 5 (or however many other) “don’ts”! 😄

[@davidfrydvm4960]

These guys are honest. I purchased a Pulsar higher end thermal from them a little over a year ago, talked directly to Jason who took his time and didn’t rush -answering every question I had, and with no pressure at all to purchase from them. Even had a little trouble with my credit card which wasn’t my or his fault, and we got it worked out without him ever questioning my ability to pay and continued with the sale unphased. They do business like it was back in the good ol days. Everything I was told held true, received my thermal quickly, and it’s worked like a champ ever since. When I buy my next thermal - it will be from these fellas.

[@TheLateNightVisionShow]

Thank you SO much for taking the time to leave this comment. We truly appreciate your kind words and your business. It means so much to us when people choose to do business with us and we do not take it for granted. We’re thankful you had a great experience and as always, if we can ever help in any way, don’t hesitate to reach out to us. Thank you again!
- Jason

[@johnkillen5826]

Beware of places selling scopes that have been discontinued for years and are selling them for their new price or a small discount but making it sound like they are current models

[@TheLateNightVisionShow]

100%! This is very true. This happens. A lot. The model names are nearly identical and people think they are getting a deal at a few hundred off but in reality they are buying a 2 year old discontinued optic, often times with a reduced warranty!

[@billbristow1768]

Great show! Good info.

[@TheLateNightVisionShow]

Thank you!

[@brianrull6210]

Any chance we can get reviews on Steiner S35 & C35 - Gen2?

[@TheLateNightVisionShow]

At this point it’s not on our radar. We feel their thermals are overpriced Chinese re-brands. We believe they bring nothing of significant value to an already crowded and very competitive market filled with very reliable and established thermal name brands. Steiner is also only offering a 2 year warranty on their thermal optics and the standard has bee 3 years for over a decade and now every major thermal brand is offering 5 years.
We have yet to see a daytime optic company successfully bring anything of value and real quality to the thermal market. This is partly because they are just rebranding already built optics from the lowest quality Chinese companies because they are too late to the game to do anything else. These daytime companies do not have the people, equipment, skills, time or energy to start from scratch nor are they (wisely) willing to invest the millions and millions of dollars it would take on such a startup gamble.
With so many great brands like AGM, Infiray Outdoor, Pulsar, Rix and N-Vision, we see these “off brands” or re-branded optics from these daytime companies as nothing more than white noise in a crowded and established market. And to be clear, these comments having no bearing what so ever in our feeling about the daytime optic quality these companies offer.