night vision equipment (1 Viewer)

Hi Salty,

thanks for sharing your experiences with nightvision devices here. I´m also very interested in these kind of equipment for watching owls, nightjars and bats in the dark. A few months ago I ordered the Minox NV 300 which is a generation 1 device. It has a cheap plastic housing and was broken in two halfs when arrived. It was possible to gave it a short try though. The optics seemed to be ok for the price but built quality was awful anyway so I sent it back. I wrote my experiences to Minox but they didn´t answer anything. A few weeks later I saw the same device under another brand name in a catalogue for hunting equipment. Because of the damage the Minox NV had I wasn´t able to try it under real conditions in the field. I´m still not sure if a NV device can give satisfying results for watching animals that are comparable small like birds or bats. Did you have any opportunities to try yours for birdwatching in the night?

Steve

Most Interesting!

salty said:

ok folks.

( pics 1 and 2 ) the first 2 are from my bedroom window into the garden, using no infrared light or anylight source at all - just the scopes own power, under 'starlight conditions' : ie, the only light available is from the stars above, over than that, the garden is totally dark.

the pictures were also taken through the glass, not from outdoors, where the conditions would be actually brighter.
!

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Salty,
As a complete Newbie to this site, I dropped on your thread and was most interested. Being totally ignorant on scopes and night vision I had been looking around some of the sites selling these things, but your thread was just what I needed. It is good to get the info. from someone using the equipment rather than selling it!

I have a particular reason for being interested, as we have black and white stripey nocturnal visitors to our garden, and our eyes are getting very tired staring into the gloom. Binoculars give us a better view but it is still a strain. They don't seem to mind the various security lights etc. that keep going on and off, but we don't want to use lights in our garden, because as yet the neighbours don't know about our visitors and we prefer to keep it that way!

They do come and feed right up close to our house, but it is nice to see them exploring the garden, like mini black bears!

I shall read again your most interesting posts, and talk to the bank manager!

Thelma

I can see the pager message now: "Devon Wembury Surfbird still present at dusk"...

salty said:

( pic 5 ) shows the size comparison of the night vision and my mobile phone, yep, it is tiny!

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Awww, to hell with the nigh vision, gimme that phone. I've been dying to get it for the last couple of months!!

Hi Salty,

These are the grand-daddy of boys toys!

Got to use a thermal imager when I was nest recording around my local fire station - the lads came out to find out what I was doing & produced this wonder toy, trouble was it showed just how many nests I had missed in the hedges around the perimeter fence and I managed to seriously break the "shalt not covet" commandment in big style.

I have also used 3rd Gen NVG's (thanks to HM armed forces) - WOW - thank goodness it is a lottery rollover this weekend, who knows what rarities we may find come Monday (plus less chance of broken bones hunting down nightjar in gloomy forestry)

Thelma W. said:

I have a particular reason for being interested, as we have black and white stripey nocturnal visitors to our garden, and our eyes are getting very tired staring into the gloom. Binoculars give us a better view but it is still a strain. They don't seem to mind the various security lights etc. that keep going on and off, but we don't want to use lights in our garden, because as yet the neighbours don't know about our visitors and we prefer to keep it that way!

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With this sort of use in mind a cheaper (and probably better for you) option would be to get a Sony camcorder which shots at 0 lux. A lot of the old hi-8 camcorders have this feature which allows them to film in total darkness, I guess it works in a similar way to the cheaper night vision systems. You can pick these cameras up secondhand for about £100, you could then link it directly to you TV/video. This would allow easy, prolonged viewing of your late night visitors and you'd also be able to film them too.

it is coming the time for geese migration over my town - I wonder is a nightvision of any use for identification of geese ? What about other birds ? Let's say owls are quite different "jizz" but what about geese ? Nighingales ? Grashoppers ?

HALLO ! does anybody konws ? IS the nightvision usefull for bird identification ?

Jacek Zarzycki said:

HALLO ! does anybody konws ? IS the nightvision usefull for bird identification ?

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I would doubt it - even military standard Gen 3 Ultra still only gives shades of green and white as in the pictures above. So unless you can Id from the Jizz alone you are not going to get any colouring or markings unless they are really prominent.

i have used it for watching birds at night, tawny owl and the like. although, as mentioned, you are still limited a little as you dont see in true colour, only green, white and black shades (the image is green because the human eye can distinguish more shades of this colour than any other).

the image you get from the scope is outstanding, you cannot tell from the pictures i have posted, extremely crisp and blurr free, mosses on trees, hair/grass etc, all are in absolute detail when viewed through the scope.

this can only be said for the second generation devices onwards though.

first generation scopes (1st gen), are of limited use, they are however better than the camcorders, power and distance wise, although you do get the ability to record with a camcorder.

prices are similar also, 1st gen scopes start at £100, the camcorders around £200+.

images are not as crisp as they are with 2nd, understandably, but thats not to say they are no good.

my 1st gen scope (NV100 moonlight, £350 in 1996), is still available now for around £100, the names of the companys change, a little cosmetic tweaks etc, but the technology is still the same as before.

all night vision equipment comes from europe and america, with 3rd gen+ coming exclusively from the USA. the insides are imported across and then packedged in different bodies.

my scope for example:

the insides are from holland (2nd gen plus technology) more advanced than normal 2nd gen NV equipment.

the body or housing, is from the US.

i then had the option of an upgrade, as the insides are transplanted into the body of your choice (within reason). so i went for an upgrade intensifier tube (power plant), and a couple of other things, taking the scopes power upto 3rd gen technology.

this is a common thing to do.

3rd gen, is the same as 2nd gen, apart from a chemical (gallium arsenide) that is added to the intensifier to improve power and brightness.

a more powerfull tube/intensifier is a cheaper way to get the 3rd gen power, at a big discount.

3rd gen technology also has a waiting list. coming from the USA, you have to apply for a scope first, then your paperwork is scrutinised before you can purchase your equipment, i was told 6 months waiting list for the model i originally wanted. 3rd gen scopes are not even available to ireland, that is how strict they are!

3rd gen, being the most advanced is by far the most expensive £3,000 starting prices etc. 2nd gen starts at £1,000 and can be enhanced to exceed 3rd gen gear at a fraction of the cost. my scope was originally £1,300 then the upgrades added about £700 to that, still undercutting the 3rd gen scope i wanted by a cool £1000!

some companies advertise 1st, 2nd, 3rd and even 4th and 5th generation devices, sometimes known as XD4 technology.

this isnt the case however, they are simply 3rd gen scopes but with a few tweaks, not a completely new advanced product.

if you want top performance, going down my route is the key. not only do you get a 3rd gen performance scope for less than 3rd gen, you can simply order you scope (as i did) over the phone to your exact specification, wait a few days as it is put together and tested, then by the end of the week you are using it, brilliant.

also, with night vision, they are maintenance free, the tubes do however have a 'life expectancy' - but dont worry. 1st gen scopes will last 5,000hrs + before they pack in, and 2nd gen can last over 50,000hrs, so you would be hard passed to actually try and wear one out!

i hope this thread is usefull to people going down the 'invisable at night' route.

any advice just ask! and also click on www.sovietbazzar.com

PS: if anyone local wants a demo, let me know, i could sort something out. 2 members from this site have been stunned by it!

Handycam or Gen1??

Can anyone tell me how much difference there is between a camcorder with IR night vision and for example the Bresser Gen1 scope available from Lidl for £99.

I am thinking of buying one just to mess around and for walking at night and am not sure if its worth paying a bit extra and just getting a camcorder.