Topic: The Best Thermal Scopes of 2022 (Read 46 times)
previous topic - next topic
It's your post, so post it!
Why It Made The Cut
This is a tank of a thermal optic, built for battle and designed for easy one-hand operation in the most stressful situations.
Key Features
Pros
Cons
Product Description
This battle-hardened thermal scope is as durable and as simple as they co*e, and when operating in darkness, simplicity is a virtue. The knob-dialed menu options are fast, easy, and intuitive—no more toggling through menu screens in order to dial down intensity or change reticles. The Q-LOC mount is equally simple, and makes swapping out scopes a cinch, even in the dark. Other pluses are a high-contrast display and the ability to choose any of six different reticle options: classic crosshair, MRAD, and MOA versions, and BDC reticles for .223, .308, and 300BLK.
Unlike most of the thermal sights and viewers, this one is made in the United States, a requirement for consideration by the military and law enforcement, the hard duty where the IR-Hunter earned its stripes as one of the best thermal scopes.
Why It Made The Cut
Configured for close-quarters engagements, this unit’s wide field of view is perfect for fast target acquisition and tracking after the shot.
Key Features
Pros
Cons
Product Description
A sized-down thermal sight for fairly specific uses, this is the reflex sight for night hunters. Its detection range is limited to 500 yards for vehicle-sized targets, and closer to 200 yards for pig-sized targets. But given that most shots on nocturnal pigs and predators are inside that distance, it’s a good choice for AR rifles because of its capability for fast follow-up shots. It’s also a very handy tracking tool, because at 1x the X-Vision Thermal Reflex Sight can take in a lot of ground and then assist in fast, close follow-up shots.
Why It Made The Cut
This is the co*plete package for night hunters: a fast, precise thermal scope with five rifle profiles so you can swap it between guns and it’ll save your zero. And it’s priced well under $1,000.
Key Features
Pros
Cons
Product Description
Consider this the thermal scope for us mortals. Priced well under $1,000, the Wraith offers a wide range of features and utility for hog and predator hunting at night, but also daytime hunting and shooting. The scope, also available in a 4-32-power version, is easy to mount on a variety of platforms with a repeatable zero using the fixed Picatinny mount.
Why It Made The Cut
If you’re looking for a single, do-everything thermal scope, this is your biscuit. You get the capabilities of the best rangefinders with a detection range out to 1,500 yards, in an excellent thermal scope with selectable reticles, and video imagery that can be shared via Wi-Fi. Unlike many blocky scopes, this weighs less than 2 pounds and mounts with standard 30mm scope rings.
Key Features
Pros
Cons
Product Description
There’s a reason most Texas hog-hunting guides run Thermions on their rifles. They’re intuitive, durable, and they work in just about any condition. And, at about $4,000, they’re affordable enough to run on multiple rifles. The new Thermion 2 Pro has a number of enhanced features from the original: a better, more powerful laser rangefinder (a must for making precise shots at distance), high-contrast display, and enhanced Wi-Fi that makes sharing videos a cinch.
Why It Made The Cut
While many thermal devices add layers of co*plexity, with rangefinders, multiple palettes, and a variety of reticles, the Calonox is a simple 1-power thermal that has excellent contrast and simple operation.
Key Features
Pros
Cons
Product Description
This high-definition thermal sight is designed to be used in tandem with a standard rifle scope, though it works just fine as a hand-held viewer and camera. It’s if you have one of the best rifle scopes and want to use day and night. Among its assets include a very high-contrast, high-definition image, super-simple controls, and adequate video recording capability. Noteworthy is the range and sensitivity of the Colonox. It has a detection range of 2,200 yards (meaning you can tell there’s an animal out that far), a recognition range of 766 yards (it’s a deer), and an identification range of 383 yards (it’s a 10-point buck). That’s pretty handy for a hand-held viewer, but when connected to a rifle scope that provides an aiming point, this beco*es a very useful device, indeed.
Why It Made The Cut
Priced not much over $1,000, this hand-held viewer has great basic thermal capabilities without added features that boost the price.
Key Features
Pros
Cons
Product Description
Both simplicity of operation and a very appealing price—about $1,100, depending on the strength of the Euro—make this a good choice for hunters and wildlife viewers getting into thermal imaging. The Keiler-13 (it means boar in German, which gives you an idea of its customer and purpose) has intuitive controls and a surprisingly good image, given the relatively small objective lens. Video and still-image capability are both good, though you must connect a cable to the device to export images. The threaded tripod adapter is an excellent addition we wish more brands would incorporate.
Why It Made The Cut
Built for battle, this is one of the most durable and easy-to-use thermal riflescopes on the market, and the incorporated rail makes AR mounting a cinch. Also a cinch: the one-hand, one-button control.
Key Features
Pros
Cons
Product Description
While the market for thermal sights and scopes is growing, the supply has been dominated by off-shore brands. Burris aims to change that with this beefy, battle-ready thermal scope that can handle the rigors of the field and is right at home on an AR or chassis rifle. The unit—available in 50mm or 35mm configurations—has a genius single-button control that guides its performance. Push the button for menu selections, then turn the knob to scroll through options. The BTS50 is quick and intuitive, if it takes some getting used to. Priced around $3,000, this is a unit that is overbuilt so you can kill many coyotes over many seasons with it.
The first thing you should consider if you’re in the market for one of the best thermal scopes is how you’ll use it. Do you want a rifle-mounted scope, with reticle and even a built-in laser rangefinder? If that’s the case, then you’re looking at a fairly expensive subset of thermals. Or maybe you just want a unit to see into the night. A hand-held thermal will do just fine, at a fraction of the cost of the thermal scopes, but without any ability to place after-hour shots.
Second, consider your budget. You can spend anywhere from about $1,000 to well over $10,000 on these devices. But if you’re simply interested in a viewer to detect animals or maybe a car parked at a trailhead, you won’t need all the bells and whistles of a scope. But if you want a plug-and-play scope to shoot coyotes or varmints after legal shooting light, then you should expect to pay well over $3,000 for the most capable rifle-mounted sights.
Thermal units range in price from around $1,000 for basic thermal viewers to over $7,000 for the most sophisticated rangefinding scopes. Keep in mind that these aren’t night-vision units, which can cost only a few hundred dollars. Thermal scopes depend on a rare-earth element called germanium, which supplies temperature-sensitive glass for thermal units. Generally speaking, the best co*bination of attributes, capability, and overall utility of thermal units will set you back around $3,000.
That’s a great question. You’ll generally see a couple of different resolution equations mentioned for thermal devices. One measures the sensitivity of the sensor, or the interface that receives the thermal image. The bigger the numbers, the more detail the sensor is receiving. That’s generally a function of quality co*ponents and size of the objective lens. For higher-quality units, look for sensor resolution of about 640×480 pixels. You also want to pay attention to the display sensitivity. That’s a measurement of how much detail you’ll see on the screen of the device. The higher the number, the more contrast and detail you’ll observe. Resolution of 1064×748 provides very good visibility.
There are a number of quality brands on the market, but generally European brands only have thermal sights or what are called clip-on units, intended to be used with a standard riflescope. Units from Russia and Southeastern Europe generally have a good co*bination of rangefinding riflescopes and hand-helds, though quality is variable. Then there are American brands such as Trijicon and Burris that have consumer versions of their military-grade thermals.
Generally, thermal scopes and viewers are illegal to use in pursuit of game animals, like deer or turkeys. But most states allow their use for non-game animals, like coyotes or raccoons. You’ll have to check with your state’s hunting regulations to see if they’re expressly prohibited. Because they occupy a gray area, it’s a good idea to also check with your local game warden.