Night Vision G24 vs Rhino

[Rerun7]

Need opinions from guys who have used both.

I’ve got a rhino II with the dovetail adapter that I’ve been using for years and it works pretty well.

I’m in need of a 2nd mount and debating on getting a G24 for the extra for/aft adjustment. The only knock I have on the rhino is that even when fully extended the devices are a little closer to my eyes then I would prefer.

So is the Wilcox worth the extra $$? It will be around $500 where I can get another rhino for $200.

 

[WhereNow&How]

Well I am the exact opposite. I own a G24 and it collects dust in the dustbin. I run the Rhino 2 with Dovetail exclusively.

Much better mount all the way around IMHO. I run my NODS way out and can put 3 fingers horizontal between my eye socket and the ocular of my NODS to the point that my FOV is reduced to 20 Degrees. I know that it is 20 Degrees because my COTI then fills up the entire NV FOV.

I run NODS way out for various reasons, stops fogging up in hot humid sweaty environments and allows me to easily see around and under my NODS.

What kind of arm/s or NODS are you attaching to the Rhino II. That might be a lot of the problem depending on where the MALE Dovetail shoe is centered on your NODS. My Mod Armory mounts all allow plenty of adjustment of the MALE Dovetail shoe such that you have a lot of ability to adjust everything just the way you want it.

Now to possibly solve your problem. Put a thicker brow pad in your helmet. It will push the helmet and your NODS out further from your eye sockets. You can take out some of the rear padding (nape chinstrap) or if a ratchet type suspension just loosen up so the hemet pushes slightly forward.

There are additional ways to thicken up the front brow pad also, just use you imagination.

I rig up helmets and NODS to fit everything from Midgets to Neanderthals and the Rhino 2 has always worked very well in that setting.

 

[Namekagon]

I’ve only used the rhino II, but I don’t think I’d like the push button lift on the G24. The rhino II force to overcome works great and I can grab any part or the NOD, gloves or mittens be damned, and have it out of the way quick.

 

[rlsmith1]

I'm in a similar spot. I run a NOX on a Rhino and love the simplicity but am concerned when stowed the NOX is pushing quite a bit of light downrange. Had a group of three dogs coming in and two turned back and I don't know if they heard whispers or saw light once I stowed the NOX to engage with a clip on

 

[WhereNow&How]

So all the current data I am looking at shows the (current) Wilcox G24 and G22 (extended) have fore/aft travel of 1.4 inches.

Norotos site says the Rhino 2 has fore/aft travel of 1.4 inches. On TNVC's site they say the Rhino 2 Dovetail has fore/aft travel of 1.6 inches.

So I do not see that you would gain any additional travel going with the Wilcox iterations.

 

[rlsmith1]

So all the current data I am looking at shows the (current) Wilcox G24 and G22 (extended) have fore/aft travel of 1.4 inches.

Norotos site says the Rhino 2 has fore/aft travel of 1.4 inches. On TNVC's site they say the Rhino 2 Dovetail has fore/aft travel of 1.6 inches.

So I do not see that you would gain any additional travel going with the Wilcox iterations.

I actually thought Wilcox was less travel and certainly isn't an infinite adjustment like the Rhino

 

[WhereNow&How]

I'm in a similar spot. I run a NOX on a Rhino and love the simplicity but am concerned when stowed the NOX is pushing quite a bit of light downrange. Had a group of three dogs coming in and two turned back and I don't know if they heard whispers or saw light once I stowed the NOX to engage with a clip on

I put Butler Creek Caps on the back of most of my thermals. If you do that just close the cap and stow you NOX. Problemo solved.

I have found the Wilcox rails too flimsy and chattery for my tastes. My NODS always have some wobble in them on the Wilcox mounts, plus that dam pushbutton is a PITA.

 

[Rerun7]

Well I am the exact opposite. I own a G24 and it collects dust in the dustbin. I run the Rhino 2 with Dovetail exclusively.

Much better mount all the way around IMHO. I run my NODS way out and can put 3 fingers horizontal between my eye socket and the ocular of my NODS to the point that my FOV is reduced to 20 Degrees. I know that it is 20 Degrees because my COTI then fills up the entire NV FOV.

I run NODS way out for various reasons, stops fogging up in hot humid sweaty environments and allows me to easily see around and under my NODS.

What kind of arm/s or NODS are you attaching to the Rhino II. That might be a lot of the problem depending on where the MALE Dovetail shoe is centered on your NODS. My Mod Armory mounts all allow plenty of adjustment of the MALE Dovetail shoe such that you have a lot of ability to adjust everything just the way you want it.

Now to possibly solve your problem. Put a thicker brow pad in your helmet. It will push the helmet and your NODS out further from your eye sockets. You can take out some of the rear padding (nape chinstrap) or if a ratchet type suspension just loosen up so the hemet pushes slightly forward.

There are additional ways to thicken up the front brow pad also, just use you imagination.

I rig up helmets and NODS to fit everything from Midgets to Neanderthals and the Rhino 2 has always worked very well in that setting.

It would be great if I could get that much space. I’ve got the dovetail socket adjusted all the way out in this photo. Using a Mod Armory D14 bridge. I can feel it touching my eyebrow hairs at times. I haven’t tried thicker helmet padding yet, just the standard pads that come with the TW Exfil.

 

[Rerun7]

I actually thought Wilcox was less travel and certainly isn't an infinite adjustment like the Rhino

I wonder if swapping to the dovetail socket changes that. I played around with a knock off g24 just to test the amount of travel and it was more than the rhino.

 

[Rerun7]

I'm in a similar spot. I run a NOX on a Rhino and love the simplicity but am concerned when stowed the NOX is pushing quite a bit of light downrange. Had a group of three dogs coming in and two turned back and I don't know if they heard whispers or saw light once I stowed the NOX to engage with a clip on

I have the nox and pvs14 on the D14 and roll them out of the way vs stowing them up. Keeps anything down range from seeing the backlight.

 

[WhereNow&How]

I cannot tell from that photo if you have the Male Shoe on the Mod Armory Bridge in the right hole to give you maximum travel away from your eyes. There are 2 positions you can have it in. See my photos below.

In these photos I have the Male Shoe moved into the hole closest to your helmet. That gives you the maximum travel of the Bridge away from you eye sockets.

 

[Rerun7]

I cannot tell from that photo if you have the Male Shoe on the Mod Armory Bridge in the right hole to give you maximum travel away from your eyes. There are 2 positions you can have it in. See my photos below.

In these photos I have the Male Shoe moved into the hole closest to your helmet. That gives you the maximum travel of the Bridge away from you eye sockets.

That’s awesome, I did not realize I could move the shoe on the bridge! Mine was on the closer spot, that should make a big difference. Thanks!

 

[WhereNow&How]

Glad I could be of service. That should help a lot.

 

[WhereNow&How]

When you change it out, be careful to get the threads started back in the hole correctly. It is easy to get cross threaded, so spin backward till you feel the threads seat correctly. I also put some blue Loctite on the the treads so it stays good and tight.

 

[Rerun7]

Already got it swapped and that made a pretty big difference. Saved me like $500!

 

[WhereNow&How]

That is excellent.

Sometimes Mod Armory does not put out as great of information about their products in the description as there could be.

But they make some fine stuff.

 

[Rerun7]

Yeah, the stuff I’ve gotten from them has worked great.

Thats what I enjoy about this place, wealth of knowledge.

Except for the Bear Pit. Never ask for advice in the Bear Pit. Just don’t

 

[rlsmith1]

I have the nox and pvs14 on the D14 and roll them out of the way vs stowing them up. Keeps anything down range from seeing the backlight.

I would prefer that, but I find my optics always collide which is frustrating. I have yet to figure out how to make rolling pods up give me a shootable profile but I'd love to learn

 

[WhereNow&How]

I would prefer that, but I find my optics always collide which is frustrating. I have yet to figure out how to make rolling pods up give me a shootable profile but I'd love to learn

One thing that helps me avoid the clashing when my pods are rolled up to the side is having my optics, both day and thermal up high on 0.75 risers. So when I shoulder a rifle I do not have to move/bend my neck/head down to get a proper cheek weld on a low mounted optic.

Basically with my head in its normal position I am at the correct optical train height for my Mark 1 Eyeballs to look directly into my sighting system.

This helps tremendously with the clashing for me plus I don't have to worry about scope/thermal shadow pickup up my MFALS up front.

 

[Rerun7]

^^^This

Once I started shooting with NV I realized all my stuff needed to be up higher. I added risers and high mounts where possible. Then you can keep your head upright and avoid banging all your gear together.

 

[rlsmith1]

One thing that helps me avoid the clashing when my pods are rolled up to the side is having my optics, both day and thermal up high on 0.75 risers. So when I shoulder a rifle I do not have to move/bend my neck/head down to get a proper cheek weld on a low mounted optic.

Basically with my head in its normal position I am at the correct optical train height for my Mark 1 Eyeballs to look directly into my sighting system.

This helps tremendously with the clashing for me plus I don't have to worry about scope/thermal shadow pickup up my MFALS up front.

Well this certainly complicated things a little bit for me… I’ll try the riser and see how that goes but I see what you’re saying right away.

Does a PVS31 style goggle help this at all? Seems like a lower profile might help


ETA: I’ll just put the cheekpiece all the way down on my Bravo stock and that should have the same result

 

[WhereNow&How]

Those interpupillary adjustment knobs on PVS 31's stop them from rotating up as far as they could because they bang up against the horizontal portion of the fore/aft rail.

I run PVS 14's on a Mod Armory Light Weight Bridge most of the time and it rolls up pretty high.

These bridges work pretty good for me. They are strong because the bolts, clamps & nuts (the important parts that hold it onto your pic rail) are made out of steel instead of aluminum.

 

[upSLIDEdown]

I also roll my nox up to the side to shoot instead of flipping it up. The underside of the bridge basically sits on top of the scope when I shoot (clip-on and day scope)

 

[rlsmith1]

God made me different than you guys cause I have to run my bridge all the way down if I want my NODs to sit where I can see through them (and I can still look under for admin etc.) I really want to figure out how to be able to roll up rather than stow to shoot. I just need to spend more time to figure it out

 

[Lowdown3]

I’ve only used the rhino II, but I don’t think I’d like the push button lift on the G24. The rhino II force to overcome works great and I can grab any part or the NOD, gloves or mittens be damned, and have it out of the way quick.

I've had students tired from 10 hours in class, cold and exhausted smacking their hands on the bottoms of their NODs/mount and then ask me "Robert, something is wrong with my mount..."

I remind them of the stupid little button on the G24.

I like the force to overcome, you can't do stupid shit like forget to release the button. Norotos Lo Sto if you looking for a new ready to go mount offers the best options, stows tighter to a helmet than a G24, etc.

 

[NHPiper]

I may be shunned for saying this but I think the G24 is garbage and a joke for the price. Lock up is sloppy for the cost. A norotos aka2 doesn't stow quite as low, but is waaaay more solid and has all the same features plus a mid stow. I have run several g24s and keep them as backups now. The aka2 with a dual dovetail is a great option for a 14 instead of a j arm.

 

[WhereNow&How]

My sentiments exactly on the Wilcox G24.

Even their WILCOX AN/PVS-7B/7D ADAPTER is junky and wont hold up under heavy use. I have had several of them break because they had not put a metal insert nut into the plastic portion of the adapter. They had the metal bolt screwing into plastic threads. Some of them have the metal insert nut in them, some do not. Seems like a Quality Control issue.

 

[NHPiper]

My sentiments exactly on the Wilcox G24.

Even their WILCOX AN/PVS-7B/7D ADAPTER is junky and wont hold up under heavy use. I have had several of them break because they had not put a metal insert nut into the plastic portion of the adapter. They had the metal bolt screwing into plastic threads. Some of them have the metal insert nut in them, some do not. Seems like a Quality Control issue.

I have a friend who worked at Wilcox for years. He won't use their raptars or any of the other products based on how he saw production run and the quality control issues they have.

 

[WhereNow&How]

There are a bunch of guys over on Arfcom crying the blues in a thread about the G24. One of them made this vid.

Wilcox G24 Slop

 

[NHPiper]

There are a bunch of guys over on Arfcom crying the blues in a thread about the G24. One of them made this vid.

Wilcox G24 Slop

That's basically been my experience with every single one even if it's new. You can tighten down set screws to get rid of a lot of that, but then if you need to adjust on the fly, you're out of luck.

I'm not sure why they don't ever come up with something like Norotos, but the ability to stow slightly lower now that goggles articulate to the side, it's definitely not worth the trade-off in my opinion.

 

[WhereNow&How]

You are 100% correct on the set screws and another reason I got away from the G24.

I like the ability to adjust the fore/aft on the fly without having to get a tool and fumble around in the dark like you have to do with the G24 trying to adjust those tiny set screws.

My Rhino II Dovetails with the Mod Armory Bridges (all iterations) with PVS 14's stow much more compact on my helmets than they ever did with the G24.

The G24 is far from the "Gold Standard" the kool aid drinkers regurgitate on the internet. I can't help but laugh every time I hear that and think, "another he don't know what he don't know" blowing the kool aid trumpet.

 

[Killswitch Engage]

rhino2 ftw always. its 2023 and there still isnt a better solution that ive touched yet.

 

[WhereNow&How]

Wilcox G24 - Overpriced, overdesigned and overcomplicated.

Reminds me of a stripper I knew once.

 

[Rerun7]

I just bought another rhino for a second setup. Cost me less than $100.

Any advice from you guys on how to remove the roll pin for the dovetail conversion without destroying it? I used the paper clip trick on my last one but it didn’t seem to help.

 

[WhereNow&How]

Take a little bit of oil and put down the roll pin hole. Then take a tiny tapered square driver bit that the point will fit down in the roll pin but that thickens so the 4 square corners come into a tight contact with the inside of the roll pin. The 4 square corners will bite into the inside of the roll pin wall. Spin the roll pin to around a few times "to soften her up" then put a small set of needle nose pliers on it while the tiny square driver is inside and pull out. Works like a charm for getting it out. Lube always helps situations.

Take a pair of channel locks and put electrical tape on the jaws so you don't scratch up the Rhino mount on reinstallation of the roll pin.

Use a new roll pin.

Hard-to-Find Fastener 014973222734 Tension Pins, 3/32 x 1/4, Piece-30

 

[Conqueror]

Man that G24 in the video is nothing like mine. Locks up pretty tight. That being said, if I buy another mount, it'll be a Cadex. I have yet to read a bad opinion of them.

 

[WhereNow&How]

The thing I do not like from what I can see of the Cadex (never have owned one) is the fact the the horizontal web plate between the 2 rails is scalloped out so you can easily get to the disconnect lever. This makes it too easy to accidentally hit the disconnect lever such that your NODS disconnect.

One of the great features IMHO with the Rhino II with Dovetail is, in the normal operating position for 99.9% of users, the disconnect lever is completely covered by the horizontal webb so there is no way to accidently hit the disconnect lever. You have to slide the NODS all the way forward to release them when you are taking them off the mount. This is a great safety feature (especially for NEWBIES)

The Rhino II/Dovetail just checks every single box I want and Killswitch hit the nail on the head with his comment.

 

[WhereNow&How]

Man that G24 in the video is nothing like mine. Locks up pretty tight. That being said, if I buy another mount, it'll be a Cadex. I have yet to read a bad opinion of them.

You must have gotten lucky and didn't get a Monday or Friday build.

 

[Conqueror]

I’ve never seen anyone say their nods fell out too easily with the Cadex so maybe that concern doesn’t play out in the real world. I’ve just head that they lock up like a bank vault and the adjustments are easy.

 

[MAGnificient]

The Wilcox G24 have fore/aft travel of 1.4 inches, according to all the info I'm looking at right now.