Need thermal rec.

[Jddieselfarmer]

Hey guys, new register to the sight, been a lurker for a while. Been kicking around the idea of getting a thermal, but there's just to much information out there for me to sort out. Was wondering if anyone could tell me their experience with these three scopes.

Hogster 25 or 35
Pulsar xm30
Amd rattler

We are in pretty open country, would be used for hogs and maybe some yotes.
Would be putting in on one of my ARs.
Mainly interested in image quality, reliability, battery style/life, and customer service.
I'm not typically hard on stuff, and I'm really not concerned with video recording.

Thanks

 

[sniper307]

I have two Hogster 35’s. If I were in more open country, I would have gone Super Hogster. No experience with the others. I have played with a Super Yoter. It is quite nice and clear, but overkill for hogs and dogs within 300 yards

 

[gr8fuldoug]

The Pulsar Thermion XM30 is a good unit for the price and for targets 150 yards and below. It has 8 different color pallets, 10 different reticle options, picture in picture mode for precision shooting, recording capability and Pulsar is a European brand unlike the others who come from China.

 

[dzhitshard]

I have a Hogster R35

I also have a brace of high dollar 640 core thermals. I use the Hogster as a handheld scanner or on a loaner rifle.

I regularly get upset at spending so much on high end thermals when using them side by side with the hogster. It caused me to dump one Trijicon and if frustrates me with the HaloX when the humidity gets high and a $2k optic is running close to neck and neck with it. If it wasn't for the ease of recording I'd dump it and use the money to get a couple Iray core 384 units in different base magnifications & apply the rest to a 640 scanner with a lrf.

I don't like cabled power supplies and I don't like using $5 worth of CR123 batteries every 2-3 hours. Out of the optics you listed the Hogster power options with extended battery cap using rechargeable 16650 batteries is something the other 2 don't have. It puts the usable internal battery life to more than 6.5hours in temps below freezing in my experience.

The AGM rattler 35 doesn't hold a candle to the Hogster35 side by side when the conditions aren't good but it does have internal recording. It has a more defined background image in good conditions. That only applies to vegetation. Animals in the background of the Rattler 35 image are still less defined than they are in the equivalent Hogster.

The Pulsar XM is fixed focus and 320 resolution vs the 384 resolution of the other 2 you mentioned. It can have a fairly good image but it can also have a fuzzy, considerably less defined target image outside of it's fixed focus range. Both of the other options beat it handily IMO unless you need to get a traditional tube style for a bolt gun you're married to using.

I don't sell these or hawk them for anyone who does. These are my own experience with the number of optics that pass through my hands.

If you up your budget $1k you can get nearly twice the optic. That isn't a consideration for everyone but I figured I'd mention it if your budget wasn't firm at the $2300 wall.

 

[SteinerOpticsUSA]

Great to hear more people are getting into thermal! As they say it's "the most fun you can have with your pants on". Who even said that originally? Have you seen our new offerings in thermal? For your specific setup I'd recommend taking a hard look at the S35 thermal riflescope. We offer a 640X480 12μm sensor, 9 selectable reticles, six color palettes, and hot track. One of my favorite features is that you can save the zero for up to 5 different cartridges. The battery life is around 5.5 hours, with no external supply. As for mounting on an AR, you're ready to go as it has a built in picatinny mount. Being in open country, I think the resolution and image quality will really benefit you.

Here's a link to our site with more information: https://www.steiner-optics.com/imaging-systems/nighthunter-s35

Please let me know if you have any questions. I can also be reached on the company social media, if you desire a quicker response. I hope everyone at SH had a nice holiday season and a Happy New Year. KEEP SHOOTING.

Respectfully,

-Chris

 

[Huskydriver]

@TheHorta @SkyScrapin

 

[Jddieselfarmer]

I have a Hogster R35

I also have a brace of high dollar 640 core thermals. I use the Hogster as a handheld scanner or on a loaner rifle.

I regularly get upset at spending so much on high end thermals when using them side by side with the hogster. It caused me to dump one Trijicon and if frustrates me with the HaloX when the humidity gets high and a $2k optic is running close to neck and neck with it. If it wasn't for the ease of recording I'd dump it and use the money to get a couple Iray core 384 units in different base magnifications & apply the rest to a 640 scanner with a lrf.

I don't like cabled power supplies and I don't like using $5 worth of CR123 batteries every 2-3 hours. Out of the optics you listed the Hogster power options with extended battery cap using rechargeable 16650 batteries is something the other 2 don't have. It puts the usable internal battery life to more than 6.5hours in temps below freezing in my experience.

The AGM rattler 35 doesn't hold a candle to the Hogster35 side by side when the conditions aren't good but it does have internal recording. It has a more defined background image in good conditions. That only applies to vegetation. Animals in the background of the Rattler 35 image are still less defined than they are in the equivalent Hogster.

The Pulsar XM is fixed focus and 320 resolution vs the 384 resolution of the other 2 you mentioned. It can have a fairly good image but it can also have a fuzzy, considerably less defined target image outside of it's fixed focus range. Both of the other options beat it handily IMO unless you need to get a traditional tube style for a bolt gun you're married to using.

I don't sell these or hawk them for anyone who does. These are my own experience with the number of optics that pass through my hands.

If you up your budget $1k you can get nearly twice the optic. That isn't a consideration for everyone but I figured I'd mention it if your budget wasn't firm at the $2300 wall.

What would be your pick in the "up your budget 1k" group? Not at hard wall budget, just don't want to get to the point where I'm paying for features I don't need or spending way more for just a tiny gain. Thanks

 

[CaptArab]

Thermal curious noob.
I'm curious how the Burris compares.

 

[dzhitshard]

The IrayUsa Bolt TL35 is a strong consideration from my perspective and the IrayUsa Bravo is in that price range to consider as well.

The Bravo brings a better image with a 12micron core, more friendly user interface, a more durable sealed magnetic data port for external power connection and a more friendly manual focus ring assembly to the Hogster/super hogster options. It also appears to have the capability of adding the Bering extended battery cap but I have not had one on hand to verify.

Someone brought up Super Hogster earlier and since your budget isn't firm at your initial optic list I'll add a mention on the Super. For what it's worth I was not impressed with the super hogster to hogster 35 benefits because I didn't use to care about recording at the time so I move it along. Image upgrade wise over the Hogster R35 it's not worth the $$ premium IME.

The Bolt is, IMO, feature packed for that extra $$. The image puts a boot to the previous other 3 you mentioned for consideration, the battery life is insane at more than 7hours, and the kicker for me is that it's a traditional 30mm tube type optic that can easily swap over to a bolt gun if you decide to move it later on.

That is a big consideration for me because I've moved a couple optics to bolt gun platforms and it's tough to do sometimes with the box type housing optics. You tend to end up with LOP and HOB/cheekweld issues because they are mostly built around 1.54" mount height. It' workable on some chassis guns but on a traditional bolt gun with fixed stock it's misery.

If you're the type of owner who buys something to put on that AR and can leave it there for years and be happy then my opinions on the Bolt's utility are likely less attractive to you. If you're the type who may try for a few months on an AR and then be inclined to move it around to some other calibers and possibly end up with it on a bolt gun you like for the flat trajectory then the value of it grows more.

Personally when I got my hands on one the image on it was almost good enough that it pushed me to sell either of my primary optics for the reasons I mentioned above.

Good luck on your optic choice. It is definitely a whole new world out there at night