Night vision vs Thermal

[RMS65]

I've got a lot of coyote around my place in AR. They are are becoming a real problem with my dogs keeping me up at night.
There's a big field off my back deck that I could bait. Shots would be 300 to 500 yards. I know nothing about night optics. First, Is this possible? Second under $3k for the optic? I'm not sure if NV or thermal is better in high humidity and long distances.
Please school me.

 

[Alcanino]

Hi there

Night vision is more affordable than thermals, buy thermal are better of course.

Think you can find thermals for under $3,000 , but night vision you can get starting over 800 or 900, depending on features.
At the SCI Convention in Nashville, Burris was having a discount sale on all scooes: night vision, thermal, digital scopes and their previous eliminator scopes, all to promote their latest models to reduce inventory.

 

[Alcanino]

Oh wait a minute,
I forgot, ATN has a digital day/night scopes with color, think they're available for under a $1,000

 

[Millennium200]

Thermal all the way over nv, But 3k will be tough to find for the ranges you are shooting. You will need at least 640x480 res., Also I did see a used Super Yoter at about your price point over on the PX.

 

[Maggot]

The difference I see is that NV gives more recognition of faces and details while thermal gives the advantage in poor conditions like fog, smoke, etc.

 

[John?]

@RMS65

Thermal is the answer for shooting coyotes. I bought a Steiner S35 when they closed out that model. It works fine. Battery life can be an issue sometimes. We’re in the Kaw River Valley so WX is similar to yours. If I had it to do again I would buy a clip on thermal. Live and learn.

Our best results with coyote control is trapping. A medium sized double spring trip like Duke or Minnesota 550 serves well. Anchor line with a spring helps prevent pull outs. A basic flat set can be very productive. Traps never get tired and they work 24/7. Winter trapping requires some additional steps to prevent freeze-up, but none of this is difficult. My 10 year old makes a good set in about 20 minutes.

 

[RMS65]

@RMS65

Thermal is the answer for shooting coyotes. I bought a Steiner S35 when they closed out that model. It works fine. Battery life can be an issue sometimes. We’re in the Kaw River Valley so WX is similar to yours. If I had it to do again I would buy a clip on thermal. Live and learn.

Our best results with coyote control is trapping. A medium sized double spring trip like Duke or Minnesota 550 serves well. Anchor line with a spring helps prevent pull outs. A basic flat set can be very productive. Traps never get tired and they work 24/7. Winter trapping requires some additional steps to prevent freeze-up, but none of this is difficult. My 10 year old makes a good set in about 20 minutes.

Thanks. Unfortunately traps are out of the question because I'll wind up trapping my dogs.

 

[hafejd30]

Something like a sightmark wraith could be an option. You could get a thermal and NV for less than $3k. Thermals are about $1800 and NV about $400. They’ve generally had good reviews.

I have a Bering optics Hogster R35.

The thermal could be used as a scanner and the NV mounted to the rifle. Thermal is much easier to use for detecting coyotes and having a handheld to simply scan for without it mounted to a gun will be much more convenient. Then just have a cheap NV on the rifle for shooting. Just use the drop reticle or whatever it has to learn holdovers.

NV does help with identifying a dog vs a coyote. But at 300-500 yard it still may be tough.

When I had NV I used a sniper hog IR torch. As the one the units come with is pretty useless past 100 yards generally. With that I had no issues seeing the side of an abandoned house at 550 yards with just a cheap ATN

I went in with the same mindset as you are. I don’t coyote hunt at night just wanted something for taking them out when needed by house. There’s much better equipment one can venture into if you get more serious. Personally for what you want to do a clip on would be excellent and allow you to dial shots. But comes with a higher $$ tag. And I’d still recommend a separate thermal scanner as just having the one on the gun sucks. Removing and reattaching is an option to but I think I’d just opt for 2 optics

 

[FuhQ]

I've got a lot of coyote around my place in AR. They are are becoming a real problem with my dogs keeping me up at night.
There's a big field off my back deck that I could bait. Shots would be 300 to 500 yards. I know nothing about night optics. First, Is this possible? Second under $3k for the optic? I'm not sure if NV or thermal is better in high humidity and long distances.
Please school me.

Here's your absolute best option for the money... Add to cart price is only $2664!

It has a 35mm objective, 640 resolution, and will digitally zoom from 2.5x to 20x. Also, AGM 640 thermals come with a 5 year warranty.

AGM TS35-640 Rattler 12um 640x512 50Hz 35mm Thermal Riflescope 3143755005R361

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Yes, it uses CR123A batteries, and it eats them like candy... HOWEVER, there is another solution I discovered... You can buy these 16340 rechargeable 950 mAh batteries, and they last MUCH longer, and you can run the unit at 3.7v for maximum performance.

Nitecore NL169 Rechargeable 16340 Battery

The Nitecore NL169 is a rechargeable 16340 battery with a 950mAh capacity.

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