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Thermal and IR Coyote Hunting.

So in this thread I see guys are using the Sitemark Wraith IR. Any other models that you would recommend?
 
Called one in last night!! im liking the ATN so far, i can see pretty well out to about 300-400 yds at night depending on conditions
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Does anyone run the atn x-sight ir that can shed some real life feedback on your experience with the scope?
 
Nothing puts a smile on my face like a dead coyote! I smoked one from the yard a couple weeks ago that came over the neighbors hill while I was choring.
 
if I was 10 years younger, it would be "game on"

I hunted coyotes hard the past 20 years. Traveling to Nd/Mt/WY.
Best year ,I shot 164. Mostly called in. Best day was in super foggy conditions.
Brother n I called in 21,killed 16.
Love triples!
 

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IowaBowHunter1983 said:
So I will be running both (will explain). This has evolved over the years of mostly my buddies who have gotten extremely effective at this and my little bit of experience. With the law change this will be my first year with the setup. Before I just went with them when they were around as they had all the thermal gear.

So I have thermal handheld monocular. This is strictly for locating heat signatures. You can sit almost completely still and constantly be scanning. Before we had handhelds we had to be on the guns nonstop which is a lot of movement and quite frankly wears a guy out. Once a critter is located with the handheld, you go to the gun point in the correct direction. My buddies have thermals on their scope. I went with IR. IR is less expensive and identification if far more advanced. My IR light illuminates up to 2,500 yards. I can ID critters at much farther distances than my buddies (deer, raccoon, yote, etc). The thermal outperforms in the timber or other heavy cover as the IR gets a lot of bounceback reflection. Also, you have to make sure your IR light and scope are lined up. With thermal, this is a non issue.

The other obvious difference is that you can use Thermal year round. IR is outlawed during deer season.

A tripod with a reaper grip or Bog death grip is an absolute must for the gun IMO.
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If both IR and thermals use IR technology, how is it that thermals are okay year round? I understand its different types of IR, but the law just states IR and nothing more specific. Are you sure about this being legal year round? I was was told otherwise.
 
Night vision scopes magnify available light. Most also have an optional IR illuminator which is like an invisible spotlight that can be detached. The scope picks up the light but your eyes do not. That part is illegal to use during any deer season but the scope without it is perfectly legal. Most are easily detached. Most night vision rifle scopes also have a DAY mode where it is a normal color picture so you can use that rifle 24/7. Prices range all over but most common ones are $500-$700. We have 3 different models of Night vision rifle scopes in stock here starting at $479 and a handheld monocular unit for only $239 if anyone wants to check them out

Thermal picks up heat and not light so it doesn't cast any light at all therefore legal 24/7/365. Prices start at just over $1000 but most are buying better quality in the $2-3000 range. I have a good quality scope and monocular in thermal here if anyone wants to check that out, they are amazing at what they will pick up.
 
Emuhlee.Anne said:
If both IR and thermals use IR technology, how is it that thermals are okay year round? I understand its different types of IR, but the law just states IR and nothing more specific. Are you sure about this being legal year round? I was was told otherwise.
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I'm 100% sure. See gunrunr response below.
 
Buddy been showing me. I’ve said a few times…. This would be one season I’d like to see get expanded!!! Trapping coyotes & maybe a few more problem critters. Glad they got guys chasing them with thermals.

He sure is good at shooting & trapping them. Fun stuff!! Come on guys, 45 gazillion to kill yet!!!
He used thermals & does a regular scope during light hours he does great with. 3D98F82B-5402-410F-B596-57424D309C06.jpegE1590C9B-0FCA-4FBE-931C-A6FB3789A7EF.jpeg
 
I have tried coyote hunting before, but I have had very little success. Only once, have I called in a coyote. I am eager to learn more about the art of coyote hunting. Does anyone hunt around central Iowa? If so, care to take me along some time? After the deer season, of course. I am willing to do some travelling.
 
Hello all,
I’m down in middle Georgia and ran a night time hog hunting business for years. In that time, I used both night vision and thermal.

Night Vision is rated Gen 1,2, and 3 and with 3 being the best but not all Gen 3s are the same. Heres how to know if you’re getting a good one but it’s kind of a long read so bear with me.

To rate NV you divide the FOM (figure of merit) by the SNR (signal to noise ratio).
Anytime that measurement comes to 64 or higher it is mathematically a Gen 3 scope. The problem is a scope with a SNR of 18 with a FOM of 1152 is technically Gen 3. But what about a scope with a SNR of 28? That would need a FOM of 1792 to equal 64 but would also be a Gen 3 device.

The quality difference in the 2 scopes above would be night and day ( see what I did) difference and if you had bought the one with a SNR of 18 you would be Upset especially if you looked through the other one. The one with the SNR of 18 would also require a IR Illuminator most of the time where the one with the SNR of 28 would seldom need one other than cloudy nights on a new moon except in things like corn stubble. But with the IR, you can get flashback that makes the scope too bright. A problem easily solved with a high end device by turning down the gain.

On thermal, I am not as well versed on the technical numbers that make one better than the other but as in most things you get what you pay for.

I prefer shooting with NV as it’s more “normal” looking but critters have a way of hiding and can be hard to see in corn stubble and brush like the many crp fields y’all have. NV is also a lot more durable imo but the quality scope are more $$$ than thermal now days. This has changed drastically in the last 10 years.

Thermal. You can’t hide from it. Total darkness, no moon, heavy corn stubble, you’re still going to shine like new money. It can be rough on batteries and does last significantly longer when using lithium batteries but those have been hard to find down here. It’s also a little more fragile than NV but most companies offer great warranties so that’s a moot point.

Good luck and happy hunting. Hunting critters at night is a blast.
 
Nightvision said:
Hello all,
I’m down in middle Georgia and ran a night time hog hunting business for years. In that time, I used both night vision and thermal.

Night Vision is rated Gen 1,2, and 3 and with 3 being the best but not all Gen 3s are the same. Heres how to know if you’re getting a good one but it’s kind of a long read so bear with me.

To rate NV you divide the FOM (figure of merit) by the SNR (signal to noise ratio).
Anytime that measurement comes to 64 or higher it is mathematically a Gen 3 scope. The problem is a scope with a SNR of 18 with a FOM of 1152 is technically Gen 3. But what about a scope with a SNR of 28? That would need a FOM of 1792 to equal 64 but would also be a Gen 3 device.

The quality difference in the 2 scopes above would be night and day ( see what I did) difference and if you had bought the one with a SNR of 18 you would be Upset especially if you looked through the other one. The one with the SNR of 18 would also require a IR Illuminator most of the time where the one with the SNR of 28 would seldom need one other than cloudy nights on a new moon except in things like corn stubble. But with the IR, you can get flashback that makes the scope too bright. A problem easily solved with a high end device by turning down the gain.

On thermal, I am not as well versed on the technical numbers that make one better than the other but as in most things you get what you pay for.

I prefer shooting with NV as it’s more “normal” looking but critters have a way of hiding and can be hard to see in corn stubble and brush like the many crp fields y’all have. NV is also a lot more durable imo but the quality scope are more $$$ than thermal now days. This has changed drastically in the last 10 years.

Thermal. You can’t hide from it. Total darkness, no moon, heavy corn stubble, you’re still going to shine like new money. It can be rough on batteries and does last significantly longer when using lithium batteries but those have been hard to find down here. It’s also a little more fragile than NV but most companies offer great warranties so that’s a moot point.

Good luck and happy hunting. Hunting critters at night is a blast.
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You’re light years ahead of me here but this makes sense. Many thanks!!!! This is awesome info!!!!!
 
Sligh1 said:
You’re light years ahead of me here but this makes sense. Many thanks!!!! This is awesome info!!!!!
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A really good NV scope is around $4000.00 Yes, there are cheaper ones that will work but after you have used/shot with a good one there’s no going back.

You guys know a lot more about habitat management than I do. I was just trying to help you guys with something that I have experience with.

Good luck to all of y’all up there. Please post pics for us minions that don’t live in the Midwest.
 
Another thing concerning NV scopes that’s important is tube life. A tube for a Gen 3 device is good for roughly 10,000 hours. Not sure exactly what the tube life on Gen 2 is but probably half and Gen 1 may be 1000 if you’re lucky. So not only are you getting a significantly better scope with a Gen 3 device but you’re also getting a scope whose tube will last longer.
 
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