I assume they don't get used much and should be in good shape? The pictures look good, I guess more worried about what I can't see. Also any reason to get a PVS18 over a PVS14? Both L3 and both the same price.

Where at?

Small gun store about 50 miles away from me. They are advertised on a local forum, and have vouches from other people.

Now that is interesting.  All the NV we ever used (and it got used a LOT and broken on the regular) came thru the various govt lending programs and had to be returned to said govt for disposal.

Yup ours were hand-me-downs from goverment use and they were wore out when we got them. Our guys don't use them since they were not that great. I would be leary of dept used stuff tech stuff for sale.

They all have NSN numbers on them.

Be aware that .mil depots give LEO used glass that doesn't pass inspection.

Buy used PD shotguns. Not used PD electronics.

All our NV is purchased from places like TNVC, and gets beat to everliving shit. I would never even consider used LE NV unless it was factory reconditioned.

Another vote for no on used LE NVGs. Ours get used a lot, get stored in hot cars and aren't taken care of like it's your personal property. Just how it is. I wouldn't compare trade-in NVG's to the surplus LE gun/gear market.

Unless it's a smokin deal, I'd pass.

Yeah this. The feds do not "give" them to the agencies. They're just on like a lend-lease usually, either through DLA's RTD program, or this other NV program run by NSWC Crane.

I wonder if this is like some of those times agencies got caught selling LESO M16A1 parts. Everything the feds could find later got rounded up and seized, since they weren't the agency's property to sell/trade in the first place.

Yeah this too. Most guys are dumb and would turn them on during the daytime.
It's not their stuff so they don't care.

What you could do is get some serial numbers and inquire with someone at NSWC Crane if they'd check the status (prior to purchasing, obviously).
Checking serials in NCIC is not usually a good way to tell if stuff was stolen from the DoD, unfortunately.

You sure about "give"? Lend maybe.

Absolutely not.

Unless you have spec sheets and you can verify the tube prior to buying.  Even then, unless its a screaming deal, id avoid it.

As other's have said, the vast majority of issued NV is either abused or just simply neglected.  Most cops that are issued NV equipment don't know much about it other than how it works and will simply use it, a lot.  When they're done, it gets thrown back in its protective case or rattles around in the back of a patrol car in an equipment locker.

We had some older green tube PVS 14's handed down to our K9 guys and man...they were ROUGH.  I haven't the foggiest when these were originally issued/manufactured but they looked like they had gone through the majority of the GWOT.

In on page one for the fun.

1. Anything procured through the 1033 program from DoD has to be audited and accounted for. Uncontrolled items are tbe department's after a year. Controlled items like vehicles, guns, or NV are never the agency property are always owned by DoD.

2. While the only way to get rid of 1033 acquired controlled items is to return items on "loan" by the DoD, the DoD don't want anything back ever and expects you to keep track of and house anything you get until the end of time. Use those NODs to cannibalize to repair other NODs. Use that truck as a prop on your SWAT range, etc. Perhaps it is different with current controlled items, but that is how it was a few years back. The only way to return your stuff in actuality was to get removed from tbe 1033 program otherwise you must account for NODs and scrapped vehicles until forever. And they WILL get audited and they WILL find out the NODs are missing.

3. LE treats equipment like crap. Unless it never got used, expect it got used and abused in the worst ways possible. NV was dropped, turned on indoors, lenses wiped with dirty paper towels, pointed at with IR lasers and flashlights, etc.

If you buy a shotgun, expect someone used the bore to store their chewing gum wrappers like a convenient vertical trash can until the barrel was full... and yes, this was one I saw with my own eyes in our 14" Benelli M1 Super 90 shotguns.

My advice, don't buy used LE anything unless it was stored and forgotten and still like new.

Which is on a decal on the housing, along with the serial #`s... Lol.

US military PVS-14 housings actually have GOVERNMENT PROPERTY engraved on them.

Idk about a PVS-18.