My girlfriend surprised me with an Aurora Pro for my birthday and this thing is pretty neat. I’ve got a bunch of Wilcox and Norotos gear ordered up and I should be hands free by this weekend.

The only IR illuminator that I have currently is an old M951 with a P60 and the IR filter, but it is pretty impressive to me. I’ll probably order a PERST 3/4 to start with and go from there.

If you have the funds, go with the PERST-3 and skip the -4.

I have the PERST-4 and it's awesome, but the lack of integrated illuminator for the proprietary controls is annoying. I have to run two pressure pads to activate my light and laser.

I wish I'd seen this when the deal was still going on! I'd have jumped! :-/

I'm about to wade in and get my feet wet with all this stuff, and have spent hours reading up, mainly in this thread.  But have decided to ask for advice first.  I'm going with the Pro model Aurora.  

*I have two older ballistic helmets but I think I'll go with a high cut helmet so that I can mount the ear pro.  Plus they just look cooler!  My use is SHTF.  Which helmet would be a question... FMA PJ/Ops Core Fast Bump/Ballistic Club Ultralight Weight Level IIIA High Cut/Emerson/what others??    

I already have an older Norotos AKA2 HMA and matching shroud and it would be nice if I could use that.  But no idea if this is compatible or not.  With the helmet or with the Aurora Pro.  If I can use this mount, what arm would I need with it for the Aurora?  I have a couple of arms here, but it's been so long since I messed with any of this, I forget which arm it may be that I have.  There is no brand name or model on either arm I have.  I do also have the standard J arm.  Do I need anything else to make this work with the Aurora?

Which IR light?  I'm thinking I need 940nM, if not higher.  What is the risk of someone seeing my IR light?  Can they see an illuminator easier than a laser?  The Fandy Fire seems to be well liked here.  Is a higher output head available?  How does Fandy Fire compare with the InForce or the Streamlight VIR II?  Or the more expensive stuff like the SureFire X400V IRC or the Steiner offerings?   With the Fandy Fire, I would also need a laser too.  Maybe the Steiner Tor Mini?  I also considered just trying one of the cheapos off Ebay that mimic the DBAL or ATPIAL-C, and offer laser and IR illuminator.  Do they truly not hold up to real (non-Airsoft) gun fire?

For hearing pro, Peltor Rangeguard or Howard Leight?  Does the Howard Leight come in various colors?  

Sorry for so many questions.  I'm trying to learn as much as possible before I drop the cash.

Oh, and what's the best deal going on the Aurora Pro?

I'll only answer for gear I have, that I know works, or what others have said works - that doesn't mean there isn't even more stuff that is ok too. HHV Bump or Ballistic will work. PTS MTEK Licensed FLUX will also work. Obviously Ops Core/TW will work. You can make ARC accessories work on the MLOK rails, but it takes some DIY - ARC Rails are install and go.



The AKA2 will work. Does it have a Bayonet or Dovetail Receptacle? If it's big and square-ish, that's the Bayonet and won't work, you'll need a $55 Dovetail adapter from 'Own The Night' or TNVC. There is no Single device solution for the Aurora, none of your arms will work - You'll need either a SOTAC Bridge (with an M24 FLIR Shoe for the Aurora), a Lion's Gear Bridge, or a Kiloohm Bridge (<--- the maker of that is in this thread). The last two are the easiest to get up and running.

 

Light for what? Helmet? Weapon? Both? Sky's the limit here, you can stick any 850 or 940 light on a Helmet. For $20, the Fandy is hard to beat. It's zoomable head goes from close in flood to hundreds of yards. There is no commercially available consumer light above 940. Anyone with NODs can see your IR light. Without NODs, looking directly at the lens, the red glow can be seen - how far away depends on the wave length and the power. 7 watts of 940 isn't visible past ~100 yards.  7 watts is *a lot* of power. No idea how far away LASER based devises can bee seen, but there is a thread about that, with a ton of pics at various distances. Bottom line (IMO) Don't worry about it. DO NOT BUY AN AIRSOFT LAM. Since you are budget minded, Holosun, PERST, Tor-Mini, or even the TLR-VIRII is what you should be looking at. Built in illuminator costs more - adding a second light with accompanying switches, is more complicated.



Howard Leights work fine, get the Silicone Gel 'Noise Fighter' pads. I would consider getting AMP Arms and AXL adapters, over traditional "Wire" mounts like the Unity MARK, etc... So now your back to ARC Rails, or modifying for MLOK as far as the helmet goes.

No deals on the Pro, that I know of currently. One guy posted a killer deal for Vets/Mil/LEO/FRs a few weeks ago, but it expired. It was $799 - which was the Pre-order price when I bought my two last year.

Thank you for the reply.  I would want ARC rails, not M-Lok.  I keep coming back to Ops Core FAST Bump.  But have read to stay away from molded in shrouds.  Ture?  If the choices were Ops Core FAST Bump, Emerson or FMA PJ with OCC Dial suspension, which would you choose?  Will any of these three work with the Norotos AKA2 HMA mount?  

No to TW due to the proprietary stuff.  Ballistic Club stuff is tempting.  $150 for the Ultralight Weight Ballistic Level IIIA if I wanted to go with ballistic.  But I'm leaning away from ballistic just due to weight.

How do I tell if it's dovetail or bayonet?  I Goggled, but no image comparisons that I found quickly.  

I would mount IR illuminator/light on the helmet.  Then mount an IR laser on the gun.  But I do worry alot about the IR.  I've read that the human eye cannot see IR over around 1000nM.  And hard to see it at 940nM.   I obviously would want something that could not be seen by someone not using NV.  So what do I need there?  Is the thread you reference fairly recent?  Hoping the FandyFire will pass muster.  If 940nM is the max I can get, sounds like the FandyFire is the clear choice there.

I'll look at the Perst, Holosun, TOR Mini and TLR-VIR II as you suggest for the gun.  Also SureFire X400V IRC, Inforce WMLx with IR, and Olight Baldr.

I have two or three pair of the Howard Leights.  They do work well.   I would probably get the Peltor ARC mount ($62 Amazon) for them, and see if that works for me before spending the money on the overpriced AMP arms and AXL adapter.



I thought a bridge was for use with binos?  I only intend to run one Aurora Pro.  Do I still need to buy a bridge?  I'm still very confused about the mount(s) I need.

 

Molded shroud should be fine - there's a bazillion people using FAST Bumps. Get the Ops Core - I don't know Jack about those other two... or get the FMA and let us know.


 

Bayonet on Left, Dovetail on Right - you need the Dovetail adapter to make this work if its not what you already have:





There is no commercially available illuminator above 940nm - full stop. Your wish that people with NODs not seeing an IR illuminator, is just that. On top of that, your in the Aurora thread - it sees up to 1100nm - it can even see a MAWL-CLAD which is 1064nm SWIR (according to B.E. Meyers literature) Designator. There's no way to use a light, and remain undetected, to people with analog or digital NODs with what's available - it is, what it is. Most people worry about being detected with the naked eye when looking directly into the lens - 940nm isn't as bright, but it *does* still glow - and the more power = more glow.  



A Bridge normally is associated with Binos - but - there is no single device solution for the Aurora. There used to be a couple years ago, it was called the CHAIM Mount - but the guy stopped making them. So you are left with running 1 device on the Kiloohm, Lion's Gear, or SOTAC Bridges. You need one of those^

704 Tactical review up. Good info on how to use helmet mounted.

Well, turns out I don't have either.  So I need to buy the dovetail piece.  Is it this that I need to get:

https://tnvc.com/shop/norotos-pvs-15-pvs-18-socket-for-aka2-mount/

On the light, I want people that do not have any NV to not be able to see my IR illuminator or laser.  So it sounds like I would be better off getting a lower power IR light and laser instead of a higher power one.  

Where can I look at/buy the Sotac bridge?  I think I like the look of that one best.  

Thanks for the replies.  It's a huge help!!

the 940nm fandy fire light from amazon is a great light that puts out a wall of close range IR that is very hard to see unless you are very close. not much you can find will be less visible.

that AKA2 socket is for modifying your Rhino2 from bayonet to dovetail. If you don't have a Rhino2, I suggest just skipping it and getting a clone L4G24 on amazon for $100 or a real one from Wilcox, easier to setup. Otherwise, get a milsurp Rhino2 on ebay.

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I think I have the mindset, or I wouldn't be looking at getting this stuff!  I train pretty regularly.  But will need to get some night time in after I get this setup, obviously.  I've used thermal, but not NV.  But it has been awhile.  Working on the equipment with these posts.  But I'm not making much headway.

I am in a home setting.  But likely will be moving and buying another house in the near future.  So will look at what I need there after that happens.  It all depends on what I buy and how thing are set up, of course.  What are some reasonably priced movement detectors for the perimeter?  Chamberlain driveway sensors and Arlo cams have worked very well for me the past few years.  Not fancy, but they work.  But I'm not up to speed on what is available now.

I was leaning to the Ops Core Bump helmet, but saw a post saying to stay away from the molded in shroud.  I think the reasoning was that if any problem with the shroud, you can't simply replace it.  But then someone in this thread said the molded in shroud was OK.  Now another post saying the Ops Core Bump is a solid choice.  Over 4x more expensive than the Emerson.  But I do like the Ops Core Bump.  That molded in shroud is the only thing holding me back from getting it.  What to do??

These mounts are very frustrating.  Not knowing about them, it's like you guys are talking Greek.  I know I have the AKA2 and I know I like the look of the Sotac bridge best.  I don't see a place to buy the Sotac bridge.  And not sure what I need to buy to make the Sotac work with the AKA2.  It would be great if someone did a YouTube video showing various setups, with part numbers.  But I guess there are just too many options out there.  I also have two of the Norotos 80063-A3256368, which I assume is the basic Rhino mount.  But for sure I want to use the AKA2.

I'll see if I can find the comparison on here of the view of the different lights that was mentioned in this thread.  Maybe I am worrying about nothing.  But it seems to me that if I'm going to use NV as an advantage, I don't want ANY light showing up to the naked eye.  If I am pointing a laser or illuminator at something, and they can see it, I would expect a bullet to be heading towards that light.  Sure seems like that would negate much of the advantage of NV.  In my situation currently, I'm not concerned about what they can see at 5 or 10 yards.  But once I get to 15-20 yards and beyond, it needs to be invisible.  

Yes, that is the Adapter you need to make your AKA2 accept a Dovetail Shoe. So you have ZERO adapters on your AKA2 right now? Like Gaspain said, you may want to just grab a clone L4G24 and be done with it - sell the AKA2. This is called 'HM' but it's a SOTAC - Replica Mount

People without NODs, can't see the IR *light* from any flashlight or Illuminator. What people might, possibly, could, maybe see - if close enough - is the actual LED emitter glowing Red inside the head. There is no way around this, don't worry about it - it's over blown. Your worrying about a tweaked out meth head, identifying a tiny read blob, as a dude with NODs, LOL - by the time he finishes "wtf is that thing", he's dropping.

Here's the SOTAC from Amazon: SOTAC Bridge  It looks like the price increased by $30. You will then need the M24 FLIR Shoe for the Aurora, from here: M24 FLIR Shoe I will tell you this: You better be "handy" with hand tools - You need to file the FLIR Shoe Pin, to fit the Aurora, and you need to file the Long edges of the Shoe itself, to fit the Bridge. The Kiloohm and Lion's Gear are no muss, no fuss.

Guidefitters offers 20% off for mil/vet/1st responders. I paid $799 ($813 shipped) for the Pro that is $999 MSRP

I've owned the Pro for a little over a week now, had to "invest" in a $12 IR source from amazon as I've noticed, unless their are an abundance of stars or if its a fullish moon, you get pic quality like this:


But.... Invest $12 for a 850nm IR source, you get this:


The only disadvantage is the slight red glow from the diode. So, the 850nm has a fantastic range, but glows. pic quality is awesome tho'

WAY overblown. People arguing about being able to see the LED glow from four feet away. Ridiculous.

Thank you for giving me clear instructions on the mount(s) I need to get.  I think I'll order the one I linked to from TVNS.  The Ebay L4G24 clone is about the same price as just the dovetail, but it sounds like it would take a month to get delivery on it.  If they function the same way, I like the FDE AKA2 and shroud that I have now.  But I did notice on one of the review sites that the AKA2 lifts up high over the helmet when not in use.  The L4G24 lifts up much less.  Seems like the AKA2 would be hitting stuff sitting that high over the helmet?  OTOH, wouldn't the L4G24 be too low and interfere with your scope or red dot if you're trying to fire without the NV?

That SoTAC bridge you linked to is black.  I much prefer the FDE.  Is there an FDE available?  I am pretty handy with tools, so not too worried about a little grinding or filing.  If I went with the Kilhoohm, do  I still need to get the FLIR shoe?

OK on the light.  I'll go with the FandyFire 940nM then.  But if I am 25+ yards away, can someone see that red glow then?  What about at 50 or 100 yards?

I have a peasant Sport,  but you may notice improved performance without the bright Christmas lights or bright background light. Way back in this thread I post pics like yours. In one, it was grainy and you couldn't see a tree, but once the camera couldn't see the lights from my neighbor, the quality got better.

I thought it may be in Twilight mode? I know GroundhogOz and I have posted a ton of NL4 pics and vids without any external light sources, and they don't look like that. Maybe it is those lights in the foreground, good call. Here's what I see in NL4 conditions with no neighbor lights, etc... (that should make it better, LOL).

Same size as OPs pic:

Installed the 1050nm mpcb star led into a t20 850nm light with low med high settings. Works like a 850nm but Zero glow on low you cannot tell its on. On med it has a very faint glow that won't be seen from a few yards away. On high its like a 940nm light on the low setting, way less glow then a 850nm on low.  The 1050nm on low would work great in pitch black or inside a building with no lighting, you can see fine, but zero glow from led so if someone was inside they wouldn't see any reddish glow. Will get some pics and video from the fields this weekend.

I did some testing last night after seeing your pic. It was deep into NL4 (no moon, clear, killed all property lights - any darker and it would be NL5. Could barely see the back of my hand, so at the limit for the Pro). I couldn't put any string lights in front of me, but I did look through woods to a neighbor about 300 yards away. In those conditions - don't use Color. Greyscale is the best when it's that dark. Color is great at higher Night Levels, but it sucks when it's really dark. I also think monkeypunch was right - those lights right in front probably had the sensor zeroed in on that source, making the background worse (I forget the photography term - shutter? white balance?).

I took this a couple weeks ago with my green aurora. Near full moon of a field about 150 yards across. I was ridding
in a pickup bed and focus was a little off. The treeline and most of the field was totally dark to my naked eyes.


Attached File

What mode and settings??

I’m looking to do some hunting at night so I’m thinking of one of these for walking around etc and a thermal sight for the rifle.

All this is so confusing. I’m looking at getting a HHV bump and a Sionyx Pro.

What do I need to get to mount it?
What about weight balance/ external batteries?

Lions gear has some options but it’s confusing. Any help is greatly appreciated.

From front to back:
camera
bridge
shoe
arm
shroud
helmet
rear pouch
counter balance

buy:
Sionyx, any kind
Kiloohm bridge (I make this) comes with shoe, or Lionsgear bridge or china SOTAC bridge
Wilcox L4G24 arm, real is $400 or china clone is $100 on amazon. Or Norotos AKA2 or RHINO2 or CADEX. Must have a dovetail socket.
Emersongear $45 helmet with shroud, or whatever bump helmet. Just be aware that the foam pads need to fit your head or the nods will sit too high.
Mohawk counter balance pouch
15,000mah or 20,000mah Anker battery (counter balance)


links here in the video description
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y8UoS6hbjbE&t=155s

HDR Auto

Thank you. Will review!

You can get my Nightwatch bridge mount off our store, Etsy, or Ebay.  After that you will need a helmet with an NVG mount and some kind of dovetail bridge mount, like the Wilcox G24 or a cheapo clone off Amazon the L4G24.

You can email me directly if you have any further questions.

wow, direct rip off of my Nightshade and eye cups look familiar.

You even copied most of my item description. That's plagiarism.

Maybe I should start making dust chutes for power tools like your other shop does... @samfg

Wow that's awful...  I smell a lawsuit coming!  Protect your intellectual property gaspain, you have my support!

Just got my second set. Thanks gaspain

Wow, that really sucks.

I went and read his descriptions and you're right about that, too.

I'm about to jump to a second Aurora, since I have a pro, do I need another pro or would a sport work in tandem with the Pro? Looking at getting a skull crusher with a dovetail mount. Any experience with that type of set up?

Something like this:

you would want another pro.

weird thing.

check out the Crye Nightcap, It is reported to work with kiloohm bridges

Hahahha, like the one I just bought from you on Etsy..?

I saw a write up on that nightcap. Very bizarre, but got really good reviews.

Roger that. Just ordered another. Plus the Kiloohm bridge. Might still go with the skull crusher I posted (offers "some" bump protection). Looking at the Rhino arm and a rear battery pack for counter balance. What's out there for good/cheap power cells?

only use Anker, it is the only one to work because it has trickle charge

I'm looking now, for Ankers that trickle and are small, only one so far:

Anker PC 10K Redux


Get 2, one for each = 20K - could probably get four complete 8 hour nights with 20K.


AUSKEY and POWEADD are the only others with Trickle Mode.

Found this one on the web (yeah, amazon...)

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07S829LBX?tag=arfcom00-20

Walmart also has this unit for the same price.  I know we don’t like them either, but it’s the only place within 40 minutes drive for me.

should work, it has Trickle mode

Sure, but the 20Ks are long - it'll angle out of your pouch and ride the helmet contour. Totally fine if you don't mind that - I just like the 10's / 13's / 15's that are about the same size as the pouches.

I hate to sound like a broken record and I'm not getting anything from it, but guidefitter has Sionyx as one of their vendors. If your Mil/Vet/LE or first responder, you get  20% off. I paid $799 each plus shipping for both my Pro's.

Good luck enforcing it. I've had a handful of cunts copying descriptions of my stuff line for line and it's impossible to get anything done about them.

NOD's Akimbo! Stereo optics take a little time to get used to...

Just waiting on the rest of the stuff.

Cool! Just make sure to fit the width to your pupil distance. And those eyecups may fit too far, so maybe lose those and get the screen closer to your eye