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Posted: 8/8/2011 5:59:14 PM EDT
| I'm looking at the night vision options and the AN pvs-4's seem pretty cheap, relatively, for an actual NV scope that you can mount on a rifle, i was wondering if someone can give me more info on them, Are they Gen-2? What kind of batteries do they take, how hard is it to get tubes for them, can they be upgraded with a new tube to gen 3? Is that even possible? I need something to see around my property with, as it gets VERY dark here. |
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Yes, they can be upgraded to Gen 3 but Gen 3 tubes of that era did not really perform a lot better then the Gen 2. Yes the Gen 3 is better but not by a ton and in my opinion not worth the astronomical cost some dealers ask for a 25mm Gen 3 tube. New surplus Gen 2 tubes can be found for around 700 bucks. Most dealers want 1800 for the Gen 3 tube. Way to much for the very slight increase in performance IMHO.
PVS-4 is a rock solid scope and easy to work on. I own one and love it. This all said it is not plug and play like a new scope. They are usually a project scope as some are beat to hell and others in good shape only needing minor cleaning. They usually come with a adapter to use AA batteries. Without the adapter you need the military battery which are hard to find in good shape. Some of the newer style PVS-4 housings use AA batteries that are designed into the housing. No adapter is needed. Good scope if you are handy and willing to take the time to learn. Some are good to go out of the box while others need some work. Parts are cheap and fairly easy to locate. The good thing about a PVS-4 is it can take just about any recoil you can throw at it. No problems with a .308 or others. The thing is a beast and built like a tank. |
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Quoted:
Yes, they can be upgraded to Gen 3 but Gen 3 tubes of that era did not really perform a lot better then the Gen 2. Yes the Gen 3 is better but not by a ton and in my opinion not worth the astronomical cost some dealers ask for a 25mm Gen 3 tube. New surplus Gen 2 tubes can be found for around 700 bucks. Most dealers want 1800 for the Gen 3 tube. Way to much for the very slight increase in performance IMHO. PVS-4 is a rock solid scope and easy to work on. I own one and love it. This all said it is not plug and play like a new scope. They are usually a project scope as some are beat to hell and others in good shape only needing minor cleaning. They usually come with a adapter to use AA batteries. Without the adapter you need the military battery which are hard to find in good shape. Some of the newer style PVS-4 housings use AA batteries that are designed into the housing. No adapter is needed. Good scope if you are handy and willing to take the time to learn. Some are good to go out of the box while others need some work. Parts are cheap and fairly easy to locate. The good thing about a PVS-4 is it can take just about any recoil you can throw at it. No problems with a .308 or others. The thing is a beast and built like a tank. Wow, by the time you upgrade it its the same price as buying a new gen 3 unit. I was just trying to find something mid level priced that will allow me to observe whats going on on my farm without using a visible light. |
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Quoted:
Quoted:
Yes, they can be upgraded to Gen 3 but Gen 3 tubes of that era did not really perform a lot better then the Gen 2. Yes the Gen 3 is better but not by a ton and in my opinion not worth the astronomical cost some dealers ask for a 25mm Gen 3 tube. New surplus Gen 2 tubes can be found for around 700 bucks. Most dealers want 1800 for the Gen 3 tube. Way to much for the very slight increase in performance IMHO. PVS-4 is a rock solid scope and easy to work on. I own one and love it. This all said it is not plug and play like a new scope. They are usually a project scope as some are beat to hell and others in good shape only needing minor cleaning. They usually come with a adapter to use AA batteries. Without the adapter you need the military battery which are hard to find in good shape. Some of the newer style PVS-4 housings use AA batteries that are designed into the housing. No adapter is needed. Good scope if you are handy and willing to take the time to learn. Some are good to go out of the box while others need some work. Parts are cheap and fairly easy to locate. The good thing about a PVS-4 is it can take just about any recoil you can throw at it. No problems with a .308 or others. The thing is a beast and built like a tank. Wow, by the time you upgrade it its the same price as buying a new gen 3 unit. I was just trying to find something mid level priced that will allow me to observe whats going on on my farm without using a visible light. The Gen 2 is very good and works well. Only on the darkest of overcast nights will you need any extra IR light. The 25mm tubes really do a decent job and are really tough. |
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Quoted:
Quoted:
Quoted:
Yes, they can be upgraded to Gen 3 but Gen 3 tubes of that era did not really perform a lot better then the Gen 2. Yes the Gen 3 is better but not by a ton and in my opinion not worth the astronomical cost some dealers ask for a 25mm Gen 3 tube. New surplus Gen 2 tubes can be found for around 700 bucks. Most dealers want 1800 for the Gen 3 tube. Way to much for the very slight increase in performance IMHO. PVS-4 is a rock solid scope and easy to work on. I own one and love it. This all said it is not plug and play like a new scope. They are usually a project scope as some are beat to hell and others in good shape only needing minor cleaning. They usually come with a adapter to use AA batteries. Without the adapter you need the military battery which are hard to find in good shape. Some of the newer style PVS-4 housings use AA batteries that are designed into the housing. No adapter is needed. Good scope if you are handy and willing to take the time to learn. Some are good to go out of the box while others need some work. Parts are cheap and fairly easy to locate. The good thing about a PVS-4 is it can take just about any recoil you can throw at it. No problems with a .308 or others. The thing is a beast and built like a tank. Wow, by the time you upgrade it its the same price as buying a new gen 3 unit. I was just trying to find something mid level priced that will allow me to observe whats going on on my farm without using a visible light. The Gen 2 is very good and works well. Only on the darkest of overcast nights will you need any extra IR light. The 25mm tubes really do a decent job and are really tough. What would be the best place to find one? I might have some extra money if i can get this leupold scope sold, and may start looking for one. |
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Do you want to shoot stuff or look for stuff? For looking, I would recommend an AN/PVS-14. For shooting, a PVS-4 is great, but will need extra IR on the darker nights. You can shoot stuff with a AN/PVS-14 too in a shoot-through configuration, but it is a shorter-range option. Regards David
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| Keep an eye out on the Equipment Exchange as they come up time to time. You can find them on Ebay, but it is a gamble. Not everything on Ebay has problems, but everything with problems is on Ebay. So it is buyer beware on there. But with that said, I have had excellent luck on Ebay & Gunbroker with NV purchases. The keep is to research what you are buying before hand and to ask a bunch of questions. Also, I would avoid auctions with a no return policy. |
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Quoted:
I'm looking at the night vision options and the AN pvs-4's seem pretty cheap, relatively, for an actual NV scope that you can mount on a rifle, i was wondering if someone can give me more info on them, Are they Gen-2? What kind of batteries do they take, how hard is it to get tubes for them, can they be upgraded with a new tube to gen 3? Is that even possible? I need something to see around my property with, as it gets VERY dark here. I would call Summit or AEO. |
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Quoted:
Do you want to shoot stuff or look for stuff? For looking, I would recommend an AN/PVS-14. For shooting, a PVS-4 is great, but will need extra IR on the darker nights. You can shoot stuff with a AN/PVS-14 too in a shoot-through configuration, but it is a shorter-range option. Regards David I'd like to be able to look and spot coyotes, and shoot if need be to keep them away from our livestock. |
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I should also have noted, I have a M845 inbound to me from AEO. It is the 1.5x magnification model. I am going to run them back to back to see which one works better for me.
As a side note, I also bought a GPC-2 IR illuminator/laser to run with my PVS-4. It really allows it to perform nicely at out 300-400 yards. I am very impressed with it. |
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Quoted:
I should also have noted, I have a M845 inbound to me from AEO. It is the 1.5x magnification model. I am going to run them back to back to see which one works better for me. As a side note, I also bought a GPC-2 IR illuminator/laser to run with my PVS-4. It really allows it to perform nicely at out 300-400 yards. I am very impressed with it. Its amazing what a laser illuminator can do isnt it? |
| Well, I can't get the M845 to focus correctly, so it is going back to AEO. It was 1 pound less than my PVS-4 and a little less bulky, which I did like. I didn't care for the 1.5x and liked the 4x on the PVS more. I didn't think I would like the higher power. The sight window on the M845 was a bit smaller than the PVS, which I really didn't care for. I did like the red dot reticle. Shooting distances would be limited in a night time situation, so I think the dot would work as well as the PVS 'T' reticle and the BDC really wouldn't come into play. |
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