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12/7/2012 8:09:14 PM EDT
I have an old 2nd Gen BE Meyers Night Invader and it takes a standard SLR lens up front.   If I changed it out to a larger objective would I get any better performance?
The reason I ask is BE Meyers told me I had the same tube as a PVS-4 and the objectives on those are huge.
12/8/2012 2:56:28 AM EDT
[#1]
it should be a c-mount lens, not a standard slr lens. c-mount are for things like security cameras, and are much cheaper for suitable fixed fast lenses. for the most part, going to a larger lens will just increase your magnification. 25mm - 1x, 50mm - 2x, 75mm - 3x. I've seen accessory sets for these pop up on auction sites from time to time, its a suitcase full of lenses and adapters.

the pvs4 has a large objective lens but it is also a really high quality lens, that level of quality in a c-mount will cost as much as or more than a surplus pvs4, if that quality level even exists.

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12/8/2012 4:09:41 AM EDT
[#2]
Quoted:
I have an old 2nd Gen BE Meyers Night Invader and it takes a standard SLR lens up front.   If I changed it out to a larger objective would I get any better performance?
The reason I ask is BE Meyers told me I had the same tube as a PVS-4 and the objectives on those are huge.
There are two ways you can make a lens larger one is focal length which gives you more magnification the other is diameter which collects more light and gives you more system gain. The lower the f/stop the more light that is collected. The f/stop is a simple measurement, you take the focal length of the objective lens system and divide it by the usable glass diameter of the first lens in the objective lens system.  

Note, there is a number that is more accurate than the f/ but much harder to obtain, it takes into account the losses inside the lens system and is not normally published, it is the t/stop number.
Edit: Be careful the lower the f/stop the harder it is to engineer a lens with low distortion.

12/8/2012 10:22:24 AM EDT
[#3]
Thanks for the info.   I'll just leave it alone.
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