Double Naught Spy
New member
Have used a variety of thermal, digital nv, and traditional nv optics for night hunting and recently picked up a Sightmark Photon XT digital day/night scope. At $500, the scope promises to be a nifty scope that should be able to handle most of my (or my guest's) hog hunting needs.
Here is a description from the manufacturer...
http://www.sightmark.com/sm18008.html
Here is a neat video from one of the vendors demo-ing it night capabilities with the onboard IR illuminator and with a supplemental (and more powerful) IR illuminator.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VAXZV0-JHoU
Aside from being a loooong scope, the only bothersome aspect I find so far is that day use requires the cap to be on. The original Photons were less sensitive to light and had a poorer image. The XT has a much better image, but in bright light, the sensor gets overloaded and the images flashes. The sensor won't be damaged like one in traditional night vision, but it does not like bright light without the cap on. With the cap on, the image is just fine. As with traditional nv, this is accomplished by there being a small hole in the cap.
I hope to get sighted in this weekend and do a little hunting. I will follow-up with some video of how this goes. No doubt this is a budget night scope, though the above video and my initial testing around the neighborhood indicates that it should be suitable for most folks typical night varmint and hog hunting needs.
Here is a description from the manufacturer...
http://www.sightmark.com/sm18008.html
Here is a neat video from one of the vendors demo-ing it night capabilities with the onboard IR illuminator and with a supplemental (and more powerful) IR illuminator.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VAXZV0-JHoU
Aside from being a loooong scope, the only bothersome aspect I find so far is that day use requires the cap to be on. The original Photons were less sensitive to light and had a poorer image. The XT has a much better image, but in bright light, the sensor gets overloaded and the images flashes. The sensor won't be damaged like one in traditional night vision, but it does not like bright light without the cap on. With the cap on, the image is just fine. As with traditional nv, this is accomplished by there being a small hole in the cap.
I hope to get sighted in this weekend and do a little hunting. I will follow-up with some video of how this goes. No doubt this is a budget night scope, though the above video and my initial testing around the neighborhood indicates that it should be suitable for most folks typical night varmint and hog hunting needs.