New to Night Hunting

swpc629

Well-Known Member
Joined
Dec 5, 2009
Messages
314
Location
Gardendale, AL
Alabama has finally legalized hunting hogs and coyotes at night. I have shot a hog during the day, but have never hunted them at night. I am wondering whether to use a night vision scope or will using the green led lights and a regular scope work. Any help or advice is appreciated.
 
Waste of money getting "Green laser" lights
Get Very good Thermal for detection and then an very Great Gen 3 Night Vision to dispatch!
Don't get talked into a scope for everything. Can you imagine looking through one eye in a scope for hours??? Get a good hand held thermal to scan the area. When you have detection put the NV scope up. The squeezeeeee the trigger. Coyote or Hog -you will have!
Just a suggestion:
FLIR Scout III 640 (Monocular) Detects out to 1,000yrds Man size
Good NV Scope (I use a Night Vision D-760 Gen III) 6 x Power & IR Light
Been using both of years and GREAT results and FUN night hunting Coyotes & Hogs.
PM me if you want some information.

Welcome to the real hunt!!!

Thanks
Len & Jill
 
Alabama has finally legalized hunting hogs and coyotes at night. I have shot a hog during the day, but have never hunted them at night. I am wondering whether to use a night vision scope or will using the green led lights and a regular scope work. Any help or advice is appreciated.
Check out @Zen Archery hunting adventures and videos.
 
Waste of money getting "Green laser" lights
Get Very good Thermal for detection and then an very Great Gen 3 Night Vision to dispatch!
Don't get talked into a scope for everything. Can you imagine looking through one eye in a scope for hours??? Get a good hand held thermal to scan the area. When you have detection put the NV scope up. The squeezeeeee the trigger. Coyote or Hog -you will have!
Just a suggestion:
FLIR Scout III 640 (Monocular) Detects out to 1,000yrds Man size
Good NV Scope (I use a Night Vision D-760 Gen III) 6 x Power & IR Light
Been using both of years and GREAT results and FUN night hunting Coyotes & Hogs.
PM me if you want some information.

Welcome to the real hunt!!!

Thanks
Len & Jill
Depends on what you're hunting as far as green lasers being a waste of money. I have a 40mW adjustable focus green laser designator that can illuminate at distance like no other light source I've used and green is at your eye's peak response. I understand certain species like hogs, are sensitive to certain colors, but if you have to light up an area, they are amazing.
 
Depends on what you're hunting as far as green lasers being a waste of money. I have a 40mW adjustable focus green laser designator that can illuminate at distance like no other light source I've used and green is at your eye's peak response. I understand certain species like hogs, are sensitive to certain colors, but if you have to light up an area, they are amazing.
Hopefully you do not hunt when it gets cold. Those laser's stop working when it gets cold. I am in GA and used them in the 30 degree range and they stopped working.
Just saying that if you really want to NIGHT HUNT you need to tools to do it. Beleive me I went through years of trying everything and wasting money to save money. Didn't work! If you want to be a NIGHT HUNTER get the real equipment, You will be surprised and such an enjoyable hunt, You won't want to hunt during the day!!!
 
Thermal is better in almost every way…except if you have areas where you can drive and scan ag fields. I say that because thermal cannot see through glass and NV can.

Something else to pay attention to…base magnification is important depending on the hunting you do. If you spot and stalk, you will want the lowest mag. The reason being is FOV is wider and after the first shot, you see more to acquire the targets. If you plan to sit over feeders or shoot longer ranges the higher magnification is better.

Everyone that hunts with us who has bought NV always end up with thermal.
 
Check out @Zen Archery hunting adventures and videos.
I have also been using a combination of handheld thermal and a PVS 14 NV monocular. In my case I have found that I prefer using an IR laser vs. a dedicated scope, but that has limitations in range. There are a lot of options in terms of configuration. My main piece of advice for you is to try and get your hands on different equipment and configurations that you can test in the field, because part of the solution that is right for you is going to depend on the gun/s you're using, your shooting technique/set up, and even your eyes (if you wear glasses then a head mount may be problematic). I sometimes mount my PVS 14 on a scope and use an IR spotlight in longer range situations, for example, but I don't own a dedicated NV or thermals scope for that purpose. Mostly I have an NV hands free/head mount that I have modified so I can have both NV and thermal mounted - even simultaneously, which leaves my hands free. Currently I'm experimenting with a way to use an S&W 460xvr w/red dot for closer ranges, but that has required a custom blast can and other approaches for keeping the blast from triggering NV auto shut off - still a work in progress. I also hunt almost exclusively with suppressed rifles, so that is another variable that may be different for your situation. These are all examples of the importance of doing research and finding opportunities to test before you buy!
 
Alabama has finally legalized hunting hogs and coyotes at night. I have shot a hog during the day, but have never hunted them at night. I am wondering whether to use a night vision scope or will using the green led lights and a regular scope work. Any help or advice is appreciated.
Here's the night time hog hunting guru:
 
I had small problems with green spotlights. Seems animals can see their shadow and will spook. Red worked much better for me. Plain white light will still kill lots of animals once you learn the ins and outs of spot lighting.

Cheapest effective method is as above. I used a thermal monocular and digital night vision with a quality infrared illuminator for years. Killed lots of hogs and varmints. Learned a lot about animal behavior being able to spot and observe them at night.

Now I have a N Vision Halo LR thermal scope. Nirvana.

I shoot 50 to 200 hogs a year based on my take the last ten years. I also hunt West Texas where it is legal to take exotics at night. Coyotes anytime anywhere lol. Lots of night hunting under my belt. You will have fun.
 
Like Montanan stated, your area conditions and your hunting methods will dictate what equipment works best for you.
Deer season I kill a lot of hogs staying in a blind after dark. We still kill some with spotlights, (grandkids favorite activity). Milo and corn fields, hay meadows and pastures may need completely different equipment choices. All that versus riding in a side x side and covering lots of ground scanning and shooting. Lots of intervening vegetation or hanging Spanish moss can cause problems with IR illuminators, making your NV bloom, always at the worst time.
Coyotes are a little different game.
I have tried to try it all. It's all fun! Alabama isn't much different from coastal Texas. Message me if you have questions.
 
If this is first season they won't be educated about lights. So, if that is all you can afford for now. Go for it. Eventually they will become weary unless you learn to lower light slowly on them. I hunted 4-5 with various lights but they will wise up to a change in shadows around them.

Thermals are defiantly a plus but get you a good scanner. Then use the light.
I would avoid Night Vision for coyotes because they require and IR light on the darkest nights. IR Lights will limit your field of view and the light bounce back to your eye is no good.

So get a thermal scanner if you can afford one. Use a light for a few years then step into a thermal weapons mounted scope.
 
If you want to try spotlights first, I started with a good ole Q beam and a red filter. Better is a light with adjustable beam focus so you can go from flood to spot. Variable intensity is a definite plus. Dial the beam brightness up and down as needed. Half the fun is the research.

Wicked Lights A75iC 4-Color-in-1 Night Hunting Light Kit

available off of Amazon would give you all the colors to try plus adjustability of focus and brightness, if you want to spend that much on a light. I am looking at one for a special varmint set up.
Don't know your budget but we here can help you spend it living vicariously. I sometimes have my most fun on here helping spend other folks money! I also occasionally save someone some money with hard earned experience. Just my opinions, your mileage may vary.

Thermal is still the skittles. Just remember, NV and thermal are electronics. It's not like buying a quality riflescope your kids will inherit. It is a consumable with a lifespan. Don't go way outside your budget thinking one and done for the rest of your life. Think more along the lines of a bird dog or coon hound. A reputable dealer who stands behind his products is way better than a website that may not still be around next month, in the event you have issues. It's worth paying a little more. I got started with a dealer that had a try before you buy program. His advise was spot on.

In case you haven't guessed, its pouring rain here and I'm bored lol.
 
I have also been using a combination of handheld thermal and a PVS 14 NV monocular. In my case I have found that I prefer using an IR laser vs. a dedicated scope, but that has limitations in range. There are a lot of options in terms of configuration. My main piece of advice for you is to try and get your hands on different equipment and configurations that you can test in the field, because part of the solution that is right for you is going to depend on the gun/s you're using, your shooting technique/set up, and even your eyes (if you wear glasses then a head mount may be problematic). I sometimes mount my PVS 14 on a scope and use an IR spotlight in longer range situations, for example, but I don't own a dedicated NV or thermals scope for that purpose. Mostly I have an NV hands free/head mount that I have modified so I can have both NV and thermal mounted - even simultaneously, which leaves my hands free. Currently I'm experimenting with a way to use an S&W 460xvr w/red dot for closer ranges, but that has required a custom blast can and other approaches for keeping the blast from triggering NV auto shut off - still a work in progress. I also hunt almost exclusively with suppressed rifles, so that is another variable that may be different for your situation. These are all examples of the importance of doing research and finding opportunities to test before you buy!
I think you meant to quote the OP instead of me.
 
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