Night vision during full moon?

[crazymonkey]

Going to hunt pigs in texas the first week of June. Should be during the full moon . Will I need night vision or thermal to see pigs to hunt at night? We don't get to hunt anything at night here in Arizona. The place I'm hunting is my dad's buddies lease up by Gainesville.

 

[3chester]

Red/Green Illuminated reticle will always help at night. Surefire weapon lights are a plus. Full moon and clear weather shouldn't be a problem.

 

[crazymonkey]

I forgot to mention all 3 of my guns I'm planning on bringing have nightforce glass and illuminated reticles

 

[Sealesniper]

Depends on canopy. Full moon under lots of trees and leaves is still very dark, plus the shadow play hell seeing. I am a believer in NV over thermal. I can see what I am targeting with NV, but thermal can make it hard to tell. I hunt cow pastures with calves, goats and donkeys. I need to be certain of my target and what is behind it. Tried thermal and went back to my NV scope and monocular.
If I were you, I would ask your dads buddy what he recommends. Have fun. Also, always a good idea to scope out the hunt are in daylight so you know the lay of the land, where they should be coming from, and if there are any unsafe directions you should not fire down.

 

[Double Naught Spy]

What is your shooting distance going to be in June when you come?

Canopy was mentioned, but what about cloud cover. Without NV or thermal during heavy clouds, your hunt will be ruined if you just want to go with a day optic in the dark. You will end up resorting to red or green flashlights and that isn't a big advantage.

Used to to NV, now only hunt thermal because of its far superior spotting capabilities, identification abilities beyond that of NV, and the fact that camo that protects animals from NV won't protect them from thermal.

 

[jraulsten]

Everyone I know in Texas, including myself, hunts hogs at night with a thermal for all the reasons mentioned by Double Naught Spy.........

 

[crazymonkey]

Depends on canopy. Full moon under lots of trees and leaves is still very dark, plus the shadow play hell seeing. I am a believer in NV over thermal. I can see what I am targeting with NV, but thermal can make it hard to tell. I hunt cow pastures with calves, goats and donkeys. I need to be certain of my target and what is behind it. Tried thermal and went back to my NV scope and monocular.
If I were you, I would ask your dads buddy what he recommends. Have fun. Also, always a good idea to scope out the hunt are in daylight so you know the lay of the land, where they should be coming from, and if there are any unsafe directions you should not fire down.

Not sure on shot distance . It's only a 40 acre spot . He primarily hunts deer so it's got two elevated box blinds . I've hunted pigs in California but not at night. We plan on getting a look at things during the day. I've got a feeling my wife will be ****ed at me for buying a scope to hunt nights for pigs as I just picked up another 5x25x56 nightforce for my muzzleloader and she just paid the bill

 

[338 dude]

Just get one anyway she will adapt.explain to her how much the trip and the hunt is going to cost and it would all be for nothing unless the conditions were just right.

 

[338 dude]

Not sure on shot distance . It's only a 40 acre spot . He primarily hunts deer so it's got two elevated box blinds . I've hunted pigs in California but not at night. We plan on getting a look at things during the day. I've got a feeling my wife will be ****ed at me for buying a scope to hunt nights for pigs as I just picked up another 5x25x56 nightforce for my muzzleloader and she just paid the bill

So she already knows what a scope costs your halfway there!

 

[Sealesniper]

If just 40 acres get some feeder lights and send them to your buddy and ask him to install them. They come on at dusk and stay on all night. After a few days the pigs get used to them and your are set. Ask him to turn the corn on full blast. Send him money for extra corn and you are miles ahead of the game on money. Lots of corn equals lots of pigs and they will fight for food and not be bothered by the light. You will get by with a successful hunt for a couple hundred bucks.

 

[Zen Archery]

Feeder lights, run NV. There's a company in Tx you can rent NV and thermals. Don't know cost but worth looking into if you don't think you'll use long term.

 

[Varmint Hunter]

My buddies and I have hunted pigs near feeders with dim green lights. No NV of any kind was needed but an illuminated reticle was a big advantage over the scopes that didn't have one.

Mostly I've been using thermals for all of our spot & stalk hunting. A handheld thermal for scanning really simplifies life.

 

[jraulsten]

Elusive Wildlife here in Conroe will have everything you need as far as feeder lights for hunting hogs. I always use their lights for bow hunting hogs at night. You won't need a thermal or NV if you go that route.....

Elusive Wildlife Technologies

 

[crazymonkey]

I did ask about feeder lights and he doesn't run them being he hunts deer and will shoot a hog if he comes across them. I think I've got a lead on some thermal gear that a fellow member on another local site might let me rent - borrow for the hunt .I did look into the feeder lights but don't want to ruin my opportunity to hunt and come back in the future.