My home made NV set-up

[hutchey 147]

mine works a treat, just need to get used to it and use some film over the screen to make it duller.

[Alan Holmes 11]

I have just read the whole thread and going to have a go, cheers to everyone for adding to it.

[gosling1960 191]

Looking to make my own night vision, is this something a novice could undertake?.

[actionman333 15]

yes you can,especially if you can use a soldering iron...or you could buy one already made up.You just have to decide how much you want to spend and how far you need to be able to see.

[audiguypaul 28]

Here is my effort, just finished mounting it today, at last, i managed to cable tie the wires together and hide them in the stock pouch with the battery. i just need to paint thr IR illuminator.

 

 

 

[gosling1960 191]

Here is my effort, just finished mounting it today, at last, i managed to cable tie the wires together and hide them in the stock pouch with the battery. i just need to paint thr IR illuminator.

 

 

 

 

 

Nice work there hope to have the balls to attempt an effort like this soon

[actionman333 15]

mine look like this,good for 150-200yds

[audiguypaul 28]

I prefer the camera setup you have actionman but i couldn't find anything to do it that way, but i also wanted to have it all as one unit, unclamp and the whole lot comes off together so i couldnt have both. hope to do some ratting with it next week. Gosling its not difficult to put the bits together, its all plug and play really, the only modding was to the bracket the camera is attached to which is one of those aluminuim coat hooks, to the aluminuim bar that the ir and camera are mounted on and that was only drilling a few holes, and the ir has had 2 bolts araldited to it.

[actionman333 15]

my camera's are the little 38mm X 38mm cctv board cams,i build them into a small box half the size of the ns50 one,the colour cam is 700tvl so its crystal clear and the effio versions have 'on screen display',the wiring is a bit fiddly but i mount the joystick control to the outside of the camera housing with the power and AV sockets underneath,it simply pushes into the tube and that slips over your scope.The screen mounts forward on your scope because a)if its to close to your face the glare is too much and i wanted a unit that could comfortably be shot from the normal shouldered position.I adapt the screens so they swivel up and down more than the standard ones,and ive made screen mounts that are really solid and can be attached quickly in the field.When you are spotting you have the gun on your hip and simply tilt the screen upwards more,its really comfortable (and i have a bad back) then simply swivel the screen again and you can shoulder the gun for taking aim. The whole thing can be mounted in about 20-30 seconds.

[gosling1960 191]

I would have to say the part that im finding most daunting is the camera?. There seems to be (on different forums) a vast difference in the price people are paying for the camera element. It is only to be used on a sub 12lb air rifle.

[ghillies 209]

if your ratting you can get away with cheap tat...but it goes like this, 5'ver on a cam 30-50 on illuminasion..5'ver on the ir 150 quid on the cam.

 

the super hads work, the soney effio E are better, the exveiws better again, image quolity wise it used to be the 'seconds' watec of ebay but he's just killed that one with a huge price rise and now the EJ summut or others in the seen.

 

but theres a few inbetweenies.

 

i actual likethe mini 5v cmos cam for 20-30 quid depending where you get one, flip the ir block filter off and it perks up nicely.(they do a 12v version some where)

 

torch wise your looking for a T-20 or theres a few listed on the nightvisionforumuk...(dont forget on there theyre devoloping for the marky light and others with image quolity and range in mind for up to foxing and CZ range type things.)

 

these type of mini cam, theres a few places do them. http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/1-3-CMOS-520TVL-Mini-Camera-Color-Audio-Security-Camera-Night-Vision-0-008Lux-/320992073114

 

torch wise i like these type http://www.lightmalls.com/26650-sk68-style-smiling-shark-ss-a87-cree-xm-l-t6-zoom-5-modes-led-flashlight-torch-1x18650 theres three sizes, the bigger 26650, a 18650 version (i had 100 yards with the medium and the mini cmos...bit of noise like bu there yu go, and a small AA version.)

 

some usefull... http://lygte-info.dk/review/batteries2012/Common18650Summary%20UK.html

http://budgetlightforum.com/node/8799 ...the soshine 4 ampers are 4 ampers.

 

the olson black ir on a star are pritty much it with a driver of course, without a dimmer a zoomable does the very similar or the same. (for distance you'll be wanting an adjustable torch mount..on zoom its just a square so needs setting to the scope, on flood? erghh dunt matter that much at.)

 

a 5v reg will supply the camera.

 

battery wise...what ever you can get hold of...avoid truefire surefire any fire going, they are recons at an 1 amp...even when they print 74 million amps on it they still come in at an amp...the ones i've tried would not work in series and produced pritty tiney little sparks on the nipple end and shut down if you switched on..currrap.

 

but camera's...its hit n miss till you get one you can tolerate lol. i've lost where i got mine from but usualy its a case of eather trying a supplier or getting an address from some one whos got a good one.

 

and yes i had a 5 quid cmos de-filtered that 'worked' for ratting ranges.........went dicky very quickly and wont switch on some times lol.

 

20 quid to 30 quid you'll seeing up 100'ish yards, but...only when you get illuminated.

 

edit..dont bother 'just getting' a cheepo ir torch, your looking at 20 quid for the better of the lsser evils lol...save for one of the nightvision forum or some where already olson black'd for you...or do your owm.

you'll spend 15 then 20 then see the olson and spend 30 on one...thats 60 quid may as well gone for the matky light versons...and got a desent one forst time lol.

same on the battery scene..chep cheep cheep all in the bin when you discover theyre shit.

 

and a final...get a really cheep set up cheep ir masking taped about, all the hassel for a dingy short range failure and then you discover ahhhh for 20 quid more i could be tapping rabbit heads instead of struggling on rats...

Edited October 17, 2013 by ghillies

[actionman333 15]

i messed about and wasted money when i was learning about NV(as ya do),but it has come a long way in the last few years.At first i could only match what the ns50 does(black and white and 75yds maybe,but mine cost £75 instead of £500!) Now the cams are a lot better and provided you get one with 1/3" sony sensor and match that with a T-20 (for instance) then you are looking at 150yds+ depending on ambient light (the darker the better).

It has been very time consuming/expensive to aquire the knowledge, and forums like this do help newbies save a few quid on possible mistakes,the one thing i will say is to think seriously about how you are going to mount it,it took me weeks n weeks of trying different ways to mount the screen how it was comfortable for me(right handed but left eyed,so i shoot left handed) and it wasnt comfortable having 2 feet of tubing hanging from the back of my scope because it gets in the way when shouldering the rifle....cut/SOLDER/and shrink-tube your wiring when you shorten it,it makes everything neat and tidy. If you shoot sub 12ft/lbs you might think you only need vision of 75yds,

but checking backstops at night is really important as it is hard to judge distance at night,and if you can see to the other end of the field then you know where the furry buggers are long before you get within distance

to take the shot.

[merle24 61]

Nice work fellas,,, there is a great deal of cameras out there which makes things a little confusing,, watecs seem to score well but are pricey,, sony effio 1/3 700tvl low lux 0.01,,, is what I am using.

 

As for illuminators if you go onto the night vision forum there is a step by step guide on how to build a t 20 ir with a 50mm aspheric lens and oslon black led for under 60 quid !,,, and aswome they are too ! spot to flood adjustable so no whiteout at close range.

[weebster 17]

Doing a T20 yourself will work out at £27.79 give or take a squid or two,cheaper options on other torch's.

Cams from £20 upwards and loads to choose from,lipo batts are a different matter,I think the days of cheap ones from china are numbered as a lot seem to be getting stopped at customs in china and sent back to the sellers,could be to do with the recent holiday over there or more likely to do with new air frieght rules and lipo batteries as well as china upping their x-ray procedures where air mail is concerned.

Can still get lipo batts from the uk but they are more than double the cost in most case's.

Edited October 21, 2013 by weebster

[merle24 61]

Doing a T20 yourself will work out at £27.79 give or take a squid or two,cheaper options on other torch's.

Cams from £20 upwards and loads to choose from,lipo batts are a different matter,I think the days of cheap ones from china are numbered as a lot seem to be getting stopped at customs in china and sent back to the sellers,could be to do with the recent holiday over there or more likely to do with new air frieght rules and lipo batteries as well as china upping their x-ray procedures where air mail is concerned.

Can still get lipo batts from the uk but they are more than double the cost in most case's.

 

TAKEN FROM A STICKY ON THE NIGHT VISION FORUM

 

CRELANT Collimator Aspherical Zoom Head for 7G5 V2 CS Flashlight from here here 38.33 us dollar

http://www.kaidomain.com/product/details.S020468

 

UniqueFire UF-T20 Cree XM-L T6 3-modes 1200Lumen Zoomable LED Flashlight Torch 19. us dollar from

http://www.aliexpress.com/item/UniqueFi ... 30113.html

 

ptfe tape 99p from here

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Fastpak-100-P ... 231c54b7cc

 

Led driver 2.90 us dollar from here

http://dx.com/p/17mm-1050ma-single-mode ... -5v-127687

 

Osram Olson ir led 13 euro delivered from here

http://www.led-tech.de/en/High-Power-LE ... 6_207.html

 

Parts list 2, Torch running off 12volt battery

 

Li-po battery + charger from here £14.18

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/300758690956? ... 1439.l2649

 

Led driver 4.08 us dollar from here http://kaidomain.com/product/details.S002982

 

12 volt panel mount socket and dc power plug from here £2.79 from here

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2-x-DC-Power- ... 2a292770fc

 

As for lipo bat packs,, the cheap Chinese ones are just that,, they don't seem to make the stated capacity or last very long !

 

Edited October 22, 2013 by merle24