lamp v laser

[dryan]

been looking at the merlin add on units.

i have a decent lamp that can get a ir filter for.

hence saving 200 notes, however whats advantage/disadvantage lamp v laser:confused:

[Recurve]

The IR lasers are supposed to be the 'dog's', although I would have thought that over airgun ranges that the lamp would probably be enough.

Incidentally, there is a seller on 'that auction site' that does ir lasers for £95 buy it now plus p&p, or his auctions start at £69 and often don't get any bids on. Search for 'infrared laser scope'.

HTH

[cliveward]

Dryan,

A filtered lamp would do the job but add even more bulk to your setup.

The IR lasers mentioned above are target pointers and not illuminators BTW.


Cheers





Clive

[dryan]

will my lamp emit any visible light with the filter on?

[Marky610]

will my lamp emit any visible light with the filter on?

I've been using my deben tracer with a ir filter on it and it produces a small red glow, thats about it ;)

Oh yes and it works a treat ;)

[dryan]

does it spook bunnies or is is un noticable?

does a laser produce no vis light, sorry all the questions, im just looking into this nv stuff and dont have a clue!

[Coney]

does it spook bunnies or is is un noticable?

does a laser produce no vis light, sorry all the questions, im just looking into this nv stuff and dont have a clue!

I used a Deben lamp with IR filter last night for the first time and I found that the lamp spooked far less than my old led illuminator, I have never tried a laser illuminator so I can't comment.

Alan.

[Baldie]

will my lamp emit any visible light with the filter on?

Yes. You'll see the unit glow. But you shouldn't see any reflected light.

does it spook bunnies or is is un noticable?

does a laser produce no vis light, sorry all the questions, im just looking into this nv stuff and dont have a clue!

Without question, lasers seem to do less 'spooking' of rabbits, though its success may be due to something else.

Lasers will take almost any system to a usable 100 yards, lamps are less likely to do that. By default using a lamp with an IR filter means you have to get closer, so it may seem like more 'spooking' is going on, where really it's actually the shooter doing the spooking? That said, even though I have firearms grade rifles, I still stalk bunnies to 30/40 yards with IR laser successfully.

I used a Deben lamp with IR filter last night for the first time and I found that the lamp spooked far less than my old led illuminator, I have never tried a laser illuminator so I can't comment.

Alan.

The LED illuminators (Yukon and 'others') have quite noisy on/off switches. Could this have been some of the reason an LED IR torch was less successful?

[cliveward]

does it spook bunnies or is is un noticable?

does a laser produce no vis light, sorry all the questions, im just looking into this nv stuff and dont have a clue!

Dryan,

I have found that the very least intensity of IR illumination and concentration you use, the less chance there is of the IR spooking the quarry.

All IR sources will produce a red glow from the IR source itself as you look at it but will not project that visible light onto objects at any distance.

What the target will see from it's perspective is a point source of deep red light, varied in intensity depending on the power of the light source. In the case of a laser it will be much brighter, compared to an LED based illuminator and have that 'sparkly halo' around it is the best description.

Now imagine again your the target:
If someone is sweeping the field with a difused IR filtered lamp or LED illuminator then you would see a red glow steadily increasing in intensity as the beam is brought to bear on you.

Now if someone is sweeping the field with a concentrated laser illuminator you will see a bright sparkly red glow flashing on and off as it is swept over you because the laser is concentrated and linear.

The Yukon LED illuminator also does this to some extent due to the honeycomb filter fitted to it to make the IR only visible to the target.

Our 100mW laser does this to a much lesser extent as it is fitted with a micro lens array that diffuses the beam to have a much softer edge, also it has 3 power settings and is probably the best compromise if you need a lot of IR (as with an add on system).

Having said all that, field craft is probably the most important factor when NV shooting. Especially at airgun ranges, you need to stalk, downwind, just as slowly as during the day and keep all movements of the rifle (and illuminator) very slow.


Cheers





Clive

[Marko]

A very informative thread, thank you gents!

Marko

[dryan]

cheers lads, answered my question and more info on top.

so from above i conclude that at 40 yards my lamp with filter/dimmer is fine as only for airgun use at mo.

[cliveward]

No problem, look up rabbitman on this very BBS and he can supply you with the IR filter for your lamp at a fraction of the usual cost ;)


Cheers





Clive

[Baldie]

so from above i conclude that at 40 yards my lamp with filter/dimmer is fine as only for airgun use at mo.

Will in some way depend on the starting power of your lamp, and what tube you are using. [You may have stated this elsewhere but I haven't noticed it.]

Not all manufacturers charge you an arm and a leg for their IR filters, so may be worth asking them first. Nightsearcher do theirs for £25 IIRC.

I do 3mm thick IR material, if you are interested. ;)

Will PM you details. :)

[bennyblanco]

Our 100mW laser does this to a much lesser extent as it is fitted with a micro lens array that diffuses the beam to have a much softer edge.


cheers Clive, always wondered why/how it had the soft edges.





in my experience lasers are a hell of a lot better than lamps with the xvd systems, any ir light reflections back off your scope turrets etc. will play havoc with the image.

i have yet to meet someone with a decent laser illuminator who has considered it over expensive once they have used it in the field.


ben

[LagomorphHunter]

cheers Clive, always wondered why/how it had the soft edges.


in my experience lasers are a hell of a lot better than lamps with the xvd systems, any ir light reflections back off your scope turrets etc. will play havoc with the image.

i have yet to meet someone with a decent laser illuminator who has considered it over expensive once they have used it in the field.


ben

I have the XVD system, orginally with the additional LED Illuminator. Was OK. I made an illuminator with my 50watt lamping kit and IR filter. Heavy, and works as well as the LED illuminator, no better.

Bought the laser illuminator from Rob for the said loads of £, and feel every penny was worth it. It is the dogs. Not 10 times better, more like 100.