I am looking for recommendations for thermal scopes for hog/coyote hunting. Looking for recs for a $1500 to $3000 range and then a $3000 to $5500 range. Would have to be an exceptional increase in quality/capability to go with the higher range.

I expect shots to be mostly short range of 100 to 250 yards, emphasis on 122-150 yards.

I have been hunting for close to 50 years, but have zero experience hunting at night.

As always, I appreciate the insights from this board.

Regards and Gig'em

Central Committee

Burris BTS 50

In the "under $3k" price, that Burris BTS50 is a good choice.

At $3k, I'd go with IRay Bravo 384

At $4k, I'd go with AGM Rattler TS50

At $5k, I'd go with Pulsar XP50

What you're getting as you go up in price is better resolution and more features.

Will you primarily hunt the same property or random places?
Hunting stands and feeders or spot and stalk?

Happy to help answer and questions you have and can provide you pricing if you need it. shawn@kelsoarms.com

Check out these reviews

The over 150 range would justify the Pulsar Thermion CH50 over the XP50. It has a smaller field of view and higher magnification.

The image quality is top notch. It has the same core as the trijicons, but way less money.

skelso said:

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Will you primarily hunt the same property or random places?
Hunting stands and feeders or spot and stalk?

Happy to help answer and questions you have and can provide you pricing if you need it. shawn@kelsoarms.com

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Hunting from elevated deer stands and pop up blinds. I will be shooting off of a fixed prop or prone off a bipod.

Built-in TX, Bering Optics Hogster, SuperHogster, Yoter are all great choices with 5 year warranty! Able to record hunt and can use an external mobile battery for all night use.

Capt. Augustus McCrae said:

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The over 150 range would justify the Pulsar Thermion CH50 over the XP50. It has a smaller field of view and higher magnification.

The image quality is top notch. It has the same core as the trijicons, but way less money.

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I believe you meant the Thermion XG50, not CH50. CH50 is a model designation of IRay clip on optic.

You're correct that the Thermion XG50 uses the same BAE core as Trijicon and N-Vision uses, and I agree, that is a little better scope for the application than the XP50.

I didn't recommend it however because Pulsar has discontinued XG50. I believe they had trouble getting enough cores to meet production. Also, when it was introduced it was considerably more expensive than XP50, but was discounted once discontinued. You might be able to still find some remaining units at close out pricing.

Thaddeus Beauregard said:

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Capt. Augustus McCrae said:

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The over 150 range would justify the Pulsar Thermion CH50 over the XP50. It has a smaller field of view and higher magnification.

The image quality is top notch. It has the same core as the trijicons, but way less money.

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I believe you meant the Thermion XG50, not CH50. CH50 is a model designation of IRay clip on optic.

You're correct that the Thermion XG50 uses the same BAE core as Trijicon and N-Vision uses, and I agree, that is a little better scope for the application than the XP50.

I didn't recommend it however because Pulsar has discontinued XG50. I believe they had trouble getting enough cores to meet production. Also, when it was introduced it was considerably more expensive than XP50, but was discounted once discontinued. You might be able to still find some remaining units at close out pricing.

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Yeah, it was the XG50. My fat thumb hit the wrong letter

Thaddeus Beauregard said:

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In the "under $3k" price, that Burris BTS50 is a good choice.

At $3k, I'd go with IRay Bravo 384

At $4k, I'd go with AGM Rattler TS50

At $5k, I'd go with Pulsar XP50

What you're getting as you go up in price is better resolution and more features.

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My buddy had the Pulsar XP50.. amazing scope

If you can find a trijicon 35mm hunter mk2. They should be in the 5000 range.

Pulsar is still building several models on the BAE core. The XG50 has been discontinued but as of about 2 weeks ago, there were still some in Pulsar's warehouse. I suspect this to still be the case. It will be replaced by the Thermion 2 XG50 LRF Pro. Similar scope, different lens, laser rangefinder, and better battery life.

Central Committee said:

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skelso said:

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Will you primarily hunt the same property or random places?
Hunting stands and feeders or spot and stalk?

Happy to help answer and questions you have and can provide you pricing if you need it. shawn@kelsoarms.com

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Hunting from elevated deer stands and pop up blinds. I will be shooting off of a fixed prop or prone off a bipod.

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Thanks for the reply. The reason these are some of the first questions I ask is to help someone decide if they need a range finder or not. You mentioned not having a lot of experience at night. Everything changes in the dark. You lose all your reference points. When looking through thermal or night vision, the field of view is flattened to a 2d plane. Judging distance is difficult but can be learned. Having a range finder shortens the learning curve. If you will mostly be hunting blinds / feeders then you have the advantage of known distance making a range finder not as critical.

There's several manufacturers / models that will fit what you are looking for, many of which already mentioned.

Pulsar is the first brand of thermal I sold, back in 2015/16ish. The US importer is based in Mansfield, TX. Outstanding customer service. Still my go to in a lot of cases.

I became a dealer for Trijicon in 2017 (They were IR defense at the time). They were the leader for many years but lack of innovation has caught up to them.

I picked up N-Vision a few years ago. They build on the same American made BAE core as Trijicon but have better picture and better warranty for a little less cost.

I started selling IRAY, us Importer based in Ft. Worth, last year around this time due to supply chain issues with Pulsar. I have really been impressed with their build quality, and customer service. For the ballers out there, IRAY just released a new 1280 x 1024 core - $18K

Ive sold a handful of Bering and AGM products. I have not experienced any complaints with them, just not onenofnthe brands I work with most so I cant give you a lot of feedback there.

Have you received any feedback on the SIG ECHO3 thermal?

I have seen some references to it in a few online magazines. The biggest complaint I have seen publicly is that it has a lighted 'screen' that is potentially too bright if hunting in the open.

I have not used one myself. It's a 12 micron 320 x 240 core which is going be capable of similar picture as a 17 micron 384 core. However, the smaller lens size will bring it back down to entry level picture quality. It's going to have a field of about 52' at 100yd. If you figure an average adult pig at 4' nose to tail, at 100 yards its going to be represented by about 24 pixels wide. That's not a lot of resolution for making positive target ID. That coupled with the open eye piece is a deal breaker for me.

Central Committee said:

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Have you received any feedback on the SIG ECHO3 thermal?

I have seen some references to it in a few online magazines. The biggest complaint I have seen publicly is that it has a lighted 'screen' that is potentially too bright if hunting in the open.

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It sucks. Hard pass. Don't buy it.

As always, I appreciate the expertise on this board.

Looking forward to doing my part to cull the feral hog population in San Saba County.

Let us know what you end up buying and make sure you post pics of your first kill!

following

So, on the Echo, I have played with them. It's a cool concept but just doesn't work very well. Especially for a lot of the people on this board.

The problem comes with how it is set up.... it is not using a lens with your eye. It's set up like a holographic sight but it has a lighted screen on the back of it. Everyone and every critter can see that.... not that it will be a huge deal but it does light your face up plus the issues with looking at a bright screen in the middle of the darkness messing with your night vision.

On top of that, and this is where things get bad for SOME people, the unit sits about a foot from your face. If you are old enough to need reading glasses, it will cause some eye strain in focusing on it. Hell, even with young eyes, after a while, it can cause some eye strain.

I've only sold a couple and I actively avoid it now... apologies for the couple ags that bought one from me when they came out and I got a steal of a deal on them.