When the SiOnyx Aurora came out late 2018, Lucian of Romania started making some of the first accessories for the Aurora camera. Right away people saw a need to mount the Aurora camera to a helmet and use it like night vision goggles. His Hyperion bridge was a simple design. It was a fixed bridge and you had to tell him what your pupillary distance is so he could 3D print the Hyperion to match the spacing between your pupils. Well, he has since moved on and for a while now he has been making and successfully selling his MACHOS (Mission Adaptive Combat Helmet Optics System). It is a much better bridge design and it is modular for use with other devices, not just the SiOnyx Aurora.

Night Vision devices have been all the rage over the last couple of years and I have yet to run into a single person who didn’t want night vision in their collection. That being said, most of those same people probably wouldn’t spend the money it costs to obtain such a device purely because of its limited use in a person’s everyday life. OpenScope has set out to help remove the high price sting of digital night vision devices by releasing some open-source materials that allow anyone with a 3D printer to assemble their own rig. TFB/TFBTV supporter Stubbs was kind enough to give us a brief look into one such device he built in the hopes it would inspire others to do the same. Stubbs is proud to present his Bootleg Panoramic Night Vision Goggles (BPNVG).

For this week’s installment on Friday Night Lights, you get a two-for-one Dual Tube Spotlight. Just before flying out to New Orleans for TFB Gunfest, I met up with Alex Ko of Nocorium. He had a set of DTNVS and BNVD-1531 housings that he was patterning for his NVG wraps. I got a chance to take a look at them in detail.

All this week, TNVC is hosting their own virtual SHOT Show. They call it VSHOTT. Last Tuesday evening they announced some new products and among them there are two that are big in the Night Vision industry. For the first time, PVS-31A and BNVD-1531 will be made available to the public.

Some photos were posted in a Daewoo gun group on Facebook. They depict Korean SOF soldiers practicing some drills with their Daewoos and NODs. There are some very interesting equipment choices in these photos.

I’ve come a long way in the 25 some odd years I’ve been playing around with firearms. As a child, all I wanted was the simple stuff, more ammo, some soda cans to shoot at, and time out on the range with my buddies and my dad. Although quality range time with loved ones and friends is certainly high on the priority list, my desires in regards to the firearms and equipment have drastically changed. Sometimes all it takes is a small taste of what you don’t have to get you constantly thinking of ways to rearrange your checking account in order to get that next item on your list. Well, for me, these three items may be a ways off but Christmas miracles can happen, right? Here’s hoping for a quiet silent night in my firearms future.

Once we all become adults, Christmas begins to mean a lot less to us and is more about what we can give to others. We start families, have children, work relationships, business acquaintances, and endless others we hunt down gifts for. It is not like when we were children and fully expected an evergreen tree overflowing with gifts for us on Christmas morning. What if we could flip the script even for one year though?… If I could jump on the Fatman’s lap one more time and plead my case for toys beyond my budget I already know what would be on my short-list. All I want for Christmas is an H&K SP5 SBR similar to the MP5 John McClane ran around with on Die Hard (a classic Christmas tale, mind you). Also, one of Springfield Armory’s new Model 2020 Waypoint rifles and my 1st PVS-14 monocular to begin my journey down the night vision rabbit hole.

This week on Friday Night Lights we have another installment of Dual Tube Spotlight. Today we will take a look at a particular binocular housing that has a small foothold in the night vision market. Night Vision Devices makes Binocular Night Vision Devices (BNVDs) and we will focus on the BNVD-SG.

There is a common trope in the night vision world: 1 < 2 < 4. These numbers refer to the quantity of tubes used in different sets of NODs (Night-vision Optical Devices). Monoculars like the PVS-14 or Photonis Vyper-14 are inherently more limited than binocular devices like DTNVGs, and “ panoramic” quad-tube NODs like GPNVGs are heralded by many as the holy grail of seeing in the dark – hence, one tube isn’t as good as two tubes, which aren’t as good as four. Although in practicality, the four vs. two debate is a bit more complex than this somewhat trite representation, with factors like weight entering the mix, the fact remains that quads are a big deal (and come with the big price tag to match). Doubtlessly, there is something to be said for panos’ offering of a wider field of view and resultant better situational awareness.

The SiOnyx Aurora is a digital night camera that is sensitive to low light. It has the added benefit of being able to see into the infrared spectrum of light. I wrote a review of the original Aurora almost two years ago. I found the Aurora to be a great accessory that compliments my night vision and have found that using it as a POV camera works very well. The problem is finding a way to mount it to your helmet. Kiloohmcom makes some really great Aurora camera bridges that are worth taking a look at.

This week on Friday Night Lights we will go back to basics. Last year I wrote “ How to use Night Vision” so now we will talk about the benefits of one tube, two tube, green tube, white tube. Should you buy and use a monocular vs a binocular system? Should you get green phosphor or white phosphor?

By now most SHOT Show attendees and other interested parties are aware that SHOT 2021 has sadly been cancelled. Although the NSSF tried their best to find a way to carry on in spite of the ‘Rona and its related responses, unfortunately as of October 30th, there was no viable choice left but to call it. We’ll now have to wait an extra year for the firearms industry’s next top convention and trade show, but some upcoming alternatives have begun to surface, in an attempt to help fill the void in the interim and provide companies with a way to showcase new product offerings. Many of these are online events, like TFB and TFB TV’s own Gun Fest, which has already garnered a great response and is sure to be a great way to tide us over.

Last July I posted a news article about the Sector Optics G1T3. It was an LPVO with a thermal imager mounted to the top of the LPVO. More importantly, the G1 LPVO has their trademarked ID or Internal Display. This is a small second monitor inside the eyepiece of the LPVO that displays the thermal image. I requested a G1T2 so I could try and achieve thermal fusion with a night vision clip-on.

For some reason 99% of night vision devices are like cameras, they mostly come in black. I don’t understand why housing manufacturers default to black. It is not exactly “tactical” and does not hide well in the day or even at night. In some cases, some NVG housings look weird when you look at them under IR light. Some companies have released some custom cut camo gear skins. However, those are mired with defects and material supply issues. Well, my friend Alex Ko of Nocorium is releasing his NVG Vinyl Wrap to fill a much-needed gap in the night vision industry.

There are night vision goggles and there are thermal devices. Some people bridge the two like a FLIR Breach and PVS-14. The next level up is thermal fusion. This is where the thermal image is inserted into the night vision image. I wrote an article about DIY fusion, where you look into a thermal device with your night vision. Real thermal fusion allows you to see both night vision and thermal all in the same sight picture. The low barrier to entry for thermal fusion is to get a COTI (clip-on thermal imager). However, the ultimate thermal fusion is an integrated fusion unit that has rear projection overlay. That is the case for the ENVG PSQ-20.

The Finnish Armed Forces intend to improve their night combat capability by acquiring new night vision devices. The contract, with a total value of more than 13 million euros, includes a 209 million euro option for the next five years. The option includes image intensifiers, observation and surveillance systems and laser aiming devices. The supplier is the Finnish optronics specialist Senop Oy and delivery of the new systems is scheduled for the end of 2021. The troops are to be equipped with the devices from 2022.

This idea came about during a TFB work chat. Will P’s friend, Kevin Z, was curious if he could project an illuminator through a scope and aim with it. Hmmm, interesting. Could this work? Some of the TFB staff was skeptical. I was intrigued and it sounded like a fun experiment. I had some ideas and it is not totally crazy. Could an infrared projected reticle actually work? Let’s find out, FOR SCIENCE!!

The Night-Tronic NT940 Monocular (Mini-14) is a very compact light amplifier. The device is slightly smaller and lighter than the PVS-14 (NT920), yet it offers the same or better performance in darkness. Due to its small size, the device can be used hands-free, head-mounted or helmet-mounted, or paired with traditional sighting or aiming optics. The device can be connected to the camera for “digiscoping” type nature or star photography using the optional mounting adapter.

AGM Global Vision is an Arizona based night vision and thermal optics development company. They design and distribute a wide range of professional-grade thermal and night vision optics, and have a team with over 65 years of collective experience in the night vision and thermal optics industry. AGM Global Vision has just announced a massive partnership expansion with many shooting sports related companies. The full press release can be found below:

The SiOnyx Aurora is a digital night vision camera. It is relatively inexpensive and has potential. It has a sensor that is sensitive to low light and has the ability to see infrared light. While the Aurora is a pretty straight forward action camera, it has greater potential lying dormant inside. Thanks to astrophotography enthusiast CNOCT (aka Carpe Nocturnum) who sacrificed his Aurora. His modified Aurora can now use a variety of lenses as well as work with a PAS-29 COTI to get thermal fusion.

The ability to stay in the fight at night and at long distances is increasing in importance, and the United States Marine Corps is of course looking for competitive solutions in the area. For instance, the French Army selected the SCAR-H PR with a low variable power riflescopes from Schmidt & Bender ( reviewed here) with thermal imaging and light amplifiers from OIP Sensor Systems. Now the United States Marine Corps has selected Kollsman Inc., a subsidiary of Elbit Systems (USA), to design, develop and build a multispectral, clip-on weapon night sight (Integrated Clip-on Advanced Targeting Sight or ICATS).

Do you remember when mobile phones became common and new models with even better performance were released faster than you could apprehend?  Thermal Imaging seems to be in a similar “zone” at the moment. A Golden era, which can be both good and challenging for the consumer.

For this week’s Friday Night Lights we resume our Dual Tube Spotlight and look at a new bino NVG from ATN. The ATN PS31 is an articulating housing that resembles an L3 PVS-31 but it has features that set it apart from the pinnacle of dual tube night vision goggles.

Sightmark has a new Wraith Digital Day/Night Riflescope called HD 2-16×28. It has a lower magnification to provide the user with a larger field of view while scanning or tracking animals through the riflescope. The Sightmark Wraith 2x is intended for fast-moving hog and varmint hunting.

TFB is a little ahead as we have already reviewed the new state-of-the-art Pulsar Trail 2 LRF XP50 Thermal Imaging Riflescope. However, we reviewed the European version. The American versions are slightly different because of the reasons mentioned below.

Earlier this year we gave you a head’s up about the new upcoming products from Pulsar Thermal Imaging. Time flies and I’ve had the opportunity to examine and use both the Pulsar Accolade 2 LRF XP50 thermal binoculars and the Pulsar Trail 2 LRF XP50 thermal riflescope for a few months.

Earlier I reviewed the DBAL-D2 and DBAL-A4. While the DBAL-D2 is a big bloated workhorse and the DBAL-A4 is Steiner’s flagship laser device, the DBAL-A3 is probably the most popular weapon laser out of their catalog. The DBAL-A3 comes in a variety of power options and finds its roots in an older model variant. Let’s take a deeper look at the DBAL-A3.

For this week’s edition of Friday Night Lights, we resume our Dual Tube Spotlight and take a look at probably the most popular articulating dual tube bino housing on the market. The DTNVG (Dual Tube Night Vision Goggle) is made in Luxembourg by Act In Black and has taken over the commercial market as the must-have bino housing. Let’s take a closer look.

Over two years ago, when I only had a PVS-14, I wrote about budget POV cameras for night vision. POV cameras are nothing new. There are those sunglasses that have a built digital camera. I used to invert a GoPro over my left eye when I was learning to shoot USPSA. But filming what you see when you wear night vision is a little harder. There is one established POV recorder called the LPMR by BecauseOperator. However, a relative newcomer to the night vision POV recorder game is the ANVRS MK3 by Unobtanium Gear. In this article, I will compare the two POV recorders as they are similar in function but are drastically different from each other.