Night Owl Explorer Night Vision Scope

Rating:
Summary: Tiered of looking at everything black at night???
Review: Be tiered no more!! With the Night Owl Explorer Night Vision Monocular, you can see everything at night just as you see in the daytime! I wanted something like this to go hunting with or just to play around with. This is a GREAT product! I use this thing for EVERYTHING! Hunting, fishing, bat watching, ceyote watching, and it's even used for finding the way back home! This product is a TRUE 5 Star rating. It's GREAT for star gazing too! Even the smallest stars that are in clumps are spread out enough to see the whole circumfrence! With the Night Owl Night Vision Scope, you won't be lonley at night anymore!

Rating:
Summary: Night Owl Explorer 3.1
Review: I found the Night Owl Explorer 3.1 to be ok, thats all. The price isn't bad for what you get and it's very hard to pick out a "good" night vision unit in this price range. The one thing I don't like about it is it needs the IR light on it to work if it's completly dark out, which is ok, but the IR light is so bright that someone could spot you sitting in the dark because of it. It has a 1/2" diameter red light on top of the unit which at night is very bright if there is nothing else out there. This would not be a good unit for surveillance work. The unit only has a 15,000 light gain in it, some have up to 35,000 and would most likely be a better choice, if the claim is true. All in all it's ok for just screwing around with though. I also got the 5X lens adapt. for it, it works pretty good but does rob even more light. If you want a real good unit get one with a 2nd or even 3rd gen. tube, they are much better than any of these 1st gen. cheapies.....

Rating:
Summary: Nice product
Review: I had to return mine since it had a big splotch in the phosphor screen that was distracting. Amazon couldn't replace it as they had run out of stock. From the little use I put it through, it worked well. I use an IR-scope at work that cost close to a $1000, but this Russian beauty is comparable to that in quality costing only a fraction of that.

Rating:
Summary: Very Effective Nightvision. Two thumbs up!!
Review: I just received and used this Night Owl nightvision model "NOCX3".This product worked GREAT.I had 3/4 of a moon.Location was a wooded lake area 1:30am.I could see clearly at least 300 ft away.Standard green monochrome view.I messed with the IR a little but really didn't need it.The IR was just like turning on a mag light,effective 100 ft.I was able to turn on the unit and shut off a minute later for approx 20 minutes of sustained usage.Saves battery juice.Limitation,field of view was like looking through a paper towel roll.Small,but you could see everything.This is a great low cost Russian nightvision product.--ks.

Rating:
Summary: Very Effective Nightvision. Two thumbs up!!
Review: I just received and used this Night Owl nightvision model "NOCX3".This product worked GREAT.I had 3/4 of a moon.Location was a wooded lake area 1:30am.I could see clearly at least 300 ft away.Standard green monochrome view.I messed with the IR a little but really didn't need it.The IR was just like turning on a mag light,effective 100 ft.I was able to turn on the unit and shut off a minute later for approx 20 minutes of sustained usage.Saves battery juice.Limitation,field of view was like looking through a paper towel roll.Small,but you could see everything.This is a great low cost Russian nightvision product.--ks.

Rating:
Summary: I was sceptical at first...but when i got it, it was great!
Review: I studied the night vision market for a long time, before I got the Explorer. Sure enough there seemed to be many makes and models out there that would've fit the night vision bill - the camping trip, checking out wildlife at night up at the cabin, perhaps a little stargazing, that type of thing. Fact is there are a variety of styles and "generations" out there for those with pockets deep enough demanding all the bells and whistles like in a 007-flick. Problem is, how much to spend? A few hundred or a few grand? For me the choice was simple. I wanted something good enough to enable clear, comfortable viewing - even in the darkest light-conditions with a powerful lens at a low, low price. Well, I finally found the Explorer from Night Owl Optics and I wasn't disappointed. What a great price for a fantastic piece of night vision equipment!

Rating:
Summary: These are a great buy...
Review: I studied the night vision market for a long time, before I got the Explorer. Sure enough there seemed to be many makes and models out there that would've fit the night vision bill - the camping trip, checking out wildlife at night up at the cabin, perhaps a little stargazing, that type of thing. Fact is there are a variety of styles and "generations" out there for those with pockets deep enough demanding all the bells and whistles like in a 007-flick. Problem is, how much to spend? A few hundred or a few grand? For me the choice was simple. I wanted something good enough to enable clear, comfortable viewing - even in the darkest light-conditions with a powerful lens at a low, low price. Well, I finally found the Explorer from Night Owl Optics and I wasn't disappointed. What a great price for a fantastic piece of night vision equipment!

Rating:
Summary: Think twice
Review: If you really are going to invest in a night vision scope, you may as well go with a more expensive model. For what it's worth, the Explorer is sufficient, but the infared light to see in darkness is quite annoying. The manual focus can be a hassle as well. This device is excellent- almost four stars- but if you are going to spend the money, you may as well do it right.

Rating:
Summary: I was sceptical at first...but when i got it, it was great!
Review: Right when i got my nightvision device it was at 9:00 AM. I was mad, night time was a long ways away. So i went down into my basement. I closed the door and turned on my nightvision. There was a little bit of light coming threw the door cracks. I could see everything. And in the dark corners i would just push on the IR LED light (infrared light). I love this thing. I had a cyclops compact before, it was ok, it wasnt weather resistant. So i just went with the Exlorer. The Explorer has a rubberized case so if it where wet you would have a better grip, and it is more water resistant. I think whoever is deciding what kind of night vision they should get either the explorer or the 100% water proof ones. I like my night vision device alot.

Rating:
Summary: Great Generation I Scope, Great Value
Review: The Night Owl Optics ... Explorer (NOCX3) is their most popular monocular, and with good reason. The Explorer fits comfortably in your hand, and the controls are placed for one-handed operation. The rubber-armored body is water resistant. The monocular is light enough (16 oz) to take hiking or hunting without regret. With the Explorer I've observed coyotes, bats, and owl, and my dog chasing rabbits. The Explorer can only be used in low light situations. It has a built in infrared illuminator for very low light observations. It is not a thermal imager-it cannot detect heat. ... Generation I night vision scopes use a photo cathode that amplifies light towards a phosphorescent screen where the image is formed. Generation II and Generation III devices have micro channel screens, which give better resolution. Gen II and Gen II devices also have better light amplification. They also cost thousands of dollars. A Gen I image look blurry compared to a Gen II image. However all those cool night vision images CNN showed during Desert Storm-those were Gen I images. Gen I scopes are still the best value.

Amazons price on the Explorer isgreat. ...

The Explorer has 3.1x magnification, which can be increased to 5x with the purchase of the NOLD20 Lens Doubler (Amazon sells it). The NOCA42 Camera Adaptor (Amazon sells it) and the appropriate T-Mount for your 35mm camera will allow you to take pictures through the Explorer.

The monocular comes with a high quality padded case, and a slip of paper informing you where to write for a free "orientational" (sic) video. The Explorer requires, but does not come with a 3 v lithium battery (CR123A 3v, EL123AP, DC123A). I recommend the Energizer EL123APB-2 3-Volt Lithium Photo Battery (2-Pack), which is available form Amazon electronics.

More Technical Specifications: Objective Lens: 42mm, FOV @1000 yards: 628 feet, Focusing Range- 5 feet - infinity, Dimensions: 7.2"x2.3"x3.3".

Interpretation of Technical Specifications: 1000 yards away you can see something 628 feet long. Anything further away than 5 feet you can focus on, anything closer than 5 feet you cannot get in focus.