Thread: Thermal Night Shooting Gear - Pard NV007

One more thing comes to mind with the Pard 007!
Scopes.
Some of the high end scopes don't work very well, because of the reflective filters.
There is a list somewhere what works.
The ones I use are couple of nikko stirling night eaters, the main one is a hawke 3x12x42, it's nessary for me that the scope magnification starts at 2.5 or 3 as the 007 starts at x1.5, I don't usually use the the other magnifications it has, they seem get too pixelated, that may be better with the external IR light.
It's what it is, the 007 and 008 are the best entry level night vision units to date.
I've used the 007 for over a 18 months and have got proficient with it, this does take time, there was no-one to show me the set up the manual is nothing to speak of, it does have a few bells on it, I don't use.
Sometimes I record, like the full black rabbit last night! I couldn't shoot, he will keep, patience and persistence.
I think Marty Henry and I have covered all it's faults and its positive side out way's the little things.
We both made it known that side parallax adjustment is very important.
Marty Henry you may want to say something on the scope side what works for you etc.

KH

Versatility.
Was adding this to the above post and timed out on the edit, but for cat skinner's there more than one way.
Last night while driving I had the 007 off the rifle and used it to scan the paddocks without flashing lights all over the place!
The eyes bounce back pretty good, then it's a matter of stopping, while working out the approach at the same time clipping on the unit and moving on to setting up, I use a shooting stick called ViperFlex almost a soild platform, although the wind messed with me this morning.

KH

I ran it on a strike eagle 1-6 for a while and found that with the scope at 1power using the units internal magnification did away with the parallax out of focus stuff but the cross hairs grow at the same rate as the target as you are magnifying the whole image.
Using the scopes magnification on its own the target image was clear at 1x and got steadily worse up to 4x became really clear around 5 and was really shit at 6 it didnt matter what the range of the target was 25 yards or infinity this happened at all ranges.
I now run it on a bushnell nitro 2.5 to 10 and a night eater both with parallax.
Kiwi hunter and I might sound like salesmen for owl optics but we receive no comission or anything not that we would turn it down if it was offered (-:
Buying this kind of gear and I include thermal as well is quite a leap of faith for most people and the backup offered by the big players h&f etc is pretty crap, play with it in the shop give us your money and goodbye I took a stab and got the 007 on the strength of the UK utube reviews. People have seen and used mine and I know of two that brought them on the basis of that experience. $1000 is a lot of money to throw at something that might not be what you thought after a bit of experience so I hope these opinions are helpful.
I now have a thermal imager I got through savo and use in it in conjunction with the nv its fitted that with a lazer pointer and shooting as a team with that and the nv really is a game changer.

Does it require a stock extension or some sort to use while attached to the scope? I’m guessing the added 117mm length will muck up the scope OAL. What are people using to extend their stocks to suit a more comfortable shooting platform m?

Originally Posted by G.I_Joel

Does it require a stock extension or some sort to use while attached to the scope? I’m guessing the added 117mm length will muck up the scope OAL. What are people using to extend their stocks to suit a more comfortable shooting platform m?

I use a pacmeyr (that’s spelt wrong) slip on pad on my 308
Gives about 1 inch more LOP - I leave it on always now though

I have rapid fired 3 rounds of 308 and not bumped my eye - would have hit the deer if I remembered they where at 300+ so I didn’t dial ...

if you are still interested in a nv007 i have one for sale

Originally Posted by sig4x4

if you are still interested in a nv007 i have one for sale

Price?

800 with 2 scope adapters, bought it from owl optics in aug/sep 2020

Been rocking the Pard NV008 for quite a while now. Mounting it to the .22 with a 30MOA mount did away with the common gripe of needing to shim the Pard supplied mount.
It's been a solid performer, and most rabbits just don't spook with the inbuilt IR illuminator pointed at them.
Downside with the NV008 is the minimum magnification (6x) makes scanning an area painful. The ideal setup would be a thermal spotter with low magnification, and NV scope.

Thinking of getting a Pard 800 so phoned the chap at Owl Optics and he was very good to talk to. I asked a lot of questions. There are a few I thought of later so maybe someone here could help.

I've been using a Pulsar hand held thermal for a couple of years with a grunty scope mounted Maxtoch torch. Two problems with that are #1 the deer only wait about 3 seconds before bolting once the light hits them, sometimes less. #2 even a single strand of tussock or other plant will reflect back through the scope when the light is switched on and blot out the sight picture. Does the same thing happen with NV when using the illuminator? Can the animal see the IR light?

Any answers to those last two questions would be appreciated.

Obviously a thermal scope would be great but I can't justify the cost for the amount of deer hunting I do these days.

Originally Posted by 10-Ring

Thinking of getting a Pard 800 so phoned the chap at Owl Optics and he was very good to talk to. I asked a lot of questions. There are a few I thought of later so maybe someone here could help.
I've been using a Pulsar hand held thermal for a couple of years with a grunty scope mounted Maxtoch torch. Two problems with that are #1 the deer only wait about 3 seconds before bolting once the light hits them, sometimes less. #2 even a single strand of tussock or other plant will reflect back through the scope when the light is switched on and blot out the sight picture. Does the same thing happen with NV when using the illuminator? Can the animal see the IR light?

Any answers to those last two questions would be appreciated.

Obviously a thermal scope would be great but I can't justify the cost for the amount of deer hunting I do these days.

Well a thermal spotter is a great set up I think! both will complement each other.
(1.) As for the 850nm IR there is a cherry low glow and they can pick it up. But mostly don't have a reaction to it! Unless they have been educated with a missed shot or another falling dead besides them! Then next time they see the cherry glow they may not wait as long. My own observation.
(2.)like most night vision they don't like wooded cover as you will get some reflection or a scope full of vegetation from off the trees or bush's at a close range and I am mostly in open country, but have experienced that and with a misty or foggy night you might as well not be there.
I was shooting in a sort of open tree stand this morning and it was hard going as the magnification cut down the viewing area. This is with the 007.
They like open area's, I shoot standing up right with viper flex shooting sticks giving good ground clearance. These are as tentman+ keeps saying! And that's what works for me.
KH

Originally Posted by 10-Ring

Thinking of getting a Pard 800 so phoned the chap at Owl Optics and he was very good to talk to. I asked a lot of questions. There are a few I thought of later so maybe someone here could help.

I've been using a Pulsar hand held thermal for a couple of years with a grunty scope mounted Maxtoch torch. Two problems with that are #1 the deer only wait about 3 seconds before bolting once the light hits them, sometimes less. #2 even a single strand of tussock or other plant will reflect back through the scope when the light is switched on and blot out the sight picture. Does the same thing happen with NV when using the illuminator? Can the animal see the IR light?

Any answers to those last two questions would be appreciated.

Obviously a thermal scope would be great but I can't justify the cost for the amount of deer hunting I do these days.

Here's my observations:

When spotlighting with a Maxtoch, keep the deer on the edge of the light pattern, not the centre. And use the least powerful setting that illuminates them.

If using the cheap and cheerful scope mount for the Maxtoch, hang it over to the left hand side of the rifle, not straight up above the scope. You get too much glare off your suppressor when its up above the scope.

Re using a 008 with inbuilt illuminator, the animals seem oblivious to it initially, but a couple of fluffed shots on hares saw them move off pretty quickly the next night. Again, use minimum power to illuminate the shooting area. I can pick up my cows eyes at 300 in an open paddock with the 008 on minimum IR setting.

The 008 also extends your dawn and dusk shooting times significantly, still getting a colour picture way after any quality optical scope lucks out.

Originally Posted by XR500

....If using the cheap and cheerful scope mount for the Maxtoch, hang it over to the left hand side of the rifle, not straight up above the scope. You get too much glare off your suppressor when its up above the scope.....

My hunting mates and myself have found that a simple tube extension made from cardboard or light plastic tubing, about 6" long, slipped on to the front objective end of the scope stops the light reflection from the rear of the suppressor. Good tip about keeping the animal on the edge of the beam; will try that.

No, the animal can not see the IR light. You wont get anything reflect back at you, but you can get some wash from your IR light if you have anything that is close (1m or so) or in the way. I few people have complained about the magnification, personally, I like it. A good solid rest is essential at night I find if you are camped in the one place. I use a tripod with a V attachment on it to rest the gun in, it also allows you to swivel 360. I dont use the IR light on the 008, I always use a LED 850nm IR torch mounted on my rifle for better brightness, clarity and range. If you are doing longer range shooting, then a laser IR will give you the range, a LED IR is probably only good for 150m (I think they say about 250m, but that would be stretching it I feel).

Just my thoughts.

+1 for Owl Optics, nothing but good feedback from me.

One thing I do like about the 007 is you can use it as a monocular detached from the rifle.