Best NVG setup in Canada (300-500$)

[Ricochet]

^
Exactly!

Most NV today are paired with an IR emitter, which is what makes people very visible to NVs, but most Gen 1/Gen 1+ don't work particularly well with IR. Generation is based on the tubes used to filter the light through, the better the generation the better it is at filtering out noise and providing clarity, also the older the tube the more moon/ambient light needed to see well. Gen 1 in a really dark environment equals blind.

[Cliffradical]

After an average of around fifteen minutes in the dark your eyes will adjust and you'll be able to see pretty well under starlight or a moon. You can do pretty darn well if you're practiced and used to it. Use of flashlights will effectively 'reset' and ruin it though, so YMMV.

I've never seen anything that can be considered "affordable" that I wouldn't consider a disadvantage to hobbling around and yelling at people to turn their flashlights off.

NV is a serious sub-hobby in and of itself more or less, these guys aren't trying to rain on your cake, just trying to save you money.

Anecdote: A buddy of mine got a real good deal on a couple 'nicer' civilian Gen1+ scopes once (still not 'affordable'). They ruled if you wanted to try and find pieces of constellations and figure out which ones they were while otherwise blindfolded (it was a good drinking game).

[Ricochet]

Just for some perspective; I've been playing airsoft for about 11-12 years now (maybe more) and I spend tons in my gear and guns, mostly everything is top end real-steel. Systema, Crye, Oakley, etc, my gun is probably worth $3,000 plus. I've attended numerous night games and would love NVs, but, I play at night once or twice a year, so NV is tough to spend money on. If I'm not doing it right, I'm not doing it all. Against the modern backdrop of competitive airsoft gen 2+ or better is the way to go. NV/thermal are still one of those really expensive items in airsoft that can be difficult to spend the money on. A bunch of guys I used to play with we're getting into gen 3+ autogating NVs, so not only was there vision ultra clear, but flashlights/light couldn't blind their NVs and with their IR lasers enemy players were lit up like a Christmas tree. Civics are made well and reliable, but I wouldn't buy one to race Ferraris with.

[Latincanuck]

If you are going to be playing in bush/forest area thermal would be far better than nv. A good thermal scope means the enemy cannot hide behind bushes, only solid sufaces such as concrete or wood structures. However there is a massive cost for a thermal scope, cheapest i have seen it is 1800 used, normally 3-6 grand

[daishi]

Spend that 500 bucks on booze and a party for the boys/girls in your group.

Serious, gen 1 is crap, your natural eyesight will serve you better.

[ccyg8774]

I recently bought an clearance Night Owl Gen 1 Monocular for about $75, with the regular price being $300-400.
After receiving and testing it, I realized that the view from that monocular is only worth $75.

[Grudge]

I have a gen one monocular, mainly used in passive mode to find guys using gen 1 NVG, with their illumination on or guys using IR lasers on their guns.

[Kingsix]

Having started off with a Gen 1 Cascade Meta scope (Starlight scopes) , I'd say that's the best start if you can find them.

They don't require the use of a IR laser for targeting so they can be pretty stealthy. As long as you can see the sky and it's not overcast it can provide usable targeting above the naked eye. European models would be the best bang for your money as they stayed with the technology longer.

The Tradeoff is geometric distortion and heavier carry weight.

Examples
Zeiss Orion 80/I (Fero Z51), NSPU 1PN34, AN/PVS-2




Alot of Gen 1+ being sold on the market are overhyped gen 0s. Rule of thumb if you need IR to use it outdoors around half to quarter moonlight than you have a gen 0.

Generally speaking if you are not used to moving around in the dark without a light, nightvision will not help you very much. I've seen people with Gen 3's trip on stairs, run into chicken wire and misjudge distances.

Examples are Armasight spark, Pulsar Challenger GS 1x20, PNV-57E.

With less than European Gen 2+, 3 or American Gen 3 do not expect to be getting positive ID, but instead seeing the silhouette of a moving people contrasted against a green background.

*Experience

Owns PNV-57E Gen 1+, NSPU Cascade (w New Tubes), D300MS (Gen 2), GSCI Gen 2+ NV scope.

[Derpystronk]

Originally Posted by Bravo One-Six

If you WANT to buy night vision for your price range, the Armasight Spark Gen 1+ will fit the bill.

The one thing I want to +1 on this, with all the other points you made, is a Spark unit has some sort of use / benefit on the field, but nowhere near what you would expect or are hoping to get.

In a static position defense position where illumination does not matter as much, a Gen 1 with illumination could be beneficial. If you are at PRZ defending the entire length of a hallway? Yeah it should give you a slight edge. Also running it passively (no IR light) as a way to see into the non-visible spectrum to detect them tricky IR lasers? Also viable.

Will it allow you to see in the dark in the forest like you are expecting it to? Absolutely not. Is it worth 500 dollars? Probably not, no.

[ThunderCactus]

Originally Posted by Grudge

I have a gen one monocular, mainly used in passive mode to find guys using gen 1 NVG, with their illumination on or guys using IR lasers on their guns.

Neato funfact: The good IR lasers aren't even perceivable to gen1 NV