anyone in here use any of the digital day/night scopes? Mostly looking at atn 4k x-sight, sightmark wraith hd. And the one leaf nv400 commander. This will be my first entry into the night hunting but I also want something I could use for deer out to 300ish. Any insight would be great. Thanks
So you can go 2 different directions. I have a Sightmark Wraith 4k mini which is an IR night vision on a Tikka T1X 22 LR, that I use for raccoons steal corn from my deer feeder. You have 4k daytime and then also have Infrared night vision. The Wraith is around $800.00
I also have a Pulsar Thermion DXP50 Duo, which is a 4K daytime scope and Pulsar’s top of the line thermal scope. It is mounted on a Seekins Precision SP10 .308 and is my feral hog gun. The DXP50 Duo is around $5,800.00.
The IR are definitely more affordable.
I have two day/night IR scopes:
ATN X-Sight 5
Arken Zulus HD 5-20x LRF
I have had multiple problems with the ATN. Just this morning I just dropped it off at FedEx for a replacement. Their customer service is good as far as answering the phone and responding. I returned the scope once to get it fixed. They returned it with exactly the same problem though.
The main issue is that the scope would not turn on below 70F. It ruined two hogs hunts before I could determine what the issue was. I hunted with it 3 or 4 times at night and shot 2 hogs with it though. When it works, it is great.
I just got the Arken. I love it so far but have never hunted with it day or night. I have only used it on the range during the day. I have it mounted on my 22LR rifle and plan on using it for coons at night soon. The only issue there might be is with high powered rifles and the eye relief. It is short, but I think it will be alright. I read somewhere in Arden’s advertisements that it will handle up to magnum cartridges. I’m not sure which, I only shoot .308 Win, 7-08 & 22LR so I determined it will handle what I shoot. Once I deal with the coons I plan on mounting it on my Ruger SFAR, 16", .308 Win.
The Arken’s size, replaceable battery, and price are what drew me to it. They have two versions, one with and one without LRF. Mine, with LRF, lists for $933.29, but they have (and have had for awhile) a SAVE25% code for a 25% discount. I haven’t tried it at night or in the woods, but I am really loving it.
If you have never used a digital scope before, they are a totally different animal from conventional scopes. Plan on some time to explore them and get used to them. Good luck!
I had looked at the Arken but everything I could find they were on air rifles so I was worried about actual usability on a bolt gun and range. I’d be very interested to get more insight on the arken when you get time to play with it more. It really seems the atn is a great scope when it works right but there’s so many issues people report I’m not sure I’m willing to deal with it.