Thermal Monocular for deer (maybe even duck) recovery

[Sasha and Abby]

Can yall not see blood?

Actually, no.

I'm not color blind, per se... I just have a REALLY hard time seeing blood in fall leaves that have red/brown/black colors in them unless it is still wet blood. If it is damp/wet leaves it is even worse. Hence most every deer I shoot less than 200 yards is a neck shot.

[SilverFox]

I can promise you that if you're not going to helmet mount it, the 256 will work find for finding deer. I can see deer on the other end of one field I hunt and it's 980 yards away. You might not be able to tell if it's a deer or a hog, but the heat signature is there. You're not going to impress your friends with it but if all you're looking for is a dead animal then save some money.

[Palmetto Bug]

Are there any thermal monoculars that work well for dual use...handheld and clip-on scope?

I don't have hogs or a big problem with coyotes and don't hate armadillos so I haven't been able to justify a thermal. I am still intrigued with them and would hate to get invited to shoot pigs at night and be unprepared.

[CurLee]

AGM Rattler and probably several other options. Mine has proven repeatable POI at 75yds on a 6.8 upper. I need to install stops on the pic rail to make sure I get it on the same slot while fumbling in the dark.

[SilverFox]

I've never messed with a clip on model. There's several of the smaller scopes that can be used for a handheld scanner as well as on the gun. There's a couple that are in the $2000 range that have return to zero mounts that people pull off their guns to use as a scanner and then put them back on when going hunting. Like said above, you would want a low base mag if you're going to use it for a dual purpose. There could be some that are even cheaper by now with the way thermal has dropped in price since I started and kept up with it. If you're going to be shooting hogs, a 384 will do fine since they are usually close when you shoot them. People shot them for years with 256 scopes before technology improved. I'm still running an IRay scope that's 5 years or so old in 384 on one rifle.

The youtube channel "The late night vision show" does a lot of reviews on most of your better scope brands. Today you can spend as much or as little as you want. I see people who jump in head first and spend thousands of dollars and then a month later are selling them because they just don't use them. I also see people who get in cheap and then are upgrading in a month.

[SilverFox]

By the way, don't buy a tube model for taking off and using as a scanner when not hunting. The one's I have seen are almost impossible to use as a scanner while the compact scopes work pretty well.

I have several sets of the American Defense MFG return to zero mounts that I highly recommend if you buy one that needs a mount. Every set I have goes on a tube type scope and not the smaller scopes but they get great reviews on those as well. I can tell you the tube style mounts return to zero for me.

[Palmetto Bug]

I'm thinking of the type that mounts in front of the existing scope uses its crosshairs and magnification for shooting.

A friend has the one Swarovski makes and he's pretty happy with it. I've looked through it handheld and it's pretty impressive. It would work best for me to have one that sits on a picatinny rail instead of adapting to the scope bell.

[USMCsilver]

I'm thinking of the type that mounts in front of the existing scope uses its crosshairs and magnification for shooting.

A friend has the one Swarovski makes and he's pretty happy with it. I've looked through it handheld and it's pretty impressive. It would work best for me to have one that sits on a picatinny rail instead of adapting to the scope bell.

When shopping, you'll be looking for a "clip-on".

I've considered one, but all the night hog hunting I do is at a friend's house who has a motion triggered green light. He has thermal, but I can see just fine the 45yd with my red dots or LPVOs.

An evening of hunting is like this:

Light comes on. Camera alerts. Hop in truck for 3min. Walk 80yd. Pull the trigger. Load up pig. Head to processor.

This can be repeated, like clockwork, at least 300 days of the year.

Sent from Galaxy S25 Ultra using Tapatalk; don't blame me for the phone's mistakes.

[quack head 11]

If I could find a thermal drone at a reasonable price I certainly buy one.
I just can’t drop 8-10K on basically a toy that’s not a necessity