Best clip on thermal for the money

I'm a big fan of the gen 1 Steiner C35 which still come up on the used market. It is one hell of a clip-on, equal or superior in almost every way to my much more expensive mil-spec AN/PAS-13G. I use it as a clip-on at least once a week and in a handheld role multiple times per week using a Vortex Defender lens cap as a pseudo-eyepiece. It has held zero PERFECTLY on the seven or eight platforms that I've recorded zero for it on over the last couple years. Good luck with your decision.

The best solution would be a Voodoo S, but they are $$$... It would provide the best collimation, combined with good clip on and monocular performance.

A more inexpensive option would be a RH25. The problem is you have had a REAP-IR. If you are used to the excellent image quality of a BAE core unit (which is still good even now!) some of the cheaper units may prove disappointing.

Have you thought about keeping your REAP-IR as a spotter and then just adding a clip-on to go with this?

Tig IR small compact cheap on the used market.

Just curious. I understand the need to have a thermal scanner for finding suspects, lost people etc but why a thermal clip on for the duty rifle? I would think you would better served with a NV clip on for identification purposes.

I discussed this with a couple of my tech reps.

Pulsar:
For clip-ons, my suggestion would be our Pulsar Krypton 2 FXQ50 Thermal Imaging Monocular with its 640x480 <40mK sensor and 12µm pixel pitch. It is capable of up to 2,500 yards of detection range and can be used as a monocular when paired with a Pulsar 3x20B quick-release monocular attachment. The kit version, which is what you'll mainly find available, comes with pretty much all the adapters for use with daytime riflescopes. The monocular attachment is sold separately.

I will say, dedicated thermal riflescopes are much more popular than clip-ons, but the Krypton 2 XG50 is still popular in regions where restrictions don't allow for a dedicated thermal riflescope or for guys that already have a dedicated daytime riflescope setup that they are set on not messing with. They are fairly popular with LE/Gov customers as well.

AGM:
The ability for him to be successful with a cli-on being mounted on his duty weapon will depend on the daytime optic he is using and the distances he will need to engage. I know the majority of the PD engagements even with their precision rifle would be under 100 yards, but a lot of these guys run daytime scope with a high base magnification which can make clip-on units difficult.
I would suggest that he spends the extra money for the 640 sensor on this purchase, there are two units listed below that I think would be the best for his situation.
AGM Secutor LRF-C 50-640
AGM Rattler-C V2 50-640
Both will have optional eyepieces to use as a monocular

If it’s going on a duty rifle, I would highly recommend a fully collimated device to de-risk any potential for accidents when deployed on a weapon.

If it’s primary role is scanning, my recommendation is to go with a short range solution that has increased FOV, but has enough demag to support 3-4x on your dayscope.

Several options and considerations best served over a call.

Up in Oklahoma pretty often if you want to see options first hand.

Preston

I don't have one but looking at specs the UTM X with a 640 core is pretty similar to a last generation Voodoo S if you will... And the Voodoo S is the top of the heap for small, light weight clip ons that double as monoculars. I am fairly sure that despite its age that is still quite a good unit... Can't comment on it's collimation though.

Just because it is older doesn't mean it isn't still excellent. For example, the SkeetIRX is not a new generation unit, but it remains untouched as the ultimate helmet mounted spotter.