Differences among the Binocular NODs

B

bunker buster

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Minuteman
Mar 25, 2023
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#1
I'm contemplating to get the binocular NODs instead of the PVS 14.

What's the difference among these?
1. PVS31A, B C & D? ( I hope I got it all)
2. Manticore
3. DTNVS
4. RNVG
5. KATANA
6. JERRY 31

This is the specs I want
White Phosphor
72 LPM
SNR 30+
FOM 2000+
EBI 0.7 or lower

Can you guys recommend what unit would be best for me? I plan to do night competition shooting next year. (With Links if possible)
 
#2
That's a lot to answer in one post.

1. The PVS31A is the milspec, Socom goggle. It has no adjustble diopters. It uses L3 tubes. The 31A does not have individual tube cut off when a pod is rotated up.
The PVS31D has adjustable diopters and uses Elbit tubes. The 31D does have tube cutoff when a pod is rotated up.
Both housings have IPD stops and are made of plastic/ultem.
Both systems have submersion ratings and are a general issued item to our military.

2. The manticore is a fully featured metal housing. It has IPD stops, adjustable gain (if the tubes do) and individual pod shut off.
3. The DTNVS is a plastic housing that has individual tube cut off. There is an MG model which offers adjustable gain. You can add IPD stops. The DTNVS is pretty popular over seas and has mil and leo contracts.
4. RNVG. Fully metal housing. No gain. Individual pod shut off. Very robust and made by a good American company.
5. Plastic housing. No gain control. Fairly robust for what it is. Very simplistic housing.
6. Shit.

Your specs are fine and attainable if you want to pay for it.
 
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#3
Low light MH1

All the features (IR illum, ipd stops, pod shut off, etc) plus

Magnesium
Modular, can be split into 2 monoculars
Manual gain - not that big of a deal but if you’re running supergain tubes it’s nice to have



They’re also working on a thermal bridge probably more details to come at the next shot show.
 
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#4
Would add that many say in a bino application that resolution above 64lp isn’t noticeable. I don’t have firsthand experience, but would throw that into the spec discussion if you can get a higher SNR / lower res tube (still 64lp or better) for the same price. The higher SNR bino will do better in darkness (Elbit vs L3 tubes is another variable)
 
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#5
Not much to add other than don’t get analysis paralysis with regards to specs. Well, actually I do have more to add….

Yes, 72lp and 30+ SNR is important, but going for <1.0 EBI & HALO shouldn’t be a dealbreaker. Also, if you’re on a budget, lean towards Elbit WP tubes. If you plan to use them often in very dark conditions like I do (no moon) then go for L3 tubes and aim for >35 SNR. Supergain are amazeballs IF you’re in those really dark conditions.

Also, if you have to choose between clean tubes with lower specs vs a few small Zone 2/3 spots with better specs, lean towards the better specs. A little peppering near the outer half will disappear when you start moving and scanning.

There are so many great custom shops now who will pretty much assemble whatever you want, and they’re also a good source for housing specifics.

Edit: to add what rlsmith1 said, 72lp tubes are pretty much standard, but not all 64lp tubes are actually that low. They may be 69 or 71; they just didn’t meet the 72lp test and go rounded down to 64lp.
 
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#6
Wow guys thank for the superb recommendation. I will use everybody's wisdom to guide me. I have narrowed down to a few and waiting for a BF offer next week.

I might go for RNVG-A with L3 harris tubes Cheapest I've found is $9500
 
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#7
My experience is with 31D's. My friends have older green phosphor L3's that still have decent specs, and every single one of them were very impressed by the Elbit WP tubes. They don't quite have the sensitivity of the really high spec L3 Harris stuff but they are very clean, the resolution is outstanding, and for what they are the price is quite reasonable.

I have no complaints with the 31D housing either. The pod shutoff, IPD stops, and adjustable diopter are very nice features and the battery life on a single AA lithium is very good. Tell that to my thermal stuff haha.
 
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#11
bunker buster said:
How much you pay for? What specs did you get?

I got mine from JRH
Click to expand...
I think total was around 11k, but that didn’t include helmet, mount, battery pack, etc…

Specs:

  • FOM Level:
    Supergain 2500+ FOM
  • Matched Pairs:
    Tubes: 110010536/110010287 - 72/72 Resolution, 37.6/37.6 SNR, 2707/2707 FOM, 0.6/0.6 EBI, 0.68/0.68 Halo, 110112/111587 gain. No spots on data sheets.
 
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#14
I think Magz mentioned the Katana being plastic/printed. This is true. The Katana R - R for "ruggedized" is the new one made of high strength aerospace grade 7075-T6 aluminum. They are nice and feature some small upgrades from the original printed housings.

That being said, I still run my 3-4 year old original printed Katana housing and have not had any issues with them. Selling a ton of them the last few years have only seen 1 issue and it was pretty clear the guy was overly rough on the unit... He even admitted that. We changed his tubes out in a standard RNVG- which is basically a brick impossible to break! LOL
 
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#15
PhrogDriver said:
I think total was around 11k, but that didn’t include helmet, mount, battery pack, etc…

Specs:

  • FOM Level:
    Supergain 2500+ FOM
  • Matched Pairs:
    Tubes: 110010536/110010287 - 72/72 Resolution, 37.6/37.6 SNR, 2707/2707 FOM, 0.6/0.6 EBI, 0.68/0.68 Halo, 110112/111587 gain. No spots on data sheets.
Click to expand...
That's a beautiful tubes you got. Low EBI Mine has blemishes.
 
#16
Lowdown3 said:
I think Magz mentioned the Katana being plastic/printed. This is true. The Katana R - R for "ruggedized" is the new one made of high strength aerospace grade 7075-T6 aluminum. They are nice and feature some small upgrades from the original printed housings.

That being said, I still run my 3-4 year old original printed Katana housing and have not had any issues with them. Selling a ton of them the last few years have only seen 1 issue and it was pretty clear the guy was overly rough on the unit... He even admitted that. We changed his tubes out in a standard RNVG- which is basically a brick impossible to break! LOL
Click to expand...
Don't get me wrong. I merely mentioned that the Katana was plastic because it is. I am agnostic towards plastic versus metal housing beyond theoretically assuming that a properly built metal housing is going to be more durable than a plastic housing.

I am running 31D's at work and i've smacked them on A pillars more times than I want to admit.

Eventually, I am going to run a metal housing at work as I want to give that a whirl to compare it to my 31D's.

Anything that Nocturn Industries makes seems to be gold.
 
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