Looking into a pvs-14

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  • Small's

    Sharpshooter
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    11   0   0
    Dec 16, 2012
    605
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    south of Indy
    I'm ready to pickup a pvs-14. Just curious what you run and or like/dislike. I've been eyeing the photonis echo WP tube stuff and I found a company that has new gen3 gp Harris Omni 8 tubed 14's going for $2g until Monday night. Not going to get crazy on cost. I would like to stay around the 2g or less if I can find a nice used one. What's a decent helmet mount setup too?

    Sent from my moto g(7) power using Tapatalk
     

    JollyMon

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    Sep 27, 2012
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    Westfield, IN
    I'm ready to pickup a pvs-14. Just curious what you run and or like/dislike. I've been eyeing the photonis echo WP tube stuff and I found a company that has new gen3 gp Harris Omni 8 tubed 14's going for $2g until Monday night. Not going to get crazy on cost. I would like to stay around the 2g or less if I can find a nice used one. What's a decent helmet mount setup too?

    Sent from my moto g(7) power using Tapatalk

    So is your only question helmet related? What are you using it for?

    I have an ops core ballistic and a crye night cap for just light weight traveling. Both have pros and cons. I also have a ops core bump that I used for a while.

    the 14 is the minimum I recommend to people if getting into night vision. Tube specs are all over the place and gen 3 ... so you really never know the true quality until you actually get it. But regardless 2k not too bad for a new unit
     

    1775usmarine

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    Feb 15, 2013
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    When I was overseas I prefered my 7 bravos. My second deployment they tried to give me 14's but a small deal with the armour and I was issued 7 bravo's again.
     

    daddyusmaximus

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    Aug 21, 2013
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    When I was overseas I prefered my 7 bravos. My second deployment they tried to give me 14's but a small deal with the armour and I was issued 7 bravo's again.

    Me too. (we had the Deltas) Not easy to get used to the one eye doing something different thing. I would love a 14 though to mount on the gun...
     

    1775usmarine

    Sleeper
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    Me too. (we had the Deltas) Not easy to get used to the one eye doing something different thing. I would love a 14 though to mount on the gun...

    I could take the jersey barrier serpentine with the mine roller attched to our 7ton at a good 40mph instead of slow like those who had 14's. I got use to the change in depth perception faster also.
     

    JollyMon

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    Sep 27, 2012
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    Westfield, IN
    Me too. (we had the Deltas) Not easy to get used to the one eye doing something different thing. I would love a 14 though to mount on the gun...

    the 14 isnt really something you should mount to a gun. Yes it can handle 556 recoil but almodt no one does it and like a weapon light you are pointing at whatever your observing.

    actually at my first nvg course, there was no difference in agility between the 14 and bino users
     

    Rookie

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    Sep 22, 2008
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    Kokomo
    I had an L3. The picture was great, but it wasn't something that worked for what I needed. I used a Team Wendy helmet which was comfortable but reasonable.
     

    sheepdog697

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    Sep 2, 2015
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    Cedar Lake
    Ive spent quite awhile shopping for NVGs the last couple months. I ended up going with some duals from Steele industries. Not sure if that is where you saw the deal. I can tell you that for the last week i have called them at all times (even today on sunday). They have answered all my questions, and given me tons of options. They are a new company, but a lot of people are familiar with him in the "night vision circuit". He was more than happy to let me pic specs on the duals that i purchased.

    The phontonis WP is a very good low priced option. Keep in mind that these are gen 2 technology. This doesnt meant that they arent as capable as some gen 3 units. In some cases the Photonis echos seem to have a better image quality. They will however lack in their ability to amplify light in EXTREME dark conditions.

    If you are just going with the monocular i would tend to recommend omni VIII gen 3 vs the phontonis. But thats just my .02 and not worth much.

    I would try to avoid used especially if your price range is $2k. With all the black friday deals you will definitely be able to find something in that price range.
    Here are two choices. These vendor would be MORE than happy to answer any questions you have.
    https://www.steeleindinc.com/product-page/pvs-14
    https://www.jrhenterprises.com/Holi...Gen-no-manual-gain-Holiday2019PVS14nogain.htm
    JRH has 10 year warranty on tubes. Its also gen 3 omni VIII which is the most recent generation.
    These two options would both be good and are in your price range.
    If you pull up steele industries on instagram he also has sample pictures of his harris tubes.

    Keep in mind if you are looking at spec sheets for photonis, their EBI number is different. An EBI of .15 on a photonis tube is actually 1.5 equivalent for HARRIS or L3 tubes. This will help you compare apples to apples.

    I would suggest a wilcox mount. I went with the g24. These are expensive but they have features that i really dont think you want to cheap out on. (break away, adjustability, etc...).

    Helmets:
    Ops core bump approximately -$350
    Team Wendy bump - approximately -$240 with black friday deal (OMG THEY SUPPORTED HILLARY...)
    Hard Head veterans bump. -$199

    those are some options that will come with the integrated NV mount.

    GOOD luck! please feel free to PM me with any questions. Like i said i just researched for a couple months, and most of my friends have NVGs.
     
    Last edited:

    sheepdog697

    Expert
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    25   0   0
    Sep 2, 2015
    1,275
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    Cedar Lake
    One more thing to add. A pvs-7 is a single image intensifier that uses a mirror to show the same amplified image to both eyes. It is older technology (that worked great for its time). However, I would go towards the pvs-14 vs the pvs-7.
     

    Small's

    Sharpshooter
    Rating - 100%
    11   0   0
    Dec 16, 2012
    605
    28
    south of Indy
    Ive spent quite awhile shopping for NVGs the last couple months. I ended up going with some duals from Steele industries. Not sure if that is where you saw the deal. I can tell you that for the last week i have called them at all times (even today on sunday). They have answered all my questions, and given me tons of options. They are a new company, but a lot of people are familiar with him in the "night vision circuit". He was more than happy to let me pic specs on the duals that i purchased.

    The phontonis WP is a very good low priced option. Keep in mind that these are gen 2 technology. This doesnt meant that they arent as capable as some gen 3 units. In some cases the Photonis echos seem to have a better image quality. They will however lack in their ability to amplify light in EXTREME dark conditions.

    If you are just going with the monocular i would tend to recommend omni VIII gen 3 vs the phontonis. But thats just my .02 and not worth much.

    I would try to avoid used especially if your price range is $2k. With all the black friday deals you will definitely be able to find something in that price range.
    Here are two choices. These vendor would be MORE than happy to answer any questions you have.
    https://www.steeleindinc.com/product-page/pvs-14
    https://www.jrhenterprises.com/Holi...Gen-no-manual-gain-Holiday2019PVS14nogain.htm
    JRH has 10 year warranty on tubes. Its also gen 3 omni VIII which is the most recent generation.
    These two options would both be good and are in your price range.
    If you pull up steele industries on instagram he also has sample pictures of his harris tubes.

    Keep in mind if you are looking at spec sheets for photonis, their EBI number is different. An EBI of .15 on a photonis tube is actually 1.5 equivalent for HARRIS or L3 tubes. This will help you compare apples to apples.

    I would suggest a wilcox mount. I went with the g24. These are expensive but they have features that i really dont think you want to cheap out on. (break away, adjustability, etc...).

    Helmets:
    Ops core bump approximately -$350
    Team Wendy bump - approximately -$240 with black friday deal (OMG THEY SUPPORTED HILLARY...)
    Hard Head veterans bump. -$199

    those are some options that will come with the integrated NV mount.

    GOOD luck! please feel free to PM me with any questions. Like i said i just researched for a couple months, and most of my friends have NVGs.
    Yes I was looking at the Steele industries $2k Harris Omni 8 setup and or a photonis echo in the WP. If they where the same price I would prolly go WP and that's what I was leaning toward however at $600 more I don't feel like it's worth that much more. Just talking to Steele they have been great. Like you said they will reply just about anytime of the day or night.. I'm not concerned about a helmet yet. Just the mount setup. A friend of mine makes good helmets and at some point I will get one from him. Mostly just wanted one for a long time may use it coyote hunting but mostly for fun plus it would be gold if things ever went upside down but I'm not really to concerned about that.

    Sent from my moto g(7) power using Tapatalk
     

    JollyMon

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    2   0   0
    Sep 27, 2012
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    Westfield, IN
    L3 Unfilmed WP Sentinels.

    CZmZyW8.jpg
     
    Last edited:

    JollyMon

    Shooter
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    2   0   0
    Sep 27, 2012
    3,547
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    Westfield, IN
    Very nice! I went with same L3 unfilmed WP but in RNVGs. Do you have spec sheets on those? Any pictures through tubes as well?

    I do have the spec sheets. Cant post them because of stupid ITAR reasons. Both have a FOM > 2300. Not the best but still good


    I got my sentinels a while back, I wouldnt recommend them anymore, kinda an outdated system. Going with the RNVGs was a good call. Though I have been tossing around the idea of upgrading my housing to a DTNVG but cant stomach the price yet.
     
    Last edited:

    Small's

    Sharpshooter
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    11   0   0
    Dec 16, 2012
    605
    28
    south of Indy
    Us night vision has about the same setup as Steele but with a skull crusher, soft case, lanyard etc kit for the same $$$

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    sheepdog697

    Expert
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    25   0   0
    Sep 2, 2015
    1,275
    83
    Cedar Lake
    2300 FOM is still very good man! Steele gave me the choice to upgrade to the DTNVGs in the future and use my RNVGs as a trade in. I’m with you i couldn’t cough up the extra coin for something I’m not sure I would use. The extra coin was enough for me to get the IR Illuminator/laser I wanted (perst 3). What are you running for passive aiming? Saw you did a class, I’m sure that helped with setup.


    sorry to hijack your thread Small’s.... lol
     
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