School me on Thermal Monoculars

[Jack321]

Looking at my first Thermal Monocular for game recognition for coyotes.

I know nothing about Thermals other than some YouTube videos and some reviews.

So treat me like a kindergartner, use small words and speak slowly!

Could someone break down what to look for? And some recommendations?

Was thinking $500-$1500.

I'm leaning towards a monocular. I'm not mounting it on a rifle, just a hand held, so I'd assume resolution, clarity and detection distance are what I'm most concerned about.

 

[fwafwow]

I don’t know much. I chose the AGM Rattler v2 19-256. It’s a scope but I use it handheld. My only wish is that the low end magnification (2.5x) was lower for easier use when tracking down deer.

 

[huntinfool84]

Buy mine in the classifieds, that’s as easy as it gets

 

[Jkling12]

Minimum 384 resolution, 2x base mag. I like Agm for the 18650 batteries. Lrf is very overrated. I’ve had 4-5 different scanners from all the big brands and for the money go Agm or rix. Proprietary iray batteries have been nothing but issues for me

 

[ZeroFoxGiven]

How far out are you wanting to recognize coyotes?

 

[Speaks]

Been thinking about the same, lot harder to sort out what to get than with rifles and scopes. Will follow this for sure though.

 

[wyosteve]

Try and get 640 resolution if you can afford it.

 

[barrister]

I bought a Rix K3 on Black Friday. It was recommended to me by a couple guys who use it for coyote hunting. It’s pretty cool and I’ve been happy with it so far. I haven’t done extensive research but it seems like good resolution and quality for price. It’s also very handy, being the size of a rangefinder.

 

[Speaks]

I bought a Rix K3 on Black Friday. It was recommended to me by a couple guys who use it for coyote hunting. It’s pretty cool and I’ve been happy with it so far. I haven’t done extensive research but it seems like good resolution and quality for price. It’s also very handy, being the size of a rangefinder.

Hey, possibly silly question having not used thermals.

At my cabin in WI I have had multiple evenings where I let the dogs out into my 2ish acre yard and discover wolves watching them just in from the tree line. Have always caught it with flashlight on eyes, so I go out and scan before letting the dogs out, but need to catch the eyes just right for that to work and often dont until the dogs are there.

I know folks use this to scan open fields for yotes, would it work seeing in past a tree or brush line and making out whats in the first 20-30 yards or more of timber?

I hate when my setter is mid piss and I spot a wolf 20-30 yards from him in the edge of the timber and I cant call him in quick until he finishes taking a leak...

 

[barrister]

I have limited experience, but I would say yes if the brush/undergrowth isn’t too thick. It’s amazing the detail you can see with the thermal. An animal really shows up bright. So, even if you couldn’t see the entire animal because it’s partially obscured by a tree/brush/tall grass you should see a part of it really glowing. You would know it’s some animal.

 

[wyosteve]

Yes, you will pick up the heat signature in brush/trees. Watched a herd of hogs last year about 150 yards away in the grass/willow brush.

 

[Jack321]

How far out are you wanting to recognize coyotes?

Ideally like 300 yds, if further even better

 

[Wprinkle]

Hey, possibly silly question having not used thermals.

At my cabin in WI I have had multiple evenings where I let the dogs out into my 2ish acre yard and discover wolves watching them just in from the tree line. Have always caught it with flashlight on eyes, so I go out and scan before letting the dogs out, but need to catch the eyes just right for that to work and often dont until the dogs are there.

I know folks use this to scan open fields for yotes, would it work seeing in past a tree or brush line and making out whats in the first 20-30 yards or more of timber?

I hate when my setter is mid piss and I spot a wolf 20-30 yards from him in the edge of the timber and I cant call him in quick until he finishes taking a leak...

Thick brush and timber blocks thermals really well, you can see in this video and its just tall grass.. And this is with a and this is with a640 thermal. You can see the first hog disappear after shot and the others disappear running off when the grass gets taller.

 

[gr8fuldoug]

Handheld monoculars are a great way to detect coyotes in various environments.
Thermal resolution does make a difference when trying to ID a target.

The DNT Hound Series offer 640 thermal resolution with a base mag of 2x and max mag of 8x.
This thermal monocular also features a built in laser rangefinder and ballistic calculator to ensure precision adjustment or holds.
It is compact and lightweight, waterproof with an IP67 rating, and integrated AI image super resolution.