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Doing research now on thermals. Budget around 3K. Any personal feedback on brands, what to look for, what to avoid?

Predator, hog hunting at night 4-6 power would be sufficient.

I am in the exact same position - thinking this would make a great Christmas present for ME - but not the local 'yotes! But 3K ain't pocket change and I sure want to buy right the first time. I'm not paying 7-8 K for a top of the line Reaper and there are many choices in the 2-4 range. Hope some real life users post!

I just got my Bering Optics Hogster mounted on my suppressed 22 hornet. Can’t wait to get it sighted in and start using it. BO recently released a Super Hogster that looks nice and in your price range. Lots of info on Predatormasters. Good luck, Dave

I have the pulsar thermion xm50 and xp50. The xm is around 3500. I would take a look at one of those. The xm starts at 5.5 power and you could probably find a used one for less.

Hogster, most bang for your buck.

Have a Super Hogster and a Hogster, very happy with both.

Ive read pulsar has great customer support and reviews .

Not finding much for Bering Optics and their hogster scopes. Look interesting

thanks for input

Pulsar thermion I played around with for about 4 nights. XQ50

All the color palettes and I went back to white hot. But that could change after owning and playing more.

Range. I know 200 is a no brainer. 300 more than likely. Could keep crosshairs on the mass of a squirrel at about 170 during daylight. Beyond that even with digital zoom the squirrel would be tough.

Can see stuff a long way. Not sure about 1800 yards.

Seems if you knew distance and drop etc you could hit past 300 some too.

Was about to look for one then saw what seemed to be same quality but with built in rangefinder for a bit more coming out so I'm holding off for a bit.

Just got the Bering Super Hogster about a week ago.

It's awesome!

Got it sighted in, and took it hunting one night, but didn't pull the trigger on anything then.

I'm very much looking forward to hunting with this thermal for years to come.

Learned how to video with it, so stay tuned for actual hunting video!

I was already to buy one but then started getting into the specs and details of thermal scopes and got totally confused so I decided to keep my hunting during the day.

They are a lot of money so make sure you know what you are buying and do not be afraid to ask questions.

I wish there was a book on the "Idiot's Guide to Thermal Scopes".

There is.

Check these guys out. They tell the good, the bad and the ugly. VERY good folks.

Videos 136 and 137 deal with just that.

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCDmKfKeIs8BrMPyjbvUawcg

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Thanks!

One option to consider.
Buy a lower quality thermal monocular for hand held scanning and scouting. The thermals are great for seeing that something is alive "out there". And based on how the animal is moving, you can usually tell if it's a hog, racoon etc. and if it's worth moving toward it for a shot. Then equip your rifle with a good quality night vision scope to make a positive ID and take the shot.

That works too.

I have one of these. https://outdoorlegacygear.com/colle...thermal-monocular?variant=31827151224906

Use it for spotting while hunting with NV & thermal. It's sure easier to hold and scan versus a rifle mounted optic.

This is a good idea. I have a pulsar thermal monocular but have the cheaper option of a green light mounted over my rifle scope. for actual shooting. Works ok though I'm sure that a good night vision scope is much better.