I have the Photon XT. It's similar to the X-sight. Actually it had better reviews than the X-sight when I was looking at them both a year or two ago.

I decided to buy one because I couldn't justify spending 3k on a sight when I don't night hunt very often. If I really got into it I could spend the money down the road. To me these two sights are design around entry level night vision.

Does it work? Yes. Is it great? No. A buddy has some Gen 3 googles and it is crazy how good those are compared to the Photon. It's not even close. The Photon is good out to about 250 on a clear night. After that you can't really make out objects.

The major downfall to the photon is the FOV. Scanning with it is terrible. For it to really work you need to be hunting an open area with specific spot (like a feeder) around 100 yards away.

If I really got into it I would get a FLIR monocular to scan and spot, and use the photon until I could afford a better NV optic. In the end these digital NV scopes are just entry level stuff. You get what you pay for when it comes to NV/thermal.

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Posted by NOLAGT

Over there

Member since Dec 2012

13546 posts

Posted on 2/21/17 at 10:58 am to jdavid1

I'll have to look closer at the photon. Is has the same features? Can it have different rifle profiles?

I'd love to do more night hunting for varments with thermal. Maybe one day. But I'm not ready for that yet and I think waiting for the new ones to come out will be a smart thing. I look at that Thor hd for 1999...but then I think flir is supposed to have something much smaller and better for 1899.

I know I get what I pay for bet from what I understand it should be real fun with where I'm going. Max 100 yard at a feeder from a box stand. This is from the guys trail cam. He said they are always around. But they won't be when I go