I know all of these are in the same price range. I have have researched them all and have now hunted with all three of them now so I figured I would share my opinions.
My dad has the Nemesis 4x QS
My friend has the pts233
I have the rxq30v
I have only limited experiences with them because we just hunted with them a few times since we got them.
IN MY OPINION the rxq30 and the PTS233 are so similar in performance that the decision on which to buy could be decided based on features. Pulsar has PIP, Flir can video record, so on and so on. Side note, the rxq30 looks better in real life than in videos. The green tint did not seem to bother me at all. It actually, as designed, helped to keep from losing your night vision when you look away from the scope. My friend with the PTS233 runs his in black hot to cut down on some of the light.
Last nights hunt was around 40 degrees and lightly foggy. We could:
Detect deer at 430 yards (measured using a Silencer Radius) but needed the xp50 Helion to ID.
Called in some dogs to 230 yards. Thought they were coyotes. Once again the XP50 saved the day and we avoided a mistake. We could tell they were k9s in the scope but the xp50 revealed they were domestic dogs instead of coyotes.
Our last set there was a coyote in the field at 300 yards when we got there and could tell it was a K9 in the xq30 when I ranged him with the radius. We confirmed with the xp50 that it was a coyote. We set up and got him into 170 and my friend with the pts233 shot and missed. He has killed one coyote with it at 100 yards. Could shoot a coyote out to 400 I would guess AS LONG AS YOU KNEW WHAT IT WAS. Could not ID that far with the PTS233 or RXQ30V
Them Nemesis is a whole different ball game obviously because it is night vision not thermal. It is a fine piece of equipment as well. On a full moon night no IR illumination is needed. You could use one on a low setting to get eye shine. The cross hairs are fine on it and I feel you can get enough precision out and view out of it to shoot out to 400 yards. Very clear image and easy to use. We have not managed to kill anything with it and only shot at one coyote so far.
After hunting with Gen2 Night vision and low end thermal here are the pros and cons how I see it:
Night Vision Pros
- Easy to ID
- Easy on batteries (40 hours or more on one CR123)
- Easy to use
Night Vision Cons
-Can be damaged with bright light. I am always paranoid about hurting the scope
-Harder to sight in. With the lens cover on it seems too dark during the day. Sighting in in the dark with bright eyes to reflect as an aim point seems better.
-If coyotes are not looking at you there is no eye shine and they can be hard to see. Especially on follow up shots when they are running.
Entry Level Thermal Pros:
-Very easy to pick up on targets
-Easier to pick up on targets for follow up shots
-Easier to sight in with zoom and daytime use without being damaged
-Seem to be much smaller and lighter than night vision
Entry Level Thermal Cons:
- Hard to positively ID targets over 200 yards
- Battery consumtion
Like said before, I have personally used all of the above but with limited time so far. As time goes on we will use them more and more and I will report back.
My dad has the Nemesis 4x QS
My friend has the pts233
I have the rxq30v
I have only limited experiences with them because we just hunted with them a few times since we got them.
IN MY OPINION the rxq30 and the PTS233 are so similar in performance that the decision on which to buy could be decided based on features. Pulsar has PIP, Flir can video record, so on and so on. Side note, the rxq30 looks better in real life than in videos. The green tint did not seem to bother me at all. It actually, as designed, helped to keep from losing your night vision when you look away from the scope. My friend with the PTS233 runs his in black hot to cut down on some of the light.
Last nights hunt was around 40 degrees and lightly foggy. We could:
Detect deer at 430 yards (measured using a Silencer Radius) but needed the xp50 Helion to ID.
Called in some dogs to 230 yards. Thought they were coyotes. Once again the XP50 saved the day and we avoided a mistake. We could tell they were k9s in the scope but the xp50 revealed they were domestic dogs instead of coyotes.
Our last set there was a coyote in the field at 300 yards when we got there and could tell it was a K9 in the xq30 when I ranged him with the radius. We confirmed with the xp50 that it was a coyote. We set up and got him into 170 and my friend with the pts233 shot and missed. He has killed one coyote with it at 100 yards. Could shoot a coyote out to 400 I would guess AS LONG AS YOU KNEW WHAT IT WAS. Could not ID that far with the PTS233 or RXQ30V
Them Nemesis is a whole different ball game obviously because it is night vision not thermal. It is a fine piece of equipment as well. On a full moon night no IR illumination is needed. You could use one on a low setting to get eye shine. The cross hairs are fine on it and I feel you can get enough precision out and view out of it to shoot out to 400 yards. Very clear image and easy to use. We have not managed to kill anything with it and only shot at one coyote so far.
After hunting with Gen2 Night vision and low end thermal here are the pros and cons how I see it:
Night Vision Pros
- Easy to ID
- Easy on batteries (40 hours or more on one CR123)
- Easy to use
Night Vision Cons
-Can be damaged with bright light. I am always paranoid about hurting the scope
-Harder to sight in. With the lens cover on it seems too dark during the day. Sighting in in the dark with bright eyes to reflect as an aim point seems better.
-If coyotes are not looking at you there is no eye shine and they can be hard to see. Especially on follow up shots when they are running.
Entry Level Thermal Pros:
-Very easy to pick up on targets
-Easier to pick up on targets for follow up shots
-Easier to sight in with zoom and daytime use without being damaged
-Seem to be much smaller and lighter than night vision
Entry Level Thermal Cons:
- Hard to positively ID targets over 200 yards
- Battery consumtion
Like said before, I have personally used all of the above but with limited time so far. As time goes on we will use them more and more and I will report back.