Many of you will know that I am a big fan of the Pard NV008 LRF infrared night vision unit. This sight is packed with features and, most importantly, is easy to use and delivers the goods with minimal fuss. Being so small and light, the Pard is close to being the perfect affordable night hunting sight, but because of its compact proportions it does suffer a little when it comes to battery runtime if you’re planning an extended session.
The main reason why the Pard can be a little too power-hungry is because it runs its own integral IR illuminator from an onboard rechargeable battery, which obviously creates an additional drain. It is not a difficult snag to get around, and simple solutions are to either carry a spare battery or clamp on an external IR. Best hunting lamp uk
I recently had the opportunity to try the latter when Adrian Brennan at iHunter asked if I would like to put the Brinyte T28-IR Artemis torch through its paces.
The T28-IR is a very neat torch which features a simple switch to shuffle through different light sources, giving you a choice between conventional white light (with a beam range in excess of 500m), 850nm IR and 940nm IR. Whatever light source you choose, turning the head of the torch focuses the beam from a wide flood to a small, tight spot.
Power level is adjustable by means of a dial on the tail switch and runtime is well in excess of two hours on full output. It weighs about 200g and, measuring less than 19cm in length, is also fairly compact and will fit in the pocket of a hunting jacket if you don’t have it attached to a gun or scope.
The shock- and waterproof Brinyte T28-IR is covered by a five-year warranty, retails for £129.99 and comes with accessories including a stock-mountable remote switch, wrist lanyard, rechargeable battery and USB charging lead. Charging the battery couldn’t be easier as the USB lead simply plugs straight into it – there is even a small light on the battery which shows red while charging and turns blue when full. Other options include the standard T28 Artemis, which offers a choice of red, white and green light and costs £119.99 and the £109 PT18pro Oathkeeper. Various gun and scope-mounting fixtures are available from the iHunter website.
After unpacking the T28-IR the next job was to give the battery a full charge and then couple the torch with my FX Impact MkII and Pard NV008 LRF night shooting combo.
Find out how Matt Manning got on with the Brinyte T28-IR Artemis torch and how his night of ratting went. (best 22 pellets for hunting uk)