Post by Noa on Oct 24, 2007 6:51:01 GMT 8
Heya, this is my review about the Cobra Merlin Night Vision Monocular (Gen 1) I used for the 20th Oct Finmere Night Game.
Descripton:
Cobra Night Vision Merlin NVG ™ Goggles
Based on the Merlin™ monocular, the Merlin NVG™ offers a high grade Gen 1 image intensifier tube in a compact, lightweight and partially rubber armoured bodyshell. The lightweight headmount offers a flip-and-lock facility, safety lock, eye-relief adjustment and replaceable leather forehead/head pads.
Offering 1.0x magnification as standard, 80mm (4.0x), 100mm (5.0x) and 120mm (6.0x) lenses are available as optional extras.
The built-in Infrared (IR) Illuminator has a variable beam setting allowing it to be focused from flood to spot so that it can be used with all lens options.
Gen 1
Dimensions 136 x 47 x 70mm
Weight 300g
FOV 40°
Lens 26mm f1.4
Mag 1.0x
Battery 2 x 1.5V Alkaline E90/Type N
MRVR 0.25-30m
I Red Yes
Case Yes
Note: The Merlin NVG can be attached to a rifle scope using an adaptor, turning a sniper rifle scope into a night vision scope It must have adjustable parallax and must not use reticule illumination as it will damage the NV unit.
-
Wearing it:
It straps on around your head. Two rear velcro adjustments. Two skalp adjustments (pull & velcro). There is also a chin strap and I highly recommend that it be used. It saves you the trouble of re-adjusting the head mount when the NVG gets caught in some branches or when it slips when you are generally moving around.
A bandana of some sort is also highly recommended to add some padding between the head strap and your forehead. The headmount does come with leather cushions but it tends to slip when you sweat.
How to adjust the NVG head mount properly... as tight as possible so it doesn't shake around and make sure the top/skalp adjustment is tight so the weight is distributed over your whole head so the NVG is not held up by your amazing brow powers.
I learnt it the hard way. My eyebrows were so furrowed that I almost had a permenant angry stare because I had to keep that kind of facial expression to keep the NVG on my head kekeke. It also feels like you're having a massive migraine. Not fun!
Vision:
Central clear focus with edges blurr/warped. Front lens has focus to adjust to close/long distance (manually adjusted). I can see pretty good with this! The rear lens is adjustable so you can wear googles or shooting glasses (or none) and you can still be able to get a clear image.
Field of vision aka how much you can see is like looking through a red dot scope. Having it on the right eye does restrict peripheral vision so I had to scan around to get a better graps of what's around me. I found myself scanning an area, memorising the terrain, layout a route and follow it by memory. It is easier and safer to do so as you don't get too dependant on NVG's, and you can focus on your field craft more. You can hear almost everything at night. Mags being reloaded, people breathing and their footsteps. But I won't speak about my field craft
Everything is in GREEEEEEN ;D and people's camouflage glows black & white when IR is shined on them, not to mention their eyes glow like dots kekekeke (I see youu~).
I was constantly adjusting the IR focus from flood/spot when scanning an area. Flooding is only for close range and you can't see anything beyond about 10 meters. But putting the IR to spot you can see clearly ahead for about 20-30 meters, which is great. Considering that your field of vision is about 40 degrees, I set my IR to spot that covered just that which let me see quite far.
My eyes got very tired though and I found myself feeling nauseous and actually closed my eyes during the games to rest. It's also kind of awkward moving with only one eye being able to see and you do get kind of dizzy unless you focus on using one eye.
What was nice about the monocular however was that with the left eye, I retained my natural night vision and with it I could scan using both NV and natural sights. This helped the fact that I could check how the ambient lighting was so I knew I was 100% shadowed and that an area wouldn't sihouette me.
Once your NV eye stops looking through the NVG, it's blind in the dark. It's quite interesting how you have to swap between left and right eyes
Infra Red Illuminator:
The IR illuminator is built in with the NVG. It is pretty good for 20-30 meters with the adjustable focus (flood/spot) but it has a massive disadvantage when playing as a single NVG player. I will talk about playing together with another NVG player later.
As most people would already (or perhaps not) know. The built in IR illum. does glow red and pretty brightly too! This was so bad that I couldn't use it constantly when targets were close up. So what do you do?
Playing with an NVG:
My tactics regarding concealing and still use of the IR illum. was to move sideways at a 45 degree angle from the nearest target and by putting a hand to cover the red glow from being seen, while still allowing you to look ahead.
Using this method, I could see where I was going and still flank around people.
Another method was to briefly turn the IR illum. on and off, like a flash to check if enemies were close by. The brief red glow will give your position away, if the enemy were to be looking in your direction but once you're behind them, you don't have to worry and can then proceed to buttsechs them ;D
This did not put me at a position worse than other players, in fact, even with the IR off, as long as there was some light (low light environment) I could see further than my naked eye could.
If it was pitch black and I didn't want to use the IR, then I was simply the same as any other player using naked eyes.
An IR illuminator that does not give off a red glow is the best solution to this problem. The built in IR gives off a red glow because it short range and is not efficient. Yukon has a cheap NVMT weapon sight with PULSE IR system that they claim to enhance vision while making the glow from the unit invisible to the human eye. But that sight is a bit limited in it's field of vision.
For your first NVG, I would go for a mono or binocular. NV weapon sights I think works best working in conjunction with a head mounted NV so you get NV regardless of the situation.
A head mount is highly recommended if not a must. Keeping your hands free at night is very important as you need them to check the ground or in your blind zone for branches or obstacles. I used a branch to poke the ground ahead of me to make sure it was safe and noiseless to walk on (read it up on the squad leader's handbook Jonah lent me years ago). I sometimes found myself slinging my rifle back completely and moving with both hands free. It was more comfortable and convenient.
For my reasons of viewing ambient light as well as NV, I chose the Monocular but I find myself wanting a full binocular version as well because most of the games were played in near complete darkness. But a 1/3 of the games had spot lights here and there lighting up some areas as well as background lights that would make a silhouette.
A NV weapon sight was also considered but a NV weapon sight meant that if you wanted to see and move at the same time, you had to keep your gun shouldered and aimed steadily all the time. If I had a P90, yeah it'd be easy but not with a G36 or an EBR
I felt that a compact and light gun is the best choice for night games. Long guns seem to be more prone in bashing trees and bushes around, giving your position away. A P90 would have done beautifully.
A NV weapon sight + a headmounted NV would be the best choice and I will be looking to buy a Cobra NV weapon sight in the future
This is because I can focus on field craft and move with my hands free with my head mounted NVG. Then if I need to shoot, I can use the NV weapon sight. I will be in a stationary position to shoot anyways.
Aiming with an NVG:
I've tried to look through an EOTECH with the NVG and it proved to be too much of an aligning act between aligning your NVG with the red dot and at the same time trying not to bash the expensive front lens into the sight.
If I want to aim, I rather have an NV sight with a reticule. Why not behind an EOTECH? This is because of two reasons: the EOTECH reticule is visible, especially in pitch black environments and because with the IR on, it lights up everything solid close up into bright white, cutting your range and blinding you
You cannot sight properly with iron sights while using an NVG.
I did however, use the front iron sight post to use it as a guide and accurately within 6-7 meters (only). It is very hard to get elevation accurate. Much like firing from a hip.
Other methods of aiming besides pointing the gun in the general direction one way or another is to use Red lasers. Red lasers are visible through the NVG. This means that while the enemy only sees two dots (source and target), you can see the the whole laser line and fire. Using a pressure switch you can probably snap shoot by briefly turning the laser on, paint target, fire and move.
My intended night fighting gear load out is to use both NV monocular and NV night sight with red lasers on both pistol/weapon.
Silenced of course. Gas pistols are very loud at night and much more distinctive than AEG's. Steath is mission critical Anyone can shoot at a noise quite accurately. I've been shot out several times like that. By accurate blind fire (ironically).
Playing with another NVG user:
You can notice the other person's IR light and it really extends your vision. The other NVG user can be shining his IR some 50 meters away and you can be able to see whatever the light is shining on (duh). This means that the more IR illuminators there are, the more clearer you can see and further
Unfortunately, I ended up splitting up with HF most of the time and we weren't able to utilise using our NVG's together as a unit. He took it off for the last few games as well because I think he simply wasn't used to it and didn't take the steps to adjust it to make it work.
A bit disappointing. "It's not how long it is that matters. It's how you use it!" kekeke
Useful if not MUST get items:
- A high power IR illuminator (weapon or head mounted). This will extend your NV vision and still keep you invisible to non-NVG users.
- Silencers. It's all about stealth kills.
- Red lasers. Aiming made easy.
Other tactics:
- "Let there be light" Make night into day.
Have enough people with big torches to light up an area that obliterates the need for NVG's and simply smash the enemy with focused fire from a squad. If you can see them and they can see you, it's the same as playing during the day.
- Use green lasers to mark enemies for your non-NVG units to spam fire. Works. Day or Night. But be prepared to get alot of fire heading towards you.
Conclusion:
If you have a Gen 1 NVG. You need an invisible IR illuminator to play properly.
I feel that to get the full effect of NVG's, you need other NVG users working with you to mark targets for each other and illuminate an area with IR.
Else you'll be able to see a target, but your friends won't and you'll end up working solo. Green/red lasers are handy to mark targets but like tracers, it works both ways. That means you'll be under fire very frequently.
My absolute conclusion regarding NVG's is that you must be prepared to get what's needed, or pay the price for a good Gen 2+ NVG.
Else it's more fun to play with just naked eyes
If you ask me what I'll do... I'm going to get IR illuminators and an Cobra NV weapon sight. For the people who know me, you know I'll go all out til I get it right
I hope this is useful for those interested in getting an NVG.
Descripton:
Cobra Night Vision Merlin NVG ™ Goggles
Based on the Merlin™ monocular, the Merlin NVG™ offers a high grade Gen 1 image intensifier tube in a compact, lightweight and partially rubber armoured bodyshell. The lightweight headmount offers a flip-and-lock facility, safety lock, eye-relief adjustment and replaceable leather forehead/head pads.
Offering 1.0x magnification as standard, 80mm (4.0x), 100mm (5.0x) and 120mm (6.0x) lenses are available as optional extras.
The built-in Infrared (IR) Illuminator has a variable beam setting allowing it to be focused from flood to spot so that it can be used with all lens options.
Gen 1
Dimensions 136 x 47 x 70mm
Weight 300g
FOV 40°
Lens 26mm f1.4
Mag 1.0x
Battery 2 x 1.5V Alkaline E90/Type N
MRVR 0.25-30m
I Red Yes
Case Yes
Note: The Merlin NVG can be attached to a rifle scope using an adaptor, turning a sniper rifle scope into a night vision scope It must have adjustable parallax and must not use reticule illumination as it will damage the NV unit.
-
Wearing it:
It straps on around your head. Two rear velcro adjustments. Two skalp adjustments (pull & velcro). There is also a chin strap and I highly recommend that it be used. It saves you the trouble of re-adjusting the head mount when the NVG gets caught in some branches or when it slips when you are generally moving around.
A bandana of some sort is also highly recommended to add some padding between the head strap and your forehead. The headmount does come with leather cushions but it tends to slip when you sweat.
How to adjust the NVG head mount properly... as tight as possible so it doesn't shake around and make sure the top/skalp adjustment is tight so the weight is distributed over your whole head so the NVG is not held up by your amazing brow powers.
I learnt it the hard way. My eyebrows were so furrowed that I almost had a permenant angry stare because I had to keep that kind of facial expression to keep the NVG on my head kekeke. It also feels like you're having a massive migraine. Not fun!
Vision:
Central clear focus with edges blurr/warped. Front lens has focus to adjust to close/long distance (manually adjusted). I can see pretty good with this! The rear lens is adjustable so you can wear googles or shooting glasses (or none) and you can still be able to get a clear image.
Field of vision aka how much you can see is like looking through a red dot scope. Having it on the right eye does restrict peripheral vision so I had to scan around to get a better graps of what's around me. I found myself scanning an area, memorising the terrain, layout a route and follow it by memory. It is easier and safer to do so as you don't get too dependant on NVG's, and you can focus on your field craft more. You can hear almost everything at night. Mags being reloaded, people breathing and their footsteps. But I won't speak about my field craft
Everything is in GREEEEEEN ;D and people's camouflage glows black & white when IR is shined on them, not to mention their eyes glow like dots kekekeke (I see youu~).
I was constantly adjusting the IR focus from flood/spot when scanning an area. Flooding is only for close range and you can't see anything beyond about 10 meters. But putting the IR to spot you can see clearly ahead for about 20-30 meters, which is great. Considering that your field of vision is about 40 degrees, I set my IR to spot that covered just that which let me see quite far.
My eyes got very tired though and I found myself feeling nauseous and actually closed my eyes during the games to rest. It's also kind of awkward moving with only one eye being able to see and you do get kind of dizzy unless you focus on using one eye.
What was nice about the monocular however was that with the left eye, I retained my natural night vision and with it I could scan using both NV and natural sights. This helped the fact that I could check how the ambient lighting was so I knew I was 100% shadowed and that an area wouldn't sihouette me.
Once your NV eye stops looking through the NVG, it's blind in the dark. It's quite interesting how you have to swap between left and right eyes
Infra Red Illuminator:
The IR illuminator is built in with the NVG. It is pretty good for 20-30 meters with the adjustable focus (flood/spot) but it has a massive disadvantage when playing as a single NVG player. I will talk about playing together with another NVG player later.
As most people would already (or perhaps not) know. The built in IR illum. does glow red and pretty brightly too! This was so bad that I couldn't use it constantly when targets were close up. So what do you do?
Playing with an NVG:
My tactics regarding concealing and still use of the IR illum. was to move sideways at a 45 degree angle from the nearest target and by putting a hand to cover the red glow from being seen, while still allowing you to look ahead.
Using this method, I could see where I was going and still flank around people.
Another method was to briefly turn the IR illum. on and off, like a flash to check if enemies were close by. The brief red glow will give your position away, if the enemy were to be looking in your direction but once you're behind them, you don't have to worry and can then proceed to buttsechs them ;D
This did not put me at a position worse than other players, in fact, even with the IR off, as long as there was some light (low light environment) I could see further than my naked eye could.
If it was pitch black and I didn't want to use the IR, then I was simply the same as any other player using naked eyes.
An IR illuminator that does not give off a red glow is the best solution to this problem. The built in IR gives off a red glow because it short range and is not efficient. Yukon has a cheap NVMT weapon sight with PULSE IR system that they claim to enhance vision while making the glow from the unit invisible to the human eye. But that sight is a bit limited in it's field of vision.
For your first NVG, I would go for a mono or binocular. NV weapon sights I think works best working in conjunction with a head mounted NV so you get NV regardless of the situation.
A head mount is highly recommended if not a must. Keeping your hands free at night is very important as you need them to check the ground or in your blind zone for branches or obstacles. I used a branch to poke the ground ahead of me to make sure it was safe and noiseless to walk on (read it up on the squad leader's handbook Jonah lent me years ago). I sometimes found myself slinging my rifle back completely and moving with both hands free. It was more comfortable and convenient.
For my reasons of viewing ambient light as well as NV, I chose the Monocular but I find myself wanting a full binocular version as well because most of the games were played in near complete darkness. But a 1/3 of the games had spot lights here and there lighting up some areas as well as background lights that would make a silhouette.
A NV weapon sight was also considered but a NV weapon sight meant that if you wanted to see and move at the same time, you had to keep your gun shouldered and aimed steadily all the time. If I had a P90, yeah it'd be easy but not with a G36 or an EBR
I felt that a compact and light gun is the best choice for night games. Long guns seem to be more prone in bashing trees and bushes around, giving your position away. A P90 would have done beautifully.
A NV weapon sight + a headmounted NV would be the best choice and I will be looking to buy a Cobra NV weapon sight in the future
This is because I can focus on field craft and move with my hands free with my head mounted NVG. Then if I need to shoot, I can use the NV weapon sight. I will be in a stationary position to shoot anyways.
Aiming with an NVG:
I've tried to look through an EOTECH with the NVG and it proved to be too much of an aligning act between aligning your NVG with the red dot and at the same time trying not to bash the expensive front lens into the sight.
If I want to aim, I rather have an NV sight with a reticule. Why not behind an EOTECH? This is because of two reasons: the EOTECH reticule is visible, especially in pitch black environments and because with the IR on, it lights up everything solid close up into bright white, cutting your range and blinding you
You cannot sight properly with iron sights while using an NVG.
I did however, use the front iron sight post to use it as a guide and accurately within 6-7 meters (only). It is very hard to get elevation accurate. Much like firing from a hip.
Other methods of aiming besides pointing the gun in the general direction one way or another is to use Red lasers. Red lasers are visible through the NVG. This means that while the enemy only sees two dots (source and target), you can see the the whole laser line and fire. Using a pressure switch you can probably snap shoot by briefly turning the laser on, paint target, fire and move.
My intended night fighting gear load out is to use both NV monocular and NV night sight with red lasers on both pistol/weapon.
Silenced of course. Gas pistols are very loud at night and much more distinctive than AEG's. Steath is mission critical Anyone can shoot at a noise quite accurately. I've been shot out several times like that. By accurate blind fire (ironically).
Playing with another NVG user:
You can notice the other person's IR light and it really extends your vision. The other NVG user can be shining his IR some 50 meters away and you can be able to see whatever the light is shining on (duh). This means that the more IR illuminators there are, the more clearer you can see and further
Unfortunately, I ended up splitting up with HF most of the time and we weren't able to utilise using our NVG's together as a unit. He took it off for the last few games as well because I think he simply wasn't used to it and didn't take the steps to adjust it to make it work.
A bit disappointing. "It's not how long it is that matters. It's how you use it!" kekeke
Useful if not MUST get items:
- A high power IR illuminator (weapon or head mounted). This will extend your NV vision and still keep you invisible to non-NVG users.
- Silencers. It's all about stealth kills.
- Red lasers. Aiming made easy.
Other tactics:
- "Let there be light" Make night into day.
Have enough people with big torches to light up an area that obliterates the need for NVG's and simply smash the enemy with focused fire from a squad. If you can see them and they can see you, it's the same as playing during the day.
- Use green lasers to mark enemies for your non-NVG units to spam fire. Works. Day or Night. But be prepared to get alot of fire heading towards you.
Conclusion:
If you have a Gen 1 NVG. You need an invisible IR illuminator to play properly.
I feel that to get the full effect of NVG's, you need other NVG users working with you to mark targets for each other and illuminate an area with IR.
Else you'll be able to see a target, but your friends won't and you'll end up working solo. Green/red lasers are handy to mark targets but like tracers, it works both ways. That means you'll be under fire very frequently.
My absolute conclusion regarding NVG's is that you must be prepared to get what's needed, or pay the price for a good Gen 2+ NVG.
Else it's more fun to play with just naked eyes
If you ask me what I'll do... I'm going to get IR illuminators and an Cobra NV weapon sight. For the people who know me, you know I'll go all out til I get it right
I hope this is useful for those interested in getting an NVG.