Zeiss Fero NV scope any good? Only $300 for Gen 2 equivalent

[grumper]

Been thinking about getting one of these:

Zeiss/Eltro Orion 80/I (FERO Z51) Night Vision Scope, Cope's Distributing

It's 3 gen 1 tubes arranged in cascade and supposedly equal to or better than gen 2. A real German HK claw mount is worth $280 by itself, so the NV scope is only costing about $300. It will withstand recoil from a .308 or Panzerfaust, something my PVS-14 won't do.

Seems like it might be neat to pick one up for fun? I could always use the HK mount to put a different scope on my Vector now that I finally got the rifle working.

Update: LOL, I bought one from http://www.dansammo.com/odds.asp for $549 shipped. I heard this seller has brand new still in the plastic wrap units. Hopefully I'll get one of those. Let's see how this ridiculous big honking thing turns out.

 

[Leper]

I will be interested in your report on this. The few nv units I have looked through varied greatly in their ability. I always question the "just like gen whatever" descriptions. My limited use and knowledge of nv made me wait until I can afford true gen three stuff. Preferably with he white phos tubes. If this unit is really better than most first gen stuff, I will get one to hold me over. Please report bad when you can.

 

[itchin]

What kind of batteries does it take? And are there any other mounting options?

 

[grumper]

It takes 2 C sized batteries.

From what I've read you need an ARMS #19 STANAG to picatinny QD adapter to be able to mount this on milstd 1913 rails.

Once I get it I'll see if I can take side by side photos through it and my Gen 3 Pinnacle PVS-14. I'm not expecting much out of it and half of the reason I'm getting it is for the HK claw mount, LOL. But a bunch of folks on other sites (ar15.com and HKpro) have said this is a pretty decent scope for the money (<$1k) and if nothing else I'll have the HK mount and a nice collector's item. These were standard issue for West Germany and unified Germany up until the last decade.

 

[RickLovesBacon]

That looks sweet. Can't wait to hear what you have to say. I really like the case.

 

[grumper]

Hrm, well it's here. Nice box, isn't all busted up or scratched too badly:

I think the unit I got is brand new and unissued. There's a date code on it that says 01792, not sure what that means. Maybe 1992?? Everything is still in the sealed plastic wrap and wax paper:

It's pretty big and makes my Vector really top heavy:

Three times the size of a PVS-14:

Some really bad out of focus pictures. No IR source, only ambient light from outside the window.There appears to be magnification on the Z51, not sure what it is but I couldn't get it to focus on anything inside the house. That's an exercise bike about 25 yards away. I think outdoors at a further distance it won't appear so bad. I could definitely see walls, doorways and if something was moving. This scope is useless at close distances I think.

Same exercise bike through the Gen 3, the photo/camera sucks ass. In real life the image was in focus and almost as bright as day. But you see how much larger the black blob in the German scope is (I think the whole view is filled with the bike's handlebars with a bouncy ball perched on top), which leads me to believe it has some magnification built in. Possibly something like 4x or 6x? The ball is huge through the German scope.

I need to try it outdoors and see if at a distance things aren't as fuzzy. Maybe zero it at ASC with the pinhole lens cover in place. Kind of disappointed but need to see how it performs outside before I write it off as a POS or not.

 

[grumper]

These are a little bit better. Still kind of blurry due to camera suckage, but not as bad:

Car across the street:

Through the Z51:

I really need to get a camera with a manual focus for this type of thing.

 

[AKM]

You really need to update your potato.

 

[grumper]

You really need to update your potato.

Yea I was looking at a few Canon models with manual focus and exposure settings on Amazon today. My current potato iz sux for NV photos.

 

[AKM]

Much sux, so blur, no see....wow

 

[IXLR8]

So very cool! I saw it at Copes and have been trying to figure out whether to buy it or not. The HK mount is worth about half of the value of the whole setup... Thanks for the update.
It looks as big as my HK94, but it would be a good fit for the PT91.
Does it come with a daylight cap with a pinhole in it?

 

[grumper]

Yeah it does. The lens cap is like a big rubber stopper and it has 3 pin holes.

The view in RL isn't as bad as these pics from my potato. Autofocus no workee when you jam the camera directly up against the scope.

 

[IXLR8]

Grumper, yours looked so good that I ordered one... I have been eyeing some 2+ models because the Gen 3's are more than I want to pay for something that will get so little use. But these have some historic merit, and they are Zeiss. If it was just the scope I would have passed. But with the case and mounts, it is just too good to pass up. Now I have to find a Panzerfaust somewhere to try the other mount on.

Someone needs to bring a Panzerfaust to Hicksville.

 

[grumper]

Yea the NIB HK claw sells for $230 from robertrtg.com

So almost half the price is just the mount. Comes out to $320 for the scope and its better than any other Gen 1 you could get at that price. The magnification and ability to withstand recoil from an antitank rocket launcher is a bonus too. The 3rd mount it comes with is for the MG3. Don't think we'll see any of those at Hicksville.

 

[IXLR8]

I'm thinking Panzerfaust ammo has got be easier to find than .22LR.
I can just tell the wife that I bought scope mount and scope came with it... Somehow I don' think she will believe that a 12 kg case is just for a scope mount.

The non HK claw mounts are crap. More than few folks have had the knockoffs crack and drop their optics.

 

[Younggun]

So, how do you think this would do for spotting coyotes and such by starlight/moonlight?

Not something a gen 1 would usually be useful for.

 

[grumper]

So, how do you think this would do for spotting coyotes and such by starlight/moonlight?

Not something a gen 1 would usually be useful for.

I dunno too many street lights and buildings around here to test. Gotta be better than nothing tho.