Nightmaster 400 & X Searcher

Tony Jones (Night Master) sent me the new 400-ENVY green torch and also included a couple more items that will have a lot of appeal for all night shooters - even those who do not yet use NV optics! As of yet I have not committed to an NV scope though news of the new digital, mini add-on ‘Arrow’ from Starlight Night Vision Ltd certainly sounds interesting.

First up something that gives an alternative night shooting option to pure NV – the Night Master 400-ENVY. Essentially it’s a compact torch that projects an intense green beam, much like the green lasers that were popular a few years ago. Though from experience the ENVY appears to give more clarity. We are told: ‘It can help you spot eyes out to 400m and provides enough illumination to ID and shoot up to 200m.’ Sounds impressive!

ALL USES

The ENVY is designed for all types of shooting - airgun, rimfire and centrefire - and distances so could even be used on a shotgun for close-in foxing! It runs on either 2 x CR123A disposables batteries or a single 18650 rechargeable cell. An extension tube for extra batteries is optional, which will boost output. All this is achieved by a focusable, convex lens with three light levels (High-Mid-Low) so you can tailor your needs to the situation. The LED can be changed from green to red, to white and even IR. The torch came with Night Master’s simple yet practical, high, fig-8 scope clamp.

The green beam is intense and throws a square shape and is a little like looking through an NV scope in the sight picture. I found it better to mount the ENVY on the side as you get a better lateral spread for picking up targets! What you get is a fairly bright green/black and surprisingly sharp image. I had the Envy on a CZ527 17 Hornet with Swarovski Z6i Mk II 2.5-15x56 and later a CZ455 17 HMR with Kahles 3-10x50 KX (non-illuminated). Both have slim reticules, which were easily lost in the view, the Z6i being lit solved that problem with its red dot centre, however by choice I would go for a scope with a more robust reticule for night work.

With the Hornet I was taking hares at 150 yards easily, and I reckon I could have gone out to 175-200 in perfect conditions. The Kahles fine reticule kept things a bit shorter. What did impress was the fact the hares were not at all spooked by the green beam, as I followed animals with it for some time and they lolloped along stopping to feed and scratching with no sign of alarm. Eyes were easy to pick up past 200 too. However, I did not see any foxes so have no idea how they would react, but feel they would be less affable.

The 400-ENVY is really NV without NV and at the money an effective system for most varmints plus comes with an 18 month warranty as do most Night Master products.

BRIGHTER GREEN

Tony also sent the smaller 400-IR torch, which is pretty much the ENVY with the IR LED along with the 66mm X-Searcher head for the larger Night Master 800-IR. My friend and gamekeeper Andrew (2-Dogs) Johnson has the 800 as the illuminator for his dedicated NV rig, which consists of an ATN PS22 Gen 2+ forward add-on mounted on a Remy 700 in 223 Rem. He was very keen to see what the X-Searcher could do.

The standard 800-IR is good but with the X-Searcher on it’s awesome, lighting up, clarifying and extending the range/view considerably. Andrew is a very experienced fox shooter and first night out with his rig got one at 156 yards, he feels that he could shoot out to 250 yards easily and pick up eyes well past 300 yards. He also runs a 22-250 Ackley Improved, which is laser flat and extremely lethal at longer ranges. With his NV rig on this he feels 350 yards in the right conditions would not be a chore. He went on to say that these new torches almost make lasers redundant and are a whole lot safer given the eye safety issues of the former…

PUNCHES WELL ABOVE

The 400-IR with its standard head was again awesome, performing much like the X-Searcher though with less range but powerful illumination, I reckon 200 yard + shots would not be an issue! It offers a focusable beam and three illumination levels and like all the torches from Night Master comes alone or in a kit that includes battery and charger. At the price this is an impressive product and from my experience good enough for most night shooting requirements.

I then put the X-Searcher on the 400-IR and I have to say that results were disappointing, I put this down to its power output and the thickness of the 66mm glass lens, which must reduce transmission. However the 400-IR only needs batteries as it’s a little diamond of an IR projector.

THICK, WET AIR

As a lack of light is the enemy of daylight optics, so moisture in the air and general conditions will have a detrimental effect on any form of NV equipment. That is why I use the comment ‘ideal/perfect conditions’, which are a rare thing in the UK; chances are you might encounter them only a few times a year! Water vapour in the air will refract IR and laser light and create a less than crisp sight picture, mist and fog being good examples. Equally the air itself can be thicker or thinner. A cloudless night with a good moon can throw too much top light and make the sight picture too bright.

FOR - Well built and highly effective
AGAINST - Not a thing
VERDICT -Some great kit for the night shooter and well priced too