AUNV-TEMPORARY-FORUM
[ main ][ links ][ about ][ help ][ discussions ][ projects ]Building your own Night Vision Scope isn't that difficult... Once you have the image intensifier tube, the rest can be fabricated from common parts you can find in a hardware shop or on Ebay. The actual construction isn't that difficult either. You can even use cardboard and duct tape if you wish.
Yet the results can be astonishing. This project involves a "Cascade" or "Three Stage" tube which, while first generation quality, can provide an image that is comparable to the very best military technology available today, which would cost thousands of dollars.
Despite the exceptional quality, the cost is only a few hundred dollars, perhaps even less.
Currently, I am also taking people through this project on a "DIY" basis, so this page reflects both projects in progress and contains information you'll need to start your own project.
My very first home-made DIY night scope with a cascade tube. If that looks like a cheap camera lens and PVC pipe and fittings from a hardware store, you're right. That's what it is.
It might not look very pretty - just a pipe with a camera lens at one end - yet it will give you a useable picture on a night when it's too dark to see your hand in front of your face and good range too - It's also great for looking at stars. As a guide, you should be able to see moving medium-sized animals at a range of several hundred meters with starlight alone. It's also a completely passive design, so requires no additional infra-red illumination as some NV projects do. That means it's useful as an airsoft project if you're into that. In fact, it's even useful for army cadets and similar who aren't typically issued NV equipment for weekend exercises.
Project parts:
Special: Plastic Project - 3D printed parts verison. 2013.
Other pages: