The amazing Wraith!

Took it out this evening looking for a couple of hogs that had be hitting this feeder. No piggies showed up, but the Wraith took some very nice, low light to dark pictures of some deer traffic.


BTW, these pics were taken from 108 yards away, as dusk turned to dark. What I saw through the scope was much brighter than what we see in these pictures. Without the scope I could not see any of these images! It ain't thermal by a long shot, but for poor boys and girls, it sure is fun and a vast improvement over the scope and light arrangements that I have (successfully, by the way) used for years.

And exactly where is this location?

I've been playing with a friend's for a couple of months and I've been surprised. For the price you can't do better.

These pictures were taken in north Mason County, Graycard. About 20 miles south and east of Brady.

Sorry for hijacking but I don’t think my question deserves it’s own thread.

I picked up a wraith HD, along with an external usb battery with a magnetic “break-away” usb cable.

Have y’all found a workaround or replacement rubber cover for the SD card and USB port that allows a cable pass through?

As it currently stands my dust cover just sits completely open. This won’t work on my land in Wilbarger county where the red dirt will get in the data ports.

Thanks and sorry for the temporary hijack

The dust cover on my SD/USB port fits quite snugly. It takes a bit of manipulation to get it to seal, but it should lock down quite well, once you get the knack of it. Stick the back end of it into the recess, and then push down and forward to get the seal.

Sorry I wasn’t very clear. The default dust cover does fit perfectly in default setup but I have an external usb battery with a micro-usb connection.

When that is plugged in, I can no longer use the original dust cover because of the usb cable protrusion.

I’m hopping someone has found a store that sells a modified dust cover or how they modified their original dust cover to fit with a usb cable plugged in.

I should take a picture of what my problem is. I will do that this afternoon when get home

in the past I have used dielectric grease or gorilla taped around connections that were sensitive to dust or moisture intrusion in the environment I was going into.

The dielectric grease just needs a quick wipe away before unplugging and collected the silty dust pretty well without allowing it in but as hick as it looks the gorilla tape was probably more effective.

OK, I got it. You want to seal the port with your AUX power supply plugged is in. I don't have a solution to that issue, but you might want to call Jason at Outdoor Legacy and see what he recommends.

https://outdoorlegacygear.com/

Mikei - Which model Wraith is this?

My brother and I both bought one last December. So far all I have done is mount it on an upper.

It is the Wraiith HD 2-16 X 28 (SM18021)

Take them hunting as soon as you can! You'll love 'em!!

I must admit they are quite intimidating. I dont do well understanding technology.

Set yourself up in your garage or on your back porch (when it warms up a bit!) and take the Wraith through its paces. Do it in the daytime first, so you can get used to the poisition and function of the control panel buttons. After about 2-3 sessions of 30 minutes each, even if you're not technically inclined, you'll "get it." Then do the same thing at night a few times and you'll be ready to go night hunting and will never look back.

The Wraith’s control buttons and menu are pretty easy to learn. An important step in setting up a Wraith is mounting the Infrared Light at the correct angle to insure that the center of the spotlight aligns with the crosshairs.
Here is a good video explaining the process.
I set mine up in my garage.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=JMA5QX5zFYQ

I have had a couple of IR digital NV setups, the last a Photin XT. My only complaint was the speed in which my right eye got tired of looking through the unit. Does the Wraith have that issue?

I think all of them do. The bright image closes the pupil down. I get around the problem by "spotting" with my left eye and "shooting" with my right eye. I also added a Bushnell Equinox 650 monocular to my inventory of night gear and that gives me the capability to sit back, relax, and scan the scene using my left eye without doing the whole cheek weld thing on the rifle. The 650 cost about $160, and I have found it to be worth every penny. (I just went on line and found that Amazon has them for $130!)
https://www.amazon.com/Bushnell-Monocular-Outstanding-Illumination-Unmatched/dp/B096HD7WYC

Set yourself up in your garage or on your back porch (when it warms up a bit!) and take the Wraith through its paces. Do it in the daytime first, so you can get used to the poisition and function of the control panel buttons. After about 2-3 sessions of 30 minutes each, even if you're not technically inclined, you'll "get it." Then do the same thing at night a few times and you'll be ready to go night hunting and will never look back.[/quote]

great advice

This is still the best image I’ve ever seen through a digital scope

My Buddy Dennis took the picture through a Wraith 4k MAX unit

They are absolutely amazing for the price point. As I said in an earlier post, it ain't thermal, but for poor folks, it works pretty darned well.

I generally shoot hogs under feeder lights at about 100 yds. Haven't had any trouble seeing them through good quality rifle scopes BUT it would be nice to be able to record my outings. Trouble is....I am not confident the Wraith would hold up to the recoil of my 458 SOCOM. IF it would....I'd probably get one.

Pulsar has come out with a color digital (day) and they handle all the recoil you could ever throw at an optic

It’s going to be more than 1k though…

Anyone tried the mini? Hoping it’s just as good as the original but 12 oz. lighter. 2-16 is enough magnification for me. I’d use it on an AR.

I believe it’s rated for up to a .308

That is my understanding as well. So on average the .308 in a 7.5 lb rifle and a 150 gr. bullet/cartridge is going to produce roughly 16 ft. lbs of recoil energy and about 12 fps recoil velocity.

My SOCOM Is considerably heavier but with my staple handload (405 gr. JSP) I'm probably in the 21-22 ft. lb. recoil range. I suppose I could drop back to using some of my 300 gr. loads, but the 405 gr and a 540 gr. hard-cast are what I shoot the most.

I'll have to weigh the rifle/scope combination and apply my known muzzle velocities to come up with the calculated recoil figures.

But by 'feel' (which I know is subjective) it recoils very much like a 12 ga. shotgun with 2-3/4" shells (field loads). I'd say roughly 20-22 ft. lbs

Anyone know of a good way to mount one of these on an SKS?

I don't know, but I bet that Jason at Outdoor Legacy can help you out. Give him a call.

Left name and number yesterday morning for a call back but no return call so far. We'll see...

That surprises me; he's always been Johnny (or Jason) on the spot when I've asked him for guidance on any night vision issues. Keep us informed on what you find out and when you find out.

I can't imagine putting large heavy Wraith on a SKS but I'm sure you can as it just mounts to a picatinny rail. They make SKS Dust Cover with picatinny rails on them. I never liked this setup as they can wobble and there may be a better solution that I'm not aware of. The Wraith is setup for high MSR mounts and a cheek riser may be necessary for cheek weld on a SKS. Also the very short eye relief is an issue with the Wraith on some non-AR platforms, I had to use a mount extension Sightmark makes to get the correct eye relief on my bolt action, see the photo. Not sure if the SKS would require that or not.

I ordered the 2x-16x Wraith today. This will be my first time with night optics. I’m looking forward to trying it!

Thanks

Why is eye relief so short? Just so folks can stick it at the very back of their AR rail?

These scopes are setup for the AR15-10 platform, generally the scope rail is further back on those than a bolt action. When I put the Wraith on my AR-10 it put it as far back on the rail as I can and I still have to reduce my stock length a couple clicks to get the correct eye relief. Also the Wraith is really just a camera and has a screen instead of a optic like a traditional scope. In order to see the full screen your eye has to be pretty close to it. The rubber light shield blocks some of the screen if your eye is too far back. The light shield can be removed giving a little more eye relief. I like to leave it on because it does reduce screen glare and it also acts a buffer in case recoil causes the scope to hit me in the head, LOL.

Are there any other affordable scopes that don't have all these issues?

I think the Wraith is the best option out there in the price range. I really like mine just pointing out some of the challenges. I'm excited about the new Mini.

I don’t think they are issues, they are basically limitations of a digital scope in general. Unless you bump up to one that has true WiFi streaming. You have to be close enough to see into a little monitor, the rubber cup helps with nighttime viewing.

The rail mount system by default is pretty basic, there are plenty of options like the one listed below to remedy your needs. For me personally I have it mounted on the last rails and that is perfect for me. My biggest “dangit I forgot” issue is focusing when shooting hogs at different distances. Like it’s clear enough to me but when I go back and watch I think “damnit I really shoulda focused it so it’d be much clearer.” It’s not an issue just another thing you gotta remember when dealing with digital scopes

I should have been more specific - is there anything that doesn't have the eye relief issue? That will make SKS mounting very difficult I believe

All magnified optics have an eye relief issue if you have to look into a tube, but to get more to your point, there isn't a budget-priced, magnified scout NV scope type of option unless you want to go with an external display that would give you a pseudo reflex sight.

The Oneleaf Commander NV100 is a budget digital clip-on that attaches to the back of a daylight scope. It does have the option of shrinking the display image so as to allow you to back off of the eye cup and have more eye relief, but then you are dealing with a smaller image as well.

So should a person get the HD 2-16 X 28 or the hd 4-32-50 they are the same price.

I have 2 of the HD 4x32x50’s that I’m totally satisfied with. They are mounted on AR platform rifles. I purchased the Sightmark extended mount and have plenty of room to adjust for proper eye relief.

Dumb question - are these used for daylight sights too? I have an AR that I could stick this on fairly painlessly

Yes.
https://texashuntingforum.com/forum...305/sightmark-wraith-2-16x28#Post7962305

Depends on how you hunt. If you hunt from a stand and take longer shots the HD 4-32x50 works well. If you hunt closer range the HD 2-16x28 is a better fit. I will say that the HD 4-32x50 field of view is pretty small even on 4x. To me, it seems more like a 8X, in fact the field of view on my regular optics set on 8X is about the same or even larger than the HD 4-32x50 is on 4X.

I would take hard look at the Wraith 4K Mini. I have not used one yet. The HDs are big and heavy and the Mini is much more compact and lighter and is 4K. Of course is costs $300 more but may be worth it.

After seeing the mini. I want one now.

I noticed the price on Sightmark's web sight for the Mini increased from $799 to $959 so I decided to pre-order one from Outdoor Legacy Gear while the price is still $799. Only problem is it won't arrive until December or later.

I’m glad you like it, I just bought one the other day.

I bought the Wraith because it rated at the top of the NV scopes for beginners. Very easy to use supposedly hence I have not even taken it out of the box yet!