Pulsar Trail XQ50 or Flir Thermosight Pro 536

Rifleman65

New Member
I had pretty much decided to go with the Pulsar Trail XQ50 until I saw the Flir Thermosight Pros had been out. I’m getting a thermal scope for coyote hunting on my farm and I need something that is going to give me a good view of yotes up to 300 yards. I’m not saying that all of my shots are over 200 but they can be as far as you can see and shoot. Most shots are going to be a minimum of 100 yards and over. I need some help deciding on which one to go with. The Trail XQ50 and Flir PTS536 are priced similar but the Flir has a 4x optical zoom and the Trail XQ50 is 2.7x I think. Which one should I go with? Has anyone used both?
 

John336

New Member
Pulsar has good customer service but you’ll probably never need it.

Flir has crappy customer service and you are more likely to need it.

Flir will have the better image (allowing better PID) at those ranges due to the higher native magnification.
 

Brian Shaffer

Hog Hunter
SUS VENATOR CLUB
LoneStarBoars Supporter
The Pulsar XQ50 will definitely work for your needs. FLIRs are a challenge. Image with the Pulsar can be adjusted by focus, brightness, and contrast. FLIR has these plus FOUR more categories of adjustment, making it much more complex to arrive at a given image...yet the Pulsar seems to do it much more simply, cleanly, without need for a degree in engineering to operate. ;)
 

Rifleman65

New Member
I totally understand what people are saying about Flir and their customer service issues. Hopefully that’s something that they will get ironed out sooner than later. I have a Armasight CO-X HD+ Clip On that I put on a MK 12 SPR build of mine. I’ve got a NF ATACR 4-16x42 on the rifle and when I have good atmospheric conditions, good moon and starlight with very little fog, I can turn the scope up to 8x or a tad higher and still get a good quality image. I’m still new to getting everything adjusted and focused properly because I’ve only used it 4-5 times. That being said, I would use the thermal scope a lot more because with thermal you don’t have to have perfect conditions. I could slap on the thermal and go, or just put it on a dedicated rifle and go. I’ve got a custom 6mm Creedmoor suppressed that I have in a Manners stock but is currently in a XLR Chassis. If there’s any thermals that would be a better fit please let me know.
 

Jofus

LSB Member
What magnification do u like to shoot with at the 2-300 range? The xq50 trail picture in picture is a very nice thing for distance aiming while still having wideiew scanning. I've been sitting on the fence between the two scopes as well. But I've held up on deciding waiting to see if I need a new engine in my truck lol. If no rush I'd wait to see more reviews and videos from the flir
 

Rifleman65

New Member
I have never even looked through a thermal scope so I really don’t know what to look for. I know that shooting coyotes at 150-200 yards vs hogs at 30-80 yards is a big difference. Not to mention most hogs are much bigger than yotes. I would think that I would need as much magnification as possible that’s why I’m leaning towards the Flir.
 

wigwamitus

LSB Active Member
... I would use the thermal scope a lot more because with thermal you don’t have to have perfect conditions ...

Well, thermal works a lot better in "good thermal conditions" ... than thermal works in "bad thermal conditions" ... but .. those conditions have nothing to do with available ambient light.
Bad thermal conditions are like ... everything is frozen ... or everything is wet after a LOT of rain ... in those conditions, with thermal, you see a "sea of grey" ... you can still see the critters, but not the terrain. So judging distance based on known terrain features is impossible. In those conditions with ambient light or a good illuminator, the NV still works.
Each technology has its good conditions and its bad conditions.

:)
 

Wildfowler

Mis'sippi
SUS VENATOR CLUB
I have a pulsar XP50 and a Flir PTS233 so I can’t speak to the exact models you’re asking about.

I like the pulsar a lot and recommend it. Frankly I’d recommend either one.

With the pulsar, I’ve found that I generally just tweak the focus after turning it on (occasionally). Normally, I power it on and have and image good enough to shoot with without having to monkey with any contrast settings.

With that in mind, I just recently updated the firmware on my PTS233 and can say that it now operates much easier than before. What I mean by this is that the default settings do a much better job of working as I believe they were probably intended to work without requiring any user input.

Old firmware I would constantly have to monkey with the individual contrast, gain settings, etc. each time I turned on the unit to optimize the picture.

Now when it powers up it’s much more usable and it just works for me.

So knowing what I know about these two units now, my decision would probably be based on base magnification preferences.
 

wigwamitus

LSB Active Member
... Normally, I power it on and have and image good enough to shoot ...

I mostly use Trijicons these days, but I definitely monkey with contrast if needed ... and in rain or high humidity, I do it. It "grains up" the image abit ... but does increase the contrast, which helps detect/id critters in the woods. And I "nuc the sh^t" out of all thermals, especially in the first 5 mins (5 times in first 5 mins) and then whenever I have a chance. I'd rather nuc in a gap ... then wish I could nuc when the action starts.
 

theblakester

Got a black belt in keeping it real.
LSB TURKEY BUZZARD PRESERVATION SOCIETY
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LoneStarBoars Supporter
I personally think you're starting to push the limits of a lowish magnification 384 resolution thermal for positive ID and lethal shots on coyotes at 300 yards. That being said, the pulsar does have great cross hairs. They're very fine and allow you to really dial in the scope and make as precise of a shot as possible for the optics ability. I have no experience with the FLIR unit in question. The trijicon MKIII 60mm would be great for what you're trying to do, but it would also cost you 2.5x as much as you're looking to spend.
 

Rifleman65

New Member
I’m always up for someone feeling sorry for me and selling me a Trijicon at half price! Lol. I’m just so hesitant about dropping $4000 on something that I know nothing nor have I even put my hands on or looked through! I appreciate everyone’s feedback and information by the way. I guess I’ll be pulling the trigger on something by Monday. If I could find a place to rent what I’m looking at would be great. The thing that is holding me back on the Flir is the company and everything that has happened in the past few months. I would like to think that is going to improve as time passes but who knows. If the Pulsar had just a little more optical zoom it would be a no brainer! I like their reticles and the pip, they just need at least a 4x-6x zoom.
 

John336

New Member
FYI, I’ve been looking for a scope with similar requirements for about 6 weeks. In that time I’ve found a used IR Defense (now Trijicon) MKII 35mm (2.5 optical magnification) for $5000 and another for $4500.

If warranty is a concern, when you have funds upgrade the unit ($1500 bucks IIRC) to MKIII and it will reset the 3 year warranty.

I’ve heard nothing but good about the Pulsar units, but you sound like you may regret not getting what you really want (not because of capability but because of your personality — knowing there’s something better for just a little more $).
 

Terry

Texas, Land of the Free
LoneStarBoars Supporter
I’m using a XP50,ReapIR and MK III 60mm most of the time now. One of my hunting buddies has the XQ50 and DLOC mount it’s a very nice scope and once I 2X my XP50 for longer shots the image between the two scopes looks real close to the same. Honestly, he can kill anything I can with the XP50.

I haven’t seen a 536 yet, but I would consider the XQ50 a serious hunting tool shots out to 300 yards no issue. I would upgrade the factory mount to a DLOC it’s well worth it we have them on all our pulsar scopes feels like a big upgrade.

It wasn’t long ago nearly all the long time folks here including myself were shooting mostly 320 core units because pricing then averaged 5K for a 320 core and 10K plus for 640 cores.A lot of critters where harvested with those 320 core scopes because they worked ;)
 

wigwamitus

LSB Active Member
... upgrade the unit ($1500 bucks IIRC) to MKIII and it will reset the 3 year warranty ...

Are you sure about that?

I've done two upgrades and when I asked if it would reset the warranty I was told NO. Now, both of those were in the IRD days ... not the trijicon days. Maybe trijicon changed the policy ?

Here is the current warranty statement:

Trijicon® warrants that products manufactured by Trijicon will be free from defects in material and workmanship for the lifetime of the original owner. Trijicon will repair or replace (at our option) the registered product. This warranty does not apply to defects caused by anything which is deemed abnormal, abusive, or improper including any fault resulting from an accident or improper service. This warranty specifically applies to the optical systems and metal structure of the product and does not apply to the electronic systems. Trijicon warrants the electronic systems for a period of 3 years from the date of original purchase.

Trijicon® Electro Optics | Contact Us

So actually, there are two warranties ... the "electronics" .. which I assume is a term that means "the core" ... i.e. the OASYS CORE ... i.e. the parts manufactured by BAE ... for 3 years ... and everything else (basically the housing/lenses etc) is lifetime. But all for original owner.
 

John336

New Member
No, I am not sure about that. One of the units I was looking to purchase had just been upgraded and the owner said he would include paperwork showing the new warranty expires in 2.75 years (3 since the upgrade). I guess that doesn’t mean it’s true but it might be worth a call to verify.
 

Bakester

LSB Active Member
SUS VENATOR CLUB
LoneStarBoars Supporter
Maybe rent the units your interested in? Takes a lot of guesswork out and gives some experience using them.
 

Rifleman65

New Member
This past January I bought a carbon fiber tripod for precision rifle shooting and the ZRODelta DCLW Head that pans and tilts. I can clamp in my Desert Tech SRS 6.5 Creedmoor in and it’s rock steady. As far as thermals, I’ve been between the Pulsar Trail XQ50 and the Flir Thermosight Pro 736. Now that I’ve seen several videos of the Trijicon MK 3 Hunter 60mm, I’m trying to find the best way to buy one. I’m just having a hard time spending $9000 on a Thermal scope that I’m not going to use 20 times a year. Unless I find a way to make a living from shooting coyotes! I’m just trying to kill the predators on my farm. I wish I could rent one first!
 

wigwamitus

LSB Active Member
... I’m not going to use 20 times a year ...
... I’m just trying to kill the predators on my farm ...

A pulsar will absolutely get the job done ... and for coyotes so will a sub thousand dollar stoner 5.56 ... the Desert Tech ... might be the Mk3 60mm of rifles ... neither are required to kill yotes ... the sub thousand dollar stoner 5.56 and the sub $3k pulsar will get the job done.

==
... I’m just having a hard time spending $9000 on a Thermal

I gottan idea ... if you really want a mk3 60mm ... sell the desert tech ... get a $900 stoner 5.56 .. .and use the proceeds (together with what you would've spent on the pulsar) and you should be right at what it would take to get a mk3 60mm ... and street prices for the mk3 60mm are often below $8k.

:)
 

Brian Shaffer

Hog Hunter
SUS VENATOR CLUB
LoneStarBoars Supporter
Now that I’ve seen several videos of the Trijicon MK 3 Hunter 60mm, I’m trying to find the best way to buy one. I’m just having a hard time spending $9000 on a Thermal scope that I’m not going to use 20 times a year. Unless I find a way to make a living from shooting coyotes! I’m just trying to kill the predators on my farm. I wish I could rent one first!

I am with wigwamitus on restructuring your spending pattern.

With that said, if you spend that kind of money on a thermal scope, you will easily find ways to use it more than 20 times a year. I suspect you are going to be using it more than that if you get a less expensive one as well. I use my MK3 60mm day and night. It is not an ideal day scope, but more than good enough that I am not going to bother with carrying two rifles or worry about changing out scopes on a single rifle in order to adapt between night and day.
 

havoc1300

LSB Member
If your comfortable pushing buttons to see what you want to shoot both would work...if you want to see the 736 would be the choice...I haven't even messed with the zoom
 
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