Core FXQ Thermal

Looking at doing this instead of buying a regular thermal device. Anyone have any experience with this unit?

https://www.pulsar-nv.com/glo/products/33/thermal-imaging-attachments/core-fxq-attachment

In my opinion, for most people, they aren't a wise investment because of the low value per dollar you are getting. You can buy a Core RXQ30V dedicated thermal rifle scope for $1,899. You are paying $4,000-$4,500 (depending on the model) and basically getting $1,899 image quality. It just doesn't make sense to me.

If you own a high end custom rifle with a high end scope and it's your "baby" so to speak and you want to hunt occasionally at night and feel like you only want to hunt with that rifle, then a clip on is a logical option. My issue is you can take that same $4,000+ and buy a dedicated thermal with MUCH better image quality, all kinds of features and much more usable package. You could actually spend a good deal less money and still have a better thermal optic.

I know I'm being Negative Nancy but I'm not against clip-ons in every situation. Heck I'm shipping out a Core FXQ38 clip-on today and the customer understood all these things but he was willing to make sacrifices to use the rifle/scope setup he wants. I just believe before you purchase a clip-on you need to weigh the pros and cons and be sure the pros for your situation outweigh the cons.

Jason

Agree with Jason here. I haven't really looked into those, but the specs are more in line with a sub-$2k image quality thermal. Might as well get a dedicated thermal.

Curious what your plan would be for the Core FXQ?

Building a suppressed 6.8, was gonna use it as a ranch gun. I liked the idea of the clip on for magnification purposes, and use it as a day gun all the time, and night gun as needed.
Was also looking to only buy one scope instead of two so I don't have to change back and forth.

The one thing to remember is that just because you're using it with a day time scope doesn't mean you can run the scope on a high magnification. The FXQ38 is suitable for a 1-3x magnification and the FXQ50 is suitable for 2-5x. You've got to remember that you're just using your scope to zoom in on a OLED screen and when you go very high you will literally zoom in past the edges of the Core's screen and you'll only be seeing a little of screen and FOV. Generally speaking the sweet spot on the 38 is going to be around 2x and the 50 will be around 3.5x.

Again, it's not a bad option as long as you understand you are essentially paying 2x more than you would if you bought a dedicated thermal. You can buy a much nicer dedicated thermal and another rifle and probably still have money in your pocket. But if you want to do it all on one rifle, day and night, clip on is the way to go.

Jason

I have personal experience with one and it's an inferior product for the money BUT if you've already invested a ton of money in a go to gun you're comfortable with it's acceptable. The biggest PITA are the adapters, it's not a one size fits all. The 40mm adapter cant fit on the 50mm scopes bc it's by bell size and not objective size. My advice would be to get multiple adapters for multiple rifles. Also the adapters are quite large and usually require higher rings. On ARs with rails on handguard it's almost impossible to clear with a 56mm bell diameter and not use risers

FYI the adapters/couplers are about $120 each and are no longer included with the clip-on. My customer called today and the coupler he ordered wasn't the size he thought he needed so he had to order another one. It's definitely a bit of a pain as cxjcherokec mentioned above.

Well, thanks for answering my question. I find it stupid to charge that much for a clip on, that makes zero sense.

FME, after going through some initial cost and tinkering, you are better off with using quality QD mounts (ILike LaRue) on your day scope and thermal. Easy peasy to switch back and forth. They hold zero.

My buddy's main reason was to stay in stand, minimal pack out while deer/day hunting then transitioning into night hunting. Not my cup of tea but only option for his requirements. On another note, he leaves the adapter on at all times so it's a simple 1 min attachment. Constantly removing the scope was not in the cards for a $6k precision AR10. His piece of mind was, I'll spend $4k on an inferior thermal clip on before I remove a $3k scope and risk a 1/2 moa loss on an otherwise 1/4 moa setup. I have 0 qualms about bring 2 uppers to the stand and rarely walk/stalk anymore.

I hear ya and I've thought the same thing but honestly it makes sense when you really lay it out.

You take all the same guts of a thermal scope, make it as light as possible, design it in a more compact modular housing that can be attached to almost any rifle scope on the market and do so without scratching or damaging the bell of the scope. Then you make an eyepiece that can be quickly attached to turn the unit into a monocular and you've now spent a lot of money. Then know that you are going to sell a tiny fraction of units compared to weapons mountable optics. It's necessarily going to cost a lot more money for the company to produce. Trust me if Pulsar could sell them for $2,000, they would. They've had them sitting on the shelf in inventory with no one buying them for the last 6 months while everyone is begging for thermal scopes.

Think about it.....they are so unpopular almost no one is making them and the Trijicon version is $10,000 and you can buy the REAP IR which is basically the same unit for $8,000.

The truth is, if the clip-ons cost the same as a regular scope I'd still advise against them. They will just never be as good as a dedicated thermal scope but again, for some people, they are willing to make sacrifices for the convenience and I understand that.