First experiences with the Falcon Claw Eco System – NVG and Thermal

I recently put together the setup from Falcon Claw. It is primarily assembled from their products. I’ve now summarized my first experiences in this article.

Falcon Claw Components

• Falcon 640+ V2 Thermal Device
• Falcon Dovetail Adapter for Thermal Device
• Falcon QDF Weapon Mount
• Falcon QDB Bridge
• Falcon QDA PVS-14 Adapter

The Night Vision Device

As an NVG, I initially bought an affordable entry-level model. An MO-14 (from Florian Winkler Solutions) with Photonis XR5 High Gain GP 1600+ FOM. This allows me to test the setup and also gain some experience with a budget solution.

Here the bridge flipped up and seen from the underside.

Here the Falcon 640+ V2 on a rifle as a “clip on” thermal in front of the scope. Thx to T.M. for helping me with this, since the law in Germany regulates weapon mounted “night vision devices”.

Here are some of my experiences listed. This list is by no means complete, and after using the device more, I’ll create additional content on it 😉 

Thoughts and Notes

• NVG + Thermal + Bridge with batteries has a weight of 732g
• The thermal device has its battery compartment to the right of the eyepiece. So placing the Thermal on the right eye can be advantageous in terms of space
• You cannot aim through the thermal device when it’s helmet-mounted. Therefore, for right-handed shooters, having the NVG on the right side is better for quick weapon reaction
• A bicycle inner tube fits around the eyepiece of the thermal device (e.g., to darken the gap between the device and a scope/red dot sight)
• The “Red Hot” color mode can be disadvantageous when used with a red dot
• With green phosphor, the green color mode works fine
• Can be paired with the smart phone by using the App InfiRayOutdoor2

Positive Experiences

• The brain combines the two images quite well
• Thermal device usable during the day as well
• Weapon adaptation is practical
• The thermal device runs on 18650 batteries (no special battery required)
• High-quality workmanship

Negative Points

• Setup is heavier than a bino
• The silicone lens cap is fiddly (30mm)
• Depth perception roughly comparable to a monocular
• The thermal device is not recognized by Mac (unfortunately no MicroSD, only internal storage)