Thank you for the excellent video. Thats one impressive bit of kit for the money. I will hold out for the 3/12 version if it is released in the new year. All my shooting tends to be sub 50mtr pest control so don't need the extended zoom. They will end capturing a hell of the air rifle market with this product range. Some of the other manufacturers are going to note. Karl.
Another quick question, say im scanning around / calling with the spotter and fox suddenly pops up, How quick do these scopes switch on? Or can you switch on then have a bitton to instantly switch to standby and back? Thanks
When the scope is switched on, it can be put into standby mode with a brief press of the power button. This switches off the display and IR illuminator to save power and extend battery life Another brief press on the power button brings the scope back to full operation in less than 1/2 second
You have two choices 1. Buy from Pro Optics pro-optics.co.uk/products/arken-zulus-hd-5-20x-digital-day-night-vision-scope-with-laser-rangefinder-and-ballistic-calculator. This way you are buying from a UK company and get all the warranty and legal protections that apply to online purchases forUK buyers from UK sellers 2. Buy direct from Arken in China (the price is the same) arkenoptics.uk/collections/night-visions. Arken keep a small stock of scopes in the UK so you might receive one via Royal mail or it may be sent directly from China
When you can see the wires on the fence at over 200 yards (1:40 and thereabouts) you can understand it has a very decent resolution in the darkness. Has the illuminator remained a VCSEL, as per the earlier Hittac version, or is it now LED? Cheers Bruce.
Hi Bruce, just found your channel, great in depth look at the scope footage. Very impressive too. Ive got a 223 for foxing, and currently using an add on, thinking of upgrading to a dedicated digital scope sometime. I find the dayscope, pard 007, vcsel torch and picatinny lrf a lot of bulk. This scope looks a neat little gem. Would you recommend it over everything else for the aprox pricepoint at this time? Thanks. Alpex is a forerunner too but it is a bit of big scope still, and still requires a torch (i dont normally use 50mm objective days scopes etc...) 👍
The Arken Zulus is far and away the best "bang for your buck" digital day/night scope available at the moment. I definitely recommend it over anything close to it's price point - and quite a long way beyond its price point. Compared to the Alpex, the Arken is smaller, lighter, neater and is an out of the box ready to go solution - it comes with an excellent IR and mounts directly onto a picatinny rail - so no rings needed
Hello friend, question: I observed in the video that sometimes the ballistic calculator does not respond to the signal sent by the rangefinder, do you know if it is due to a fault in the scope or because of the distance? How much is the maximum distance at which you have measured and has Did you answer the ballistic calculator correctly?...thank you
Whether or not the rangefinder actually gives a range from a specific target can depend on the nature of the target and how well it reflects the light from the laser back to the scope The maximum range I have measured using the scope is over 800m If the scope gets enough reflected light from the laser to be able to give a range, then the ballistic calculator can calculate the aiming point. However, depending on the ballistic data being used it is possible for the calculated aiming mark to be below the bottom of the display and not visible to the user For example, If I use a low powered air rifle zeroed at 30 yards using pellets with a muzzle velocity around 600fps and range a target at 200 yards, the trajectory of the pellets would be such that the aiming point calculated by the ballistic calculator will be far below the bottom of the display and would not be visible. In that situation, the scope would display a "Range Error" message
I would really like to know how this has held up. Does it still perform, as new? I wonder why Arken no longer sells them? They are still available, elsewhere. Anybody?
It actually works better now than when it was new because there have been some firmware updates that improves the lo light performance and it now allows 5 ballistic profiles to be created directly in the scope without the need for a phone The part of Arken that manufactured and sold these scopes has changed its name to DNT Optics so they are now sold under the DNT brand dntoptics.com/ Same scope, same factory, same people just corporate branding BS
Tikka T1X in 22LR with subsonic ammo zeroed at 50 yards. I discovered later that the ballistic calculator will not give give an aiming mark if the range is greater than the maximum range set on the ballistic table that is sent to the scope from the app
It is visible as a dull red glow - the same as every other 850nm IR illuminatior. If you look at some of the ratting videos using the Arken Zulus, the rats are being illuminated at close range and even having the LRF splash right in their faces - but none of them are spooked. The IR module on the HD520R simply unscrews and Arken are currently testing a 940nm module which will mean that a user will be able to easily switch IR wavelengths to suit the shooting situation
Yes, you can put it on several rifles and you can also use different ammunition in the same rifle, because all will have different zeroes. I have zeroed it on a rifle, then removed it and put it back on the same rifle without any loss of zero
@@brucemcpherson8832does it adjust for height to bore variances? For example a tavor is 3 or so inches higher than the barrel (compared to an ar that is only 1 inch or so)
@@wcsdiaries Scope height above the bore is one of the parameters which must be entered into the ballistic app so that an accurate ballistic table for the particular rifle/ammunition being used can be created. So, you would have one ballistic profile for your Tavor, and another for your AR. If you swap the Zulus between the two rifles, then each time you swap you would need to do the following two things: a. From within the scope, select the correct zero profile for the rifle being used b. From the app, bluetooth the correct ballistic profile to the scope
I was wrong - and that was due to my not having fully understood the workings of the Arken ballistic app. When a ballistic profile is created in the app, a ballistic table is produced which gives the holdover/holdunder for a given range - however it is necessary to specify a minimum and maximum range at which the ballistic calculator will work. What happened in the part of the video you referenced is that I had set the maximum working range of the ballistic table for a distance less than I was ranging. In this case the ballistic table is unable to calculate the holdover and indicated that situation by giving a range error message
Unless you absolutely must have a traditional tube style scope and 100mm of eye relief (which you would get with the PARD DS35), then, for me, the Arken is better in every way and that's what I would recommend
i emailed arken directly about this exact question and they replied straight away to tell me it would indeed be feb 2024 so not long 👍@@brucemcpherson8832
It is a better all round scope than the DS35. Pros for the DS35 would be that it's a traditional tube style which some people feel is the only style acceptable to them, and that it has really good eye relief. In every other area, the Zulus ZHD520R is better
That's the beam from from the laser rangefinder. As the magnification is increased the beam moves further up and left on the screen because the field of view is reduced
There are two versions of the scope, one with the rangefinder and the other without In the UK, the version with the rangefinder sells for £599 and the version without the rangefinder sells for £499
What you cannot see in the video is a red box which is aligned with the rangefinder for use in daytime. Yes, the reticle can be moved. In the menu there is a zero reticle option where a shot is fired at the target, the reticle is placed on the point of aim and the screen frozen with a short press of the power button, The reticle is then moved to the point of impact and the new reticle position saved
BC is Ballistic Coefficient - a measure of how aerodynamic a bullet is. High BC values indicate better aerodynamics which results in the bullet losing speed more slowly and therefore dropping less at a given distance than a bullet with a low BC
Absolutely fantastic. So glad you’re doing this sir Bruce brilliant
This is 'the' vid to sell it to me Bruce, the distance in darkness is super, ticks every box.
And all that from such a small lens.
Many thanks.
If mine proves to work as well as yours, I'll be ordering a second unit. Thanks for your time and effort.
Thank you for this video! I almost fell over when you said the rabbits were over 200 yards away. I thought they were much closer. The deer too at 400.
Thank you for the excellent video. Thats one impressive bit of kit for the money. I will hold out for the 3/12 version if it is released in the new year. All my shooting tends to be sub 50mtr pest control so don't need the extended zoom. They will end capturing a hell of the air rifle market with this product range. Some of the other manufacturers are going to note. Karl.
Great vid Bruce very informative
Another quick question, say im scanning around / calling with the spotter and fox suddenly pops up, How quick do these scopes switch on? Or can you switch on then have a bitton to instantly switch to standby and back? Thanks
When the scope is switched on, it can be put into standby mode with a brief press of the power button. This switches off the display and IR illuminator to save power and extend battery life
Another brief press on the power button brings the scope back to full operation in less than 1/2 second
For hogs and coyotes at night this is a must have.
Well done Bruce you the man!👍
Great video. Thanks!
Thanks Bruce. . . I hope Arken Optics have given you a Brucie Bonus for all the Scopes you must have sold for them. Where should I purchase one from ?
You have two choices
1. Buy from Pro Optics pro-optics.co.uk/products/arken-zulus-hd-5-20x-digital-day-night-vision-scope-with-laser-rangefinder-and-ballistic-calculator. This way you are buying from a UK company and get all the warranty and legal protections that apply to online purchases forUK buyers from UK sellers
2. Buy direct from Arken in China (the price is the same) arkenoptics.uk/collections/night-visions. Arken keep a small stock of scopes in the UK so you might receive one via Royal mail or it may be sent directly from China
When you can see the wires on the fence at over 200 yards (1:40 and thereabouts) you can understand it has a very decent resolution in the darkness. Has the illuminator remained a VCSEL, as per the earlier Hittac version, or is it now LED? Cheers Bruce.
I can say with 100% certainty that it is a vcsel and not an LED
Excellent vid any chance to see close up ratting on base mag!
Search UA-cam for Arken Zulus or Hittac and you'll find loads of vids showing ratting at close range on base mag
Hi. What is the go with your picatinny rail. I have the Tikka 22 as well and was wondering what rail to order . Do I get the 0 MOA rail ? Cheers
Get the 20moa rail
Hi Bruce, just found your channel, great in depth look at the scope footage. Very impressive too. Ive got a 223 for foxing, and currently using an add on, thinking of upgrading to a dedicated digital scope sometime. I find the dayscope, pard 007, vcsel torch and picatinny lrf a lot of bulk. This scope looks a neat little gem. Would you recommend it over everything else for the aprox pricepoint at this time? Thanks.
Alpex is a forerunner too but it is a bit of big scope still, and still requires a torch (i dont normally use 50mm objective days scopes etc...) 👍
The Arken Zulus is far and away the best "bang for your buck" digital day/night scope available at the moment. I definitely recommend it over anything close to it's price point - and quite a long way beyond its price point.
Compared to the Alpex, the Arken is smaller, lighter, neater and is an out of the box ready to go solution - it comes with an excellent IR and mounts directly onto a picatinny rail - so no rings needed
@@brucemcpherson8832 thanks for the advice and recommendations, much appreciated!!
Hello friend, question: I observed in the video that sometimes the ballistic calculator does not respond to the signal sent by the rangefinder, do you know if it is due to a fault in the scope or because of the distance? How much is the maximum distance at which you have measured and has Did you answer the ballistic calculator correctly?...thank you
Whether or not the rangefinder actually gives a range from a specific target can depend on the nature of the target and how well it reflects the light from the laser back to the scope
The maximum range I have measured using the scope is over 800m
If the scope gets enough reflected light from the laser to be able to give a range, then the ballistic calculator can calculate the aiming point. However, depending on the ballistic data being used it is possible for the calculated aiming mark to be below the bottom of the display and not visible to the user
For example, If I use a low powered air rifle zeroed at 30 yards using pellets with a muzzle velocity around 600fps and range a target at 200 yards, the trajectory of the pellets would be such that the aiming point calculated by the ballistic calculator will be far below the bottom of the display and would not be visible. In that situation, the scope would display a "Range Error" message
Queston::: at 09:21 was that a woodie?
I would really like to know how this has held up. Does it still perform, as new? I wonder why Arken no longer sells them? They are still available, elsewhere. Anybody?
It actually works better now than when it was new because there have been some firmware updates that improves the lo light performance and it now allows 5 ballistic profiles to be created directly in the scope without the need for a phone
The part of Arken that manufactured and sold these scopes has changed its name to DNT Optics so they are now sold under the DNT brand dntoptics.com/
Same scope, same factory, same people just corporate branding BS
@@brucemcpherson8832 Thanks so much for the reply! I like your vids.
If the scope couldn't move to a corrected range because of your ammo, what ammo/gun was it please? Thanks.
Tikka T1X in 22LR with subsonic ammo zeroed at 50 yards. I discovered later that the ballistic calculator will not give give an aiming mark if the range is greater than the maximum range set on the ballistic table that is sent to the scope from the app
Is that using the factory IR light?
Where does it say the yardage? I see the laser flashing but where does it tell the yardage?
At the top centre of the display - from 4:00 onwards, several ranges are displayed
Great video Bruce, would this suit a .243 for foxing?
Yes, it will work perfectly well on a 243. I know of at least one person using it on a 308
Out of curiosity, how visible is the illuminator when viewed from the front in low light/dark?
It is visible as a dull red glow - the same as every other 850nm IR illuminatior.
If you look at some of the ratting videos using the Arken Zulus, the rats are being illuminated at close range and even having the LRF splash right in their faces - but none of them are spooked.
The IR module on the HD520R simply unscrews and Arken are currently testing a 940nm module which will mean that a user will be able to easily switch IR wavelengths to suit the shooting situation
How the zulus is doing? All good ?
All good, no problems at all
Do these scopes also show hold under, when shooting rabbits from the car some are within 30 feet?
Yes
@@brucemcpherson8832 thank you 👍.
you from Glasgow Bruse? I got a buddy Raymond from there. bet you would hit it off
I'm not a weegie., I'm from Aiberdeen
@@brucemcpherson8832 you don’t happen to play on Xbox at all do you😂
@@HighBry What's an Xbox ?
@@brucemcpherson8832 that’s what I thought lol😂 was wondering because the old timer I speak of plays one all the time. Figured I’d ask🤷
Hi Bruce an you tell me how many zeroing profiles it has if any
It has 26 zeroing profiles A-Z
Wow thanks for the reply so just to clarify you can put it on several different rifles?
Yes, you can put it on several rifles and you can also use different ammunition in the same rifle, because all will have different zeroes. I have zeroed it on a rifle, then removed it and put it back on the same rifle without any loss of zero
@@brucemcpherson8832does it adjust for height to bore variances? For example a tavor is 3 or so inches higher than the barrel (compared to an ar that is only 1 inch or so)
@@wcsdiaries Scope height above the bore is one of the parameters which must be entered into the ballistic app so that an accurate ballistic table for the particular rifle/ammunition being used can be created.
So, you would have one ballistic profile for your Tavor, and another for your AR.
If you swap the Zulus between the two rifles, then each time you swap you would need to do the following two things:
a. From within the scope, select the correct zero profile for the rifle being used
b. From the app, bluetooth the correct ballistic profile to the scope
IS IR LASER VISIBLE THRU THIS OPTIC?
Yes, as a dull red glow
2:57 you mentioned the reticle would not adjust that far. It`s only 200
I was wrong - and that was due to my not having fully understood the workings of the Arken ballistic app.
When a ballistic profile is created in the app, a ballistic table is produced which gives the holdover/holdunder for a given range - however it is necessary to specify a minimum and maximum range at which the ballistic calculator will work.
What happened in the part of the video you referenced is that I had set the maximum working range of the ballistic table for a distance less than I was ranging.
In this case the ballistic table is unable to calculate the holdover and indicated that situation by giving a range error message
contrast is best with the IR off totally if you ask me.
So what would you recommend the pard ds 35 /70 or this ?
Unless you absolutely must have a traditional tube style scope and 100mm of eye relief (which you would get with the PARD DS35), then, for me, the Arken is better in every way and that's what I would recommend
Hi Bruce. Great review buddy, would love to see this nv in 2or 3x mag. Would be much better for the rats 👍
There is a 3-12 model coming - probably early next year
i emailed arken directly about this exact question and they replied straight away to tell me it would indeed be feb 2024 so not long 👍@@brucemcpherson8832
Great video And review, I am definitely going to order 1 looks better than the pard DS 35 ..
It is a better all round scope than the DS35.
Pros for the DS35 would be that it's a traditional tube style which some people feel is the only style acceptable to them, and that it has really good eye relief. In every other area, the Zulus ZHD520R is better
@@brucemcpherson8832 Thanks for the reply , Going to get one as soon as they are in stock again
Keep the content coming mate ..
Rak8ng bit of kit
Will this be suitable for a 308 Win? Worried about getting scoped due to the short eye relief. Thanks.
Yes, I know of several people using it on a 308 without any problems
@@brucemcpherson8832 Excellent. Thank you for the swift response. It's on my 22LR at the moment which is most useful.
Are you going to shoot?
No, when that video was made it was illegal in Scotland to shoot any deer using night vision or thermal scopes - although that is not the case now
Whats with the aliens shinning light top left of reticle?
That's the beam from from the laser rangefinder. As the magnification is increased the beam moves further up and left on the screen because the field of view is reduced
Is the laser range finder apart of the scope or is that separate?
It's part of the scope in this picture it's the short, fat tube shaped thing above the word ZULUS pro-optics.co.uk/
@@brucemcpherson8832 cool! That comes standard with the scope?
There are two versions of the scope, one with the rangefinder and the other without
In the UK, the version with the rangefinder sells for £599 and the version without the rangefinder sells for £499
В ночное время видно где маргает луч дальномера,а днём как? Можно его как нибудь сместить к сетке?
What you cannot see in the video is a red box which is aligned with the rangefinder for use in daytime. Yes, the reticle can be moved.
In the menu there is a zero reticle option where a shot is fired at the target, the reticle is placed on the point of aim and the screen frozen with a short press of the power button, The reticle is then moved to the point of impact and the new reticle position saved
@@brucemcpherson8832понял, спасибо. А вы можете сделать обзор по настройке калькулятора
Instructions for the ballistic calculator here drive.google.com/file/d/1IiEwYyGo3LNZ0TYZGLtfWA6NeXiXT01P/view?pli=1
@@brucemcpherson8832для калькулятора нужно всегда телефон соединять с прицелом? Или один раз только для настройки?
В принципе прицел отличный, всё классно, но один нюанс пугает что нужно соединять с телефоном. Например PARD 008s lrf работает самостоятельно
BC ????
BC is Ballistic Coefficient - a measure of how aerodynamic a bullet is. High BC values indicate better aerodynamics which results in the bullet losing speed more slowly and therefore dropping less at a given distance than a bullet with a low BC
Have a crack! Please
Dont forget, the much mentioned Alpex IS over twice the weight of the Zulus.