Predator Hunting Equipment

Thursday, February 25, 2010 by Mark Olis

Last night I pulled out my 10/22 Ruger so I could add a new piece of predator hunting equipment—the ND3 Long Range Laser Designator by Laser Genetics. The ND3 mounts to my hunting optic with a unique mount that is included with the laser.

Laser Genetics claims that the ND3 can illuminate live targets up to 250 yards away. It is fitted with a powerful green laser diode and a precision optical collimator. The mount also features elevation and windage adjustments so you can center the laser with your scope's line of sight. The collimator allows you to dial the laser in to a fine point or dial it out for a broad display of green. I think the broad display will be best for illuminating targets, such as raccoons, which I'll be hunting tonight on my lease. We've had a real bad problem with coons this season and they are in need of a thinning. This is all part of our wildlife land management plan that we implement on our hunt clubs. The raccoon wreak havoc on turkey nest, eating eggs and destroying nest, and they also eat hundreds of pounds of food that we put out for the deer in the off season.

I'll give a full report on how the ND3 works tonight. I'll also have a blog up tomorrow with photos from our coon hunt tonight. I've got some fellas coming in with some good dogs and the goal is to tree and shoot as many coons as possible. We're also going to video the hunt for the Web site, so stay tuned!

Outdoor Journal: Coyote hunt a double score

Thursday, February 25, 2010 by Ed Noonan

The light from a laser genetics light is very different from the lights being used by most nighttime predator hunters. First of all, the ND5 has a control button that will collimate and adjust the light beam diameter and illumination intensity. Actually, this beam can be seen at a distance of five miles for signaling and search and rescue operations. But for predator hunting, it will light them up out to 400 yards, and when used in conjunction with a scoped rifle, will allow you to focus the crosshairs clearly with no problem.

I recently took the ND5 out on the ice at Saratoga Lake at night, just to see how it really projected, and I actually surprised a few nighttime ice fishermen who were several hundred yards from me. The green light does not cause night blindness, is the easiest for human eyes to see and doesn’t alert pred­ators. For more information, go to www.lasergenetics.com and watch the videos. Boaters should take note of this light; it’s a good thing to have on board after dark.

I drove by a field around 8 that I had scoped out earlier, and as I was approaching my spot, two coyotes crossed just 25 yards ahead of me. Pulling over immed­iately, I rolled down the window and pulled out my ND5 Long Distance Laser Illuminator light and lit up both coyotes as they made their way quickly along the edge of the woods. They weren’t alerted by the light’s green beam. When I whistled, they stopped and turned. If I’d had a rifle, I could’ve easily dotted both their eyes.

Entering the woods at night, even when familiar with the area, can sometimes be a bit of a problem. Things look different, and I probably would have missed the setup spot had I not been carrying the ND5 which quickly helped me locate the blind.

Most hunters turn on flashlights more often than we really should. This alone makes this green light that much better, because it really doesn’t scare them.