Considering the fact that your thermal rifle scope likely costs 3, 4 or 5 times as much as your gun, it’s not unreasonable for you to want to know how to properly protect your investment.
That requires you to know how to properly care for your thermal rifle scope, which fortunately is relatively straightforward. Here are the high-level notes.
Table of Contents
Handling with Care
Most importantly, handle your thermal scope with care. Many are made with IP-rated waterproof and dust-proof magnesium alloy shells that help protect them against the elements, but that doesn’t mean you should intentionally expose them to adverse conditions.
Secondly, be careful in how you handle your thermal scope. Again, while the shell or housing may be tough, the sensor, lenses, and internal electronics of the scope can be affected. Handle the scope carefully at all times and do not intentionally be rough on it.
When traveling or moving your rifle, consider a dedicated rifle scope cover that fits your model. Not just a cover for the lenses and sensor, but the entire scope. This will cushion it in transit and help protect the sensitive electronics within.
Storage Conditions and Considerations
How you store a thermal rifle scope is just as important as how you handle it. As a general rule, thermal scopes (and other optics) should be stored in a cool, dark location that experiences consistently low humidity. You don’t want big temperature or humidity swings.
Best practice is to choose a soft, padded, dedicated case for your rifle scope (if you remove it from the gun) or, if you leave it on the gun so as not to mess with the calibration or zeroing, store the gun somewhere secure and locked, where it won’t get bumped or dropped.
Keeping It Charged
Letting your thermal scope’s batteries drain is not good, and will adversely affect both their charge and discharge potential. Eventually, a battery left dead for long enough will not take a charge at all.
Consequently, one of the most important aspects of routine thermal scope maintenance is to top off the battery’s charge if the scope is out of use for a prolonged period of time.
A good way to stay consistent is just to top off the charge after every time you return home from the field. Alternatively, if you go long periods of time without using your thermal scope, consider fully charging it every three months or so, to ensure it doesn’t drain and die.
At the same time, avoid overcharging. Don’t just leave the scope’s batteries on charge as this can also damage the charge and discharge capacity of the battery unless you buy quality charges we stock at Dark Night Outdoors.
Lens Care
Periodically wipe your lens off with a clean, dry microfiber cloth or Lens Pen to remove any dust. This will help prevent an accumulation of dust and should also improve the performance of the scope. You can use a damp rag to wipe off the exterior but never use harsh cleaners, and always ensure the unit is completely dry before powering it on or using it. To keep your lenses clean and free of debris in between cleanings try our Tactical eye cups with shutter it will keep your diopter lens clean and block light from shining back on you at night! If you have issues with the diopter lens fogging in cold weather try out our anti-fog lens wipes, also available as a gel!
Where to Get Your Next Thermal Rifle Scope
All in all, caring for a thermal rifle scope is fairly straightforward and for the most part much more basic than properly caring for, cleaning, and maintaining the rifle itself. If you can do that, you can administer the care needed for thermal optics.
In the event you landed on this page looking for a new thermal optic or thermal optic care products, visit Dark Night Outdoors. They carry a wide range of thermal optics, including scopes and binoculars, from the industry’s top brands. Stop by their website or get in touch with them directly for more information.
For more information about Thermal Scope and Rix Thermal Scope Please visit: Dark Night Outdoors LLC
