Thermal Sights for Prepping: Necessity or Overkill?
billj 08.03.17
The recent announcement of a batch of new FLIR Thermal Sights starting at only $2199 MSRP (so you know they’ll street for less) has me salivating.
I want one in a serious way, and not just for hogs. This kind of thing could really give a prepper an edge in a SHTF scenario. Any kind of night vision is awesome, but thermal would be a real boon. The ability to detect the heat signature of a living being can let you see fresh footsteps and tracks on a hard floor, or give you a sense that someone is hiding behind thin cover.
Yeah, it’s a bit of electronic gadgetry, so batteries would be an issue, but I tend not to worry about batteries. (For more on exactly why I don’t care about having batteries in my optics, read this.)
As for the idea of a North Korean EMP frying my FLIR before I get a chance to shoot post-apocalyptic raiders with it, not gonna happen.
So I’ve been waiting a few years for the prices on this stuff to come down, and I’m thinking 2018 is definitely going to be my year.
But am I nuts? Is thermal vision overkill?
I’ve the rest of my arsenal pretty well squared away: a main battle rifle, a couple of AR-15s, shotguns, handguns — I feel pretty good about all of it, including mods and optics.
I’ve got a decent stash of ammo, but you can never have too much ammo. So maybe I should skip spending on a FLIR and just buy more ammo.
I need help, here. What’s a prepper to do? To FLIR or not to FLIR, that is the question.
