Dec 2002

TACTICAL SOLUTIONS, LLC Presents

The MonoLoc Night Vision System

Jacob Gottfredson

The Light in the Dark

He traveled from the Shot Show in Las Vegas to South Texas on his way home to Missouri in time to meet me just hours before dark. Well, why not. He is Rich Brough (Bruff) of Tactical Solutions, LLC, makers of the MonoLoc System, and he is into night vision. By the time he left for Missouri, I was fascinated with his ingenuity and the versatility of what he had designed and put into production. I'm always saying this, I know, but why does someone always think of the really neat things before I do? Don't answer that. Here's the concept: You need some way to connect one optic to another in a way that works. It has to be unobtrusive, easy to use, and installable in the dark. It also has to be quick, reliable, and truly functional. And finally, it has to be so versatile that will fit everything in sight. Specifically, you would like a device to connect small night vision equipment to a primary optic in such a way that it will not affect the optic's original function or calibration. You need a MonoLoc.Using a quick release lock and a series of inserts, the MonoLoc will work with almost any optic we have any interest in. It will work with several artillery pieces, tank gunnery equipment, periscopes, telescopes, spotting scopes, the eyepiece of several varieties of binoculars, cameras, range finders, and a host of other devices we look through. MonoLoc sells it all. Primarily what you will see here is the NQ/PVS-14 3^rd generation night vision monocular, the MonoLoc, and bushings to fit various optics.

The Demo

Rich showed up with a brand spanking new Remington .308 LTR rifle that he had yet to shoot. Mounted on the receiver was an extended Weaver or Picatinney style base made by US Optics with a Leupold 3.5-10x tactical scope already mounted. Not knowing whether I was supposed to bring something or not, I had thrown both my Nesika Tactical rifle and a DPMS AR-15 in the back of the Durango. With only a bit of instruction, we headed for the range, which was now on the verge of darkness. We hung a few 8 ½ x 11 sheets of paper, upon which had been copied the head of a bad guy (I think we knew it was a bad guy because we said it was, or maybe having been a cop, Rich could tell), on the backer. We backed off to 100 yards and started firing. Once we were sighted in, we mounted the device on the Leupold. Of course, if the rifle scope is adjusted to fit your eye relief, it will be several inches to the rear once the MonoLoc and NVD are installed. Rich has taken this into account. The US Optics extended rail is precision machined to be absolutely flat relative to its bottom. In lieu of this, Rich provides a butt extension.Rich says,"The method used by the US Army is the cheapest way to get the job done. Since the M24 sniper rifle specs mandate that any night vision system used on the M24 must not change zero more that 1/2 minute of angle after removal and re-installation, use of a 4 inch extended rail mount and a torque wrench to tighten the rings evenly after moving the whole scope forward on the rifle has proven very successful with the MonoLoc. Often it is found that 1/4 minute zero retention is quite common when using this method. Personally this is the method I like most thus far on bolt guns. It only takes a minute to loosen the ring nuts and move the optic forward (you must put the optic ring in the same rail groove every time if you want repeatability in zero) and then retighten them with the torque wrench."The lowest cost way of doing the job of stock extension is the stock boot that we sell for $125.00 that fits over the stock butt to increase length about 5 inches. Some snipers do not like this method but others do fine with it. I personally like this method the best on the fixed stock M-16 flattop rifles or AR-15/AR-10 rifles. So there you have it....three methods of solving the stock and eye relief issues." Here's the scenario with the US Optics option: The rifleman has sighted the weapon in at 100 yards, for example. The eye relief of the scope is perfect when the shooter assumes a normal cheek weld. When the NVD is mounted to the scope using the MonoLoc, the original eye relief is no longer usable. The shooter simply loosens the mounting screws and slides the scope forward to a predetermined position that gives the shooter the proper eye relief.

Photo 1 (caption: Rich Brough's new Remington .308 LTR with the scope in the normal position on the US Optics extended rail.)

Photo 2 (caption: The same rifle as shown in photo1 with the scope in the forward position.)

Photo 3 (caption: The same rifle as shown in photo 1 again with the MonoLoc system installed. It is dark now. The highlights are my flash.)We followed the steps, but the rifle was not sighted-in in the forward position. It occurred to us finally that the extended rail would need to be shimmed until it was exactly parallel with the barrel. While fidgeting with all this stuff, we came to the conclusion that the new LTR was extremely accurate with both Black Hills and Federal's Gold Metal Match ammo. I offered to buy the rifle, at which point Rich laughed and politely told me "no way". Guess he doesn't mind owning an accurate rifle either. Rich is about 6'-3" and 240 pounds, so I decided to let well enough alone. Since neither of us had any shim stock in our pockets, we decided to sight the rifle in with the NVD mounted on the scope using the MonoLoc and the rail mounted in the forward position. The true test would be to sight the rifle in, then mount the NVD using the MonoLoc and see if the rifle was still sighted in, all in the rearward position. But I see no reason to believe that it would not be. We did similar tricks to my Nesika and to the DPMS AR-15. Since neither had an extended rail of any kind, the eye relief was thrown to the rear about 5 inches. I found that while I could still manage the rifles successfully, the length of pull was almost out of my reach, which only points to the utility of some kind of extended mounting system. I mentioned Al Talbot's great Quick Release Mount. If Al could somehow modify his mount to a two position mount, the user could remove the scope with the flick of the wrist (much less than a second) and mount it forward in about ½ second. Being conservative, it could be done in 3 seconds. In the dark? Well, taking the scope off would still be the same time, but the shooter might have to feel his way a little bit to reinstall in the forward position. We were finally ready to start shooting for both precision and accuracy. Would it group, and could we hit what we were aiming at? The photos tell the story. I could see the target quite well, but seeing an exact location on a face with perfect resolution was not one of the strong points of the NVD we were using on a night like we had. Rich had an infrared flashlight hanging from his neck and pointed it in the general direction of the target. Of course Rich could not see the light, so I had to guide him a little. Once he was on the target, the illumination at least doubled. Still, we moved a bit closer so I could really see what I wanted. I pulled the trigger 5 times, aiming at the bridge of the "Bad Guy's" nose. Since it is even difficult in broad daylight to see the area well, I outlined the group by tapping the edges with a pen. Now do you see why I wanted the little pip squeak LTR, even though I have one already that shoots as well. In fact, I haven't seen one that didn't shoot well. Photo 4 (caption: This group was shot with Rich's Remington LTR in total darkness, except for some stars hanging around. The NVD was picking what little light there was from them I guess. In any case, I have used my photo software to try and darken the image to about the level of detail I could see that night, with the exception that it was green. The 5 round group is just above the man's right eye to the left of the bridge of his nose as you look at him. I have outlined the group with a pen so it could be seen a little better.)

Rich demonstrated the versatility of the MonoLoc by attaching the system to the Hakko scope I am using to evaluate the DPMS rifle, the Nightforce on my Nesika, the Leupold on Rich's LTR, a Leica range finder, an EOTech sight, and a variety of other devices.

Photo 5 (caption: Here the system is mounted to a Leica Rangefinder. This worked great, but required a very steady rest. The reason is that when you push the button on the laser, the NVD goes blank with all the red from the laser's LED. In order to ensure that the laser is still on the object you wanted when the measurement is found and displayed, you must have a steady rest to feel comfortable that what you wanted measured is what you got.) Photo 6 (caption: The system mounted on the DPMS Pro-Classic, this time to a Hakko 4-16x scope. This shows quite well the need for an extended mounting rail or butt extension.) Photo 7 (caption: We tried it on my Nesika rifle and Nightforce 3.5-15x NXS scope. This and the previous shot was taken in total darkness with my flash.) Photo 8 (caption: The man himself, Rich Brough, with another DPMS rifle. The extended rail makes the eye relief perfect.)

Photo 9 (caption: A good view of the MonoLoc system with the ITT NVD that Rich sells. Note that the NVD has a diopter on the eye piece end, above which is the gain control. )

Photo 12 (caption: My favorite picture. I guess it explains itself. There are two strange things in this photo however. The first is that it is 30 degrees F. Who can shoot groups like that in freezing weather? My elbows shake too much. The other anomaly is that it appears to be 18 degrees warmer when it is dark 2 hours later. In any case this certainly shows the ability of the MonoLoc system.)

A Rundown of Products from Tactical Solutions

NVD

The NVD's are sold in two grades. The ITT NQ/PVS-14 is the commercial grade model that has 51 line pairs per millimeter of resolution minimum. Rich says this is a best buy as far as 3^rd generation night vision monoculars go, and is priced at $3,250 at this writing. This version with a MonoLoc and bushing to fit your riflescope as well as an extended bridge mount rail for the Remington 700 costs less than $3,900 complete. Additional adaptors or bushings are available at between $20 and $45 each.The next model is the PVS-14(D) model from Litton. This is the full performance mil-spec unit with 64 line pairs per millimeter and a high signal to noise ratio (a minimum of graininess in the image when light is very scarce and has optics in the objective and eyepiece that are higher quality than those found in the NQ/PVS-14. That unit sells for $4,399 at this writing. Both models come with head mount, soft carrying case, daylight filter and a 3 year warrantee. They sell the ITT 5001 series for those who want a goggle instead of a monocular for use on a spotting scope for $2,950. They also sell another MonoLoc model called the 983 series which fits the PVS-18 ( Litton 983) 3^rd generation night vision monocular as well as the PVS-7(A) and PVS-7(C) model bi-ocular submersible night vision goggles. The last MonoLoc model they make is the S-40. The S-40 fits the waterproof accessory case by Canon that houses the S-40 and S-30 PowerShot digital cameras. "The US Marines like this model with the waterproof features found in the Canon accessory line to keep dust out of the S-40 camera in the middle Eastern climate. They are doing well with this system."They also make mounts and bushings to fit the Leupold Mark 4, Nightforce NXS, Schmitt and Bender, EOTech 550 series CQB sights, Aimpoint Comp ML 2 CQB sights, Trijicon NSN model ACOG sight, Trijicon reflex NSN spotting scopes. They do custom jobs of fitting just about any optic available with a night vision monocular or goggle. All three versions of the MonoLoc are priced the same at $487 each at this writing.At the beginning of this article, I mentioned that I told Rich that I thought Al Talbot could provide a workable, quick release mounting system. I just got the following message from Rich."Al Talbot has made his first prototype of the dual position mount needed for return to zero quick detachment of the night vision systems. He said it was a little too flimsy and has started another prototype. He feels that it is a good method and we should have one soon. It will be a Tactical Solutions, LLC mounting system that will utilize two (2) Talbot bases and one set of Talbot rings. The bases will be set into the mount front and rear for use with and without the MonoLoc and PVS-14 or 983 monocular. The front mount will have a windage and elevation adjustment in the mount itself. This will allow for zeroing without touching the knobs on the scope. This will insure that zero is retained after moving the scope forward for night vision shooting."

The thing I like about the Talbot system is that it will not require superhuman strength or tools to remove the scope and reposition it. Also it can be accomplished in the dark. I have evaluated the Talbot Quick Release mounts in depth, and they truly do return to zero. I see some difficulty with the sliding rail extender. First, the mount must be exactly parallel to the barrel, which takes some doing. Second, to uninstall in the rear position and reinstall in the forward position takes loosening two screws which I physically could not do with my hands, thus it required a screw driver or pliers. You must then slide it forward to the correct slot in the Picatinny rail. Rich has found a device that will allow the scope to be slide forward to the correct slot, but without it, you might need light. Not a good thing on an operation.

Photo 13 (caption: Photo courtesy of Tactical Solutions, LLC. The Remington LTR 700 rifle with the Leupold M1 Long Range optic with MonoLoc and  ITT NQ/PVS-14. The Leupold is fitted with the IllumiLoc tactical illuminator module with the SureFire M1 infrared illuminator attached. The production models will be available and will have four rail mounts on them for fitting white light, infrared illuminator and infrared laser or visible bore sighted laser. You can even use the fourth rail to fit an EOTech or Aimpoint sight in the 9 O'Clock position for snap shooting with the left eye at close ranges on the sniper guns! This would allow the sniper to engage close range, fast moving targets without having to try to sight through a high magnification scope.)

Bottom line

In the tests, we were attaching various riflescopes, lasers, red dots, etc. to one end of the MonoLoc and a Generation 3 ITT night vision device to the other. Rich also sells the NVD to complement his system. The versatility of the system is a major selling point. Rich now has the Remington LE and Remington Trademarks as an exclusive license. See www.remingtonle.com , the Remington Law Enforcement web site. He's obviously doing something right.My experience with the system that night surprised me. When the light was turned out, we were in nearly total darkness. But the MonoLoc System made hitting a target easy. The whole system is small and light and versatile enough to fit almost any optic. I'm no expert like Rich Brough, but I do know that you wouldn't want to be a "Bad Guy" facing one of his systems at night.Manufacturers mentioned in this article:

Tactical Solutions, LLC
MonoLoc
Rich Brough
621 Summit Circle
Mesquite, NV 89027

Phone: 702-346-3006 office
Email: rich@monoloc.com
Web: www.monoloc.com