A peek inside the Russian toybox.

[snayperskaya]

On Sunday afternoon I succeeded in getting my 1pn58 night vision scope functioning correctly (with a bit of ingenuity and a soldering iron) so I thought I'd grab a pic of my Russian optics altogether.
Top one is the 1pn58, middle is a 1pn34 (which ie complete with all accessories and manuals in the original serial-numbered transit case) and the bottom one is an original 4x24 PSO-1 Dragunov scope with a fully functioning IR detector screen and a BDC elevation turret calibrated for a 150gr 54r round.
The PSO and 1pn34 are zeroed for my SVDS and the 1pn58 will be zeroed on my AKM.The 34 and the 58 have interchangeable BDC ballistic cams so can be used on a variety of weapons, there are cams for a PKM,AKM,SVD,RPK and even one for an RPG-7!!!.They can be zeroed during the day by leaving the daylight filter attached and opened enough to get an image but at night the filter is removed completely.

[techguy]

Very cool!!

[froggy]

Nice & thanks for showing !!
I guess those 1pn58 & 1pn34 must weight a ton ?
What sort of batteries do they take ?

[ovenpaa]

How good are they at night?

[Les]

Wow! That is a very nice collection.

Is the performance of all three units similar?

[snayperskaya]

Nice & thanks for showing !!
I guess those 1pn58 & 1pn34 must weight a ton ?
What sort of batteries do they take ?

Around 2.2kg, the 1pn58 is a bit lighter as the casing is narrower as the 58 is an improved and updated version of the 34.The 34 takes two AA batteries and the 58 takes two CR123 batteries but the internal electronics crank the low battery voltage up to around 3000 volts to power the image tubes.I have got 3 original batteries for the 34 but they are 3.5v wet-cell alkaline batteries and there is no guarantee they will still hold a charge.Working 58's are quite rare as a lot of people connect a 9v PP3 battery which overloads the circuits and burns components out, which is a big problem as spares for the 58 are hard to find whereas 34 parts are relatively easy once you know a few people.

Ovenpaa.......they are both very good at night considering they are Gen1.They are both passive Nv so no infrared illumination is required but being a "Starlight" scope they work best on a moonlit starry night, they both need a certain level of light to form an image and do not funtion if its pitch black.With the 34 there is a "fish eye" effect around the edge of the image which becomes less apparent once you get used to it and isn't as noticeable on the 58.Both have a 3x magnification, I have looked through both on a moonlit down the fields near where I live and could see a dog walker quite clearly at approximately 350m and would say a centre of Mass shot would be doable out to around 500m.Theres a guy on one of the Us forums thats hit hogs out to 400m using a 1pn34.Below is an image I pulled off the net of a 1pn34 image at night, they are better in my opinion than a lot of Gen2 commercial scopes.

[snayperskaya]

Wow! That is a very nice collection.

Is the performance of all three units similar?

Thank you

The two Nv scopes are similar in performance with the 1pn58 being slightly better.The PSO-1 is a daytime scope which has an IR detector screen which is charged during day via a small window and then at night you can turn a switch which drops the IR screen down and allows infrared devices (IR night sights, searchlights etc) to be picked up as a green glow.I got a friend of mine to go about 500m into a field at night with a TV remote held on his head and when he pressed the buttons it lit up like a Christmas tree and would be very easy to hit.The PSO-1 was made in Novosibirsk,Russia and is probably from the late 60's or early 70's.The optics are very clear and far superior to the modern POSP scopes from Belarus and I can consistently drop fig11 ETR's out to 700m at Sennybridge with it mounted on the Dragunov.

Heres the 1pn34 with the original accesories

[Les]

Impressive performance!

I used to have a Russian-made 10x50 monocular ... until some lowlife liberated it from me ... and the glass was the best I have ever seen.

[snayperskaya]

Impressive performance!

I used to have a Russian-made 10x50 monocular ... until some lowlife liberated it from me ... and the glass was the best I have ever seen.

That reminds me, I also have a 3-20x32 Spetsnaz issue spotting scope with its own dedicated mount that can either clamp to something or can be screwed to a tree or similar using the screw thread adapter.This was also produced in Novosibirsk and the optics are crystal clear.These are quite rare and can sell for a small fortune, especially in the US.One went on Gunbroker recently for $800.

[ovenpaa]

Great collection there!

I started collecting Russian oil bottles a while ago however had to give up when they started getting to silly prices for the more obscure items, as with collecting anything.