It will get your heart pounding 

By Nick Rositano 

New from Pulsar is the LRF XG35 Oryx monocular compact enough to be held for one handed use and built to withstand the harshest elements. Many keen thermal enthusiasts know that Pulsar is on the high end of the market being made over in Europe with its head office based in Lithuania. 

Pulsar Oryx XG35 is a compact, lightweight unit making one-handed operation easy! 

Pulsar’s history first started back in 1991 when a group of friends driven by passion saw themselves assembling wooden observation tubes in the basement of an unfinished building. From there, some three decades later, Pulsar is at the forefront and top of the worldwide thermal, digital day and night vison imaging devices. Pulsar offers a wide range of thermal imaging devices from the entry level to some of the most regarded high-end thermal devices catering for a massive selection to suit everyone’s needs. 

The Pulsar Oryx LRF XG35 was engineered for those onerous hunting and outdoor enthusiasts who require a compact yet advanced thermal monocular. Unboxing the Pulsar Oryx Monocular, I was impressed with the easy grip in one hand and Pulsar’s stylish casing, which most of its models feature. The Oryx LRF XG35 is equipped with a power built-in laser rangefinder, which can give accurate measurements up to 1500 metres, impressive to say the least, as my standard rangefinder tops out at around 1300 metres!  

Another impressive feature of the Pulsar Oryx LRF XG35 is its dual battery operating system, which features an external and internal battery operating systems that can give the user up to 12 hours of operating time. Turning on the unit for the first time you can see both the internal and external battery life, as the charge indicator is shown separately, this comes in extremely handy as you can gauge roughly the operating time and not be caught out in the field unprepared. The external battery is easy to be removed with a twist top case and can be replaced in a matter of seconds. Both batteries can be charged via a USB-C port, making for fast and seamless charging.  

The Oryx LRF XG35 is the first Pulsar device to feature a IP67 protection rating, which allows the unit to be fully submersed in 1 metre of water for 30 minutes. The unit is also fully protected against dust in the harshest conditions. Having used a few different thermal monoculars over time my go to sensor is a 640 x 480, as the imagine quality is crisp and the game animal can be easily identified; however, these units are on the dearer side. The Pulsar Oryx LRF XG35 features a 640 x 480 sensor that allows for easy identification of targets while out in the field. The unit also features a magnification of 2.5-20 (8x digital zoom).  

A thermal monocular is a great tool when it comes to identifying feral animals, especially for culling purposes. I had a call from a farmer friend who was experiencing some of his newly born lambs being victims to foxes. As many would know, foxes can be spotlight shy at times and with their cunning instincts hard to get. I decided to head out the following weekend to give my mate a bit of a hand, hopefully putting a bit of a dent in the local fox population.  

I packed the Pulsar Oryx LRF XG35 in my backpack and decided to bring the .22-250. Not long after dark I began to scan the paddocks with the Pulsar. Identifying a couple foxes at around the 220-metre mark, I was able to come up with a game plan to successfully shoot both foxes in the hopes that no more lambs will be killed. After an hour or so after shooting the foxes, I located a couple fallow deer at around the 300-metre mark, easily identifying them. Scanning the paddocks with the Pulsar Oryx LRF I was impressed with the clarity and the easy identification, even at the higher zoom levels which in other brands have been average as the picture tends to become distorted and pixilated, making identifying target animals almost impossible. I was thoroughly impressed with the Pulsar Oryx laser range finding capabilities having compared it up against my Leica rangefinder. It was well on par distance-wise to a few different objects. Technology just keeps getting better and Pulsar, with its LRF capabilities, has just proved this!  

Battery life is extremely good and at the end of the night the internal battery was sitting on 100 per cent with the external battery at around 70 per cent charge with roughly around a couple hours of use, give or take.  

Thermal optics are a game changer and can be readily relied upon day and night to be able to spot and distinguish game that our own human eyes cannot see. The Pulsar Oryx LRF XG35 retails for around the $3999 mark. Although on the higher price tag of the market you will not be disappointed with its capabilities! 

Fallow deer spotted at around the 300-metre mark.