Very decent inexpensive thermal - Athlon Optics Cronus ATS PRO 25P-250 3.6-14.4x25mm Thermal Rifle Scope

I purchased this thermal specifically to mount on my MP15-22 for hunt armadillos in my yard. My problem was spotting them w/a flashlight then walking up close enough to shoot them w/my .22 thru a standard scope. Once I spotted one I would turn off the light and walk up to about where I thought they would be without spooking them. Sometimes it worked & sometimes it didn’t. So I thought about a thermal but didn’t want to spend $1,500+ to get one. Saw the Athlon Cronus ATS Pro on Optics Planet for under a thousand dollars & it had good evaluations so ordered it. It came in about 1/2 the time that it was supposed to, which was a nice surprise. Mounted it on my MP15-22 & zeroed it. The "one shot zero" works pretty well, especially if you are zeroing for a short distance-in my case 30 yards. So, when I took it hunting it was extremely easy to spot the armadillos from a distance using the “white hot" setting. Then you can walk up to the target to a comfortable distance using the thermal as a guide to cut loose on it. Armadillo down every time - no chasing them.

Once again the Athlon Cronus ATS Pro 25P-250 is NOT a high-end thermal, but it works great for situations described above.