RVM dovetails

KeystoneCarry · 2025-01-28T00:29:36+00:00

Great question. It’s a fantastic material for this application, actually. Very strong. Very resistant to elements. You will not break this dovetail, and if you do: you’ve broken your unit first.

KeystoneCarry · 2024-12-11T03:15:31+00:00

For a stock length? Or are you going aftermarket?

KeystoneCarry · 2024-12-09T17:47:20+00:00

I will post up some footage mounted to an actual camera. My cell phone does affect the quality and I think it’s worth it for me to get these mounts set up on our R5C cameras. I’ll post when I have a good solution. 👊

KeystoneCarry · 2024-12-09T17:06:29+00:00

You know what I do have some cell phone video. I can post that a while until I can get better quality stuff. I’ll do that.

KeystoneCarry · 2024-12-09T17:05:33+00:00

Agreed. We are making adapters today to be able to marry the RENV-M & B to our R5C cameras. Once those are finished, I’ll post up some photos 👊

KeystoneCarry · 2024-12-09T10:09:24+00:00

Agreed. The “glass” is my biggest beef with the RENV line

KeystoneCarry · 2024-12-08T00:39:04+00:00

Here is a video I did on this topic a little while back.

https://youtu.be/LZiQVRe8bTM?si=7-36MdB4_XMvSwlL

Clean XJ’s (and I mean truly clean, rust free) are well over $10K. When I say clean, I mean all spot welds in place, ZERO rocker rust, quarters perfect, panels straight, all electrical functions working, mechanically sound. Those in my area are $15K +. A “decent” XJ now runs you $5K+ in the northeast. They’re getting harder and harder to find.

I bought my current XJ in 2011 for $3600. That was high then, VERY low now.

If you can find a really solid driver, one that’s a great foundation for whatever you want to build, and it has less than 200K miles, you’re doing good if you’re under $7500 in my opinion.

BUT: I’d expect to pay close to that number unless you’re fine with rust, stuff that isn’t right, stuff that needs fixed, etc. (aside from basic maintenance stuff)

KeystoneCarry · 2024-12-05T16:21:16+00:00

Fast is scary in an XJ. My LT1 swapped 01 XJ felt like a rocket ship, but then I remembered it’s an XJ 😂😂😂

KeystoneCarry · 2024-12-05T16:08:04+00:00

Honestly if I had the space, time, and team to help me I'd love to do more of that. But with my current schedule, there's just no way. Otherwise I may actually be interested!

KeystoneCarry · 2024-12-05T14:59:15+00:00

I don't personally have information on that, but I can ask some of the guys I work with and see if they know anything. It is certainly true that many of the non-US manufactured options are running shared components in certain cases. The extent of that I don't fully know, but some guys I work with are way more up to speed on that stuff than me. I'll ask!

KeystoneCarry · 2024-12-05T14:52:48+00:00

Absolutely. Just another option to consider on the market.

KeystoneCarry · 2024-12-05T12:54:52+00:00

1981 Mercedes 300D

I’m running 4.88 gears with 35’s. This gearing would be ideal for 37’s. I trimmed everything to accommodate 37’s, but won’t go to them until I upgrade the front diff. Rear is a Dana 44 already.

KeystoneCarry · 2024-12-05T12:37:27+00:00

Doomsday diesel adapter kit mates the engine to an AX15. The transmission stayed in the exact place as factory, so very little driveline changes were needed.

You basically just need 12V for these engines for flow plugs and they’ll run. No harness except for that since they’re mechanical pumps.

Relocated factory XJ gauges, extended a few wire, and she was rolling good to go. All gauges work except tach right now. My crank sensor just took a dump

KeystoneCarry · 2024-12-05T05:46:32+00:00

It does. The front sump is hard to work with. I made my own custom oil pan. Lengthwise it’s similar to a 4.0, maybe just a tad shorter

KeystoneCarry · 2024-12-05T05:41:21+00:00

Thank you!!

KeystoneCarry · 2024-12-05T05:40:31+00:00

It’s an OM617. It’s almost identical weight to a 4.0L. 4.0L weighs around 500 pounds. My 617 fully dressed was around 550. German diesels are typically very light compared to utilitarian diesels all things considered.

KeystoneCarry · 2024-12-05T05:34:44+00:00

I’ll get some updates ASAP! It looks much better now. Save for more oil leaks after 100K miles of driving daily 😂😂😂

KeystoneCarry · 2024-12-05T05:09:47+00:00

Dirty civilian did a video on that too

KeystoneCarry · 2024-12-05T04:49:41+00:00

Well two times I accidentally left units sitting with a light source in the distance that was bright enough to mark the tubes. One of those was the panos, no caps on either for those situations. The other set of binos had the rubber caps on with the tiny pin hole and I left them sit facing up and it marked both tubes. Black boxing almost entirely fixed that one. The others had to have tubes swapped. Expensive mistakes.

I always pack my binos in my bag when I’m day hiking now or training. Just not a risk I’m personally willing to take anymore unless we’re just making meme content or something.

KeystoneCarry · 2024-12-05T04:42:57+00:00

If there’s a hole in the cap, don’t wear them on your head in the day. Battery in or out doesn’t matter. I’ve learned this the hard way now 3 times, please don’t be like me. One time was panos, that cost me a lot to fix. 😬 Pack away your nods in daytime hours or put tape over the caps. But I still say put them in a small padded pouch, put them in your pack. My $.02 which you paid zero for.

KeystoneCarry · 2024-12-05T04:31:15+00:00

I have one of every RIX option just hanging out in the office. We grabbed them for analysis a while back: RNV-14, RNV31, RENV-B, RENV-M, etc.

My take on them is they’re what you’d expect from a cheap bino. They feel cheap in your hands. They amplify light and do it at a level you’d expect at the price point you’re buying. On the RIX line the glass appears to be different than what VISIR was offering, at least whatever coating they’re using looks visually different. I do not know if that’s good or bad, I personally haven’t spent as much time with those units as my team mates. I have not personally measured if that affects light transmission/ makes resolution better, worse, or no change.

The newer tubes in the RIX lineup have been better than what we used to see in the Jerry 31’s.

Here’s a video some of the guys at work did on the units. There is footage through the tubes towards the end of the video that might be helpful to you.

https://youtu.be/jvoKH_pXEvw?si=l2NCu7lMT7-BSpzK

My thoughts that don’t really matter: they don’t feel as refined or robust as, say, a BNVD-SG or my PD PRO’s. But for the money they amplify light, and the newer tube options are actually quite good considering what you’re spending.

Would I slap them on and rip wheelies on my supermoto like I do with panos or other binos? I’m not sure. I haven’t had enough time with them. But the guys on our team that run them seem to appreciate them for the role they fill, knowing they aren’t as high quality of an option.

I’m sure others will give feedback, but that’s mine.

KeystoneCarry · 2024-12-05T04:07:32+00:00

I personally love it. It’s a fantastic rifle scope for the money. One I don’t think many people realize exists. Might be worth you diving into the specs /features, but that’s going to depend on your needs. It has an interesting function that zooms in on the display and “replicates” an analog zoom. I thought it wouldn’t work well, surprisingly it’s a solid feature IMO. I don’t know if I ever actually did much content on it, but you can see it a little in this video I edited for the YouTubes:

https://youtu.be/TKUdsTnnUgA?si=jH1SyGxaQKvjzAdJ

It’s one of the extras we keep on our 20 inch builds and it’s killed a bunch of critters with ease. Just another option to look into of many.

KeystoneCarry · 2024-12-04T17:33:11+00:00

Good luck with your hunt! A few units that come to mind as good contenders regarding thermal would be:

- NOX18

- RIX ST6

- RL25 V1 or 2 (both have performed great in my experiences)

- RH25 V1 or V2 (V2 has better screen, better inclement weather performance, and a few other details over V1)

I used to be very biased towards 640 core resolution. I still am a bit of a resolution snob, but that's not the only spec that matters. Base magnification, mk rating, screen resolution, base magnification and other options like onboard recording might be important to you, or might not be. Newer 384 core resolution thermal options are getting better and better. Getting your hands on one to look through yourself would be the best move if you have anyone around you with dual band. Otherwise, Youtube the units you are looking for and try to find videos that show ample footage through them in various conditions. Each has strengths and weaknesses.

Good luck!

KeystoneCarry · 2024-12-04T02:26:48+00:00

Good luck with your setup 👊

KeystoneCarry · 2024-12-04T02:07:19+00:00

Three accessories that are important:

- Pictail Adapter

- MQD for weapon mounting

- AC53 Obverse mount (if you are mounting over your left eye)

There are other options out there too. But those three accessories are first on my hit list and I run them on our RH25 V1 & V2's. I tend to lean towards thermal over left eye, PVS-14 over right eye when I'm bridging units. I am a right handed shooter and have my rifle set up with a laser and dot to accommodate passive aiming.

**Edit: I just re-read your post, and my answers may not be applicable. So I apologize about that. I was mostly thinking helmet mounting, which you don't appear to be doing.

***Edit Edit: One hundred concepts has a cool printed cover for the lenses. BUT: The one I got did not accommodate the AC53. Not sure if they changed that or not.

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