Thanks for that. I just ordered an FDE “Plus” model. The page claims the Plus model have higher output across both visible and IR outputs.

I’ll compare it to my standard Perst-3 once it arrives and see what the differences are.

Can anybody tell me if you still get that red glow with the Perst-3 illuminator?  I've never used a laser illuminator before

Don’t look into it to see, please. You WILL be blinded.

lol, I know that.  Just curious is laser illuminators still put out that glow like a Surefire IR light

For all practical purposes, a quality .MIL spec laser emitter is invisible to the naked eye. Up (very) close, like inches, you may be able to see a faint glow from the emitter. At any other distance, it is imperceptible.

Obviously, this is not the case with any 820-950nm LED based IR light source. The 950nm is far less perceptible, but it’s still visible.

For those that are interested; the Zentico seller on EBay has 3 PERST-2s listed for just over $1800 each

What is the technical reason for this? I've certainly noticed it while playing around with a bunch of different devices (even doing side-by-side photos from the target's perspective for TNVC, but I don't believe they published them).

Is it more that the LEDs are leaking down into the visible spectrum (something that might be fixed with a filter), or maybe just the area of coverage, where a laser illuminator is typically tighter focused than a wide illuminator? The only time I've 'tested' the high power laser illuminators was briefly tossing a hand up in front of a PEQ-2A and seeing that there was red visible splash on my hand.

LEDs are not monochromatic. There's a spectral peak but there's also energy in a curve that's easily 100nm wide centered about the peak. The left hand side of the curve overlaps with the response of the eye decently well. Diode lasers are essentially monochromatic and output all their energy at one wavelength. A longpass filter might remove a lot of the visible red glow from an LED illuminator while minimally (<50%) impacting its performance as an illuminator.

Perst-2 specs per Zenitco:

"Perst-2" laser-illuminating complex! The device has: Green laser in visible range with adjustable power of 1-18 mW;
IR laser with a wavelength of 850 nm with adjustable power 1-18 mW;
Flashlight with adjustable brightness of 300-1000 Lm;
IR illuminator with adjustable solid angle and adjustable power of 0.3-1.5 watts.
There are no analogues of the parameters in the world!
Weight - not more than 350 g (including rechargeable battery 18650).
The kit includes a charger, an extra battery, a remote switch with the ability to adjust the brightness of the selected modes

I just ordered one. I’ll compare it to my Perst3’s. I was wondering what the white light lumen output was. That’s good news. A 1500mw laser illuminator should be just about enough to incinerate low earth orbit satellites.

Looking forward to the review.

Wonder how high up that illuminator housing gets into the FOV of say a T2 on a high mount during the day.

I like how they list the IR illum in watts

If that is actually a 1.5 WATT laser for the illuminator that is insane. That will incinerate eyeballs if not careful!

I'm not super knowledgeable here but there is a 18650 powering it and people have got those to do some insane things with regular flashlights.

Would be awesome if they made a Perst-3 powered by an 18650.

It would mostly just last longer.  It has the same output voltage as any rechargeable cr123a, just much more capacity.  A top shelf 18650 might have almost twice the capacity of a single cr123a when brand new, and a bit more voltage when fully charged.

I suppose the extra capacity also means the device can support a higher draw rate without overheating, but at some point we're getting LAMs that are more suited to a belt fed .50 cal than something man portable.

It’s about the concentrated power of the ir. As the wavelength gets shorter it’s takes less power to stimulate the eye. I say stimulate as Skypup had stated the eye will not detect IR light, but the amount of IR photons striking the eye at the same time stimulates a visual response seen as a purplish color. Which purple/violet is way on the other side of the visible spectrum and cannot pass thru an IR filter. Easy to test your IR passing filter is with a white led light just place it behind a IR passing filter and see it will block all visible light. Removing any visible light is no problem, problem is it’s not within the visible light spectrum it’s IR.  No amount of IR filters will get rid of the glow we perceive. That’s why a truly invisible IR source does not exist. Lower power longer wavelength is harder to see but let your eyes adjust to a dark room and you will see it. It’s not visible light, if it were a few stacked IR filters would get rid of the visible light. Less power will reduce the glow. The variable power will allow the least amount of Ir to be used and with I^2 gain turned up the eye shouldn’t detect any glow but with a NVD you will see the IR light and laser. The lasers have less beam angle so are not seen from outside the targeted spot vs led diodes.
I have played around with IR filters, IR lasers, Leds and spectrograph and came to the quick conclusion more power more glow no getting rid of it when using IR. Using thermal lwir for seeing and targeting no glow ??, but I still have a red laser mounted with a normal and low power micro switches for using I^2 devices. When the critter see the faint red glow it’s the last thing it sees ??.   Having full power control of the visible and IR emission would be Awesome.  I hope to get one down the road but it’s not needed by me it’s just more of a want. Electric 2000w fat tire scooter is next purchase for closing the distance on the critters and getting down the planted rows of crops ??

940nm led light and 3 stacked IR filters on a spectrograph video.
A laser makes a very thin line vs the led which is like a mound do to the wider band of IR produced by the led, I have IR lasers as well to show this if wanted.



For those that have time to kill ??

I ordered a PERST-2 from Ivan Tactical also. Looks like they have updated specs now

Visible green laser (18 mW).IR laser (850 nm, 20 mW).
IR laser illuminator (850 nm, 1200 mW) with adjustable focus.
Flashlight (740 lm).
Power  single 18650 (included).
Operating time  guaranteed 1 hour on max power light+laser or IR illuminator+IR laser
WON'T FIT ON B-19N RAIL!
Lifetime warranty

I took the option for DHL express shipping which says 2-4 days, so counting customs on each end I'm hoping to get it in a couple weeks. I won't be surprised if it really is 2-4 days though, I've had other optics expressed in from Russia and most have been less than a week

https://ivantactical.com/shop/weapon-accessories/flashlights-and-accessories/flashlights/zenitco-perst-2-dual-visible-ir-tactical-green-laser-designator-with-ir-illuminator-and-flashlight/?wmc-currency=USD

Its not the voltage, but the fact that an 18650 or 16650 can output way more current safely than a cr123. Between that and capacity, it unlocks the ability to output more while maintaining a usable runtime.

The “all in oneness” is certainly appealing. I’ve been dithering on a Perst 3. That’s Just a lot of bones when I’ve been trying to save for Duals.

I'm here to keep you on track. Keep saving for duals. You're welcome.

I'm going with what EZ said

PERST-2 will be cool but for most things it won't be doing anything different than other lasers or lights do

Save for them duals

I need someone to buy my ANVIS9s.

Yes, any 850nm IR laser illuminator will be visible. Even my eyesafe IR DBALI2 is visible. Its just less visible than LED and at a narrower angle due to no spill. Its more dark blood red with purple instead of lighter purpley/red like an LED. Its also not visible as far away because the point source is smaller than a big reflector.

Now, the light thrown on the ground and backdrop of the target... if not looking into the beam? That is invisible. I cant even see a 70mw IR pointer dot on the ground past 20 feet outside at night.

Anyone know the weight of the Perst2?

The tubes look nice, pull them and drop them into the housing you want. Or keep your free duals....lots of other people are worried about losing them.

Losing them?

Either way this is irrelevant to this thread. So is posting about not being able to sell one’s goggles

Had the same thought about acquiring a different housing. Only issue is I want to stick with ANVIS Mount, so I’d need Sentinels (I’ve heard Mod3 housings have a lot of wiggle)

ETA: yeah, I probably posted my post earlier in the wrong thread and didn’t even realize... my apologies, OP.

I do want one of these PERSTs.

Got photos of the Perst 2 mounted at 12 o'clock on a Krink. Wanted to see if the FSP interferes with the white light. It's very negligible, suppressor casts way more shadow.

Have a Perst 2 incoming from Russia. As soon as it arrives, I'll post photos. More interested to see if it'll play nicely at 12 o'clock with a stormwerkz mounted optic. Anticipating running it to one side, though.

I'll let you guys know as soon as it gets here.

Can you post the pics?

Thanks

Couldn't swing a Perst-3...*almost* went Perst-4 with an additional device as the illuminator, but went Holosun LS312G *at dealer cost* instead. Oh well - have 3 platforms, so maybe in the future for a Perst.
Don't need the power fortunately, all tight woods in my AO.

Just went down the rabbit hole with all of this.  Seems like an outstanding option over a grey market PEQ15 or DBAL.  Personally waiting for the Klesh 2IKS IR model to come out.  IR illum and IR laser combo supposedly in a new housing, more power with better plug and switch.  Downside being that it is a flashlight instead of illuminator.  If the Perst 4 had an IR/IR combo i would have bought already.

Does anyone know if any of the pre-made Telluric Group zeroing targets match up with the Perst-3/4?

For anyone interested, I've found most Russian gear to be very high quality and have bought a ton of things over the last 15 years - sometimes on a hope and prayer. For the most part things have worked out (especially with ZenitCo gear) but be aware there are always risks buying gear from overseas. Due to ongoing relations between Russia and the US there is always a possibility of issues with customs on either end, especially on the Russian side due to strict laws regarding export of military hardware. There was a big crackdown about 6 or 8 years ago and several high profile sellers were arrested by the Russian police for selling old surplus AK mags, brakes, furniture etc because they were all cold war Soviet production and technically never released to the civilian market. All this stuff is legal in the US but to the Russian police the grey market is much more black and white than it is here

In the last few years a new style of online retailer in Russia has come into force. These guys are selling legit NPZ, ZenitCo and other gear with proper licensing and follow the applicable Russian laws. They are actual business entities and they operate strictly within the law. Based on email correspondance I've had with several companies these guys are completely legit and won't risk any kind of grey market sale, let alone anything they know to be black market to the Russian police. They also offer manufacturer warranty and are pretty easy to work with, so the overall risk of buying expensive gear like ZenitCo has gone way down. A lot of these companies sell directly to the SF community, and there is a huge demand for Russian and international airsofters to get the same aftermarket gear that is popular in SF units, so they have a pretty strong customer base all around

Best advice I can give is buy from a reputable source in the States if you can because they import a lot of this gear and have direct channels to ZenitCo and other companies. Next best is find online Russian retailers and strike up a conversation to feel them out. Ask a lot of questions and if you don't like their answers don't buy. I've found generally they've gotten a lot more savy about how we do business in the US and they have adopted a lot of our sales experience...good warranty, fast response to email and good customer service. The key here is that their reputation is very important to them...something that wasn't a big deal to them many years ago now is very important. They want to make money in the US and have adopted many of our attitudes because they know we expect it

Just be mindful buying stuff from Russia isn't like buying from Amazon. There is always some level of risk...so do your research and be diligent. Never spend any more money than you are willing to lose outright, but personally, after spending the past 15 years in the AK suprlus market I feel more confident than ever

But as always, I'm just a dude on the Internet so don't take my word as the gospel by any means

So I have a TNVC PVS-14 Gen 3 filmless White Phosphorous unit on order with TNVC and I specified almost airborne quality specs so I'm pretty darn excited. I also finished cutting up my ACH helmet today and fitting it with all the NV gear.

I've been looking at these Perst lasers for a few weeks now and I'm strongly attracted to the Perst 2 because the IR illuminator is  1200 milliwatts or 1.2 watts. However, I've been turned away because I don't want the big bulky 750 lumen light when I already have a 1500 lumen Surefire M600DF on my rifle that I don't want to get rid of.

I love the layout and features of the Perst-3, but the IR illuminator isn't as powerful.

Am I stressing over nothing, or will I ever find myself in a situation where I can't see as far as I want with the 550 milliwatt illuminator on the Perst-3?

Basically, I'm wondering if I could ever get into a situation with the Perst-3, like night hunting feral hogs in a big field, or on a power line right of way, where the Perst-3 wouldn't be powerful enough and the Perst-2 would have been worth the extra weight and bulk?

You’re worried about nothing. That’s still an extremely powerful illuminator (5x that of some PEQ 15 units advertised power).

Sweet, so whats the estimated effective range on the illuminator on a heavily overcast night? Can I get out 600-800 yards if I have it on my bolt gun and I'm hog hunting?

I have an ATILLA 200, which many consider the gold standard of IR illuminators. Making hits with a PVS-30 is a non-issue at those ranges. I dont care if it is pitch black, it is plenty of illumination. The illuminator on the ATILLA is 150mw, I cannot imagine what an additional 400mw would look like, let alone the 1.2 WATTS on the Perst 4.

Be VERY careful with that laser, I would think just sweeping it across the unaided eye would cause permanent damage, probably blind you.

EDIT: I just went and checked the manual. The Nominal Ocular Hazard Distance (NOHD) for the 50mw IR Pointer on the ATILLA is 307 meters. Under this distance exposure to the cornea will cause permanent damage nearly instantly. Now imagine a laser 11 times that powerful!! That would scare the shit out of me with no physical cover on it.

Got my Perst 2 in and am playing with it a bit tonight. Full discretion: I've read 0 of the owner's manual thus far. Just out in the dark pressing buttons.

Everything is as advertised. Works great and the USA market could learn a thing or two from these tape switches.

Only thing that leaves me a little disappointed is the IR illuminator. It's an incredibly tight beam. Almost to the point where it's making me think I'm missing something. Completely opened up, it's about 1/4 the size of the IR illum on a full power PEQ15 on the same side of a barn. It's incredibly bright, and the ability to switch power via the unit or tape switch is awesome, but it's definitely a tight FOV. I'd imagine it's gonna be stellar on longer range work, but I can only lase out to about 150 at my current location. I'll also have to read the manual a little, that'll probably help.

Will fit on top of krink top rail. White light will not be interrupted by the FSP, but you will need a CRAAAAZY high, Unity Tactical esque height mount to see over the white light bezel. I'm running a stormwerkz rail and the bezel probably takes close to 80% of my T2 window. I'd imagine the RS Regulate options would be even worse. So, anticipate running this either at 3 or 9 o clock.

Also just remembered, I didn't try it with the diffuser. Flipped it to the side for all my switch playing. Not even sure if it's a diffuser. I was too anxious to get it out and mounted to read any fine print.

Forgive me fellas.

Nice!

I'm super jealous. I got mine last week but I flew out the day before it arrived and won't see it again for a couple months

I will be very happy to see your full set of instructions on how to use it though because by then I think you'll have it all figured out

Thanks for that bit.

pics aren't loading

That’s a ton of power on an aiming laser...

Luckily it is fully adjustable (so is the IR illuminator). The aiming laser goes anywhere from 0.7 mw up to 50mw while the IR illuminator goes anywhere in between 0.7mw and 150mw. I normally keep the aiming laser down around the lowest power and keep the illuminator at full power.

I thought Perst 4 is vis/IR Lasers slaved without Illum?

correct; I think hes talking about the  ATILLA 200 when hes mentioning illum

Man I wish those PERST-3's were cheaper.... Just got my Holosun LS321G in yesterday. Mounted it to the 11.3" pistol. I got it at dealer cost, and "real world" for a US civilian whose 5 acres is extremely wooded - it'll do everything I'd need it to do (but pray I never have to).
But in fantasy land (Zombie Horde, Bro! Civil War Part Deux!) , the IR Illuminator is the weak point. I'm looking at these PERST numbers and drooling, LOL. Congrats you PERST owners! On the up side, I *do* have other platforms that the Holosun can move to, so maybe in the future I can join the club! Thanks for all the reports/feedback in this thread :thumbsup:

I just picked up a used Perst-4 laser off Ebay for just under $300 from a seller here in the US. I also have a couple of Holosun IR and Green Vis lasers. Hopefully I can get it delivered before I go to my dad's place to camp. Gonna be doing a lot of night fire on a steel range. I am looking forward to putting it through some abuse see how it holds up. The Holosun lasers have been really good to me so far.

We need pictures of the perst-4! For most people who already have an ir light this is awesome. I don’t know of any slaved vis/Ir lasers for even double the price!

My Holosun LS221G&IR cost $420 from an Ebay seller and the 109G&IR was obtained a few years back for $100. I had a Dbal-i2 and I was not impressed at all with it. I'll get some photos next weekend if it arrives in time.