Lights for coyotes

[Star1pup]

Here in Ohio we must use a continuous white light while moving.  When sitting to call we must have a continuous light, but it can be any color.  I'm trying to decide what to buy based on legality in Ohio, battery life during a night hunt and usefulness for shooting coyotes.  Suggestions appreciated.

[Catfish]

How much do you want to spend? I also live in Oh. and carry an AR with a lazer sight and wear grn. 3 nite vision goggels. If you go that way get the smallest beam red lazer you can find as even the red lazers are very bright through the nite vision. I live abt. 30 mi. N. of Dayton, were are you at?

[Star1pup]

I don't think the night vision would satisfy the regulatin that you must have a continuous light at all times.  I checked this out to make sure it was true.

[helotaxi]

The night vision doesn't, but the laser might.

[Star1pup]

The night vision doesn't, but the laser might.

It would need to be on continously and become white when moving.  This Ohio regulation sure makes it more difficult to hunt Ohio coyotes. 

[helotaxi]

Doesn't have to become white.  Use a different light when on the move.  I'd personally use a small led headlamp in white while moving and a weapon mounted spotlight with a red filter when on a stand.  While the Ohio rules seem a little odd, at least you're allowed to use a light.  Shining a light at night around here will get you stopped.  In Nevada, spotlighting predators was 100% legal and the standard practice.

[Swift One]

I would recommend using  a small LED head lamp.  I have been reading alot about the new night hunting lights that are in LED and the white LED lights dont seem to spook the preds like the regular "yellow" colored halogen or xenon lamps do. I use a lightforce battery rheostat pack that has a coon light/ headlamp attached to it.  If I was living in OH with this rig,  I would have it on the absolute lowest setting while walkig  to stand, then snap on the red lens when I set up to call.  Hey, the regs didnt say how bright it has to be.........

[Ladobe]

In Nevada, spotlighting predators was 100% legal and the standard practice.

While Nevada is certainly a very gun and hunter friendly state, your flat comment about spotlighting as stated is simply not true.   Spotlighting in Nevada is legal, but not in all places, at all times or for all things.   Department of Wildlife regulations, state laws, county laws and city ordanences all have bearing on when and where and for what spotlighting is as you say 100% legal - and they can vary widely from local to local.

Unfortunately you may get confilicting answers to what is and is not perfectly legal at a specific place depending on who you talk to at which office (a typical not all being on the same page thing).   So the best plan to CYA is to check before you spotlight in NV with the local county ranger or county wildlife biologist AND especially the county sheriff where you plan to hunt, and record with who and when you talked to them.   

Also keep in mind that Bobcat and Gray Fox can not be harvested by nonresidents anytime either hunting or trapping (only by residnts in season).   Red and Kit Fox can in season with a nonresident license, so can Mountian Lion (considered big game) in season with nonresident license and tags.    Coyotes and blacktail Jacks as non game species as well year-round with no bag/possession limits.    The NDOW has a separate furbearer proclamation available for the asking.

In Nevada at least, no LE is going to differenciate between the spotlights themselves as to what is legal or not.   I've used vehicle powered mounted and hand held spots as well as scope mounted battery powered spots here for many years hunting and doing ADC on predators where I have ran into LE's many times while out spotligting.    None question the spotlights legality or mine - most just want to know how the hunting is going.

HTH,

L.

[helotaxi]

In Nevada, spotlighting predators was 100% legal and the standard practice.

While Nevada is certainly a very gun and hunter friendly state, your flat comment about spotlighting as stated is simply not true.   Spotlighting in Nevada is legal, but not in all places, at all times or for all things.   Department of Wildlife regulations, state laws, county laws and city ordanences all have bearing on when and where and for what spotlighting is as you say 100% legal - and they can vary widely from local to local.

Unfortunately you may get confilicting answers to what is and is not perfectly legal at a specific place depending on who you talk to at which office (a typical not all being on the same page thing).   So the best plan to CYA is to check before you spotlight in NV with the local county ranger or county wildlife biologist AND especially the county sheriff where you plan to hunt, and record with who and when you talked to them.   

Also keep in mind that Bobcat and Gray Fox can not be harvested by nonresidents anytime either hunting or trapping (only by residnts in season).   Red and Kit Fox can in season with a nonresident license, so can Mountian Lion (considered big game) in season with nonresident license and tags.    Coyotes and blacktail Jacks as non game species as well year-round with no bag/possession limits.    The NDOW has a separate furbearer proclamation available for the asking.

In Nevada at least, no LE is going to differenciate between the spotlights themselves as to what is legal or not.   I've used vehicle powered mounted and hand held spots as well as scope mounted battery powered spots here for many years hunting and doing ADC on predators where I have ran into LE's many times while out spotligting.    None question the spotlights legality or mine - most just want to know how the hunting is going.

HTH,

L.

Understood.  IIRC Douglas and Nye counties were the oddballs with lights.  I didn't bother asking someone, I actually looked up the state and county laws that applied.  Don't live there any more so I let the specific locales that were different slip from the memory.  Like I said, New Mexico has outlawed shining a light on animals, period.  Doesn't matter if you're hunting or not, gun in your possession or not.  Nothing preventing you from hunting coyotes at night (no limit, no season) but you can't use a light to do it.  That could technically include illuminators for use with NVGs as well.  Thermal weapon sights are expensive!

[Ladobe]

Yep, its a local thing in Nevada and that clouds the issues and makes it hard to keep straight.   More often than not its the county sheriff that sets the tone for each county.

In Nye the only reg is within a 3 mile radius of the County Courthouse in Tonapah - they do allow spotlighting.
In Douglas shooting across county roads or within 500 yards of dwellings with shotguns or pellet guns, or within 1500 yards with rifles, pistols, etc is prohibited, but they also allow spotlighting.

Statewide in Nevada shooting is prohibited in incorporated areas except at approved target ranges and a few other localized exceptions in some.

Nevada Counties that DO Regulate, Limit or Prohibit Shooting at Night/Spotlighting in the Unincorporated Areas of the County:

Washoe County
Pershing County
White Pine County
Lander County
Elko County
Douglas County

Nevada Counties That DO NOT Prohibit Shooting at Night or Spotlighting in the Unincorporated Areas of the County (although most of them do have limitations and exceptions):

Churchill County
Lyon County
Humbodlt County
Douglas County
Mineral County
Nye County
Esmeralda County
Carson City County
Storey County
Clark County
Lincoln County

Surprsing maybe, but the county with well over 60% of the states total population (Clark) has the fewest and least limiting laws and regulations in the state thanks to having a very pro gun county sheriff (and a pro gun Mayor of the states biggest city - Las Vegas).

FWIW

[helotaxi]

Surprsing maybe, but the county with well over 60% of the states total population (Clark) has the fewest and least limiting laws and regulations in the state thanks to having a very pro gun county sheriff (and a pro gun Mayor of the states biggest city - Las Vegas).

Yet they were also the only county in the state that had handgun registration and a special provision in the state law to allow it.  I'm still annoyed that I moved before the range at the north end of Decatur opened.

[Ladobe]

Getting a blue card for handguns is actually a plus IMO.  It costs nothing and is simple to get, so I have no problem at all with that requirement.    In 14 years here I have had no problems at all because of it and its actually paved the road a few times when proof of ownership came up.   

I assume you're referring to the Clark County Shooting Park.   Starting about 10-11 years ago a shooting partner and I assisted the citizen action team that started the planning for it, and a couple of years later were advisors to the Shooting Park Advisory Committee.   But I had first joined the private Desert Sportsman R&P Club in 1998 to compete in IHMSA (I lived in Peccole Ranch near it) and so did most of my shooting there, and on a 1000 yard range two pards from DS and I laid out on the desert.   Don't shoot IHMSA anymore, don't belong to DS anymore and have no iterest in the CCSP.    The desert range is much closer and much easier.


Back to the OP's topic.... (sorry I got so far off on the Nevada thing - just didn't want folks confused about spotlighting in NV).

I simply used several versions of hand held and scope mounted lights from Optronix and other makers that were powered either by the vehicle's 12V accessory power outlet, or with recharable battery belt packs that I could recharge with the vehicle power outlet.   I had scope models good to go out to 350 yards, hand held to 450 yards.   All were quite inexpensive, had white light but also had red lens covers that simply snapped on.   On a typical night hunt doing ADC for ranchers/farmers the belt batterey packs would hold up all night as I plugged them in whenever in the truck moving to another spot.   Here's pictures of a couple of the Optronix...

Scope mount battery pack NightBlaster for spot and stalk good to about 125 yards.


Scope mount power outlet NightBlaster model from vehicle good to 350 yards.


L.

[manofthe45]

If you only want one light get the kill light 250 with the interchangable lenses.  The whole kit will come with white, green and red.  I hunt with the green but keep the other heads bubble wrapped in my pack just incase I need a change