To cut a long story short we decided to do some IRR testing on new products and were surprised to find that some kit advertised as "IRR treated" is not. The attached picture is from a new MOLLE compatible multicam rucksack. The multicam itself is retains its camoflage and is dark, but the MOLLE tape is very clearly not. Fancy wearing that on your back when someone with an image intensifier is looking for something to shoot?
A couple of questions fall out:
Do the Taliban or other potential near-future enemies use Image Intensifiers? I would be surprised if not, given how cheap they are, whether new or ex-Soviet.
How important, over a reasonable range, is the IRR crime in the photo?
Would you buy equipment that you knew wasn't well IR camouflaged? ie. should we stock these, but include the IR photo in the description.

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Now a bit of background. Firstly a two sentence IRR lesson for those who heard about it, but never paid much attention (I was one!). Camouflage makes sure that you look similar to a likely military background. All IRR tuning attempts to achieve is the same in light that's not visible to the human eye, but is used by image intensifiers - Near Infra-Red. And since II kit is readily available for a £100 up on ebay, this is clearly as issue. It is not related to thermal imaging where the IRR qualities of your kit will make no difference.
Out tests were far from perfect and are not done with an image intensifier and therefore I am not going to post which bit of equipment is in the photo. Testing was with a video camera modified to record (only) near-infra red light. As a result the light is not from stars or the moon - the most likely sources of light when you're out and about, but with good old daylight.
Despite those flaws, the results should be similar - both our (now buggered!) video camera and an II will use the same Near IR light to get an image. If people find the subject interesting then I will probably ask if we have any serious scientists on the site who can comment on the validity of the testing, and if necessary we'll get an image intensifier.
A couple of questions fall out:
Do the Taliban or other potential near-future enemies use Image Intensifiers? I would be surprised if not, given how cheap they are, whether new or ex-Soviet.
How important, over a reasonable range, is the IRR crime in the photo?
Would you buy equipment that you knew wasn't well IR camouflaged? ie. should we stock these, but include the IR photo in the description.

________
Now a bit of background. Firstly a two sentence IRR lesson for those who heard about it, but never paid much attention (I was one!). Camouflage makes sure that you look similar to a likely military background. All IRR tuning attempts to achieve is the same in light that's not visible to the human eye, but is used by image intensifiers - Near Infra-Red. And since II kit is readily available for a £100 up on ebay, this is clearly as issue. It is not related to thermal imaging where the IRR qualities of your kit will make no difference.
Out tests were far from perfect and are not done with an image intensifier and therefore I am not going to post which bit of equipment is in the photo. Testing was with a video camera modified to record (only) near-infra red light. As a result the light is not from stars or the moon - the most likely sources of light when you're out and about, but with good old daylight.
Despite those flaws, the results should be similar - both our (now buggered!) video camera and an II will use the same Near IR light to get an image. If people find the subject interesting then I will probably ask if we have any serious scientists on the site who can comment on the validity of the testing, and if necessary we'll get an image intensifier.