This database collects facts about night vision image intensifier tubes and the devices that use them. Each page lists its sources and marks the points that rest on weaker evidence. It is maintained by Night Gear Solutions and updated as we check new material.
Sections
- Image intensifier tube formats and compatibility – 18 mm, 16 mm and 25 mm tubes, MX designations, inverting vs non-inverting, gain control, autogating, filmed/unfilmed, phosphor colour, and which tube fits which housing.
- Image intensifier tube manufacturers – who makes tubes today, where, and how the companies developed, including historical lineages.
- Tube production years and contracts – US Omnibus contracts and later buys, introduction years of commercial tube lines, and how to estimate the age of a tube.
- Night vision housings database – comparison tables of monocular, binocular, panoramic and bi-ocular housings: tube format, weight, power, IR and status.
- Housing manufacturers – profiles of the companies that design night vision housings, with their models and product lineages.
How we work
We use manufacturer pages and datasheets, government and contract documents, and trade press first. Encyclopedias, community wikis and forums are used only where nothing better exists, and such points are labelled. Claims we could not confirm are left out. We do not publish prices on these pages.
Last checked: 9 November 2026. Spotted an error? Tell us in the forum.