HOW TO: The Alu-TILO as ELCAN Specter Thermal Attachment Device

Just recently we reported that the Bundeswehr will procure up to 107,929 ELCAN Specter 1-4x scopes – HERE we show you the new main combat sight of the German armed forces. In line with this, Andres Industries is now ready to deliver the only thermal imaging attachment for the ELCAN Specter that can be directly mounted on the optic. In this case, the Specter is operated exclusively at 1x magnification. The magnification is achieved solely through the digital zoom of the TILO. With its 6cm length, the TILO is perfectly suited for weapons that have short or no Picatinny rail. Therefore, the military counterpart, the TILO-6MA, is also very popular among NATO partners who want to retrofit their machine guns with thermal imaging technology.

For years, the Berlin-based manufacturer Andres Industries has by far claimed the title of producing the "smallest thermal imaging goggles in the world." With a resolution of 640x512 pixels, they are on par with larger devices from competitors.

However, until now, the plastic housing was only classified as limited for operational use. That has now changed. The housing of the TILO-6MA is now milled from a block of aircraft aluminum, making it as robust as the ELCAN Specter itself. But the TILO can do even more:

With the aluminum housing comes much higher precision and repeatability when the device is used as an attachment. The reason for this is that the bayonet ring for connection to the ELCAN is no longer just screwed on, but is now an integral part of the housing.

When the TILO is mounted on the ELCAN, which is possible within 2 seconds, everything looks seamless. Thus, at 100m, grouping circles of 3cm can be achieved even in complete darkness. A performance that was previously unattainable for thermal imaging goggles with a 24° field of view.

Of course, the TILO-6MA is now slightly heavier due to the metal housing compared to its plastic counterparts, but even with the increased weight of about 152g, it is still the lightest solution on the market.

Where civilian users used to envy the law enforcement version, the Berlin-based manufacturer has since shown mercy and presented hunters with their own aluminum version, the TILO-6Z+A, at IWA 2022. Since it does not have an electronic reticle, it is freely available even in Germany. Thankfully, the new scratch-resistant ceramic paint coat in "Foliage Green" does not change that, although it gives the essentially civilian device a distinctly military appearance.

However, the bayonet mount has at least one more function. It serves for securely attaching a shutter eye cup. This cup automatically prevents light from escaping the eyepiece when removed from the eye.

A specialty of the TILO-6Z+A and all devices from Andres Industries AG is that when used as an attachment, the digital zoom levels up to 8x can be effectively utilized, provided that the user has performed precise collimation beforehand. Only through accurate zeroing combined with the integrated AI upscaling techniques and the modern sub-pixel collimation developed by Andres Industries can the aforementioned precision be achieved. Ultimately, up to 6 different collimation settings for different individuals/optics can be created and saved.

With the Red-Dot-Flipper, a useful optical converter, the device can also be used in front of reflex sights. Mounting takes only a few seconds. This allows the user to wear the TILO as goggles on patrol and then quickly attach it to the weapon. This is not only helpful at night. During the day, the TILO can also be used for reconnaissance. Individuals or animals can be spotted in thickets. To quickly switch to day mode, the Red-Dot-Flipper with the TILO can be folded to the side in a second, similar to magnifiers. This frees up the reflex sight for visible light again.

We found attaching the 2x add-on lens to the plastic devices to be rather wobbly, the aluminum housing is a very significant improvement and can certainly be considered official. Whether this significantly longer construction can also handle the accelerations when shooting as an attachment device remains an exciting question that the manufacturer does not address. We will likely need to contribute to solving this question ourselves with a test report soon.

ANDRES INDUSTRIES on the internet: www.andres-industries-shop.de

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