One of the huge draws of the Crimson Trace Midnight 3-gun shoot was using infrared and night vision goggles in the dark. To top it off, they also provided full auto stage guns. In short, it was totally awesome. I’ve never used any IR or night vision gear, and my full auto experience is limited to my time on Top Shot. Here are the highlights.

On one stage we used a Primary Weapons Systems Mk 112 Full Auto in 5.56, Crimson Trace MVF-600 IR Light/Laser, and AN-PVS 14 NVGs.

PWS Mk112 5.56 in full auto, with a Crimson Trace MVF-600 IR light-laser vertical grip

Me with the AN-PVS 14 NVGs. Thankfully this was a shooting competition, and not a beauty contest.

The Crimson Trace IR pistol grip was great to use. One huge benefit of IR is that it is invisible to the human eye, so only an operator with IR goggles can see the green laser beam in the dark. Critical if you need to maintain a low profile. Obvious applications are military and law enforcement, and I’d love to hear any practical civilian use ideas in the comments!

Crimson Trace’s MVF-600 IR light/laser grip. Only LEO and military can purchase it. Sad face for us civilians.

The Mk 112 and AN-PVS 14 NVGs were very easy to use and literally boiled down to pointing-and-shooting at your target. I got used to wearing NVGs quickly, and it was amazing how much I could see in minimal light. After our squad was finished with the stage, one of the RO’s said anyone who wanted to unload two 30 round mags into the berm for fun could do so for a donation to a nonprofit camp that teaches kids how to shoot. Another chance to fire full auto? You bet my hand shot up in the sky!

Finally, we also fired an FN Mk46 (M249 SAW variant) with a FLIR Thermal weapon sight.

FN Mk 46 in full auto, with a FLIR Thermal weapons sight. You don’t want to be on the other end of this gun.

We had a small 10 round belt to unload at two targets. The FLIR scope was awesome, yet another critical piece of nighttime gear for military and LEOs. The FN Mk46 was very manageable to fire, and not to mention a ton of fun!

In the next and final installment of the Crimson Trace 3-gun shoot, I’ll give an overview of my pistol, a Glock 34 which is the big brother of the Glock 17.

Chris Cheng is History Channel’s Top Shot Season 4 champion. A self-taught amateur turned pro through his Top Shot win, Cheng very much still considers himself an amateur who parachuted into this new career. He shares his thoughts and experiences from the perspective of a newbie to the shooting community. www.TopShotChris.com.