Made in USA Night Vision: Goggles, Tubes & Thermal Scopes

This page may contain affiliate links. Full disclosures

Night vision lets you see in the dark. It does this either by amplifying faint starlight and moonlight, or by reading the heat that people, animals and engines give off. The heart of a traditional night vision device is the image intensifier tube. It is a vacuum tube with a light-sensitive photocathode, a microchannel plate that multiplies electrons thousands of times, and a phosphor screen that turns them back into a visible image. Building tubes takes clean rooms, thin-film coating and processes close to semiconductor manufacturing, and only a handful of factories in the world can do it.

The US has two of them. Twenty-Six Defense (formerly Elbit America, and before that ITT and Harris) has made night vision in Roanoke County, Virginia, since 1959. That plant draws its own fiber optics, grows its own photocathodes and builds tubes and goggles. L3Harris has made tubes in Tempe, Arizona, since 1976. American builders put those US tubes into their own monoculars and goggles. Steele Industries in Florida and TNVC in California build systems to order in their own housings, and N-Vision Optics assembles monoculars and thermal imagers in Massachusetts. Trijicon builds thermal riflescopes that need no light at all. Each listing says what is made here and which parts are bought in.

See also flashlights, lighting, batteries and metal detectors.

L3Harris

L3Harris is one of only two US makers of image intensifier tubes, the light-amplifying core of every night vision device. It makes unfilmed Gen III tubes in 18 mm format, and builds them into goggles for the US military, federal agencies and first responders. Those goggles include the ENVG-B binocular with thermal overlay, the four-tube GPNVG panoramic goggle, the AN/PVS-31A and BNVD-1531 binoculars, the BNVD-Fused and the NOVA goggle. L3Harris tubes are also inside many civilian goggles and monoculars sold by US night vision builders.

Night vision manufacturing began in Tempe in 1976 with 18 mm Gen II tubes. Since 1984 the company has invested more than $200 million in tube technology. Tempe job postings describe clean-room work on optic tube components, including surface preparation, metallization and coating of substrates in deposition equipment, and microscope inspection that sorts parts against more than 40 failure modes.

Made in: Tempe, AZ (image intensifier tubes and their components, night vision goggles).

Source: L3Harris Gen III tubes, 2026 · Military & Aerospace Electronics, 2022 · L3Harris Tempe job posting, 2026, checked 10/2026

Tempe, AZ

Visit website

N-Vision Optics

N-Vision Optics makes night vision and thermal imaging gear for the military, police and hunters. Its line includes PVS-14 night vision monoculars, NOX-18 and NOX-35 thermal monoculars with 640x480 sensors, and HALO thermal weapon sights. The products are export-controlled under ITAR and EAR, and N-Vision sells by quote direct and through dealers such as TNVC, Steele Industries and Primary Arms.

N-Vision was founded in 2003 and has held ISO 9001 certification since 2010. It calls its products "Proudly American Made" and says all of them are designed, engineered and assembled at its facilities in Needham, with a US-based staff.

Made in: Needham, MA (design, engineering and assembly).

Bought in: image intensifier tubes and thermal sensors.

Source: N-Vision about us, 2026 · N-Vision home, 2026, checked 10/2026

Needham, MA

Visit website

Steele Industries

Steele Industries builds night vision monoculars and binocular goggles to order for civilians, police and the military. Its own Nighthawk binocular housings are machined from 7075-T6 aluminum: the Nighthawk-MG with manual gain, the lightweight Nighthawk-UL and the fixed-bridge Nighthawk-FB, plus a PVS-14R monocular housing. They have articulating pods with individual shutoff, a built-in IR illuminator, CR123 power for about 25 hours, and are submersible to 66 feet. Buyers choose the image intensifier tube, including L3Harris unfilmed Gen III tubes such as its Super Gain aviation grade, or Elbit America (now Twenty-Six Defense) tubes. Steele also sells factory-built L3Harris goggles, including the PVS-31A, BNVD-1531, NOVA and GPNVG, along with thermal devices, helmets, mounts and IR lasers, and offers build, repair, purging and trade-in services.

Steele calls its products "American made night vision systems" and says every system is assembled in-house at its 6,000 sq ft facility in Bradenton, Florida. Each build is tested on Hoffman ANV-126A test sets for diopter focus, collimation, infinity focus and tube spots, then nitrogen-purged and checked against a signed QC checklist under an ISO 9001 quality system. Steele-built systems carry a 10-year warranty, and it has served more than 20,000 customers.

Made in: Bradenton, FL (night vision systems assembled, tested and purged to order; Nighthawk housings designed in-house).

Bought in: L3Harris and Elbit image intensifier tubes, optics, and factory-built L3Harris devices sold as-is.

Source: Steele Industries, 2026 · Steele build services, 2026 · Nighthawk-MG, 2026 · Steele warranty, 2026, checked 10/2026

Bradenton, FL

Steele Ind on Amazon

Visit website

TNVC

TNVC (Tactical Night Vision Company) builds night vision monoculars and goggles to order for the military, police and civilians. It also sells thermal scopes, fusion devices, mounts and accessories. Its own Talon ultralight monocular, Raptor binocular and Chimera housings are built around US Gen III image intensifier tubes. Buyers choose a filmed white phosphor tube from Elbit America (now Twenty-Six Defense) or an unfilmed tube from L3Harris. TNVC also offers system upgrades, repairs and training.

TNVC is based in Redlands, California. Its Talon monocular lists its country of origin as USA and is "Built in the USA (designed, machined, molded, and assembled)," using housings from Nocturn Industries.

Made in: Redlands, CA (night vision systems built and tested to order); housings designed, machined and molded in the USA.

Source: TNVC Talon listing, 2026 · Soldier Systems, 2026, checked 10/2026

Redlands, CA

Visit website

Trijicon Electro-Optics

Trijicon Electro-Optics makes thermal riflescopes and sights for hunters, police and the military. Its IR-HUNTER thermal riflescopes and compact REAP-IR mini thermal scopes use 640x480, 12-micron vanadium oxide sensors. They see heat instead of light, so they work in total darkness, smoke and light fog. Trijicon also makes the ACOG, RMR and other well-known rifle and pistol optics.

Trijicon is a family-owned company based in Wixom, Michigan. In 2016 it bought IR Defense, a maker of thermal viewing and aiming systems, and turned it into Trijicon Electro-Optics. Trijicon's spec sheets say its thermal scopes are "Made in the USA," and dealers list them as "built in the USA."

Made in: USA (thermal scopes built under Trijicon, headquartered in Wixom, MI).

Bought in: thermal sensors.

Source: Trijicon IR-HUNTER spec sheet · Soldier Systems, 2016 · TNVC REAP-IR listing, 2026, checked 10/2026

Wixom, MI

Trijicon Electro-Optics on Amazon

Visit website

Twenty-Six Defense

Twenty-Six Defense makes night vision for the US military and its allies. Its ground systems include the AN/PSQ-44 ENVG-B binocular, which overlays thermal imaging on image-intensified night vision and can link to networked tactical data. It also makes AN/PVS-31D and AN/PVS-33 binoculars, the PVS-14 monocular and the PrimeX goggle. For aviation it makes AN/AVS-6 and AN/AVS-9 pilot goggles. It also builds image intensifier tubes, the core of every night vision device, including the MX-10160 and MX-11769.

The Roanoke County plant on Plantation Road has made night vision since 1959. It ran under ITT, then Exelis, then Harris, and then Elbit Systems of America. In September 2026, Elbit's US business, based in Fort Worth, Texas, renamed itself Twenty-Six Defense. The plant does the work in-house across two buildings. Workers draw and stack glass fibers into fiber-optic plates and grow photocathodes in a process close to semiconductor manufacturing. They also build image intensifier tubes and their circuits, make electronics and assemble finished goggles. About 800 people work there. A $30 million expansion announced in 2025 adds 288 jobs and will bring the site past 1,000 workers.

Made in: Roanoke County, VA (photocathodes, fiber optics, image intensifier tubes, electronics and goggle assembly).

Source: WVTF, 2025 · Cardinal News, 2025 · WDBJ7, 2026 · Soldier Systems, 2026, checked 10/2026

Roanoke, VA

Visit website

Night vision makers by state

Arizona: L3Harris (Tempe), Gen III image intensifier tubes and military goggles
California: TNVC (Redlands), night vision monoculars and binoculars built to order with US tubes
Florida: Steele Industries (Bradenton), Nighthawk binocular goggles and PVS-14 monoculars built to order with L3Harris and Elbit tubes
Massachusetts: N-Vision Optics (Needham), PVS-14 monoculars, thermal monoculars and thermal weapon sights
Michigan: Trijicon Electro-Optics (Wixom), IR-HUNTER and REAP-IR thermal riflescopes
Virginia: Twenty-Six Defense (Roanoke County), image intensifier tubes, ENVG-B and military and aviation goggles

Types of night vision

Image intensifier (I²) devices amplify available light. Gen III tubes give the clearest, brightest image. Filmed tubes add a protective ion barrier, while unfilmed tubes trade some lifespan for less noise. Green phosphor is traditional, and white phosphor shows a black-and-white image many users find more natural.

Monoculars such as the PVS-14 are light, versatile single-tube units you can hold in your hand, mount on a helmet or put behind a rifle scope.

Binoculars and goggles use two tubes for depth perception and are easier to wear for long periods. Articulating models let each side flip up on its own, and panoramic goggles use four tubes to widen the field of view.

Thermal imagers sense heat instead of light, so they work in total darkness and through smoke and light fog, and they make warm animals and people stand out. They come as handheld monoculars, clip-ons and riflescopes, rated by sensor resolution such as 640x480.

Fusion devices such as the military's ENVG-B overlay a thermal image on intensified night vision.

Aviation goggles such as the AN/AVS-6 and AN/AVS-9 are built for pilots and work with cockpit lighting.

Choosing night vision

Decide between light and heat. I² night vision shows detail and lets you see terrain to move by, while thermal is best for spotting animals and people.
Check the tube. Gen III with a high figure of merit (FOM) gives the best performance, so ask who made the tube, its FOM, and whether it's filmed or unfilmed.
Pick a format: a monocular for flexibility and lower cost, binoculars for comfort and depth, or a thermal scope for hunting.
Look at weight and mounting if it goes on a helmet, and battery life for long nights.
Buy from an authorized dealer. US Gen III tubes and many thermal sensors are export-controlled under ITAR and EAR, and reputable builders test each system and document the tube's specs.
Ask about warranty and repair. US builders service, re-purge and rebuild their own units, and some offer 10-year warranties.

Reading "Made in USA" on night vision

Under FTC rules, an unqualified "Made in USA" claim means all or virtually all of the product is made here. The tube is the most valuable part of a night vision device, so a goggle with a US tube and a US-made housing is mostly American. Many builders assemble their units here but buy tubes, thermal sensors, lenses or electronics from suppliers, sometimes overseas, and some brands put US-assembled housings around foreign tubes. Ask who made the tube or sensor and where, and check the country of origin on the specific model.

Know a USA-made company we missed?

If a company makes its products in the USA and is not listed, send us its website.

Add your site

Disclosures

Company names, logos and website previews belong to their owners and appear here only to identify the companies listed. If you own a listing and want an image changed or the listing removed, please contact us.

This site takes part in the Amazon Associates program and other affiliate programs, so some links earn us a commission at no extra cost to you. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

* This site does not have any relationship, business or personal, with any of the manufacturers listed. Our only affiliations are with the affiliate programs described above.

A company may be based in the USA while making some products elsewhere. Check the manufacturer's own site for where a specific product is made.