How budget-friendly thermal optics helped me compete against veteran hunters in the Lone Star Hog Control Challenge
I'll be honest—when I rolled up to the check-in tent for the 2026 Lone Star Hog Control Challenge in Gonzales County, Texas, I felt seriously outgunned.
To my left, a team was unloading what looked like $15,000 worth of night vision and thermal gear from a custom hunting rig. To my right, guys were comparing notes about their third or fourth year running this competition. And there I was: 32 years old, relatively new to hog hunting, with a thermal scope I'd bought three months ago for $1,800.
But here's the thing about wild hog hunting—it's not about having the fanciest gear. It's about understanding hog behavior, making smart decisions, and being in the right place at the right time. And as it turned out, my GTGUARD X350L thermal scope was more than enough to keep me competitive.
This is the story of how I went from nervous newcomer to respectable 7th place finish (out of 41 teams) in one of Texas's toughest hog hunting competitions.
Why I Chose the GTGUARD X350L for Hog Hunting
Let me backtrack a bit. I'm a whitetail deer hunter primarily, but over the past two years, I've watched feral hogs absolutely destroy several of my favorite hunting leases in central Texas. We're talking rooted-up food plots, demolished feeders, and creek bottoms that look like they've been tilled.
Texas Parks & Wildlife estimates we have somewhere between 2.5 to 3 million feral hogs in the state. They cause roughly $500 million in agricultural damage annually. So when a rancher friend told me about this competition—three days of hunting across 8,000 acres of private ranchland, with proceeds going to habitat restoration—I signed up immediately.
But I needed thermal optics. Hogs are primarily nocturnal, especially in Texas heat. Hunting them effectively means hunting after dark.
The Budget Reality
I looked at high-end thermal scopes. I really did. But I'm not a professional hunter or YouTuber with sponsor deals. I'm an insurance adjuster who hunts on weekends. Dropping $4,000-$6,000 on optics wasn't realistic.
The GTGUARD X350L caught my attention because it offered 384×288 thermal resolution at a price point under $2,000. Reading reviews and watching field test videos, it seemed like the best value in the "serious but affordable" category.
Key specs that sold me:
- 384×288 thermal sensor: Not top-tier, but solid mid-range resolution
- 35mm objective lens: Adequate for hog-sized targets to 300+ yards
- Sub-20mk thermal sensitivity: Good heat differentiation for picking out hogs in brush
- Multiple color palettes: Standard White/Black Hot plus Red Hot and others
- Video recording: Built-in recording with 32GB internal storage
- 6+ hour battery life: Long enough for serious evening hunts
- Lightweight design: Just 1.9 pounds won't fatigue you on long carries
At $1,795 (what I paid—prices vary), it represented the threshold where thermal imaging becomes genuinely effective rather than just a gimmick.
Pre-Competition: Learning the X350L
I'm a firm believer in the phrase "train like you fight." I spent six weeks before the competition hunting hogs with the X350L on my buddy's ranch near Lockhart.
Week 1-2: Basic Familiarity
First few hunts were honestly frustrating. Thermal imaging looks nothing like traditional optics. Heat signatures bloom and fade. Vegetation shows residual warmth. I was seeing "hogs" that turned out to be cedar stumps holding daytime heat.
I learned to differentiate by movement and shape. Hogs have a distinctive rounded body signature and a particular way of moving—heads down, rooting and walking in that characteristic waddle. Deer are taller and more slender. Cattle are massive heat blobs. Once I trained my brain to recognize these patterns, target ID became almost instant.
Week 3-4: Zeroing and Range Work
I mounted the X350L on my go-to hog rifle: a budget-built AR-15 in 6.5 Grendel (18" barrel, basic free-float handguard, nothing fancy). The 6.5 Grendel gives me better energy at range than .223, and ammo is still reasonable.
Zeroing a thermal scope is slightly different than traditional optics because you're working with digital reticles. The X350L's zeroing process is straightforward:
- Bore sight at 50 yards to get on paper
- Fire a 3-shot group
- Use the scope's digital adjustment (up/down/left/right buttons) to move the reticle to point of impact
- Confirm zero with another group
- Save the zero profile
I zeroed at 100 yards with 123gr SST ammo and saved it as Profile 1. The X350L stores three zero profiles, so I also created a 200-yard zero (Profile 2) for the same load.
Week 5-6: Real Hunting Pressure
This is where I really learned the scope's capabilities. I took 11 hogs in these two weeks, with shots ranging from 35 yards to 287 yards (my personal best with this setup).
What impressed me most: the X350L's detection range significantly exceeded what I expected from a sub-$2,000 thermal. I was consistently detecting hog-sized heat signatures beyond 400 yards. Identification range (where I could confirm "yes, that's definitely a hog") was 200-250 yards depending on conditions. Shooting range depended more on my rifle's capability than the scope's image quality.
The 384×288 resolution meant the thermal image wasn't quite as crisp as higher-end scopes I'd looked through at gun shops, but it was absolutely adequate for confident shot placement on hogs out to 300 yards.
Competition Day 1: Getting My Feet Wet
The Lone Star Hog Control Challenge runs Friday through Sunday. Each team gets assigned a zone (roughly 200 acres) that rotates daily, so everyone hunts all three areas over the weekend. Scoring is simple: one point per hog, with bonus points for particularly large boars (200+ pounds) verified by weight at check-in.
My hunting partner was Eric, a guy I'd met at a shooting range who had hog experience but no thermal optics. We made a good team—he'd call and use a handheld thermal scanner for initial detection, while I was on the rifle with the X350L.
Friday Evening: 1800-2300 hours
We started at a stock tank in the northwest corner of our zone. Hogs in Texas are heavily dependent on water, especially in summer. Even though it was February, we'd been having a dry spell, making water sources prime ambush spots.
Eric set up 60 yards from the tank with his electronic caller running piglet distress sounds. I positioned another 40 yards back with good elevation and a clear shooting lane.
The X350L's Red Hot color palette became my favorite quickly. Against the brown Texas landscape, the red thermal signature of hogs stood out beautifully. I cycled through White Hot and Black Hot during the first hour, but kept coming back to Red Hot for fastest target acquisition.
At 1847, the first sounder (group of hogs) appeared: six animals moving toward the water from the south. Range: 180 yards.
Here's where the X350L earned its keep. Even though these were moving targets in fading light (sunset was 1820), the thermal image was perfectly clear. I could see the larger sow leading, with five smaller hogs trailing.
I waited until they stopped at the tank edge. First shot dropped the lead sow at 183 yards (laser verified). The others scattered, but thermal imaging showed exactly where each one went. I tagged two more before they made the tree line.
First night total: 8 hogs
Not bad. We were sitting in 15th place after day one, which I considered solid given my inexperience.
Day 2: Learning to Hunt Smarter
Saturday was a learning experience in hog behavior and thermal strategy.
Morning Session: 0600-1000
Most teams slept in after Friday night hunts. Eric and I decided to try an early morning push through thick riparian brush along a creek bottom.
This is where the X350L's lightweight design mattered. We covered maybe three miles on foot, glassing constantly. A heavier scope would have been fatiguing on the rifle, but at 1.9 pounds, the X350L was manageable even after hours of carrying.
We jumped two small groups. The thermal scope excelled in the dense vegetation—I could see heat signatures through brush that would have been impenetrable to naked eye or traditional optics. Took four hogs in the morning session, all under 100 yards in heavy cover.
Afternoon: Strategic Planning
We rested during midday heat (hogs were bedded down anyway) and studied our zone map. I'd been marking hog encounters on my GPS, looking for patterns.
What emerged: hogs were moving from bedding areas in thick cedar brakes to feeding areas (a CRP field with lots of forbs) to water. Classic pattern. We identified three travel corridors and planned our evening around them.
Saturday Evening: 1800-0100
This session was pure ambush hunting. We rotated between the three corridors, spending 90 minutes at each location.
The X350L's battery life proved reliable. I started the evening on a fully charged battery at 1800. By midnight, the battery indicator showed roughly 30% remaining—easily enough to finish the night. I swapped to a fresh battery anyway (better safe than sorry) and continued hunting until 0100.
The thermal scope's detection capability in complete darkness was genuinely impressive. We had heavy cloud cover Saturday night—zero moon, zero starlight. Didn't matter. Thermal imaging doesn't care about ambient light.
At our second position (a fence crossing in a draw), I detected a massive heat signature at what I estimated was 350+ yards. Through the X350L, I could see it was clearly a hog—a big one—but the range was beyond my comfortable shooting distance.
We repositioned, cutting the range to 240 yards. When I got a clear broadside shot, I sent it. The hog dropped hard.
At check-in, that boar weighed 247 pounds—my biggest hog ever, and worth bonus points in the competition.
Saturday total: 14 hogs (including the big boar)
We jumped to 8th place. The top teams were pulling away with 25-30 hogs each, but we were solidly mid-pack and climbing.
Day 3: Pushing for Final Position
Sunday was a grind. We'd been hunting hard for two days, running on minimal sleep and way too much gas station coffee.
But here's the beautiful thing about hog hunting with thermal: you can hunt effectively even when you're exhausted. With traditional hunting, fatigue degrades your visual acuity. You miss movement, misjudge shadows, make mistakes. Thermal imaging does the visual processing for you—you just need to point the scope and interpret heat signatures.
Sunday Strategy: High-Risk, High-Reward
We were in 8th place, only three hogs behind 6th. The top five were probably locked in (they had 30+ hogs), but 6th-10th was tight.
We decided to hunt aggressively: less sitting, more moving. We'd cover ground, glass constantly, and take shots at every ethical opportunity.
The X350L's quick target acquisition was critical here. When you're mobile hunting, you might only have seconds to identify a target and shoot. The thermal scope's clear heat signatures and simple reticle (I used a crosshair with center dot) meant I could get on target fast.
Between 0600-1000 Sunday morning, we covered probably five miles on foot, glassing every likely area. Took nine hogs, mostly quick shots at groups we bumped in heavy cover.
Final Evening: The Push
Our last hunt started at 1700. We had four hours until the 2100 cutoff.
We went back to the stock tank from Friday night. Eric theorized (correctly) that with hunting pressure all weekend, hogs would be nervous and moving to water later.
At 1950—just 70 minutes before competition close—a large sounder approached the tank. I counted 11 animals through the thermal scope.
This was it. Our chance to make a serious move.
I worked methodically, taking careful aimed shots. The X350L's image was rock-steady (I was shooting from prone over a bipod), and the thermal contrast was perfect in the cooling evening air.
Six shots. Five hogs down. (One miss—I'm not perfect.)
We hustled to recover and tag them, making the check-in station at 2053—seven minutes before cutoff.
Final Results: 7th Place and Lessons Learned
Final tally: 36 hogs over three days
We finished 7th out of 41 teams. Not a podium finish, but for my first competition with relatively budget gear, I was thrilled.
The winning team took 52 hogs (they were absolute machines). Top five teams all had 40+. But here's what mattered to me: we beat 34 other teams, many with more expensive equipment and more experience.
The GTGUARD X350L: Honest Assessment After Competition
Having now put this scope through the most intensive hunting I've done, here's my honest take:
What the X350L Does Exceptionally Well
Value Proposition: This is the scope's killer feature. For under $2,000, you get legitimate thermal detection and hunting capability. Yes, higher-end scopes have better resolution and features—but they cost 2-3x more. The X350L hits an incredible price-to-performance sweet spot.
Detection Range: I was consistently detecting hogs beyond 400 yards. That's more than adequate for Texas hunting where most shots are under 300 yards anyway.
Reliability: Three days of constant use, temperature swings, dust, moisture, bumps and movement—zero failures. The scope performed flawlessly.
Battery Life: Real-world 6+ hours meant I could hunt full evening sessions without anxiety about power.
Ease of Use: The menu system is intuitive. I rarely needed to dig into settings once I had my preferences set.
Image Quality: The 384×288 resolution provides clear enough thermal images for confident identification and shot placement to 300 yards. It's not 640×480 clarity, but it's genuinely functional.
Where Higher-End Scopes Have Advantages
Resolution: If I'm honest, there were a couple of times where I wished for crisper thermal images. At maximum detection range (400+ yards), the lower resolution made positive ID difficult. Higher-end scopes with 640×480 sensors would provide more clarity.
Digital Zoom: The X350L offers 2x digital zoom, which works but shows pixelation. Scopes with 4x or 8x digital zoom would provide more identification flexibility.
Feature Set: Missing some nice-to-haves like picture-in-picture mode, Wi-Fi streaming, or multiple zoom profiles. These aren't essential, but they're convenient.
Build Quality: The X350L feels solid but not quite as robust as premium scopes. It's aluminum housing and weather-sealed, but you can tell corners were cut somewhere to hit the price point.
The Bottom Line
Is the GTGUARD X350L a professional-grade thermal scope? No—and it's not trying to be.
Is it a functional, reliable thermal hunting scope that will make you dramatically more effective at night hunting? Absolutely yes.
Think of it this way: the X350L is like a Toyota Tacoma. It's not a luxury F-350 with all the bells and whistles. But it's reliable, capable, affordable, and will get the job done without breaking the bank.
For hunters who want to get into thermal imaging without taking out a second mortgage, the X350L is probably the best option on the market right now.
Practical Tips for Hog Hunting with the X350L
If you pick up one of these scopes for hog hunting, here's what I learned:
1. Learn Your Thermal Signatures
Spend time just observing. Glass your hunting area and learn what different animals look like thermally. Hogs, deer, cattle, coyotes—they all have distinctive heat signature patterns.
2. Red Hot Palette for Texas Brush
I tried all the color palettes. For South Texas brush country, Red Hot provided fastest target acquisition against brown/tan backgrounds. Your mileage may vary in different terrain.
3. Zero Multiple Profiles for Different Ranges
Use those three zero storage profiles. I ran 100-yard and 200-yard zeros for the same ammo, which covered 90% of my shooting scenarios.
4. Carry Extra Batteries
Even though battery life is solid, always carry spares. A $30 backup battery means you never lose hunting time to a dead scope.
5. Use the Recording Feature
Record your hunts. The X350L's built-in recording helped me review shots, improve my thermal ID skills, and document the competition.
6. Manage Your Expectations on Detection vs. Identification
You'll detect hogs at 400+ yards. You'll identify them confidently at 200-250 yards. Know the difference and don't take questionable shots.
7. Pair with Good Glass
I carried a quality handheld thermal monocular (my buddy's Pulsar) for scanning. The X350L is great on the rifle, but dedicated scanning thermals have wider fields of view for initial detection.
The Economics of Thermal Hog Hunting
Let's talk money, because it matters.
My investment:
- GTGUARD X350L: $1,795
- Extra batteries (2): $60
- Scope mount: $75
- Total: $1,930
Competition costs:
- Entry fee: $400 (team of 2, so $200 per person)
- Fuel and food: ~$150
- Total: $550
Return: We didn't win money (7th place doesn't pay), but the rancher gave us hog meat (we took home roughly 200 pounds of processed pork) worth maybe $600 retail. More importantly, I now have thermal optics that I'll use for years.
Compare this to some of the teams running $5,000+ thermal scopes. Sure, they had better gear—but did it make them 2.5x more successful? In most cases, no. The top teams succeeded because of skill, experience, and effort, not just equipment.
The X350L let me compete on a relatively level playing field without breaking the bank.
What's Next: More Competition and Conservation
I'm already signed up for the Hill Country Hog Invitational in April (Gillespie County) and planning to hunt the South Texas Hog Classic in October.
Beyond competition, I've started working with local ranchers to provide free hog control services. Feral hogs are an ecological disaster in Texas, and thermal optics make population control actually feasible.
The GTGUARD X350L has fundamentally changed my approach to hunting. I'm more effective, more confident, and able to hunt in conditions that would have shut me down with traditional optics.
Final Thoughts: Thermal Technology for Regular Hunters
Five years ago, thermal imaging was exotic technology for military, law enforcement, and wealthy hunters. Today, scopes like the GTGUARD X350L make it accessible to regular people who just want to hunt effectively.
Is thermal imaging necessary for all hunting? No. For whitetail deer hunting in daylight, I still prefer traditional optics.
But for hog hunting, predator control, or any serious night hunting? Thermal imaging isn't a luxury anymore—it's the standard.
The X350L represents the entry point where thermal technology becomes genuinely useful rather than just a novelty. It's not perfect, it's not top-of-the-line, but it's real, functional thermal imaging at a price point that actually makes sense.
If you're considering making the jump to thermal optics, the GTGUARD X350L is worth serious consideration. It won't win you a competition by itself—but it will give you the tools to compete if you're willing to put in the work.
And sometimes, that's all you need.
Total Competition Statistics:
- Duration: 3 days (72 hours)
- Total hogs harvested: 36
- Longest shot: 287 yards
- Shortest shot: 22 yards
- Average shot distance: 147 yards
- X350L battery swaps: 4 (across all hunting sessions)
- Scope failures: 0
All hogs harvested were donated to local food banks or used by participating hunters. Competition proceeds ($16,400) went to ranch habitat restoration and feral hog control programs through Texas Wildlife Association.
Next up: I'll be writing about using the X350L for predator control and comparing thermal vs. traditional night vision for different hunting applications. Follow for updates.
