looking for kydex/weaponlights

[Trigger]

first off, I would like to apologise to the mods and admins if I'm not posting this in the correct area. secondly, I came to a realization last night after being told to go and check out a strange noise outside by my girlfriend that I need weapon lights on my pistols and long guns. my AR has one made by the former pelican industries, and my Springfield XDm has some cheapo that I found at a army/navy surplus for $50. and after grabbing the only pistol with a weapon light and discovering that after my adrenaline is going the button set up on that cheapo light is absolute shit. Having to basically let go of the weapon entirely with one hand to activate and deactivate the light is, for lack of a better term, fucking bullshit. the light on the ar is fine and I like it, but I'm beginning to discover why people are starting to sway towards the push button caps instead of pressure pads for activation. long story short I've decided that its time to update and reevaluate my weapon lights and in doing so demands that I also change the way I carry. with all that out of the way now comes my questions, first I would like to see what everyones opinions are on particular weapon lights (handgun, rifle, and shotgun) also I would like to see if anyone can point me in the direction of some decent makers of kydex holsters that can support handguns with weaponlights. the weapons I would like to add lights on are the following, Sig Sauer P220 ST (railed), Springfield XDm 3.8 9MM, Benelli M3 Super 90 tactical USMC edition, and a standard M4gery.

again I apologise if I'm posting this in the wrong area, I did do several searches on the topic but nothing quite answered my questions the way I wanted them too. thank you guys for the help in advance!


~Damien

[Wulf202]

i run trl-1 on all pistols, 300 lumens is blinding. Supertacs on the rifles but next time i'll run tlr series on everything

Blade tech makes good holsters.

[mtnrider]

TRL-1 HL. 500 lumens, affordable, reliable, easy to use.
I also have Surefire X300 and X300 ultra. Awesome lights and I run them on my rifles with a pressure switch but find the stock switch when used on a pistol difficult to activate.

[275RLTW]

I've run Insight M3 and Surefire X300s and are pleased with them both. I don't like needing a tool to constantly tighten up a TLR. Regarding holsters, you can order just about anything kydex made from any reputable holster company (Raven, JM, etc...).

[funkymonkey1111]

I have a surefire x300U (ultra) that I really like. Steve at Colorado Holster can make a holster for your gun and light combo with no problem--usually within a week's turnaround.

[funkymonkey1111]

also, do you have a good quality flashlight? obviously there are varying schools of thought out there, but a good handheld light is going to be very helpful in a "bump in the night" situation.

[Trigger]

thanks for the replies! I'm leaning towards the TLR1 right now simply on account of the price, but if I can find an X300 for less than 190 I'd probably think real hard on it. as far as a handheld I do have a Surefire G2X Pro that I use at work, an amazing light to say the least, super durable and bright as hell. I just tend to leave it in north dakota simply because I use it at work but I think I may bring it home as I'm beginning to find I would have more use for it here. Like I said after that little incident I decided to start looking at lights a little more seriously.

[Geardo]

+1 on the TLR-1 and take a look at Raven (http://raven-concealment-systems.mybigcommerce.com/sig-custom-phantom-light-compatible-holster/) i have one for my P226 and couldnt be happier

[stoner01]

TRL-1s on my pistol. M300s on my rifles. For a pistol light I don't suggest going above 300 lumens or you risk catching the light yourself. If the rifle is going to be used as a primary outdoors gun when checking your perimeter, 500 lumens should be plenty.
In terms of a handheld light, the one I use is a 5.11 LTAC L1. About 150 lumens and perfect for close illumination or when you want to shine something without pointing a gun at it.

[dan512]

Yeah,flashlights on guns are a good idea. It turns out seeing what you are going to shoot before you do it is a good idea.
As far a rifle light there are a million options. You don't need it to fit in a holster,so it's whatever. Choose something with a clicky tail cap that is bright and move on.
For pistol lights go either Surefire(if you can afford it) or Streamlight and get a JM custom kydex holster.

[Squeeze]

TLR-1HL plus a drop of Vibratite (which never hardens) so it won't work it's way loose and you will be a happy camper guarenteed.

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk 2

Good advice. Kelly knows his stuff.

[kwando]

TLR1s are nice for the price. You can use them for pistol and rifle (12 o'clock) position

[cofi]

I like this for my handheld light
http://www.opticsplanet.com/first-light-tomahawk-mc-120-lumen-led-tactical-flashlight.html?gclid=CPakvue357sCFcVFMgodRDEAHw&ef_id=UH3VXQAAQFX0bh9E:20140105161805:s

You don't always want to be pointing your gun at everything your illuminating

[Mick-Boy]

For my lights, I like Surefires. They're what I've been using for the last 7-8 years and I'm confident in their quality and lock up on my weapons. With the exception of one very abused Simunition pistol, I've never had their pistol lights work loose. Streamlight also makes a good product.

Most kydex makers can accommodate WML on hand guns.

I've had a WML on my work pistol since 2007 and on my CCW pistol since about 2008.. give or take. I wore Raven Concealment products for a couple years (top photo below) but switched to JM Custom Kydex in 2010 (bottom two photos) for both work and carry. If you're going to carry the gun concealed the holster needs to keep the butt of the pistol tucked tight to your body (you can see in the photos that both makers holsters do a good job here). This is where I find Bladetech and Safariland WML holsters lacking.

I'm a big believer in WMLs on defensive firearms. My thought process goes: Before we can ethically process a threat we have to be able to positively ID it. Before we can reduce a threat we have to be able to hit it. IDing is easier with a light and hitting is easier with both hands on the weapon. Can you hit with a light in your non-firing hand? Hell yeah. But I'd wager that 9 out of 10 people shoot better with both hands on the gun (to say nothing of reloading, clearing malfunctions, etc)... It follows that a WML should be on my defensive pistol.


For lights on rifles, I think the best deal going for a baller on a budget is the SF P2X Fury (http://www.bravocompanyusa.com/SureFire-P2X-Fury-Tactical-Single-Output-LED-p/sf-p2x-a-bk-eag-click.htm) in a VTAC mount (http://www.bravocompanyusa.com/Viking-Tactics-Light-Mount-BLACK-p/vtac-mk4-blk.htm). You get 500 lumens mounted on your gun for about $150 shipped. There is a new 1000 Lumen Fury (http://www.bravocompanyusa.com/SureFire-P3X-Fury-Tactical-Single-Output-LED-EAG-p/sf-p3x-a-bk-eag-click.htm) but I don't have any time on it so I can't speak to it with any confidence other than the fact that the brand is solid.

Random thoughts on lights mounted on long guns. - I avoid "multi-setting" lights on long guns like the plague. If I need to ID a target I want to be able to ID it *now*. Not after clicking through the strobe, low, medium, kinda high and disco modes on the light. I like lights that are simple in their use. For me that means a clicky-tail cap and a one setting light. I don't dig on tape switches because a) I'm not super confident in their durability and b) I don't want to loose the light if I need to take my support hand off the fore end of the weapon to open a door, pick my nose, or scratch my ass while I'm searching the house.

Random thoughts on using light. - Training, training, training. You don't have to truck out to a class with Ken Good (but that would be a badass idea). Get some dry runs through your house, with your light in the dark. Get comfortable with the angles. Game out the most likely and most dangerous scenarios so you can determine at what point you call 911 and bunker down (if that's even an option) and when you go check out the "bump in the night". Get an idea of how far you can realistically ID someone with whatever light you're using. Determine whether turning lights on as your go or leaving things dark and taking advantage of your knowledge of the house makes more sense.

If you know a switched on LEO who's spend a bunch of time on night shift, that might be a tremendous resource for learning hand-held light manipulation. Odds are he's responded to a lot of alarm calls during his career and is very comfortable using a flashlight in dark, unknown structures.

http://i99.photobucket.com/albums/l305/malonpm/TXEAG1Persec.jpg

http://i99.photobucket.com/albums/l305/malonpm/Lightfighter/IMG_0058_zps3a13912f.jpg

http://i99.photobucket.com/albums/l305/malonpm/Lightfighter/SAM_1073.jpg

[muddywings]

I've seen the JM Custom Kydex that Mick-boy runs and well as several other major kydex producers. Many are top quality but I will mention one thing, many kydex companies as well as DIYers have gone from custom kydex belt loops to polymer, something like this: http://shop.diyholster.com/OWB-Injection-Molded-Belt-Loops_c70.htm or like this: http://www.multiholsters.com/FOMI.htm for the IWB type
People found that the polymer have a bit more flexibility and kydex if bent or torqued on to many times will break.
If you have something that is running kydex belt loops, the chances of it failing are pretty slim. It hasn't happened to me and I spent a fair amount of time working kydex but if it does break, the above are pretty easy replacement options (or good to toss in a range/deployment bag in case your kydex ones break on you).
As a DIYer I personally now use the polymer ones as making kydex belt loops is tedious and I really like the polymer ones.

http://i.imgur.com/ZWINqEM.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/BoaZ8EG.jpg?1

[Trigger]

amazing replies everyone thank you for all your help! it is greatly appreciated! [Beer] thanks to mick boy for the lengthy description!

[gdw042]

I have used Surefire, Streamlight and Inforce WML's.

I currently run a TLR-1 on my work pistol and a Inforce WML on my work rifle. Very happy with both.

For home, I have a TLR-1 on my bedside gun and an inexpensive gun show light on my shotgun. It does not get used much, so I did not spend a bunch of money on it.

I worked swings on patrol for many years and used my lights nightly. I carried a 6P on my belt, the TLR on my gun and had a 5.11 Light for Life in the car. All of which work very well for my needs.

I personally think the Inforce lights are very underrated and a great value right now. The one I have has both white and IR light which works great for my needs. I would call Earl at Impact Weapon Components and talk with him about a combo of light and mount.

I run a Raven OWB holster at work and have for over 2 years. Never had a issue with it and I can conceal a full size G22 with a light under a t-shirt. I also have some stuff from Steve at Colorado Holster and would recommend him highly.

I will echo Mick-Boy's comments, esp about the V TAC mount and light combo. I have a VTAC light with an old Surefire G2 in it on one of my guns and it works great.

Good luck!
GDW

[centrarchidae]

I don't think there's much to argue with in what Mick-Boy said above. I've got basically the same lights on basically the same guns, apart from the Fury on my rifle being the momentary-only-switch version. I'd hate to put a zillion lumens into a friendly's face because I couldn't click off in time.

Disclaimer: I don't have nearly as much real-world experience, or as much training. All of my carry-guns-for-pay time has been in quiet and usually-peaceful corners of here.

The SF G2X isn't a bad choice at all for a handheld light (and a handheld IMHO is a durn fine ideer.) I would, however, think about a rechargeable the next time you get the urge to spend money on lights after your WMLs are paid for. I've got a Streamlight Stinger LED that I like, and if I were buying CR123 batteries instead of dropping it into the charger I'd be wearing a prom dress up and down East Colfax to pay for my battery jones.

[Joe_K]

TLR-1. As far as holsters go, Off The Grid Concepts OTGHEX makes good ones.


Sent from my PRC 117A in my Batmobile disguised as a sedan.