Attached light or handheld?

[COB]

Originally Posted by Cuda66

Wow. 35 lumens. That may cause your attacker to squint a little bit...maybe.

Get a decent G2L; yes, you could buy 7 or 8 of your Nebos for that...but why go cheap on something you may be relying on to save your life?

And, fwiw, weapon-mounted lights have their place & time, and it's not just for SWAT teams anymore...find a good instructor and learn why.

OK I know i'm a noob!
It's better than nothing I suppose to save my life and it didn't cost too much. Defenitly will upgrade to these 200 lumen light sabers.. It is the brightest light i've ever had so im getting there Thats what all you guys are for...The expierienced advice

I hear that Joeywhat it's a nice piece.. Makes a good fist pack, it's compact and you can gouge some serious stuff with it.
May pick up a spare just cause

*OK I just looked up what a Surefire E2DL is and I plan to get one.. The NEBO will go in the GFs purse lol

[dagwag77]

Originally Posted by Joeywhat

I just have mine on my Glock to look cool and brag about it on online forums.

Get both, get training.

+1 - I have weapon mounted lights, but prefer having both for many reasons, some that have been brought up already in other posts. Most impt - I dont wnat to point a weapon at something just because I want to light it up, and I dont want the batteries to die in the middle of a fight/search.

[COB]

Alot of good responses I guess I will get both eventually... First priority will be a good Surefire then sometime in the future get the TLR-1.
I will practice or whatever with the NEBO el cheapo for now because it's not bad for $8, good quality and bright enough I can defenitly positively ID a BG at night..
I like to have alot the bases covered and having both would seem to be good as people mentioned. You never know like what if you have to fight with 1 arm someday, you know at least you'd still have light for the gun and the handheld for tactics and different uses

[WhitBri]

I put the tlr-1 on my nightstand gun, I do have a flashlight there as well but I figure having it right there on the gun is one less thing to fumble for in the dark. Also it pratically works as a laser as the main focused beam is dead on at 7 yrds so almost works like a laser

[Palmguy]

I see a purpose for both. My nightstand guns wear an Insight Procyon, and right next to it is a Surefire E2DL (which I also carry with me).

The Raven Concealment Phantom is a fantastic holster; there are absolutely good holsters for pistols with mounted lights, leeindy.

[joshua79109]

Originally Posted by COB

Alot of good responses I guess I will get both eventually... First priority will be a good Surefire then sometime in the future get the TLR-1.
I will practice or whatever with the NEBO el cheapo for now because it's not bad for $8, good quality and bright enough I can defenitly positively ID a BG at night..
I like to have alot the bases covered and having both would seem to be good as people mentioned. You never know like what if you have to fight with 1 arm someday, you know at least you'd still have light for the gun and the handheld for tactics and different uses

I have used these very effectively. They hold up to the abuse and they only cost $25.00. My go to light. I bought them for my entire family. They work.

$24.88







Coleman Cree XLamp XR-E LED Flashlight, 2 "AA"




The Coleman Max line up of flashlights offers superior performance at a tremendous value. The 2 "AA" version feels great in your hand and provides tremendous light output.

Coleman Cree XLamp XR-E LED Flashlight, 2 "AA":

• 115 lumens
• Durable milled aluminum body
• Five-hour run time
• Weather-resistant
• Beam distance: 72m
• Requires 2 "AA" batteries (included)

Walmart.com: Coleman Cree XLamp XR-E LED Flashlight, 2 "AA": Camping

[ThumperIII]

After replying to a similar question elsewhere on the forum, this seems a good thread to expand some info on LED lights.


I want more light than the present pistol mounted lights can provide. High output (over 800 lumen) LED flashlights have been in the province of small custom flashlight builders for some years. LEDs have 60,000 or more hour lifetimes, are vitually indestructible in normal use and have low power requirements. But LEDs have lagged somewhat on total output. High output xenon bulb and newer HID lights have been available from major manufacturers but their downsides are -- relatively fragile bulbs, high cost for replacement bulbs, and short run times for the size and weight of the batteries required. Now some mass market manufacturers have stepped up with the latest LED developments. Not outdated Luxeon 1W LED's, M*glite 3W Rebel LEDs and similar; or a head full of hard to focus multiple traditional 3-5mm dia LEDs (anywhere from 10 to over a hundred LEDs can give nice flood beam but no distance throw), but good concentrated high output, focusable LEDs. The smaller the point source of the light the easier it is to focus and the longer the possible light throw distance. Rechargeable NiCad batteries were a step up to keep using these lights affordable. Then better NiMH batteries. Alkalines can work but have low energy density and cannot provide the high current draw of newer LEDs. The breakthru came with lithium batteries. They pack nearly 3 times the energy content of a comparable size alkaline primary or rechargeable NiCad / NiMH. Lithium batteries are available both as 3V primary (single use) or 3.6-4.2V rechargeable battery types. There are now many flashlight brands available in and around the 200+ lumen range, both gun mounted and handheld. Most pistol lights use Lithium primary batteries, a few accept rechargeables. Larger rifle/shotgun mounted lights are more apt to accept rechargeable battery options. Gun mounted lights, even the best, are always limited by battery size and weight. More light equals more current draw means bigger battery, so in a reasonable size package, you get either bright light or a long runtime, not both. The latest lights may use a Cree XR-E Q5 or R2 emitter or a SSC P4 emitter (abt 4 W). Another problem with high output LEDs is heat dissipation. Unlike filament bulbs, heat can destroy LEDs. This requires larger metal mass around the LED to conduct away the heat. Most have electronically regulated multiple modes of brightness and strobe functions. Current technology will limit practical pistol mount size lights to about 200 lumen max. But there are less limitations on handheld flashlights, especially for size and weight. There are a couple hand flashlights currently made with multiple 4W LEDs, each with their individual reflector, resulting in a large head diameter (like UltraFire WF-1300L). The newer major manufacturer flashlights are becoming more available with SSC P7 or Cree MC-E type LEDs in pocket size (EDC) to multiple D cell size flashlights, depending on your need and runtime requirements. These LEDs use four closely mounted emitter dies mounted on a single base (for abt 12W total per LED). The concentrated light source allows for better focusing and longer distance throw, but at tightest focus can have a blank spot or non-illuminated cross shape in the center of the beam (due to the space between the 4 emitter dies). To eliminate that, reflectors (smooth) must stay slightly off focus to provide a tight beam and often have artifacts in a floodier beam. Most use an OP (orange peel) irregular surface reflector to remove distortions but this provides less spotlight effect, lowering total throw distance. These advertise 600-900 lumen output. The lumen output of LEDs as well as incandescent bulbs is measured at the emitter/filament source and are not actual out-the-front or through-the-lens illumination. As such this reflects the highest output of which the LED is capable under ideal conditions. Variations are due to the amount of current actually provided by the circuit. Battery type (internal resistance) and voltage, charge state, circuit design efficiency and contact point/switch resistances play as factors. Reflector or optic design and diameter, captured light capability and lens materials and coatings vary real output greatly. Additionally, manufacturer's play off run time vs maximum brightness depending on their design goals. Check out the XDtalk sponsors for both gun mounted and handheld lights first, then other sites if you can't find your choice.


Now, instead of following the usual cautious marketing strategy of waiting for new LED developments to be commonplace, a few manufacturers are jumping right in with the latest and brightest LED offerings. Rivaling the best of the HIDs, these LEDs promise 900 lumen as the minimum on low current and can be driven at up to 9A at 3.2V for 25 to 30W outputs from a single emitter die. Current or soon to be released lights are the ThruNite Catapult (SST-50 LED and multiple battery configurations possible) the Olight M20 Titanium (with Luminus SST-50 LED, detuned to 500 lumen for better runtime) and soon to market Olight K90 Intimidator (Luminus Phlatlight SST-90 LED) that will probably push upward of 2000 lumen. Obviously, not pocket-sized due to power requirements, it will be in a large 3-4 D cell M*glite size package and run from six 18650 Lithium batteries. With these melting your adversaries eyeballs, maybe a pistol is just backup. Major manufacturer's like Fennix and the other brands normally associated with gun lights are sure to follow soon with their own true high output versions. Not sure where to find the best prices, but try batteryjunction.com or even amazon in a couple weeks for the latest releases to be available.


To initially break into the 800-900 lumen range on the cheap (around $30), try dealextreme.com or kaidomain.com. (usually referred to as DX and KD on internet sites). They also sell gun mounted lights/lasers. These are direct from China clones. Read the product reviews, quality can vary greatly and generally the throw is somewhat less than a more expensive known light brand. Battery brand quality plays a major part in obtaining the full potential of any high output light. A cheap battery charger will definately produce only disappointing light output and runtimes. (Ansmann, MAHA and Ultrafire make some good chargers) candlepowerforums.com is a good place to learn about flashlights, batteries and chargers and cpfmarketplace.com offers some manufactured and custom builder lights and AW lithium batteries. thomasdistributing.com and batteryjunction for general supplies I really advise to use only protected (internal circuit) lithium batteries unless you are really well versed in lithium battery technology or you like explosions in your hand.


Not affiliated/sponsored by any of the manufacturers or sales sites (I do buy there). I own none of the above mentioned lights. My wife has a Trustfire P7-F15 from DX, nice beam for the $. My lights are custom builds. One 900 lumen P7-EDC from electrolumens.com with AW battery and I'm making a 5-mode 8-900 lumen SST-50 LED build in a 3-D M*glite host body with parts from DX, KD and avnet.com. I have an old XM-3 2*AA light I modded to 5 mode with boost driver and a P-4 LED for around the house general use. Its convenient with two AA alkaline or NiMH batteries but only outputs about 180 lumen on high.

[ericc40]

I use a small hand held flashlight with 21 LED, about 65 lumens. It's small enough for me to be keeping it in my pocket at all time.

I was trained to hold the flash light near my face, while holding gun on the other hand. But as some of the above posts suggested, it's not as easy as you think to shoot with just one hand.

that's just me though...

[Palmguy]

FWIW, current pistol lights (Surefire, Streamlight, Insight) all provide more than enough light output for use indoors. There is such a thing as too much light when you've just woken up in a dark house with limited confines.