Heya Jay,Heh. First of all, flattery will get you everywhere. Even a post... (and thanks, seriously).
Since your obviously become such an internationally well known Blogger About Town (and I respect your opinion as they generally match mine!) what are your thoughts on on-weapon lights for pistols?
I'm considering adding a flashlight to my XD(m) for bedside use (in addition to the 20g Mossberg 500 mounted with a flashlight).
Maybe some nice manufacturer will send you some review units :)
Secondly, there's two schools of thought when it comes to lights on weapons. One school says that anything that helps you better identify your target is a good thing, and having a light attached to your weapon makes it more likely you'll have - and use - a light in dark situations. The other school of thought is that putting a light on your weapon gives the bad guy something bright to shoot at.
Both have their strong points and not-so-strong points. It *is* imperative to properly identify your target should you need to shoot; having a light mounted on your defensive arm gives you one less thing to look for when things go pear-shaped and puts everything you need in one place. There's a lot to be said for that. The downside is that it's another thing to remember to maintain - batteries and bulbs (although LEDs make that pretty much a moot point these days) - as well as train with (i.e. make sure you train with the light on the gun, as even a seemingly small amount of weight can make a difference lugging the gun around and acquiring follow-up shots if needed).
And yes, coming out with a bright light does give a goblin a target to shoot at, that's something to consider. I put this in pretty much the same category as "racking your shotgun to chamber a round will give away your position" - while it is true, in the most technical of senses, it's also on the far end of the bell curve. Your average B&E guy isn't going to stick around when he sees you come out of the bedroom with a shotgun and a forend light, he's going to make like Robert Bannister breaking the four minute mile. A goblin who doesn't beat feet when he sees an armed homeowner is either a psychopath who's going to shoot you with or without the light or a hardened killer, in which case you've got to hope your training is better than his.
And in any case, that light shouldn't come on unless you are just about ready to ventilate someone...
UPDATE: Zercool makes an excellent point in comments that's an expansion of this last sentence. The biggest drawback to having a light on your weapon is that in order to use said light, you have to point your firearm at what you're illuminating. You have to be covering something with the muzzle of your firearm to take advantage of the light. This means you need to be ready and willing to shoot whatever you're pointing the light at. If you're just using a light to see where you're going, have a separate light.
As for me, personally, I have a light on my home defense pistol - the LaserLyte WL-1 I reviewed here. It's small, casts a powerful beam, and only adds a little over an ounce to the overall weight of the SW99 it's hung on. It's only marginally less bright than the monster Brinkmann LED light I keep by the bed (the one that takes two lithium batteries and can roast marshmallows after being on a few seconds). I'd love to get one of the SureFire forend lights for the Mossberg 590 or the Bushmaster (Anyone from SureFire reading? *g*), but that's not in the budget at present time. Now, if one of those "nice manufacturer"s out there who makes weapons lights were to offer a unit(s) for testing, I'd be more than happy to try them out... :)
So, what's the consensus on weapons lights - do you view them as a necessary item, a liability, or something else entirely?
That is all.
9 comments:
I think they have their place, but what you neglected to mention, and what I find to be the biggest negative, is the MISuse of a weapon-mounted light to search.
If you are investigating that "bump in the night" with your pistol in hand, and using the light on the pistol to illuminate your way, you are, by default covering every single thing you illuminate. Cat. Dog. Couch. TV. Kids. Wife.
RULE 2.
Have a light on your gun, absolutely. But have a SECOND light that you use to search/illuminate with, keep the gun at low-ready while searching, and if you need to use the gun, either drop the first light and go to the mounted light, or make sure you've practiced one-hand night shooting at the range.
What tine little bit of training I have had regarding shooting in low/no light involved using a flashlight. Of course, this was back when weapons mounted lights were almost unheard of.
I like the flexibility of a separate flashlight. I use my Gladius light a LOT, but luckily not my carry weapon (for live social encounters).
I suppose it depends on the situation and training. I can surely see the advantage to a weapon mounted light... one handed operation and you can't 'forget' where it is when you need it under pressure. I strongly agree with ZerCool about the house clearing function though, and that is the main reason my house guns do not have lights on them.
Jay,
Interesting post, but one point of fact needs correction. It was ROGER Bannister (not Robert) who was first to break the four minute mile.
My 5" 1911 home defense gun mounts (semi-permanently) a TLR-3. It would be my carry gun, too, if I could find a holster for the damn thing. I shoot low-light pretty regularly to make sure I know how to use it, and it's less of a task than having a 'loose' light. I've shot dark IDPA stages with a hand-held light, then against with the weapon mounted, and the *huge* time difference is all I needed to see.
To respond to some points made:
1. Don't want to give badguy a target? Don't turn on the light. Besides, if you shoot thumbs-forward, your support thumb is *right there* and you can use the light only momentarily.
2. You don't have to point the gun at everything you light up. Light reflects pretty well off of drywall, and a weapon light at a white rug lights up a whole bedroom pretty good.
I am a big proponent of having a light sperated from your weapon. This allows you to do several things. Aside from not pointing your muzzle at objects you may not wish to destroy, you can also control how much light and where it goes. Ever point a flashlight on the ceiling to get a better view of a room when it's dark? Same concept. This illuminates more area to catch movement/bad guy in. It also prevents a hot spot of light that you would tend to fixate on - to the point to causing your eyes to adjust to that hotspot, and lose your peripheral vision. Tunnel vision is enough of a problem in a critical incident, you don't want to make it worse with technique.
Also, take a look at the FBI and FBI modifed methods of holding a pistol + flashlight - these both cast some light on your sights, which probably isn't a bad thing.
Side note, although I've commented on your blog before (and even sent you a dead goblin - yay!) this is the first time I've done so with my own (new) blog linked.
There's a class I really want to take called Armed Movement in Structures. It's run by Southnarc, a gulf coast SWAT commander who's also done a ton of undercover work. I've taken his 'extreme close quarters concepts' course a few times (time #3 next weekend) and it's top notch.
From reading AARs from people who've done AMIS, the takeaway seems to be that having both a pistol mounted light/laser and a strobing handheld is the way to go.
"I" don't like a light attached to the weapon. To me, it loses a heck of a lot of flexibility as well as becoming a target for the bad guy(s)when in use. I have done quite a bit of training with flashlights and I.M.H.O. use the light separately.
However, your mileage may vary......
Mounted light, one light. Loose light, many lights.
Not to mention covering a lot of stuff you would rather not destroy.
I've currently got between 10 and 11 LED flashlights scattered about the house and I can use them with any of the weapons I might have at hand with schumer comes calling.
ymmv.
NVG + IR illuminator on weapon FTW
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