High Beams
Tactical flashlights give civilians SWAT-team candlepower.
BY CLIFF GROMER
Product photos by Spencer Jones

Weapon lights, essential gear for the military and law enforcement agencies, are gaining favor with civilians.
PHOTO BY ICHIRO NAGATA/SUREFIRE

If it were a nightmare, you could wake up and it would be over. But this is worse. It's real and it's just beginning. That noise that startled you from a sound sleep can mean only one thing. There's an intruder in your home. If you're smart, you have a plan for this kind of situation, like picking up the cellphone by your bed and calling the coppers. They're trained to handle this sort of thing.

Even so, with your family's well-being at stake, you feel an urgency to act--now. You reach for your trusty 12-ga. shotgun or .357 Magnum. But, there's another piece of defensive gear that's just as important--a tactical flashlight. Developed initially for special forces in the military and law enforcement, these lights, with their intensely bright beams, are also available to civilians. They offer protection by temporarily blinding an intruder. Unlike a room light or a conventional flashlight, which shows the bad guys where you are, tactical lights are designed to identify a target without turning you into one.

Tactical lights are designed specifically to be used either alongside a weapon (a handheld) or mounted on a long gun or handgun (a weapon light). There's little point in blinding an intruder to gain a momentary advantage if you can't follow up and get the drop on him. Bluffing is a dangerous game.

Handheld lights are compact, lightweight, and typically use a momentary switch in the tailcap. You grip the light as you would a hypodermic syringe, with your thumb on the switch. This grip helps you to interlock your hands to brace and aim your handgun, something you can't do with a larger flashlight. The momentary switch allows you to sweep a room with short, powerful bursts of light--a technique that makes it difficult for a bad guy to pick out your position.

Weapon lights, which usually can double as handhelds, attach to your gun by sliding into a rail mount that either comes as part of the gun package, or can be purchased separately. Remote switches on long-gun models let you activate the light while maintaining your grip on the gun.

Compared to conventional flashlights, tactical lights deliver more light from a more compact, lighter package. A conventional flashlight with two D batteries and a standard bulb puts out about 15 to 20 lumens. A tactical light cranks out a minimum of 60 lumens of solid beam with no holes or dark spots. It also can stand up to the shock and recoil of a firearm.

Tactical lights get their blinding ability from a high-pressure xenon-filled bulb with a tungsten filament. Power comes from a pair of 3-volt AA lithium batteries instead of conventional 1.5-volt cells. These batteries typically will give about an hour of continuous run time, and bulbs typically last 25 hours. The 6 volts of juice burns the filament hotter and whiter than that in a conventional flashlight. Precision tolerances between the bulb and reflector, and refractive coatings or finishes on the reflector, produce a solid, uniform beam of light. Tactical lights come in an assortment of models and features. Here's a look at the newest lights from the major manufacturers.

Streamlight makes handheld lights, and they also market weapon lights made by Insight Technology. Streamlight's NightFighter-2 puts out 100 lumens and features a tough machined aircraft-aluminum body. It has an anodized finish and a polymer grip ring that's infinitely adjustable for maximum comfort. The small, lightweight design gives you fast target acquisition. The cost is under $75.

Insight Technology specializes in weapon lights and is the foremost supplier of tactical lights and lasers for U.S. special operations. Polymer bodies keep the lights lightweight. The models in the company's new X (for "extreme") line are ruggedized and water-resistant to 66 ft., and they incorporate a bulb-shock-suppressant system. To help the filament survive the impact of weapon recoil, a spring is installed in front of the bulb. There's also a rubber cushion at the rear and a rubber collar encircling the bulb so the assembly is supported from all axes. Tight tolerances between the bulb assembly and body create an air chamber that provides an additional damping effect. A toggle switch at the rear of the light gives you a choice of a momentary or constant beam.

Insight's M3X Tactical Illuminator costs $220 (pistol) and $250 (long gun). It pumps out a peak 125 lumens, can be adjusted from spot to flood, and it takes only 2 seconds to mount or remove the light from the gun. The M6X ($450, estimated), the newest unit from Insight, also pierces the darkness with a 125-lumen incandescent beam, but this unit adds a visible laser to the package. The laser can be adjusted coaxial to the bore for windage and elevation. The M6X's miniaturized components take adjuster design technology to the next level.

The most advanced tactical light is Insight's Laser Aiming Module (L.A.M.). Developed in conjunction with firearms maker Heckler & Koch as a high-end military special ops light, the L.A.M. combines a 60-lumen white light with infrared (IR) illumination, and both a visible and an IR laser--all in a 5-ounce package. This powerhouse of technology doesn't come cheap. The L.A.M., available only to law enforcement agencies, carries a $2250 price tag. A civilian version of the L.A.M. ($1395) gives you the cool special ops look and all the same features except the IR functions. The L.A.M. maintains a very high laser boresight retention of 1/2 in. at 25 meters.

SureFire's line of new tactical handhelds includes the Z2 CombatLight--the same unit that's issued to FBI agents and U.S. air marshals. The Z2 ($86) produces 65 lumens for 60 minutes, or 120 lumens for 20 minutes with an optional lamp assembly. The anodized-aluminum body is designed to be held in a syringe grip with a firearm. The Executive Elite E2e is the most compact 2-cell tactical light in the SureFire lineup. You get 60 lumens for 75 minutes from the 4.6-in., 3.2-ounce anodized-aluminum body package. The light sells for $95.

The L4 Digital Lumamax at $160 is the first 2-cell LED tactical light producing 67 lumens. The 5-watt Luxeon LED uses digital current regulation. A microprocessor matches the LED's requirements to the batteries' output for an optimum level of performance.

SureFire's most technically advanced light is the A2 Aviator Digital Plus. This is the first handheld with an on-board microprocessor for digital current regulation, a high-beam incandescent and three LEDs in a single reflector. The microprocessor also provides a "soft start" instead of the usual voltage spike to the incandescent bulb, for longer filament life. Maximum output is 54 lumens for 50 minutes--just shy of minimum tactical specs, but still highly effective. The LEDs provide usable low-level light for 20 hours.

Tactical lights are rapidly gaining in popularity among civilian users, and increasing numbers of handguns have light-mounting hardware that is provided by the maker. While these lights cost substantially more than the flashlight on your bedroom night table, the family protection they offer can be priceless.

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