The value of a "tactical" light for civilian concealed-carry

[fishndad]

i edc a flashlight for work and becouse i like having it on me. i carry a weapon to to protect my family.
in an emergency life on the line situation i pray for clarity. i pray i do not reach for my flashlight.

 

[dc38]

As mentioned above, the purpose of an edc is to have a flashlight literally IN HAND, so by the time it needs to be used, it is not tucked in your pocket somewhere. Whenever I go for walks or watch a movie in a theater or stay out late, my flashlight is always in my palm, clipped to an elastic i have wrapped around my hand. that way, the flashlight is always in ready position, just raise my hand and click the switch. If i need my fingers for something, I just unwrap my hand, and the light is still palmed and ready in my hand. anyways, true story here - I was leaving a night class almost a year ago, and this shady dude stumbled up to me. I was ready to flash and run (or beatdown), which was a good to have been ready for. The guy was drunk, stumbled up to me and said "i need your money" and started reaching into his waistband for something. I whipped out my xeno and blasted him full in the face and he (AMAZINGLY) crumpled to the floor as if I had maced him...I felt kind of bad afterwards; as his arm was extended out on the floor, I saw a deadly wallet in the light -_-. So i apologized and told him not to ask for money that way, bought him a water bottle from a vending machine to sober up, and went on my merry way. :/ but yeah, My paranoia finally "paid off" lol.

 

[zenbeam]

I never went for the concealed carry permit in Texas. I grew up target shooting (more like plinking at abandoned rock quarries and such) and became rather handy with handguns (revolvers more so). I've also trained a number of years in martial arts and have developed a reasonably strong personal sense of situational awareness. All that combined and still I prefer not to have a handgun with me when I'm "out and about". I still respect the element of surprise and would just rather not arm an assailant with my own weapon. But I don't disagree with competent individuals choosing to EDC a concealed handgun. I just wanted to state my personal view. Maybe one day, I will change and go for that permit.

But what I really wanted to say... lol.. was in fact about flashlights. Two things:

If all I had was a powerfully bright flashlight that would easily blind a "bad guy" who was clearly intent upon causing me harm - I would love those extra few seconds to either disappear or shut that "bad guy" down - and then disappear.

And the other thing, the Zebralight SC600 is, IMHO, a very tactical light actually because, if you left the memory set correctly, all it takes is one quick tap of the switch to BLAM an assailant in the face with 750 lumens! And it's such a little, easily concealed light. If that's not tactical, then my hat will taste great for breakfast!

So far, I just carry lights to have light if needed. Not so much with self defense in mind - but that isn't ruled out either.

Do I waffle? lol

 

[EMC2]

Does anybody know anything about the modified D maglite with extention enforcement is currently using? It is seriously bright and will definately mess you up.

 

[HotWire]

Glad I had my M4. I was walking barefoot (Colorado River) in swimming trunks down to the boat and I thought I saw movement. Turned on the light! The biggest, fattest, longest, ugliest, scariest rattlesnake I ever saw right in the middle of the path! A quick twist and I was gone! Thanks, Surefire!

 

[watson.01]

I for one love the surefire E series lights. My EDC most of the time is a Surefire E1B Backup 110 lumens is pleanty in dim or dark conditions and not so bright that you blind yourself. If you feel like a little more power the E2D LED defender or Lx2 Lumamax is nice. Took my E2D out last night when i went for a walk 200 lumens sure lights up the night.

 

[lightfooted]

Already lots of great responses and while I'm sure Zenbeam is more than capable of defending himself from attackers I would wonder how he would deal with someone else being attacked and obviously about to be murdered from 30-40 feet away?

Personally even before all of these LED wonderlights came about I always carried a Surefire with me, often even while not carrying my sidearm...but always when I did. Sure you may not always need light to see your attacker these days but in this modern era of technological wonders...why would you not avail yourself of little conveniences like a Sunwayman V11R??? Would you consider "going out on the town" with family or friends and not take your cell phone?

The two things I always told my students that they should carry even if they decided that going armed was not for them was a flashlight and a cell phone. The phone (even if it didn't have an account could still call for help) for obvious reasons and the light for all those things you never realize until afterward...even signaling the emergency services personnel arriving to help.

 

[dc38]

I never went for the concealed carry permit in Texas. I grew up target shooting (more like plinking at abandoned rock quarries and such) and became rather handy with handguns (revolvers more so). I've also trained a number of years in martial arts and have developed a reasonably strong personal sense of situational awareness. All that combined and still I prefer not to have a handgun with me when I'm "out and about". I still respect the element of surprise and would just rather not arm an assailant with my own weapon. But I don't disagree with competent individuals choosing to EDC a concealed handgun. I just wanted to state my personal view. Maybe one day, I will change and go for that permit.

But what I really wanted to say... lol.. was in fact about flashlights. Two things:

If all I had was a powerfully bright flashlight that would easily blind a "bad guy" who was clearly intent upon causing me harm - I would love those extra few seconds to either disappear or shut that "bad guy" down - and then disappear.

And the other thing, the Zebralight SC600 is, IMHO, a very tactical light actually because, if you left the memory set correctly, all it takes is one quick tap of the switch to BLAM an assailant in the face with 750 lumens! And it's such a little, easily concealed light. If that's not tactical, then my hat will taste great for breakfast!

So far, I just carry lights to have light if needed. Not so much with self defense in mind - but that isn't ruled out either.

Do I waffle? lol

I suppose you possess a "slap cap"? lol

 

[Fireclaw18]

the klarus xt2c is pretty small, and always turns on at MAX which seems to be the ideal setup for this kind of thing. an rrt of sunway V won't do a very good job of lighting up a BG if you accidentally left the ring on moon mode...

RRT-01 doesn't have a button, it just has the rotator ring as its only control. Since it's the only control, it's impossible to accidentally leave it in moon mode. It's also possible to flick the ring from off to max power in less than a second... about as fast it takes to click the button on other flashlights.

 

[fishndad]

RRT-01 doesn't have a button, it just has the rotator ring as its only control. Since it's the only control, it's impossible to accidentally leave it in moon mode. It's also possible to flick the ring from off to max power in less than a second... about as fast it takes to click the button on other flashlights.

thats right also when you you remove it from your pocket your thumb and index fingers are right on the control ring.
i love mine and wish more brands would jump on the rotary bandwagon.

 

[zenbeam]

I suppose you possess a "slap cap"? lol

Doesn't everyone?

Already lots of great responses and while I'm sure Zenbeam is more than capable of defending himself from attackers I would wonder how he would deal with someone else being attacked and obviously about to be murdered from 30-40 feet away?

I forgot to mention that I always carry knives. Maybe not balanced throwing knives, but that's not to say that the ones I carry can't be thrown. Heck, even having the blunt end of the handle bounce off a cheek bone might buy the victim a chance to run. And if that's all I could do in that scenario, then that's all I could do - followed by throwing my flashlight too. But I'm not going to go CCW just at the outside chance that I might save someone some day. If I ever decide to go CCW, circumstances will truly have to merit it.

But since this is all hypothetical...

Now, if I was in my car... 30 to 40 feet away..... no problem! I can always get the dents removed. :naughty:

 

[dc38]

Doesn't everyone?





I forgot to mention that I always carry knives. Maybe not balanced throwing knives, but that's not to say that the ones I carry can't be thrown. Heck, even having the blunt end of the handle bounce off a cheek bone might buy the victim a chance to run. And if that's all I could do in that scenario, then that's all I could do - followed by throwing my flashlight too. But I'm not going to go CCW just at the outside chance that I might save someone some day. If I ever decide to go CCW, circumstances will truly have to merit it.

But since this is all hypothetical...

Now, if I was in my car... 30 to 40 feet away..... no problem! I can always get the dents removed. :naughty:

you, my friend, are every bit as demented as i am lol. unfortunately, i do not possess a slap cap, but i do have a tightly bundled paracord bracelet with metal "flogs" tucked inside the weave...made by me of course lol. Im trying to get it to self deploy as a centrifugal weapon aa soon as i unbuckle it from my wrist and swing. it makes a nice dent in cardboard, easily cracks a windshield, and may cause some nice gauging in the inted target. however, it uses some fishing leaders as extensions, so...yeah. pair that up with a flashlight of extreme intensity and you've got a decent edc last ditch self defense system. after all, you wouldnt expect a 1.5 foot reach with a 7 inch bracelet, or a 400+ lumen veritable wall to slam into your face and eyes, respectively. Im planning on adding non lead fishing weights instead of the flogs, just for impact strength, and to turn the bracelet into a fashionable yet functional survivalpackage.

 

[jhc37013]

I carried on the job and as a civilian for over 10yrs and I use to only carry light's on a duty belt or on my regular plain clothes belt, over the years I started carrying a backup light in my pocket, a E1B was the first. I found that it was much easier, faster and less obvious pulling from my pocket so instead of pulling a main "tactical" light from my belt 95% of the time I used a pocket light for everything the other 5% was for a bigger light with more battery capacity when I needed light for an extended time.

I think advancements in flashlight tech had a lot to do with that as I could get almost as much light from the backup light as I did from the bigger light on my belt. The only things that I must have from EDC light to accompany a weapon is instant max mode and be 80lmns or more, more lumens the better but usability and reliability trump lumens when I'm thinking self defense.

 

[novice]

First of all, I don't carry a concealed handgun, so I hope this is not considered off-topic.

I walk my dog almost every night (when I'm not sharing custody with my 'off-site' partner). There is a small park, with baseball diamonds, and right next to a bike path, about a block from my residence, that I take the dog to. My town is generally considered fairly quiet and safe, although there was a very nice young man (my partner's son was a friend) murdered on the bike path, very close to the park, with what the police say was either a machete, or a sword, as he walked home from work last year. Completely senseless; I don't think that there were any signs of a struggle, and there don't appear to be any street gangs here. I usually carry at least 2 bright lights every night I walk the dog. I turn one on when I cross the street, and let it swing in my hand for motorists to see, in case they are not paying close enough attention. When I step into the park, I immediately sweep the area. I don't want any surprises. My lights are bright enough to project a decent distance. I rotate them, and like to 'play' with them and compare beam qualities. As I am walking and passing the locked bathroom there, I am always checking the blinder spots at the farther ends of the building. After I pass the bathrooms, I am then in a larger area with a baseball diamond, that I walk through. Again, I sweep the area before proceeding. Last year, as I was entering the park through the low cyclone fence, I noticed a parked van. The street in front of the park is very narrow, and there is no parking allowed on either side of the street. That got my radar kicked up a notch. As I passed the end of the bathroom, and swept the larger area after it, I immediately lit up a prone figure a ways away who was sleeping there. The light woke him up, and he sat up. I apologized to him from a distance, and immediately turned around and left. He was probably 'sleeping it off', but I have no idea if he was dangerous or not. It was a dark night, and if I had not been checking out the area with a bright flashlight, I could have practically walked over him in the direction I was heading, which would have startled the heck out of both of us, and might have been dangerous if he thought I was trying to rob him as he slept. I think that bright flashlights are extremely useful for checking out your surroundings, and blind spots, at night, whether you are in open spaces, or walking down the street in the inner city. You can see things at a distance, which translates into more time for reacting to/anticipating possible problems.

 

[fyrstormer]

There is no reason not to carry a flashlight, because no matter where you live it will be nighttime 12 hours a day on average. Also there is no reason to carry a light you can't make ready at a moment's notice, because there's no reason to carry ANY tool you can't make ready at a moment's notice. You don't need the excuse of "tactical advantage" to justify carrying useful tools that work well, even though half the cops who've seen my flashlight ask why I'm not content to use something inferior.

 

[Overclocker]

There is no reason not to carry a flashlight, because no matter where you live it will be nighttime 12 hours a day on average. Also there is no reason to carry a light you can't make ready at a moment's notice, because there's no reason to carry ANY tool you can't make ready at a moment's notice. You don't need the excuse of "tactical advantage" to justify carrying useful tools that work well, even though half the cops who've seen my flashlight ask why I'm not content to use something inferior.

well my question specifically is if there are advantages to using a "tactical" light such has the klarus xt-series (which always comes on at max, no need to fumble to switch modes or turn heads) as opposed non-tactically oriented lights (which are actually more convenient to use in everyday life)

but it seems that for a civilian a flashlight has to be already in your hand and turned on to be any useful in these situations. so it seems that a "tactical UI" isn't going to be very useful to me at all...

 

[flashlight nut]

The bottom line is every situation unfolds differently. There are many instances where you will already have flashlight in hand, wether you are walking in a dimmly lit area or dark area at night and while doing so you hear something or see shadowy figures. With a flashlight clippied to a belt or inside a front pocket, the flashlight can be deployed quickly to light the area. The bad guy isn't always going to jump out of the shadows like a ninja. Many times there are indicators before an attack happens if you are being alert and not walking around with your head up your a**.
There are times when a flashlight won't help and there are time when it can help. If you don't have a flashlight you won't be able to deploy one if the circumstances would call for one. If you do find yourself in a situation where you need to deploy a flashight in conjuntion with a firearm, size and UI will matter. I find a 2 x cr123 size light with momentary only UI works best for me. It is small enough to manipulate my firearm with the flashlight in my hand but not too small where my hand might cover the front of the light. The UI is simple and as stress proof as a UI can be. There are many fine lights and UIs out there. This is what works best for me. The key is to practice with your equipment in realistic based scenarios. Go to the range and practice using your light with your firearm while shooting, reloading and clearing malfunctions. Take low light shooting courses that will run you through the paces. To say that a flashlight is of no use in these situations is just absurd and to say that a flashlight will give you the advantage in EVERY situation is also absurd.

 

[Overclocker]

The bottom line is every situation unfolds differently. There are many instances where you will already have flashlight in hand, wether you are walking in a dimmly lit area or dark area at night and while doing so you hear something or see shadowy figures. With a flashlight clippied to a belt or inside a front pocket, the flashlight can be deployed quickly to light the area. The bad guy isn't always going to jump out of the shadows like a ninja. Many times there are indicators before an attack happens if you are being alert and not walking around with your head up your a**.
There are times when a flashlight won't help and there are time when it can help. If you don't have a flashlight you won't be able to deploy one if the circumstances would call for one. If you do find yourself in a situation where you need to deploy a flashight in conjuntion with a firearm, size and UI will matter. I find a 2 x cr123 size light with momentary only UI works best for me. It is small enough to manipulate my firearm with the flashlight in my hand but not too small where my hand might cover the front of the light. The UI is simple and as stress proof as a UI can be. There are many fine lights and UIs out there. This is what works best for me. The key is to practice with your equipment in realistic based scenarios. Go to the range and practice using your light with your firearm while shooting, reloading and clearing malfunctions. Take low light shooting courses that will run you through the paces. To say that a flashlight is of no use in these situations is just absurd and to say that a flashlight will give you the advantage in EVERY situation is also absurd.

let's go through the same scenario with both the tactically-oriented klarus xt2c and the zebralight sc600

1) klarus. you're walking at night and you notice something suspicious so you pull out your xt2c and you click it on. bad guy starts coming at you carrying a pipe so you pull out your pistol...

2) zebralight. you're walking at night and you notice something suspicious so you pull out your sc600 and you click it on then hold it in overhand position. bad guy starts coming at you carrying a pipe so you pull out your pistol...


so there it makes no difference that you got no tactically-oriented UI.

now but if an attack is imminent then forget the flashlight, just draw your gun asap.

either way the "tactical UI" doesn't help you. this is of course assuming you're only using your firearm defensively. i would think that a tactical UI would be quite useful for an assassin LOL

 

[flashlight nut]

Keep in mind that you do not want to have your light on constantly. Whenever you deploy a firearm you want to seek cover. When moving from cover to cover your light should be off. When reloading or clearing malfunctions your light should be off so you are not lit up like a Christmas tree and the bad guy can see you are vulnerable at that moment. I can tell you from experience that soft presses usually do not work under stress for most people. Do not get hung up on the word "tactical". Many times it is used incorrectly and it mean different things to different people. Just pick the UI that lets you accomplish what you need to do quickly, efficiently and simply. Again, this stuff is not learned by reading or osmosis. Research is a good place to start but you need to physically train for these situations if you are serious about it.
I should also mention that I am not familiar with the UI on the Klarus or Zebralight so my comments are not directed to these lights.

 

[fyrstormer]

In regards to quick deployment, I like the Jetbeam RRT-0. Forward clicky so I don't have to click the switch to get a burst of light, and a control ring that lets me select any brightness level the light is capable of generating, and also letting me pre-select the brightness before the light is turned on, while still letting me leave the ring in Max Brightness position when it's just sitting in my pocket.