Tactical P7 Review

I first heard about the Tactical P7 from reading a thread about the light from Laser Pointer Forums.

The Tactical P7 seemed like a very good deal. It's price $99.00 + $19.99. I got the light for $99.00 because I was able to pick up the TP7 locally from one of the partners of Tactical HID Store.

You also get a nice Combination Lock Case.



There are some nice cut outs in the foam for the light, Rechargeable Lithium Battery and 2 chargers, AC and a car charger.



AC Charger



Car Charger



The Tactical P7 uses a P7 driven @ 2.8amps (High 100%).

As you can see it's an OP (Orange Peel) Reflector.

The beam tint is nice and white. No hole in the beam.





The bezel is removable.



Behind the lens the Tacticall P7 uses a GITD (Glow In The Dark) thick o-ring.



The lens measures 2.48mm thick and the diameter is 69.97mm.



This is where the +ve -ve side of the battery pack makes contact.



The fit is excellent.

The Type III Hard Anodize Black is excellent. Good matching of colors, no flaws in the finish.



No logo.



The Tactical P7 is a wide light

This is a size comparsion to my hand.



I found this is the best way to hold the TP7





The reason the battery tube is so wide is because of the 3×18650 lithium battery pack. They are side by side. This is the +ve -ve side. The charging port is located here.





Tactical HID recommends that when the light is not in use for long periods of time remove the battery. A rubber cap is included. Also recommended is do not charge the battery for more than 24 hours.

The charger has a red indication that will turn to green when fully charged.



There are 3 led light used for emergencies when the battery gets low in the TP7 you can turn on the leds with an on off switch.





The rear of the battery pack is the 4 modes (100%, 70%, 50%, 20%) reverse clickie.



I never had a light with this many threads when screwing the tailcap on or off.



Rear tailcap




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These are the lux measurements I got.


Tactical P7 @ (100%) - 9420 lux @ 1 meter

Tactical P7 @ (70%) - 8950 lux @ 1 meter

Tactical P7 @ (50%) - 4380 lux @ 1 meter

Tactical P7 @ (20%) - 1440 lux @ 1 meter




Tactical P7 @ 32' (100%)



Tactical P7 @ 32' (70%)



Tactical P7 @ 32' (50%)



Tactical P7 @ 32' (20%)




I think the Tactical P7 is a very good deal for it's price. I paid only $99.00 because I was able to pick up the light locally. I didn't have to pay the $19.99 shipping fee. You get a nice combination lock case. The AC and car charger. You won't be able to find a P7 light with all these features.

You can by an el cheapo P7 light but you get what you paid for. It may not work or have the heat sinking issues. The light will get hot very fast and the heat may cause premature failure of the P7 led.

Some may not like the wide battery tube but I like it. If it had the 3 18650's stacked on each other it would be a very long tube. The side by side makes it smaller.

Weight issues of the Tactical do not bother me. Not a very heavy light IMO.


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Pros


Price

Type III Hard Anodize.

Fit is excellent.

4 levels of light.

Beam tint nice and white.

No hole in the beam.

No strobe and SOS!

Combination Lock Case.

AC and car charger.

AC charger takes an input 100-240v.

Rechargeable battery pack.

AC charger shows an green indication indication when fully charged.

Good run time in high and low. Battery Life: 2.5hrs - 12hrs


Cons


I wish the light would remember it's last mode when selected off.

Instructions on the battery could have used some good english translation.

No instructions. I was told there might be instructions included in the future.

No forward clickie.

Rear reverse clickie installed on the battery pack.

No holster.

The 20% seems a little too bright for reading someting in the dark. If the level was set at 10%-5% that might be a good low level.

This looks like a nice light for the money.

I like the emergency LED's in the battery pack. Is this a new idea?

I also agree that the "low" looks pretty darn bright. You could certainly kiss your night vision goodbye, especially in a confined space or trying to read a piece of paper or map up close.

Nice looking light - thanks for the detailed review and pics Ernie. :thumbsup:

Seems like a good deal for the price. Odd that that the battery charger doesn't notify you when the cells are full - a potential concern if it overcharges the cells. Do you know if it uses protected 18650s?

And the case is a cute touch (although I would feel like James Bond carrying that thing around :laughing.

thanks for the review Ernsanada. I always enjoy the pics. The thing that does not make sense to me is the tail switch on a fat light. A side switch would be better for control of use and the light itself.

Thanks for the review after reading your review heres my thoughts.

Is this a C bin or D bin and what color code is it? Its not specified on there website. Were just estimating color Temp.

The problem I see is that it dosen't have a full charge notification. Can you damage the batteries? Do you have to worry about it blowing up if you leave it on the Charger to long? Are the cells protected during usage?

I personally don't care for these big funky Chinese Suit cases. I would much rather have a better charger then the Suit case. Or I would prefer a cheaper price with less then 20.00 shipping in a smaller package.

When I spend 120.00 on a flashlight. I would like to know everything in full detail about it. In my opinion it is to closely priced to Big name super high quality flashlights.If you are willing to drop 120 shipped for a non brand name light you are willing to spend an extra 20-30 dollars from a company that has already been proven. The Tiablo ACE is putting out over twice as much LUX as the light above which is not even 10k Lux at 1 meter. For a little bit more money I would get the ACE.

(Tiablo ACE 20,000 Lux 1 meter):thumbsup:
(Tactical P7 9,420 LUX 1 Meter)

If this flashlight was 69.00 +shipping I would probably buy it.
lovecpf

On my lux meter I got these readings.


Tiablo ACE MCE - 15,900 lux @ 1 meter

Tactical P7 @ (100%) - 9420 lux @ 1 meter



Tactical P7 @ 32' (100%)



Tiablo ACE MCE @ 32'

I understand different meters get different readings. Thats still 6,480 Lux difference on your meter. That looks like a pretty noticeable difference in those pics

comparing the two. I would still like to have my questions answered in my previous post if more info is updated.

Thanks for all your great work doing these reviews you always keep it real from what Ive seen.:twothumbs

Seems like a nice light. My only gripe is that it's called "Tactical" but sports a reverse clicky. Those two things should be mutually exclusive. Any light deemed tactical should sport a forward clicky.

I don't know what bin P7 thery are using.

On the battery it says not to charge the battery longer than 24 hours. If you aren't going to use the light for awhile to remove the battery.

I own two of the Tactical P7's and they do indeed have a "Charge" LED indicator on the charger adapter. When the battery pack is fully charged the LED power light on the power adapter turns from RED to Green when fully charged. Another virtue of the light is that it can tail stand like a can of beer. Very solid and positive when in the candle mode. It would be nice if it had a momentary "ON" feature and last setting memory. All around I think this is a very well made practical light. As far as reading with it, I have found no problem at all. That little EDC light in your pocket is for reading the fine print. Great Review. Thanks for the photos....:devil:

How does it compare with the Legion-II?

weklund said:

I own two of the Tactical P7's and they do indeed have a "Charge" LED indicator on the charger adapter. When the battery pack is fully charged the LED power light on the power adapter turns from RED to Green when fully charged. Another virtue of the light is that it can tail stand like a can of beer. Very solid and positive when in the candle mode. It would be nice if it had a momentary "ON" feature and last setting memory. All around I think this is a very well made practical light. As far as reading with it, I have found no problem at all. That little EDC light in your pocket is for reading the fine print. Great Review. Thanks for the photos....:devil:

Click to expand...

When I first plugged in the battery for recharge it only took about 20 seconds to go green. I ran the light took lux readings and recharged the battery again. It took about 20 seconds to recharge. I took some beam shots indoors and out doors and again I recharged the batteries. It took about another 20 seconds. I used the light for a couple of days on and off and the batteries charged fast again.

After reading this post and your PM's I tried running the light for longer periods. I did 20 minutes and the battery took about 2 minutes to recharge. I did run the light for 60 minutes and it took 1 hour 17 minutes to recharge.

Temperature at the battery tube was 110 degrees F. The TP7 was hot but I was able to hold it without discomfort.

It seems I was wrong about the charger not going from red to green on a full charge.

I corrected my initial post with the correct information.

Thanks weklund!, for catching my error in my review.

Looks like quite a good light. The box looks good.

Thanks for the very detailed review

Thanks Ernsanada for the review.

Some interesting ( and I think nice ) features. I like the 4 modes, they seem nicely spaced. After owning both, I'm not much on reverse clickies and I agree I don't consider a reverse clicky tactical. I do like the looks of this light. The hand shot is nice and shows you won't be sticking it in your front pocket.

I guess the locking suitcase is nice but what the heck, is was only $99.00. lol

Nice to see reviews on lights that are not talked about much on CPF.

Bill

Wow these seems like a good deal for $99.00. I'd pick one up if I wasn't keen on building a Mag P7. Anyone know how the 2 compare?

Thanks for the great review erns! :twothumbs

I came across this light looking for a hand held HID light. Upon googling the Tactical P7, I came across your review.

This looks to be a nice light P7 light for the money. I have been contemplating modding a Mag for an MC-E and/or P7 build for a while now and may just get the Tactical P7 and do an MC-E Mag mod. The price/performance ratio is quite compelling.

bullettproof said:

When I spend 120.00 on a flashlight. I would like to know everything in full detail about it. In my opinion it is to closely priced to Big name super high quality flashlights.If you are willing to drop 120 shipped for a non brand name light you are willing to spend an extra 20-30 dollars from a company that has already been proven. The Tiablo ACE is putting out over twice as much LUX as the light above which is not even 10k Lux at 1 meter. For a little bit more money I would get the ACE.

(Tiablo ACE 20,000 Lux 1 meter):thumbsup:
(Tactical P7 9,420 LUX 1 Meter)

If this flashlight was 69.00 +shipping I would probably buy it.

Click to expand...

I think the value of the Tactical P7 is in the included 3 x 18650 LiIon battery pack and the 2 chargers. You'd need to add $40-50 to the Tiablo's price if you wanted batteries and a charger. If you're not too particular about some ergonomic issues, for 1/2 the Tiablo's price, I think this is a good deal.

UpChUcK said:

Thanks for the great review erns! :twothumbs

I came across this light looking for a hand held HID light. Upon googling the Tactical P7, I came across your review.

This looks to be a nice light P7 light for the money. I have been contemplating modding a Mag for an MC-E and/or P7 build for a while now and may just get the Tactical P7 and do an MC-E Mag mod. The price/performance ratio is quite compelling.





I think the value of the Tactical P7 is in the included 3 x 18650 LiIon battery pack and the 2 chargers. You'd need to add $40-50 to the Tiablo's price if you wanted batteries and a charger. If you're not too particular about some ergonomic issues, for 1/2 the Tiablo's price, I think this is a good deal.

Click to expand...

Its great that it has Batteries but most of us here that collect lights have plenty of batteries and chargers.I would like the light much more if you could drop 3x18650's in it and put fresh cells in it when needed.I would want more Lux out of this light and a really good driver thats what would be great and make it popular like the other big name brands.

bullettproof said:

Its great that it has Batteries but most of us here that collect lights have plenty of batteries and chargers.I would like the light much more if you could drop 3x18650's in it and put fresh cells in it when needed.I would want more Lux out of this light and a really good driver thats what would be great and make it popular like the other big name brands.

Click to expand...

I see your point BP. I for one kinda wish there were a way to plop in some 18650's too. But when I do get this light, I will get a spare battery pack also. For those seeking and "all-in-one" P7 light package, this is hard to beat. It has some nice touches like being able to use the battery pack as emergency lighting or for reading even. Which is nice considering that the lowest output is probably too bright. And I like the case for it. Keeps everything together. I'd probably swap it out for a Pelican though. This is definitely a P& light aimed at the value end of the market and I feel it delivers in spades.

Defenitly a solid package for the p7! I love mine, and use it all the time. Will (weklund) was kind enough to offer up for sale his spare case and light, so I just to jump on it. I took the whole thing apart to inspect the quality and found it to be top notch! The quality of beam is pretty amazing and I thought it would be too chunky in my hands, but it's just fine. Feels solid and powerful.