Law enforcement flashlight recommendations (Part 3)

[bser]

(A sequel to this thread.)

My department has a magcharger in every squad, each of which are probably 20 years old. We are looking at replacing these lights soon and another officer and myself are in charge of finding a suitable replacement because we work soley night shift. I've been given only two requirements so far are.

1. good warranty: not sure exactly what qualifies for this but basically looking for a rugged, dependable light that can stand up to the rigors of police work, and company that will stand behind what it makes.

2. Rechargable by some sort of docking bay. I'm not sure why this is vital and I may be able to convince administration that it could be easier to find a light that uses a common sized rechargable battery that way we could have extra batteries charging on station in case a light runs out of juice.

Price range wasn't specified but is a concern. We currently have 3 innova t4 lights that the night shift officers belt carry which retail at $150 a piece so around this ball park would work.

My main goal is to get a light that could replace both the in car magchargers we use and still be small enough to belt carry. If I can find a light to do this i think it would be acceptable spend slightly more than 150 especially since any light i would be looking at in this range would be vastly superior to the innova t4.

I'm open to any and all suggestions, the more the merrier.

My first thought that would be a perfect fit was the wolf eyes sniper p7. More output than a magcharger and small enough to belt carry. Only down side is i'm not sure the $220 price is withing the budget.

 

[FAAbUlights]

Re: magcharger replacement for LEO

For the criteria you have listed a few things come to mind. I dont know if you think the dept. would prefer LED or Incandescent so I will include both. In order to keep a good warranty and charger bases for each light here is what I could suggest.

1. Streamlight Ultra Stinger
2. Streamlight Stinger
3. Surefire 8AX Commander (aluminum body) or 8NX (nitrolon body instead of aluminum).
4. Surefire 9AN
5. Pelican 7060 LAPD

Wolfeyes wouldn't be a bad light but their warranty and customer service is something I have no experience with as with the other brands I have dealt with.

 

[sadtimes]

Re: magcharger replacement for LEO

The most used item on my belt is a radio. The second most used item on my belt is the Stinger. I cant believe that your not carrying one now, For the size and output and the hour run time you really cant go wrong. My dept issues them to every officer ontop of a magcharger that stays on the cradle in the car. I have a personal one that I carry at work and I have the piggyback fast charger so that I dont ever have to take the light off my belt, I just swap the batteries out.... not to mention they make professional very nice looking holsters for these lights so that you wont look like a retard with it on your belt.

There is not a day that goes by that I dont use the flashlight on my belt. We used to do 2 weeks of day shift and then 2 weeks of night shift, even on day shift I find the need for a flashlight almost everyday!

Ive gotten to where I carry a single AA LED in the car for a backup. Never can have to many lights being the Police!!!

 

[Lightraven]

Re: magcharger replacement for LEO

I like my Wolf Eyes Boxer for LE work, but the particular criteria in the original post might make this brand unfeasible. Without going into detail, I'd just suggest looking for an American brand--regardless of where the light is actually made--to handle department-level warranty issues in a professional, businesslike way.

The Pelican 7060 seems like the obvious choice.

 

[dano]

Re: magcharger replacement for LEO

Look at the post titled "Threads Of Interest" (it's a sticky on the very top) click in there and you'll see a thread about law enforcement lights...

-dan

 

[Stephan_L]

Re: magcharger replacement for LEO

Hi bser,

as you mentioned, that some of your partners have the Inova T4, I may have an advice for you.

If you are not in a hurry, maybe you would like to wait a little bit and see, what the new Inova K-Series will be (aka Inforce - Line).

I have seen two discussions, dealing with these lights:

http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?t=188646&page=4

http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?t=200248

In the second discussion, you may finde some pics of one model of the new series.

Further information should be on http://www.inova-mil.com, but it still says "coming soon".

I am waiting and looking forward for these lights. Maybe, if you would send an official letter to inova, maybe they will tell you some more information, because I think, it's not that far until the release (I just hope so).

Just my 2 €ct.

Bye,

Stephan

 

[LukeA]

Re: magcharger replacement for LEO

Pelican's warranty is absolutely unbeatable and the 7060 is a fantastic light.

 

[DM51]

Re: magcharger replacement for LEO

I've changed the name of this thread to make it a sequel to 2 previous ones about Law enforcement flashlights.

As with its predecessors, it has been added to the "Threads of Interest" sticky in this sub-forum.

 

[KeyGrip]

For everyone's information, Pelican is putting out a larger, possibly more powerful version of the 7060. At least there are options.

 

[depusm12]

For everyone's information, Pelican is putting out a larger, possibly more powerful version of the 7060. At least there are options.

KeyGrip any more info on this new light from Pelican? I would love a more powerfull version with a strobe.

 

[KeyGrip]

Initial information/impressions are here. Don't know about strobe, but I suppose its possible since I don't think the light is out yet.

 

[rtt]

I came across a TV program about actual LEO activity and was surprised to see so many LEO's that seem to be using what appears to be 4 cell Mags. I now understand why some LEO's like the length. They put the light under their arm so they have both hands free to take notes! The length of the light seems to appeal to some LEO's.

 

[Yoda4561]

Those may have been magchargers you saw. Do not underestimate their output. They're way brighter in person than on tv and make an alkaline mag look pretty anemic.

 

[bwcaw]

My reccomendation would be LED stingers. They fill all the requirements on your first post as well as the added feature of not having to replace the lamp when it burns out. I used to carry an LED stinger on my duty belt and it is an excellent flashlight. Fairly lightweight, small and easy on the back, but its still big enough so you can tuck it under your arm to write. They are also fairly cheap too.( right around a hundred bucks i believe) Streamlight is a very reputable manufacturer as well. I have owned several streamlights over the years and have never had a problem with any of them, so im not really sure about the warrantee, but i assume they would warrant against manufaturing defects etc. Good luck with your search!

 

[Chrontius]

Don't discount the Surefire 9AN. It's a little brighter than the 8 series on high, and has a long-running low beam as well.

 

[fireluvrandrew]

I know a distributer, I got to hold the new pelican, its built extremely nice!! unfortunately diddnt get to play with it ill find out for you guys by the end of the week though when I see him again, ill make sure i play with it and snap some photos

 

[roymail]

Those may have been magchargers you saw. Do not underestimate their output. They're way brighter in person than on tv and make an alkaline mag look pretty anemic.

Or, they may be Streamlight SL20's. I see lots of them on "The First 48" on A&E. Also, there is a mixture of Stingers and Surefires.

 

[Meltdown]

I've been selling LE gear professionally for 11 years so I've had a chance to see a lot of things go wrong/right in the field all over the country and abroad. The new 8060 pelican is no brighter looking at it side-by-side with it's little bro the 7060 and it's a lot heavier. I'd only recommend it if you need a baton.
the 7060 is da bomb. Lithium Ion battery, bulletproof warranty, light weight, super throw that blows away darn near anything, dual buttons (side and tail).
I routinely throw them across the room at trade shows and department demonstrations and have yet to kill one.

 

[pfccypret]

Sorry to revive an older thread, but I have a lot of thoughts:

-In my experience, old Streamlight SL-20s are still the most common lights among police departments. Go anywhere and you see those on chargers in cars.

-My department does a mix of Streamlight SL-20s and Stringer XT HPs. SL-20 chargers are in every car and we have Stringer XT HPs on docks in the squad room. Most officers just grab one or the other and call it good.

-I work the early afternoon-evening shift. So I don't have cause to use flashlights as much as I used to when I worked midnights. But there is still a few hours of darkness on my shift and more and more each day as winter approaches.

-Personally I carry the Pelican 7060 as my main "duty" light. I use it on the majority of car stops/calls when I have need for a flashlight. I think it's a good combo of size and brightness. The thing is great, I know 2 officers that have brought them simply because they saw me use it and thought "wow" and asked me about it. I can't wait for the 8060, for no other reason than longer battery life and being able to throw C cells in it.

-I carry a Surefire 6P LED on my belt. I use more for a backup or in situations where I didn't think I needed a flashlight but ended up having or have one. Or in situations when I just forgot to grab the 7060 out of the car. The 6P has very good light output for it's size, good reliability (I've dropped it a lot without a problem) and good battery life. Plus, it's compact and doesn't take up much space on my belt.

-I'm pretty down on Streamlight. I've owned a lot of their products of the years and seem to have a lot of problems. While they are generally minor and fixed for free, they tend to be annoying when I have to drive to an authorized repair shop (nearest one is across town, 30 minute drive) or ship them off.

-I carry a 2D maglite in my bag. It is an absolute last ditch light. I have had times in my career when my primary and backup lights have ran out of juice on long calls. So it's good to have something you can fall back on.

-I don't think law enforcement necessarily needs to adopt new flashlight immediately when they come out. Long battery life, proven durability and availablity of accessories are more important than having the absolute brightest light.

-Strobe. The guys on our tactical team rev about it. I was on the band wagon for awhile and advocated for it. But now that the newness has worn off, I don't find myself using the strobe feature on lights...ever.

-The Gladius is alright these days and was a great light when it was introduced almost 4 years ago. But it's technology is out dated (even with the upgrade) and it's price still doesn't reflect that. If it was a $100 light, I'd recommend it...But I can't imagine paying $200 for one these days.

-To answer the original question. I think the Pelican 7060 is the best all around LEO light out there and would highly recommend it to anyone. It's a good balance of everything important to LEOs.

 

[B'hamFAL]

Re: magcharger replacement for LEO

Wolfeyes wouldn't be a bad light but their warranty and customer service is something I have no experience with as with the other brands I have dealt with.

The one time I had to use PTS/wolfeyes customer service it was no less than excellent.

Our dept made us sign for a 2d maglight. You guys with cradles in the car make me green with envy.