Looking for long throw Cree based weapon light

[Jackyl]

Yeah....gun parts are expensive...I'm saving for a monolithic rail front handguard for it, like the troy industries on the Smith & Wesson M&P15T. I have to buy one piece at a time...

Hell yea, I hear ya there!!! I had planned on taking a whole year on my first build and ended up doing it in 3 months and got the EOTech on the 4th. It really IS a BRD. Build on man.

 

[sgtlmj]

Thanks for the replies so far.

It's a DPMS LR-308, thus, shock is a factor. It will eat incans all day, even shock isolated bezels. My KL1 head has withstood it so far.

Budget w/ mount would be under $200, which is why I'm not looking at SF right now. That $35 Cree thrower is just insane. If it holds up, it may be the ticket.

Also, something with a long switch cable that can be activated by the off hand in a prone position would be desirable.

Keep 'em coming.

 

[CDI]

Your team can afford LR Leupy/LaRue/Docters/Magpul PRSs and they won't come off a little money for a good light??

 

[CDI]

A 6P with cree drop in would work well because the body is easy to mount on a Picatinny rail. The above link for lighthound works well.

Believe it or not, the Surefire X200A throws very well for a 3W Luxeon. I can shoot white, 12 inch, steel plates at 150 yards through a 3X Leupold with that little thing. I have it mounted on the left rail and actuate the switch with my thumb while holding onto the M900A which is mounted on the bottom rail. I don't use it very often because the X200A works so well. I like the X200A because it has a low profile, is lightweight, has good runtime, and at very close range (7 yards and under) the diamond shaped beam acts as a point of impact indicator.

Someone here at CPF may be able to mod an X200A with Cree or SSC if you're unhappy with the 3W.

I use an X200B on one of my 10.5"s, and for indoor use, it works just fine. Grant at G&R Tactical has the remote switches for them. I wouldn't mind more power, though, if someone could add a Cree and have it be as solid as the factory X200.

 

[CDI]

I had to bore out the LU60 adaptor to accept the Litemania Cree drop-in module. It was a PERFECT upgrade....longer runtimes/ brighter than the p60 or p61 bulb/ won't burn out......The reflector mod was very easy to do. The hardest part was getting the black ring around the top of the bezel off.

Which module did you use? I'd love to do this to mine. Any chance of you posting a little step-by-step for the new guy??

 

[CM]

For "serious" work, stick with a serious brand. Surefire, Streamlight come to mind first. Streamlight is a great value over the Surefire weapon mounted LED's.

While not Cree, the light above (TLR-2) uses an SSC-P4 which mates better to the reflector. Total output is a bit more than double over the stock Lux III.

ETA: A remote switch is also available for these. Optics planet has the best prices for the remote switch and battery door.

 

[sgtlmj]

Your team can afford LR Leupy/LaRue/Docters/Magpul PRSs and they won't come off a little money for a good light??

That's my personal weapon. Our team is under severe budget constraints.

 

[StefanFS]

Just curious about one thing. A sniper would want to attract as little attention as possible. Is this about law enforcement or military applications?

 

[CDI]

Just curious about one thing. A sniper would want to attract as little attention as possible. Is this about law enforcement or military applications?

There are applications for white light in short-range law enforcement and urban military situations. There is even a VERY large SureFire light that is available through the military supply system for attachment to the Barrett .50 rifles.

 

[sgtlmj]

Just curious about one thing. A sniper would want to attract as little attention as possible. Is this about law enforcement or military applications?

LE. We don't have weapons mounted night vision (budget again), so the only way to ensure target ID is to light it up. Ideally we'd have the team truck with boom lights, or a car spot light the place up, but we need an alternative method as well.

 

[StefanFS]

I'm removing this. Apples and pears...

 

[CDI]

I had it the other way. White light: big no no. Light enhancement and aimpoint sights OK. Whatever you do, never project ir or visible light. That was my lesson.

Hypothetical situation. You're in the overwatch position of a VCP at night and a vehicle crosses the warn line and isn't slowing down. They don't respond to a visible laser pointed at them. As a last resort before shooting them, you light them up with your 500 lumen long-throw Surefire on your rifle. They keep coming, and you can now see the driver clearly...so you light 'em up.
This is a good time to use a white light.

2nd hypothetical: You are on a dismounted patrol in a city at night when suddenly you come under sniper fire from a concealed location. Here, you don't turn on a white light and start searching. Unless, that is, you want to die.

Different situations call for different techniques and different tools.

 

[CM]

LE. We don't have weapons mounted night vision (budget again), so the only way to ensure target ID is to light it up. Ideally we'd have the team truck with boom lights, or a car spot light the place up, but we need an alternative method as well.

In that case, you're not going to get what you need from a LED weapon light. If you need throw (you mentioned 100 yards) then you really don't have an alternate method to big lights as there aren't any commercially available weapon light suitable to the task. Also, wouldn't turning on a light give you away and would alert the target to your presence?

 

[sgtlmj]

LED is required because the recoil from the .308 eats anything else. By the time a shot is required in LE situations, tactical is pretty much out the window.

 

[boosterboy]

Your team can afford LR Leupy/LaRue/Docters/Magpul PRSs and they won't come off a little money for a good light??

LOL, that is so true.

 

[Patriot]

LED is required because the recoil from the .308 eats anything else. By the time a shot is required in LE situations, tactical is pretty much out the window.

I wonder why your .308 is going through lamps like that. I've put about 800 rounds through my FN and never ruined a lamp assy.

 

[sgtlmj]

Originally Posted by CDI
Your team can afford LR Leupy/LaRue/Docters/Magpul PRSs and they won't come off a little money for a good light??


LOL, that is so true.

As I posted earlier, this is my personal weapon. The team is under budget constraints and I was looking for a light that the dept. could buy for the rest of the guys.

Just disregard any further, and mods please delete this thread. I had no idea that I would meet with such negative sentiment here.

For those of you who offered helpful suggestions, I thank you and I will check them out.

 

[Patriot]

Here are a couple of grainy pictures of the X200A on the left RAS rail of my FN.

 

[chevrofreak]

I don't think any of the inexpensive Cree lights available now would withstand the shock of a .308, and I would highly suggest a light that has a spring on the positive end to lessen the battering that the circuit board receives.

I wouldn't trust a modified light that I hadn't put through its paces and I wouldn't trust the inexpensive LED drop-in modules. I had a Deal Extreme Cree module with a shorted out wire that fried the LED within seconds of installing it.

Until Surefire brings out their Cree based lights you really don't have any good options.

 

[matthew127]

When I got in-country I had to purchase I good bit of my own kit. I ended up buying a surefire m4 (which you can find for a decent price..used..on ebay) and am very satisfied with it. I also had it blow some crappy rechargeable li-ions out of the lens and through my road guard vest (but was stopped by my body armor)...this, along with the cordite smell and the late-detonating batteries that had been shot out vertically...and were then detonating... caused me to do a combat roll and come up with sidearm in hand, traversing for targets. it took me a second to realize what happened (I had shoved it in a back pocket) and then was a bit confused as to how the glock had found it's way into my paw. After a WHOLE LOT of laughing, surefire replaced the damn thing and I had a new one within a week. Their customer servic3e simply cannot be beat. The lights ARE expensive but provided they're not lost or stolen, it's a lifetime light. I use my M4 on a leitner-wise M468 (well, "m6a2") and am very happy with it. I would caution against cords, though, they tend to break and/or snap off at the wrong time, every time.