Weapon mounted lights....

Long guns should have lights.

Handguns... I like my options open, but my CCW doesn't have one.

The cons are... ? Just don't turn it on.

The pros are be positive ID of target. A critical aspect.

Play hide-and-go-seek with your kids in a dark house. Then imagine doing the same except with guns.

There was a technique taught at one time that had you hold the light well away from your body. Why? Well some folks react by shooting the light. If it’s on the firearm you are right behind it.

I think they have their place. My carry gun doesn't have one and never will I don't think. But I have a fairly remote home and chickens and such and I very often use mine. Flashlight in one hand and gun with light on in the other. Works very well on predators.

I see both arguments as far as home defense. I can absolutely see how a light would make you a target. Of course stepping on a Lego or a hover board and being splayed out on the ground in agony isn't exactly tactically sound either so I don't know.

Corpral_Agarn said:

The cons are... ? Just don't turn it on.

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That was always my theory as well. Like I said I'm usually out after some 4 legged booger chasing my animals so I leave mine on but I can't see how it could actually "hurt" anything so long as the gun functions and you left it off. And these days the lights are so light they aren't noticeable on a duty gun, they last forever, and they are fairly easy on batteries.

Just a few nights ago my dog was barking (and she never barks. She has let me walk out on bear on two occasion without any warning) not a happy bark either. Teeth showing, growling. Never seen her that way. So me and my Glock with light on and another light in my other hand for searching went on a walk. Having two lights in the complete darkness in the deep woods certainly didn't hurt. The Glock lighting up my path and the handheld searching low and high for cats, wolf's, bear etc..

I started a thread on night-time shooting a while back. It saw little interest and soon faded away.
I shot quite a bit in the dark. My performance was much better with a weapon light than a handheld.
Like others have said, you dont have to turn it on.
I really liked mine on a camping trip.

I have a weapon mounted light on my nightstand gun.
I got it for one reason. So that I could see clearly the raccoon in the chicken pen that I need to dispatch with one shot instead of multiple shots in the dark.

My bed-rail gun (the one in a nylon holster that is screwed to the bed-rail) is a Bersa 9mm,,,
That gun has a light on it but none of my others do.

I just think it is better to have the option than to not have it.

Aarond

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One of the house pistols, has a weapon light. The scatterguns have a weapon light. If the AR’s come out, a weapon light. All have a separate flashlight store together with them. The carry pistol only has the separate flashlight.

Like everyone above....purpose and location determines configuration and use.

For a bedside gun or a long hd gun, it's better to have it and not need it, than to need it and not have it. Imho

I'm not aware of any good online resources, but I would guess that they exist.

I would recommend taking a low light course so you can get hands-on with a variety of tools and the proper tactics to use them. That way, you're making an informed choice on what to highlight in your skillset and toolset.

I won't try to condense the content of a course into a discussion forum post, but I will say that much of what I read on THR reflects dominant thinking on lowlight fighting from from the late 20th century. Tactics and gear have evolved quite a bit in the last 20 years. Eg, the concern about getting your light shot at is much less of concern if you're using the light in short bursts of a second or less, combined with movement. The concern about having to point your gun at something to illuminate it is not reflective (heh) of modern gear, and is a software issue (training) rather than a hardware issue (the WML itself). Whether you agree or not, take some training. At least then your disagreement can be informed, and you'll know what works best for you and your circumstances. "Take what works, leave the rest," as they say.

8o% of self-defense shootings occur at night, so we have a pair of 1911s with SureFire X-400s light/lasers.

I also have one on my Remington 11-87, but that is more likely a bear gun.

Ever try to open a door holding a flashlight and a shotgun?

If things get really bad I have a light/laser on my FN SCAR.

I'm a big proponent of WMLs but my CCW doesn't have one. So far I haven't been able to find a holster I like that will accept my sidearm with the light on it.

Koroner said:

8o% of self-defense shootings occur at night, so we have a pair of 1911s with SureFire X-400s light/lasers.

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One for each hand, I like it.

There can be a moments in time, when one can justifiably point a firearm, and can benefit from a visual confirmation of the sight picture, and/or a visual confirmation of the target, and/or a visual confirmation that what appears to be a weapon, in the hands of an opponent, really is a weapon. One has to constantly remember that a display of light can betray one’s position, to an opponent.

I believe strongly in having at least one hand-held light, as the primary light source, when searching. Even better, have a second hand-held, in reserve. This is true, even if searching while holding a long weapon. (Searching with a long gun is quite complex; best done as part of a team!)

Searching an area, period, is best done as part of a team.

I worked big-city police patrol, night shift, for almost 34 years, until early 2018. I was an early adopter of weapon-mounted lights, used them for some number of years, then had to endure a long period when they were forbidden, while the issued was “studied” by committees. Eventually, WMLs had the admins’ approval, but only for those of us attending a training session, but too few few of those sessions were offered. The policy eased, even for those us us not “certified,” but then a new administration cracked-down on WML policy, about the time body-worn cameras came into play. So, I know what it is like to use WMLs, and what it is like to really wish I could be using a WML.

I do not advocate for the use of weapon-mounted lights, or recommend against them. I believe an informed decision should be reached, on an individual basis, after evaluating one’s needs and environment.

My wife has a Laser Products weapon-light fore end, on her defensive Remington 870. (It was Laser Products, before it started marketing things with the Surefire label.) My defensive Benelli M2 shotguns do not have weapon-mounted lights, at this time. (Surefire seems to have discontinued the Benelli-compatible WML.)

I like having an X300U on a Glock, if it is positioned for home defense. (With COVID interfering with my live-fire training, however, I have reverted to a GP100 for home defense, as my DA revolvering skill is less-perishable than my skill with Glock triggers.) I do not Normally carry a light on a concealed defensive pistol, due to added the bulk of the more-spacious holster.

My bedside gun, a Ruger P95, has one. None of my carry guns do. The WML on the Ruger is bright enough that I could be aiming it over my shoulder at the wall behind me and still see who is in front of me; I won't need to point it directly forward at someone to identify that person.

There is usually enough ambient light (from multiple LED night lights through my home) that I do not need a flashlight to see my way around in the middle of the night.

FL-NC said:

Play hide-and-go-seek with your kids in a dark house. Then imagine doing the same except with guns.

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Make it more fun, give them Nerf guns.

My carry firearm has had a light on it for several years now. The models have changed but it has always had a light. I walk my dog at night after my son goes to bed, firearm goes with me. Leash in one hand already, that leaves one hand to hold a firearm and a light if I get surprised by a wild dog or wild person. Not exactly the juggling I want to do.

Ironically I'm on par with Kleanbore.

We keep lighting on in the house at night, low but plenty enough to identify threats in our small home.

We dont go out after dark 99% of the time. In the 1% we might have to I'll rely on my night sights and my EDC hand held light.


Personally I dont see the necessity outside of LEO/military but for the time being it's a free country so do as you please.

Phaedrus/69 said:

I'm a big proponent of WMLs but my CCW doesn't have one. So far I haven't been able to find a holster I like that will accept my sidearm with the light on it.

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Try Crossbreed holsters. They make pretty much every combo you can think of.

Kleanbore said:

How about a light affixed to the leash?

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Had one of those and it broke. Great idea in concept. Most leashes with lights I have found are poor quality for all but pint sized dogs.

Kleanbore said:

I certainly would not want to have to produce a firearm to illuminate someone outdoors at night.

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My WML compliments my pocket light, doesn't replace it.