Laser or Light for HD?

[Mightee1]

Which would be a better accessory to mount on a pistol for home defense… a Laser sight or a Tactical Light?

Assume each are mounted on a Picatinny Rail under the barrel and only one could be used. They would fit the gun and holster and be equally easy to operate.

Which would you choose and why?

 

[TeamPrecisionIT]

A gun-mounted light makes more sense IMO, but there are plenty of options out there that let you mount both in one unit.

Damian

 

[christcorp]

Ok; maybe I'm old school; but there's no way I'm mounting a light on a weapon. Not a pistol, Nor a rifle. Some say you can blind someone with it to give you the advantage. My theory; which is good enough for me; is if a bad guy is going to return fire, and a light is shining at him, then he's aiming for the light. And the light on the gun, and the gun in my hands, means he's aiming exactly at me. No thanks.

I like lasers because I use them with pressure switches. Which means I can turn them on/off as I want, but mainly because I don't have to hold the weapon up to my face and look down the barrel/sights. I can keep the gun out in front but down, and use my eyes to look around and not down some barrel that I can't see at night well anyway. Even with night sights. And if it's that dark in the house, it's probably because I was sleeping and it's early morning like 2am or whatever. If I awoke at that time, then my eyes are probably already adjusted to the darkness. As adjusted as they're going to be.

And to be honest, I've never lived in a house that was 100% dark. I mean dark where I needed a flashlight. Even though I no longer have kids living at home, we still keep the small light above the kitchen stove on. There's always moon/street light shining partially through a window some place. Even during a power outage, I don't remember needing a flashlight to see where I was walking. I used them to look in the cabinets for something to eat or to read something. But it's never been that dark where I was going to bump into a wall or something. So for me, it's the laser. At 20-30 feet, turning on the laser with a pressure switch, means I can keep my eyes on the hallway, room, target, etc.... Just my $0.02437583 (Inflation)

 

[BushyGuy]

I voted none cuz they will give you away if the Bg sees you first... i rather have the element of surprise look for movement.

 

[Sport45]

I won't have any trouble seeing him if he sticks his head in the doorway I'm covering with the 870. I voted none.

 

[M2 Carbine]

Laser or Light for HD?

Both.
Streamlight TLR-2 laser/light.

Which would you choose and why?

The laser is great if there is enough light to identify the target before you shoot. Like this girl tearing up the targets as it got dark.


But if it's dark enough to need a light, then the laser/light is king.

 

[SOUTHPAW]

I have a Sig STL900 on my G21. It's a light, laser, AND strobe. It has a switch for constant and hold. Best of everything. It's better to have and not need, than need and not have... Plus the strobe is rediculously disorienting.

As far as the argument that you can shoot at a light, you can also shoot at a laser. Like I said, better to have the whole combo and choose to use it if you need it. Tactics are always situational...

 

[Mightee1]

(I’m the original poster)

Personally, I would prefer a laser if I could only have one of the options. I think that a light would be useful, but there are more reasons to have it mounted off of your gun than on it. People who use a light not mounted on the gun tend to think they are aiming the light and the gun in the same place, but are actually missing horribly. A gun mounted laser would fix this by allowing you to have the best of both worlds given the situation. Additionally, the light is only the ideal tool in near perfect ambient darkness. If it is twilight, a weapon mounted light is not as nearly as effective. A high quality laser can be seen in almost any low-light situation and aid in aiming (even in those situations where it can be too dark to quickly acquire the sights on a target and too light out for a flashlight). Lasers also have a longer range and tend to be more compact.

On a separate note, for my personal HD gun (primarily a SIG P225), I am thinking about one of those Light / Laser combos. I have a Surefire on my nightstand next to the SIG but it would not be a bad idea to have both.

 

[Scuz]

Since you offered one or the other in the thread title, I felt that none was something of a cop-out, and if I had to choose one, it would have to be the light. I just don't see the use of a laser.

 

[mljdeckard]

A couple of things.

You have a couple of problems in the dark. The first is identifying your target, the second is keeping track of your sights against a dark background. Night sights solve the second problem. A laser solves the second problem. Neither of them solve the first. A light solves both.

Absolutely use a light. I'm not mounting it on the weapon. You can shoot with the light, you need to train in how to do it correctly. If it's separate, I can do a lot more things with it. I can shine it around a corner without pointing my gun at the unknown, I can hold it over my head and to the left to keep the bad guy's perception separate from my gun while still blinding him.

Your options are a little bit more limited when you use a long gun, but I don't use handguns for HD.

 

[SOUTHPAW]

(I’m the original poster)

Personally, I would prefer a laser if I could only have one of the options. I think that a light would be useful, but there are more reasons to have it mounted off of your gun than on it. People who use a light not mounted on the gun tend to think they are aiming the light and the gun in the same place, but are actually missing horribly. A gun mounted laser would fix this by allowing you to have the best of both worlds given the situation. Additionally, the light is only the ideal tool in near perfect ambient darkness. If it is twilight, a weapon mounted light is not as nearly as effective. A high quality laser can be seen in almost any low-light situation and aid in aiming (even in those situations where it can be too dark to quickly acquire the sights on a target and too light out for a flashlight). Lasers also have a longer range and tend to be more compact.

On a separate note, for my personal HD gun (primarily a SIG P225), I am thinking about one of those Light / Laser combos. I have a Surefire on my nightstand next to the SIG but it would not be a bad idea to have both.

Like I said, SIG STL900L. Best of both with a strobe... And practice point-shooting.

 

[M2 Carbine]

One of my most useful guns is a bull barrel Ruger 22/45 that I mounted a rail on for the Streamlight laser/light.
Aside from the gun being good inexpensive laser, laser/light and iron sight/light practice, the gun is handy for walking around outside the place at night. The light is handy and the 22 might come in handy.

 

[167]

My vote is laser.

I think a light is more useful off the gun (assuming handgun here). So why limit its usefullness by mounting it on the gun?

Personal experience tells me lasers work better than night sights (although you still need night sights incase the laser fails).

Neither light nor laser should be used in a constant on mode, and both require training and practice to be proficient.

 

[M2 Carbine]

Neither light nor laser should be used in a constant on mode, and both require training and practice to be proficient.

Bingo!!.

I am fortunate in that I have a couple home ranges and can practice and experiment to see just what works and what doesn't. I average low light, laser/light shooting 2-3 evenings a week.

Trouble is, it's hard for shooters to just find a place to shoot during the day. I'd guess that most shooters have seldom, if ever had the chance to practice shoting live fire in the dark using their laser, hand held light, gun mounted light, etc.
There is a lot more to it than just buying a flashlight or installing a laser or laser/light and putting them on the night stand.

It's said that about 70 percent of defense shootings take place in low light but mostly we have no choice but to do all our practice in daylight.


Back to the laser or light for HD.
What I tell people is, if at night you can navigate your house and there is enough light that you can make out everything in the place, then all you need is a laser and a hand held light is always a good idea.

But if your house is overall pretty dark, then, if possible, use a gun mounted laser/light.

 

[Manco]

The bottom line is that you need to be able to see what you're shooting, both for target identification and aiming, so you need a light of some kind that is used effectively in some way (a big topic in and of itself). Lasers are not necessary with a decent light, nor are night sights, although both can be helpful.

In the past I've always sort of dismissed lasers as unnecessary (albeit useful for trigger pull training) and undesirable as long as one is proficient with iron sights and close-range point-shooting, as everybody ought to be, but lately I've been thinking that a laser might be useful for members of my family who just aren't willing to train like I do. They have some decent skills now for backup, but I'm starting to think that they might well be faster and more accurate overall with a laser. Do I have reservations about using lasers in combat because I'm "old school" or am I simply being old fashioned?

 

[Jed Carter]

I hang a Bunn coffee maker from the accessory rail, so I can stay awake and wait for the Zombies. Seriously though night sights are the way to go, just giving up your position with light or laser. My C-more Tactical sight on my SIG 556 has 2 settings for use with night vision goggles, but I generaly would not put my faith in electronic sighting aids in a real life and death situation. To each, their own.

 

[Shadow 7D]

I'm of the opinion that neither is the cure all of HD, rather they are tools, and that is all /everything they are, for me I prefer the light switch to rail mounted, as I like to have 100% target ID, the wife gets a little pissed when the babies get shot at, and that is pretty much the most important thing in my home, the lickys and chewys, are nice, but basics are king.

 

[Lonestar49]

Laser

...

Night stand gun, CT laser grips, as I won't spend the time to get my glasses out of the drawer, as I can see clearly distance, but not so good with the focus on the front sight (without glasses) and, personally, I like the idea of being able to look (around) with both eyes open, point, lase, and blaze, knowing that the red dot is where the muzzle is pointing, without doubts, with both eyes open getting the best SA and night vision available at the same time.

Not to mention the ability to stay dark until target is found, turn on laser without any sacrifice of 2-hand grip, get the identification, and go from there, and be able to turn the laser off just as fast, as not to give a light trail out, all with a firm 2-hand grip with the CT laser grips (302's) on my Sig P229

And they're spot-on accurate up close out to 63ft (max at my indoor range) shooting with both eyes open.

OMMV,


Ls

 

[RatDrall]

Lasers and lights can be useful, but they can give your position away, making you a fantastic target. I'd argue that they don't belong on most guns, unless you have both constant on/off switch and a pressure switch, and can manipulate either instantly.

Surefire weaponlight forends for shotguns and rifles are great, because they can be easily manipulated, in an instant, to do what you need at the moment. Nothing else works as well, especially handgun mounted units.

For handguns, a light in your off hand is much easier to manipulate than a gun mounted unit. For longarms, use the Surefire weaponlights, accept no substitute unless it is as easily manipulated.

 

[Ragnar Danneskjold]

In regards to just lights...why is it whenever the question of weapon mounted light comes up, almost no one EVER considered you can use both a handheld and a mounted light, each for their own strong points??

 

[basicblur]

You might check out/purchase this DVD ('course, you should be able to find it for much less than $39.95!)
Night-Master-Flashlight-Techniques-DVD
Also a good one: House Clearing & Cornering Techniques
Magill's stuff can be hit or miss, but the two above are excellent-just shop around.

'Course, I'm sure you've already visited/watched/ordered this? (it's free)
The Art of Survival: Real World Laser Tactics

My bed gun has a Streamlight TLR-2s since I don't have to worry 'bout bulk/holstering. I also have a couple of Streamlight Nightfighters-one stays by the bed, one I tote. My carry guns have LaserMax lasers-if I need a light with the carry guns, I use the Nightfighter.

BTW-was watching an episode of Tom Gresham's Personal Defense TV (on DVD) where he asked the advantage/use of the strobe feature on a light. Instructor first used a conventional light (which blinded you) but you could tell when he was coming at you. He used the strobe, and walked up to Gresham from across the room and you could not tell he was moving towards you. He then placed his hand on Gresham's chest and told him to lean into him-first he hit him with a conventional light (you could see Gresham flinch/buckle slightly with the light)-he then hit him with the strobe and pushed him back easily.

Nice experiment to try, but I really don't want to look into any of my Streamlights!

 

[LexRex]

I like a laser. The crimson trace is bright enough that in low/no light, it will actually light up the target itself. Not like a surefire 120 lumens, but enough to see what you are shooting at. I vote laser for that reason.

 

[DeepSouth]

Lasers aren't needed in close quarters, such as HD.

Get the light, or nothing.


And this is coming from a guy with 2 lasers and no lights. There is nothing on my HD guns.

 

[uspJ]

if you plan on using either get some low light training. there seems to be a misconception that your to continuously leave it on. the point of either light or laser is to momentarily light the target, fire and then cut the light off as you move. the light will be bright enough to momentarily blind and ruin a bg's night vision giving you an advantage. if he can't see you his odds of hitting you are greatly diminished.

i would go with a light before a laser only unit, but there are plenty of quality units that have both. try some out and see what works best for you.

an independant flashlight is also a good tool to have even if you do have a weapon mounted light.

 

[possum]

i only use visable lasers to train with. My HD has a light/ laser combo but the light only setting is the one i go with.

if you have ever tried to fight at night without a light, you will see very fast why a light is more important of the 2.