Lights, Camera, ACTION!

[Fred Fuller]

OK Steve, here goes-

It's a popular and useful thing to have a white light source mounted on HD shotguns. Lots of discussion has taken place re. what's the best and brightest of available offerings.

But there are some drawbacks as well. Those don't get talked about as much as whose light cranks out gigawatts of photons, though. Everyone is happy with the idea of blinding the bad guys, hiding behind a wall of light and all that stuff. Seems to me that lights capable of peeling the wallpaper all by themselves also reflect a lot of light back at the shooter off white painted walls and ceilings, mirrors, window glass and other common household surfaces. In other words, they can be as blinding to Harry Homeowner who has just emerged from a sound sleep in a dark bedroom to the sounds of some goblin putting in an appearance as they can to the goblin.

So, what are you doing in su casa to avoid blinding yourself while preserving the ability to clearly identify potential targets at night? Have you tried your white light source in the dark in your own bedroom, starting with completely blown pupils? What alternative tactics and/or equipment do you employ to maintain the advantage?

Steve wants to know... 8^)

lpl/nc

 

[sm]

Thanks Lee, I appreciate the thread topic.

It is said one should get a shotgun that fits them, go shoot it and THEN see if they need anything or not done to - or added to their shotgun, for THEIR Enviroment and THEIR needs.

I have never attended an offical training school. I have been educated exposed to and mentored by folks , and I have put a few shotgun shells downrange.

Yep - I would learn a lot and the first guy I want to teach me about shotguns is Awerbuck...someday perhaps. I would have to shoot with Dave , Denny, Correia as well - I'd be honored to learn from these folks.

That said, I am a civilian,Iam single , no kids. I do not own a shotgun with a light source. I don't use mag extensions,or side saddles. I don't own any firearm with a lightsource or nightsights.

If you are all back from calling Awerbuck, El Tejon, Denny...and gathering whips chains and getting a bonfire built - hear me out .

Remember I tend to think outside the box.

Have a gun ,but use the brain and all senses. My rule.
Oh Cheat - break the rules - just survive is another one of mine.

I took steps to prevent break ins. Ambient lighting - including emergency lights. I do not plan on going on a house clearing mission. I'm going to sit tight in a safe area while the LEOs come...if BG comes into my safe area, and I'm in fear...the ambient lighting, emergency lights, me tossing a disposable light down the way, using a remote to turn on a light behind the BG...Like I said cheat. Screw up his thinking,make him goof up. I don't want to lose my advantage.

I did this in business settings...I still on occasion get asked to do a walk thru and make suggestions for business or homes.

Outside...where I am there is a bunch of lighting, motion lights and such.

See my concern is lights attracting attention to me...heck even the hands on a watch or nightsights can do that.

Out in the pitch dark say out in the boonies, Yep I have used a light on a gun. I was outside on purpose waiting for rabid raccoons. There again if inside with the advantage ...I'm not going to go running around outside looking to get shot...

This is MY enviroment and what works for me. Yes I will take criticism and if need give my views if asked.

Tonight I am staying at mom's. We have a plan if something should occur.

Just as I did when I was married with a stepson. Furniture was placed a certain way, zones of fire established with furniture re-enforced. He was to hunker down and stay put .

I had remotes that would turn lights on or off. I had ...okay she bought the decorative mirrors to match ...I wanted in certain places. Light reflected off eterge's. Even a remote to turn on a voice "behind" the most obvious place a perp would enter. I had a alarm that would signal a trusted neighbor - his alarm would signal me.

Sit tight an wait in safe places , wife and I were armed. If the BG crossed the threshold of our saftey, we had him backlight such for positive ID.

That bonfire big enough yet?

 

[Fred Fuller]

The 'school solution' I have always advocated for home defense is to set things up in advance to guarantee as many advantages to the homeowner as possible. That means:

1) A bedside phone. In these modern times a cellphone is the way to go, because there is no external phone line to be cut by would-be intruders (back in the bad old days when I started teaching this stuff there weren't no such thing as a cell phone). Even a cell phone with no active (and costly) service is capable of dialing 911. These days with people getting new phones every year or so there are easily available and cheap phones and chargers that still work fine. If you want to check to see if a cell phone with no service is working, dial 611 for the customer service recording.

2) Remotely controlled lighting outside the bedroom. This can be motion detector lighting or pushbutton remotes on the X-10 model (Radio Shack has 'em, and they are pretty cheap). Some folks go so far as to wire in switches for this lighting when they build a house. Others use low wattage night lights that stay on all night. Anything or any combination of things that put out enough light outside the bedroom to silhouette anyone who enters the doorway is enough for the purpose. Of course this only works if the bedroom itself is dark.

3) Room between the bed (or other solid furniture or architectural features) and a "friendly wall" opposite the bedroom door for you and your spouse (if there is one) to hide. A "friendly wall" is one with no doors or windows behind you when you assume your barricaded position behind the bed on the far side of the bed from the bedroom door. That's where the phone should be. That's where the control unit for the remote lighting should be too. That's where YOU should be (with your firearm) if you hear goblin noises in the night, with the 911 dispatcher on the line, help on the way and lots of light and whatever else you want to plug in to a remote controlled outlet going full blast in the rest of the house.

4) All this assumes several things. That you are reasonably mature and self controlled. That you have enough situational awareness to keep up with who (or what for that matter, be a shame to disintegrate Fido just because he decided to pay you a nocturnal visit) is supposed to be in the house and where they are. That you or members of your houshold are not subject to sleepwalking. That sort of thing.

5) It is possible to arrange furniture to do several things- to give yourself a barricade, to channel people into particular and predictable paths in rooms, to provide protection for other family members. Bookshelves full of books are good barriers, for example, and not out of place almost anywhere.

6) Security can extend outside the walls of your house without you having to be there. Fences are an obvious tool, motion detector area lighting is another. There are various other security devices that are unobtrusive yet serve to let you know if things are moving outside your home. For example, that nice cedar birdhouse near my driveway outside the gate doesn't do the birds much good, because its entry hole is blocked by a passive IR sensor unit that signals a quiet chime inside if anyone drives down the driveway.

And so on, not my intent to write a book (there are several out there already) but just to explore some things some might not have thought of. I am not one of those who encourages roaring off through the house after every noise in the middle of the night by any means. And calling the local gendarmerie every time the house settles a little will quickly get you put on the nutcase roster. Given that home invasions are becoming more and more a chosen mode of goblin operation, it is increasingly likely you will know beyond a shadow of a doubt that action stations have been called and the fight is on if the goblins come to call. But it is best to be prepared for a variety of situations.

By the way- having a light mounted on a HD shotgun doesn't mean you will USE it every time you pick up the gun. But IMHO it is a worthwhile option to have. You should know its advantages and disadvantages thoroughly and be versed in the tactics of using it successfully and safely (like tracers, it works both ways). There are specific low-light training courses available, and at least one useful book out on the subject is available- see http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/1581600267/104-9583977-5501523?v=glance .

lpl/nc

 

[sm]

Thanks Lee,

We are pretty much on the same page.

I find this interesting - we have some similarities probably because of the decades we were born. We have differences in Careers, work experiences, and the like - still Pretty Much on the same page.

I wanted this thread for Folks to THINK , not to argue about brand names, or choices of hardware.

I grew up without a lot of money and times were just plain hard at times. I read a few magazines like Field & Stream , used ones loaned to me , given to me - I really like Ruark , and some of the other writers, Ruarks' page was the first page I turned to. Once the excitement of me Reading Ruark was know by some - magazines were given to me .

My point being - The pictures were cool and I drooled at the Pictures of guns, Fishing reels , ammo, the places folks hunted ...I could not afford a new gun, the newest fishing reel.

I knew the Operator of the Tool was the most important thing. I had to have ammo , fishing lines and hooks, the bait ( worms , crickets , grasshoppers) I could catch / dig up for myself.

Priorities - I saw these as a kid, I had to learn the firearm to the best of my ability , and I had to have ammo.

Shotguns - well I became facinated with the versatility. I chose to learn the shotgun in a manner to make the shotgun an extension of me.

There is a old saying when working - bring the work to you - don't go to the work.

Instead of being all scrunched and contorted trying to do homework in a bedroom...I would bring the lamp over to me, so I could see better. Bringing a Bicycle wheel into the house and putting on the kitchen table to install new bearings did not go over well...but the first time ( being the last time) it was easier to work on.

See I want the shotgun easy to handle , I want it to come to my face with ease, I want to be able to hold one-handed if need...fire it too. Rule of 96 defines weight to recoil. Too heavy , awkward balance, affects this, the abilty to employ quickly ,or causes fatigue as well.

Fifteen cents was a lot of money. I could buy the F&S magazine, or I could tape a dime and nickel and Penguin Industries would send me a bottles of Hoppe's No. 9...or I could buy a box of .22 ammo. I only bought Hoppe's once, the magaszines were given or loaned - I spent my money on .22 shells. My .22 was only a handgun -a Sentienl 9 shot. Other folks had nicer guns, more expensive with wood stocks, some were semi-autos. I was pretty good with my "less expensive" plastic gripped revolver , I learned to use it.

I did the same thing with shotguns. I spent more money on ammo and learned to shoot whatever I was allowed to shoot. Folks were buying all sorts of new guns, fancy ammo, I was mowing yards so I could afford some powder, some shot,or wads...and hoping I could get a few more reloads from the hulls I had . I was hoping some guys would sell me some hulls, maybe if Icleared the brush with a swing sicle...that guy would trade my labor for hulls.

The few new shells I had were fondled and used to make sure the ones I reloaded were to specs.

I just learned that just because it is in a magazine, everyone else was buying it or doing it ...I didn't have to buy it, it might not be the best thing for me and my needs for what I was doing.

I weighed the task, checked my pockets for money and made my decisions based on that. I paid attention and some things were in fact wrong for the task for some folks, didn't work, didn't hold up. I made note of the things that did, and saved up to buy them.

I am not against lights, side saddles and mag extensions per se'. There is a place for them . LEOs, Military, living out in the country...No problem for 3 gunners and such either. I mean I had some gear for skeet, 5 stand , sporting clays and other shotgun competitions. Guns were pretty much stock - still are.

I just think different than some. I just ask folks think about the priorites they need for thier enviroments and tasks. Then spend the monies on learning how to use to the best of their abilty .

 

[Arc-Lite]

Personally ...I love options, it leads to choices that best suit you, or me...the more options the better. Not a big fan, of lights, usually, believe that when stalking that noise in the night, moving with one, four, two steps at a time, without making a noise pattern, leads to success,this has worked in the Nam jungles, to the pitch black mountain tops, of the Arizona desert, but thats an option too. Choose what works for you, and know, to defend a personal option point to others, usually means a long thread, with few new and solid conclusions. Arc-Lite

 

[Bix]

I've had two classes with low light shooting components. In both, the instructors highlighted the danger of blinding thyself while moving around in the dark with powerful flashlight.

They recommended what they always recommend - practice. Get to know your house: is there a full length mirror at the end of the hallway? Probably shouldn't hit that with the 300 lumen Surefire paintmelter. Where is the bezel when you pie your corners? Do you have to reorient your weapon to get the bezel outside the corner?

[In an effort to avoid the "clear you house v. hunker down and barricade" debate, I'll note that these techniques are equally applicable to both plans. Even if you are hunkered down, you should be shooting around (read: pieing) concealment or cover. And, the framed photograph next to the bedroom door may appear innocuous enough until you actually practice hitting the door with the light and zap yourself.]

Another point that was stressed: you don't necessarily need a scorching bright light. The purpose of a weapon mounted light is not to blind, disorient or intimidate. It is to identify - very,very briefly. That doesn't take a whole lot of light. So, maybe there is a good reason to resist the urge to upgrade to that 120 lumen lamp assembly.

Those are a couple things I hadn't considered until they were pointed out to me.