flashlight

[gjlog]

I've been getting lots of conflicting information and reviews on small, high lumens (600+) flashlights, (with strobe) for self defense. Putting aside comments on whether flashlights are a good idea for self/home defense, does anyone recommend any flashlights?
Thanks,
Greg

[hunterfreakhd]

No frills ..no accidentally turning it on when you don't want to or changing modes in a sd situation. Imho the best tactical sd flashlight out there.its also pretty much indestructible and easy enough to carry everywhere.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B009F7J8R ... -1&pi=SL75

[rugersol]

This one's sposed to be purdy good ... http://www.midwayusa.com/product/341779/ ... been in my wish list a few months ... alas, a bit too hsld for me!

I've got a few surefires ... I still like the 6p led!

The few times I've used em, I wouldn't want too many more lumens ... damn near blind myself, as much as anyone else!

[jshuberg]

Do *not* use a flashlight with more than 300 lumens indoors. 220-250 would be best. Anything more than that, and you'll blind yourself just as badly as the bad guy if you hit the light when your eyes are fully adjusted to the dark.

Extremely bright lights are great for outdoors, and would make a great weapon light, perhaps a good outdoor carry light if its compact enough. If you want a light that can be used as an indoor/outdoor carry or nightstand light, stay away from the super bright ones.

As far as strobes go, unless you are on an entry team, or have the element of surprise on your side, you're never going to use it except to mess with your buddies. It's going to be hard enough simply holding and aiming your light if you need to should you ever find yourself in a lethal force encounter. Just make sure the light you choose can switch directly from on to off to on etc. without having to switch through strobe mode or it may goof you up.

I've got a drawer full of flashlights. These days I almost always carry a Streamlight ProTac 1L or ProTac 2L. The 2L fits in a back pocket perfectly, and the 1L fits nicely in a front pocket. They don't have a very aggressive strike bezel, but their bright enough, not too bright, fit in the hand nicely, and can be carried without a pouch and comfortable enough that you'll never even notice your wearing them.

http://www.streamlight.com/product/product.aspx?pid=200
http://www.streamlight.com/product/product.aspx?pid=202

You are now $0.02 richer.

[jshuberg]

No frills ..no accidentally turning it on when you don't want to or changing modes in a sd situation. Imho the best tactical sd flashlight out there.its also pretty much indestructible and easy enough to carry everywhere.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B009F7J8R ... -1&pi=SL75

I've got one of those as well. A bit on the bright side for indoor use, but that's a great light as well. I don't know if they offer a toggle switch tail cap for them though. The one I have was simply a momentary activation, but there are mod kits out there to add a toggle switch to the tail cap if you prefer. A little extra work, but a great little light, and is an outstanding weapon light.

[Mn01r6]

I went really high end. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B006E0 ... UTF8&psc=1

[DaZhi]

I carry a Fenix PD32 I bought at REI with my dividends. Low, med, high and turbo settings. Turbo is at 315 lumens. Strobe and SOS also. I never use it but they're there. I'm also looking into rechargeable batteries for it too.

http://www.amazon.com/Fenix-PD32-Compac ... B0062PVSGW

[cobb]

I am really a fan of Fenix flashlights, have several and think they are much better than many out there, especially the Surefire I own.

[RJWesleyIII]

+1 on the fenix flashlights! I own several as well, and you cant beat the price or quality.


Sent from my iPhone 5 using Tapatalk

[gunsmith]

I use a pair of these for cycling. Each has the brightness of an auto high beam 2400 lumens. Contains 3 Cree XM-L LED Emitters. $50 + free shipping (4days) from east coast.

BLINDINGLY BRIGHT.

The plus is that I use them around the house and it's like using a search light...what seals the deal is size. The battery (18650 or 26650 lithium ion) is the size of a D-cell and it's a perfect size for one hand.



from http://www.tmart.com what I like about them is 'China prices w/ us warehouse + free shipping'

the reason I mention this is that you can buy a $200 light for $50 and see if it works for you and buy the $300 version later. Here's a link to an easy to use page of their LED flashlight offerings. http://www.tmart.com/LED-Flashlights/

[Ranger01]

I carry TerraLux flashlights and go between the Lightstar 300, TT-4, or TT-5 depending on my clothing choice for the day.

[SamM]

http://www.fenix-store.com/

Got an LD01 in transit to replace my old L0P on my keychain.

Also look at http://foursevens.com/.

Either of these should get you a good value for you dollar because they don't spend millions in advertising...

[Evad]

I went really high end. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B006E0 ... UTF8&psc=1

I have that, and a lightstar 100. They are very similar, and the cheapie seems to have a better torch effect. I know jack squat about flashlights, but when I aim them both at the wall, the cheapie has a very defined light and the lightstar is fuzzy around the edge of the beam. Which is better? I have no idea. I like them both.

[Mn01r6]

I went really high end. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B006E0 ... UTF8&psc=1

I have that, and a lightstar 100. They are very similar, and the cheapie seems to have a better torch effect. I know jack squat about flashlights, but when I aim them both at the wall, the cheapie has a very defined light and the lightstar is fuzzy around the edge of the beam. Which is better? I have no idea. I like them both.

I have two...but I need about 10. The 3 and 5 year olds like to steal them to play with and I can never find them when I need them.

[bensdad]

The 3 and 5 year olds like to steal them to play with and I can never find them when I need them.

Mine are 11 and 14. They still take my flashlights. You're gonna want to get used to that.

The few times I've used em, I wouldn't want too many more lumens ... damn near blind myself, as much as anyone else!

Also, pay special attention to what rugersol said here. In all the discussions about flashlights in a defensive role, I don't see this point brought up enough. Whatever light you choose, set your alarm for 2am the night you get it. When the alarm goes off, point the light at your bedroom door and turn it on. If you got one of those fancy super bright flashlights, you're about to find out what "the opposite of help" means.