My son gave me a Surefire light for Christmas. It is
incredibly brilliant for such a small package. He uses
one in Iraq quite a bit. Have you guys tried one and
what do you think about it? I believe it would give
you a momentary advantage anytime you use it in the
dark. Good thing to keep by the nightstand, etc.
Grandpab
I've got an E2e. Best light I've ever had by a MILE. Surefires kick ass. I keep mine on the nightstand when sleeping and clipped to my pants at night. I compared it to a cops big maglight a couple months ago and it blew it away.
cheers
Grandpa et al:
I got your book in the mail a few days ago-- thanks, will read it very soon.
Good present, good subject. Is there anyone who has looked into this who can offer a comparison of the differnt quality offerings? Brightness, sturdiness upon impact, etc-- that sort of thing?
URLs too would be appreciated.
TIA,
Crafty Dog
I constantly carry the E2d with the Crenelated "Strike" bezel............
EXCELLENT tool......legal to carry as well, in a country where even a swiss army knife could land you in jail.
Crafty, a couple links to check out:
http://flashlightreviews.com/reviews_index/reviews_index.htm (look specifically under Incandescent Lithium for lights like this)
http://ledmuseum.home.att.net/ledleft.htm (look on the menu on the left side for a link to "Incandescent & HID Lights"
candlepowerforums.com is also a good forum-style resource. You can use the search function for specific lights.
Cheers
Apparently this light is used to stun/disorient people
in order to subdue them. I am not into taking
prisoners just saving my butt if necessary. I think it
might be used to flash the eyes and then drive in a
few punches while the guy is stunned. It is a bit
large for a fist pack but would probably work for that
as well. I don't know about using it for an impact
weapon but would if pressed. Any ideas along these
lines.
Grandpab
I bought my dad one for X-mas as well...of course within 30 seconds we had shone it in our eyes to test the blinding capabilities. I was blown away at how disorienting it was and the one that I bought him was not even the brightest on the market by a long shot. I am going to pick one up for myself soon.
Mr Bryant- with the crenellated attachment Ray mentioned, it makes a great impact weapon.
Surefire is the state of the art for tactical/self defense flashlights. I own several hand helds and have them also attached to duty weapons.
The "stun" idea is somewhat overhyped. Disorient is a better word, and needs to be capitalized on with proper tactics or you'll lose the advantage.
Try the stun test - sit in a dark room, let your eyes get completely adjusted to the dark, then have a loved one flash the light in your eyes. Especially with the E2e, you won't be in any way incapacitated by the light. With the larger lights it will hurt, you may turn your head away, and your night vision will be washed out, but it would not be "stunning" unless maybe you were under the influence of a drug.
I have used it repeatedly in field applications doing exactly this kind of thing and no one was "stunned" by the light.
Unless you count cracking him on the melon with it as a "stun"....
Now, for disorientation and distraction, there is almost no better tool immediately available for self defense today - when coupled with proper use. Ken Good, who used to be with Surefire and now contracts with them, wrote the book on low light tactics and devised some incredible stuff.
Self defense wise, other than to illuminate the threat, you have other options. Briefly, here are some:
Shine the light in their eyes and move. Always move. This can be very disorienting for an attacker because they tend to move where they last saw you. Outflank them and do what you have to (continue the fight or run).
At very close range flash them in the eyes first then use a self defense technique. Head manipulation/throws are good because they do tend to move their eyes away from the light. You will sometimes get a total surprise reaction (like they are thinking "WTF?") and their eyes shut and you can use this to your advantage.
Hit 'em with the light. Light 'em up/then hit 'em with the light.
Strobing is a very interesting use. In tactical training, I have strobed people in the eyes while engaging in shooting training rounds against them and been told it made people start feeling sick to their stomach. Against a drunk or someone similar, strobing the light in their eyes while getting distance or moving to a flanking position will probably be more effective, so long as they keep trying to look at you.
Ken has designed a new light with a built in auto-strobe feature and other cool stuff that should be in production soon:
Agree with TacticalGrappler...the light isn't likely to act as a stand alone defense weapon by any means, but it might buy you that 1/2 second advantage that you could follow up on.
We've been using and developing tactics for SureFire lights
for the past few years now. SurefIre actually provides us with
free lights for our DVDs.
There are numerous lights that are great for everyday carry
and some that are great for specific purposes. The blinding
and impact tactics are important but so is the illumination. I
use mine more for commn purposes from night parking lot/
movie theater navigation to lighting up my driveway and
more.
In Self Preservation training we focus heavily on Disaster
Preparedness. We did a whole section in our last DVD on the
subject and SureFires play a big part.
We have a SureFire page:
We've been using and developing tactics for SureFire lights
for the past few years now. SurefIre actually provides us with
free lights for our DVDs.
There are numerous lights that are great for everyday carry
and some that are great for specific purposes. The blinding
and impact tactics are important but so is the illumination. I
use mine more for commn purposes from night parking lot/
movie theater navigation to lighting up my driveway and
more.
In Self Preservation training we focus heavily on Disaster
Preparedness. We did a whole section in our last DVD on the
subject and SureFires play a big part.
We have a SureFire page:
I've got an E1e Executive Elite (smallest one they make) about 4 months ago and carry it all the time. I bought my wife the one that has the rough edges for self defense for Christmas. They are both very well made and incredibly bright for their size.