Monday, January 16, 2012

That helps.

One of the biggest advantages of the Crimson Trace Lightguard concept is that it is slim and compact enough to make it easy to carry inside the waistband, if somebody would make a holster for it.

But nobody did.

Only now they do, and it's not a crappy holster, either. I used a Summer Comfort for years and years.

(And for those who go on and on about flashlights, because they'll "give away your position": We are not laying an ambush for Charlie at the Battle of Gha Dang in the Weeschlong Delta, here; the world is not a free-fire zone. If you are shooting at something you cannot clearly see and identify, you are by default violating one of the most basic rules of firearms safety.)

29 comments:

Anonymous said...

Weeschlong Delta? Weeschlong Delta?

You're great and everything, but the whole "you own a firearm because you're compensating for your tiny dick" thing is just schoolyard and unclever when antis do it, and when you do it...squawk...ack...

Oh hell, kind of funny...

Mike James

Keads said...

So if you put a Lightguard on a VTAC model do you get a runaway reaction?

Anonymous said...

Weeschlong Delta!

I met a guy who was in that battle. He said he was a Navy Seal who had been a Green Beret Instructor and a UDT Sniper.
He now favors the Hi-Point 9mm carbine because, "When you're good, you don't need expensive equipment."

Pakkinpoppa said...

One of the reasons I have yet to purchase a weapon mounted light is they're fricckin big, but the pics I've seen of the Lightguard looks like it could be just the ticket!

Anonymous said...

"If you are shooting at something you cannot clearly see and identify, you are by default violating one of the most basic rules of firearms safety.) "

And if you are pointing a gun-mounted flashlight at a non-target you are also violating one of the most basic rules of firearms safety!

tanksoldier said...

Well, I like the weapon mounted lights but I'd point out that even WITH one you're still violating Rule #2: Never let the muzzle cover anything you are not willing to destroy.

Tam said...

tanksoldier,

There are two workarounds for that if you're using light to search an area:

Either use a separate hand-held light for actually searching, or search with a powerful enough weapon-mounted light that the "splash" off the wall or ceiling is enough to illuminate an area.

I guess if you're forted up in a safe-room or whatever, it's less material, since you're 99.44% sure you'll be shooting whatever comes through the door, but I'd still want good visual confirmation of what I was about to shoot....

Stuart the Viking said...

Weapon light? No weapon light? It seems to me that it boils down to a choice between which rule you want to violate. Yes, a weapon light helps with rule 4, but it also means that anything that you are scanning with your light also, by definition, is being muzzled by your weapon. Which seems to me puts you in jepardy of breaking rule 2.

I'm not saying that you are wrong, and perhaps you have, and plan on using, a non-weapon light for searching then switching to the weapon light for targeting. That is just my reasoning behind not using a weapon mounted light.

s

Bubblehead Les. said...

Weapon Mounted Lights are SOOO last Decade! Everyone KNOWS that the Best TactiKool Set Up is the AN-PRC 714 Night Vision Googles with the TriPhonic Earbuds!

At least that's what a Veteran of the Battle of the Mall of Iowa told me.

Tam said...

Stuart,

Read my comment above yours. ;)

Old NFO said...

Ah yes, now we're back to the Rule #2 vs. Rule #4 argument. Personally, I think if you're at the point where your weapon is drawn and in play, you are down to the 'final' safety (the one between the ears), and hopefully your finger is NOT on the trigger while scanning. I'm old school, so I don't have any lights attached to weapons, preferring the Harries technique as I'm not 'always' going to have a tac light handy.

Anonymous said...

Tam - We are not laying an ambush for Charlie at the Battle of Gha Dang in the Weeschlong Delta, here; the world is not a free-fire zone.

I agree.

This line of thought leads to some amusing (and potentially dangerous, I suppose) outcomes. I am reminded of a rather portly gentleman who made a video about his plans in case "coyotes" came to his door, which included an armored vest suitable for the summer season in Fallujah, a hi-cap pistol, an M-1A-type rifle, and enough spare mags to hold off a panzer division.

Is it necessary?

Anonymous said...

Docjim, if that coyote shows up at your front door with his five ton catapult or the rocket-powered skates or the do-it-yourself tornado kit, then I know for a fact that you'll think it's necessary. :)

Mike James

rremington said...

As Tam said in a previous post, when it comes to "giving away your position" all the screaming and shooting will make stealth with the light a non-issue.

And as others have said, if I have to draw my gun I'm less worried about what my muzzle is covering than who I may (or may not!) shoot. Prudence applies in all things but I want to see what I'm gonna shoot!

Ferret said...

I still maintain that CT would sell a ton more of these if they made them for guns that didn't already have a place to mount a light. Especially considering that out of all the pistols for which they make the laserguard, only a few are full-size autos.

It seems that their marketing strategy for the lightguard is a little bass-ackwards.

New Jovian Thunderbolt said...

I remember Viet. Most guys called it Nam, but my unit always called it 'Viet.' Quang Tri, 1967, when the name on my uniform read J T Bolt but everyone knew me as... SERGEANT FURY!!! ~fanfare~

Cincinnatus said...

The issue of pointing a weapon mounted light is real. There was an item floating about about someone suing Surefire because the cop who shot them claimed he was fiddling with the light switch when it went off.

When you overload the firearm with other non-goblin shooting functions, you create some bad scenarios.

Greg Tag said...

Weapon mounted light is pretty neat, but like others I dont like the idea of muzzle-covering unidentified objects. To me its similar to using a rifle scope to ID targets.

Streng Verboten!

Plus, my Commander, OM, and Gummint Mod are not set up for the modern tactikool arrangement.

On the other hand, knowing whats there before engagement is a good idea too, so the Harries technique and a Mini-Mag light or a Surefire gets the "target ID without pointing the weapon" issue dealt with neatly.

Regards

GKT

wizardpc said...

I think Raven Concealment makes a holster for the M&P/Lightguard combo.

Of course, their lead time is eleventy billion years, so....

Jim said...

Y'all have it completely wrong here.

What you're supposed to do, is get an M-79 and mount a pistol under it's barrel.

That way, when you launch your parachute flare in the hallway, you don't have to risk a rule 2 vs. rule 4 violation.

Besides, the fire department will appreciate not being "left out" of the callout for your lil' ol' home intruder cleanup.

Glad I could be of service.


Jim
Sunk New Dawn
Galveston, TX


wv: "seinethe" A parachute flare launched in the hall helps you to "seinethe" dark!

Tam said...

Amazing how many commenters didn't notice my statement in the original post was "And for those who go on and on about flashlights..." and not "And for those who go on and on about weapon-mounted lights...", and further did not go on to read the subsequent comments before adding their own two cents.

This is obviously one of those issues where people have their pre-defined opinions keyed to a macro so they can dump them in a 'net discussion... ;)

Tommy said...

I just want to say that Weeschlong Delta almost gave my sinuses a beer lavage.

Funniest thing I've read today.
:-D

Anonymous said...

TAM: I'm a total CT kool-aid drinker and the LightGuard is very nice. I just put one on my G23 with corresponding CT laser and it makes for a VERY nice carry "package". That said, a handheld flashlight is still part of my daily carry gear for a variety of reasons.

My friend at TALON TACTICAL is making some rather nice kydex holsters for the G23/19 with the LightGuard and I picked up 1 IWB and 1 OWB holster. Both are very comfortable and concealable, plus with the G23/19 you hardly know you've got a pistol on your hip. Unlike my Surefire X200 lights on other pistols, the LightGuard is the antithesis of "bulbous"; it's very sleek.

http://www.talontactical.com/

W

Firehand said...

I love the idea of a light on the weapon for bad-light situations; preferably one that, like my Laser Grips, operates without me having to practice reaching for another switch. Alas, my piece has no rail.

And yeah, I tend to agree: if I'm at the point of drawing/pointing it, I'm more worried about seeing exactly who I may have to perforate.

WV=trotousa "Did you see those trotousa Robb took off?"

Ecurb said...

It's 12 hours later, and I still can't stop laughing at "Gha Dang in the Weeschlong Delta"...

Stuck with a laser myself, which I justified in two ways:
-It's great for DAO dryfire practice.
-It makes the gun look like Buck Roger's carry piece. Pew pew.

Ed Foster said...

I've given up asking gunstore commandoes what unit they were with or their MOS, only to get a flushed stammer. After the first 40years it gets a bit old.

I'm not qualified to make a call on pistol mounted/not mounted lights, as I've never used them, or a pistol, in a low light situation. Only used a pistol once for self defense, in a very high light situation.

I think they screw the aesthetics up and increase bulk, but if they work, what the hell.

My only question is this: What happened to the old NYPD thing where the cop practiced shooting one handed with the light way out to the left (or right) to draw fire away from his torso?

I mostly shoot two handed too, but it is a pistol, and we're usually talking feet, not yards.

Again, I'm not qualified to say, so I'm only asking.

Anonymous said...

Mike James,

I suddenly have visions of Wile E. Coyote, Mall Ninja, clad in all-black BDUs with his T-Acme AR-15, laser, light, offset irons, single-point sling, MOLLE vest, and a rocket strapped to his back.

Will said...

Ed:

Even with the incredibly powerful flashlights out there now, unless you are very lucky to get your opponent's eyes centered with the beam when you turn it on, he is going to see where you are from the backscatter. Plus, if more than one BG, it still won't much matter.

A while back, the drill was to light up the BG's and shoot, kill the light and move, re-light and shoot, repeat as needed. For a number of reasons, this seems to have evolved to leaving the light on, once shooting has commenced.

For one thing, unless you spend a LOT of time on a dark range shooting and moving, one tends to concentrate too much on light control instead of BG control. Not to mention trigger/switch confusion under stress, or forgetting to turn it off or on when needed. Then there are the visual problems detrimental to you, to include not looking or seeing others to the sides or rear, and stumbling over/into objects.

RandyGC said...

I still maintain that CT would sell a ton more of these if they made them for guns that didn't already have a place to mount a light.

I have never used a weapon mounted light, partially because Browning Hi Powers and S&W Mod 19s don't come with rails.

But if they made one for the BHP, I'd be interested in at least playing around with it.