.....on little pistols.....
....for carry.....
I like the idea of a light on a pistol in general but for carry pistols in the compact/subcompact range I think they can be problematic.
1. The rail is so short the light invariably protrudes
2. Keeping the light attached while carrying concealed increases the print
3. If the light and pistol are carried IWB there is a good chance the light will detach in the holster
4. little lights just aren't all that bright anyway
5. Limited selection on holsters
The list could go on, couldn't it? This is why I have been against them, until now. O-Light has released the second generation of their PL-Mini 2 Valkerie and I think it actually addresses most of my concerns.
At around $80 it was worth checking out anyway.
The light is tiny, but still manages to throw 600 lumen a nice distance. It is also rechargeable using a magnetic USB dongle and gives 1 hour of continuous run time. The batteries are sealed, compact lithium ion and do not need to be changed. The dongle works in any USB brick, laptop port or car charger so it's also flexible. The rail mount also adjustable with regard to depth. That means it is more flexible to fit pretty much any size railed pistol. Oh, and did I mention it attached using a QD lever? That is really what sold me. This light can be quickly mounted when needed and pocket carried otherwise. No more need for a special carry rig.
Still, I would not really care for it if it protruded while attached to my main fair weather carry APX Compact, so I tried the fit on a few Beretta pistols, including the Compact.
Here is a crappy pic of the light itself....much better images are available from O-Light at the link I posted.
Mounted on my 92G-SD
On the APX Combat
And finally, on the APX Compact
You can see from the pics the way the light adjusts in the mount to fit each frame by changing the depth. That's a really nice feature. I think I have found a viable solution to something that is not really a problem. One could always use a handheld light, sure....but I like my trinkets and this little light intrigues me.
....for carry.....
I like the idea of a light on a pistol in general but for carry pistols in the compact/subcompact range I think they can be problematic.
1. The rail is so short the light invariably protrudes
2. Keeping the light attached while carrying concealed increases the print
3. If the light and pistol are carried IWB there is a good chance the light will detach in the holster
4. little lights just aren't all that bright anyway
5. Limited selection on holsters
The list could go on, couldn't it? This is why I have been against them, until now. O-Light has released the second generation of their PL-Mini 2 Valkerie and I think it actually addresses most of my concerns.
At around $80 it was worth checking out anyway.
The light is tiny, but still manages to throw 600 lumen a nice distance. It is also rechargeable using a magnetic USB dongle and gives 1 hour of continuous run time. The batteries are sealed, compact lithium ion and do not need to be changed. The dongle works in any USB brick, laptop port or car charger so it's also flexible. The rail mount also adjustable with regard to depth. That means it is more flexible to fit pretty much any size railed pistol. Oh, and did I mention it attached using a QD lever? That is really what sold me. This light can be quickly mounted when needed and pocket carried otherwise. No more need for a special carry rig.
Still, I would not really care for it if it protruded while attached to my main fair weather carry APX Compact, so I tried the fit on a few Beretta pistols, including the Compact.
Here is a crappy pic of the light itself....much better images are available from O-Light at the link I posted.
Mounted on my 92G-SD
On the APX Combat
And finally, on the APX Compact
You can see from the pics the way the light adjusts in the mount to fit each frame by changing the depth. That's a really nice feature. I think I have found a viable solution to something that is not really a problem. One could always use a handheld light, sure....but I like my trinkets and this little light intrigues me.
