jstyer
04-18-2012, 07:00 PM
Mods, not sure if this should go here... Feel free to move as necessary.
So I just picked up an Inforce WML of sorts. I say 'of sorts' because this is a custom unit that ONLY has the high beam 125 lumen momentary mode and a 75mW IR beam. The normal WML has a strobe mode, low beam, and constant on feature in both the IR and white lights. You can call or email Inforce and request the momentary only version if you're not down with the multi mode stuff. Personally I like any sort of weapon mounted light to have only one beam style. That way I don't accidentally stumble upon another mode when I meant to cook with gas...
http://farm7.staticflickr.com/6056/6852496204_59a578ae84_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/77663382@N04/6852496204/)
Blaster w/WML (http://www.flickr.com/photos/77663382@N04/6852496204/) by jstyer (http://www.flickr.com/people/77663382@N04/), on Flickr
So as far as the light goes, I'm really, really liking it for a 12 o'clock position light. It is super low profile, it has a built in pressure pad, incredibly light weight (3 oz with battery), and it is IR capable. All of that for a light in the $150-175 range. Those features go pretty far in my book. Also, as you can see below, your front sight is not obscured at all with the light in the 12 o'clock.
http://farm7.staticflickr.com/6052/6852496302_587b2ae075_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/77663382@N04/6852496302/)
Front SIght with WML Mounted (http://www.flickr.com/photos/77663382@N04/6852496302/) by jstyer (http://www.flickr.com/people/77663382@N04/), on Flickr
First up is aesthetics/build. I really dig the way the light looks. And I’ve included some pictures of both sides and the top of the light as well as a shot of the light on my gun so you can see how it looks for yourself. The build quality seems decent to me. The manufacturer claims water resistance to 66 feet and it looks like it could stand up to that claim. The switch has a thick rubber membrane over the button and has a very nice tactile ‘click’ to it that I don’t really find on momentary switches like the SR-07. There is also a pretty chunky o-ring at the bezel. Seeing as how the construction is nearly all polymer I’m anxious to see how it holds up to hard use, but right off the bat it doesn’t seem as bullet proof as Surefire’s offerings. I’ll update as I bang it around some.
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7056/6852495890_0d2f63b96f_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/77663382@N04/6852495890/)
Inforce WML (http://www.flickr.com/photos/77663382@N04/6852495890/) by jstyer (http://www.flickr.com/people/77663382@N04/), on Flickr
As far as mounting the light goes, it has by far one of the most ingenious mounting devices that I’ve seen. It’s simply a spring loaded clamp on the side of the light that you can tighten down with a set screw that pushes out from the body and keeps the clamp squeezed down tight. In my experience the light comes on and off easily, and locks down rock solid. I’ve only shot 900 rounds through the gun with the light mounted, and haven’t necessarily slammed the light against anything but it’s held up very well with no loosening so far. Another advantage to the 12 o’clock position, especially if you’re running a fixed sight, is that your light is relatively well protected.
http://farm7.staticflickr.com/6237/6998618495_af8c8ffb4d_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/77663382@N04/6998618495/)
Inforce WML (http://www.flickr.com/photos/77663382@N04/6998618495/) by jstyer (http://www.flickr.com/people/77663382@N04/), on Flickr
When it comes to controls, the light uses the single button on top to activate the light. Which on my model strictly means activation of the momentary feature. There is a flip lever on the side of the light where you can easily toggle from IR to White light mode, there is also a physical rotating lockout device that can be raised over the switch to prevent AD’s. In addition to this you can also twist the bezel about a quarter turn to disable the light. Further loosening the bezel allows you to switch out the single 123 battery. However since it is single button, single mode light; there is no way to activate the light to a constant on mode. For my uses this is not a big deal, but it could potentially be a liability if you need to run the light in a one handed operation situation.
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7060/6998618399_de75ec7c06_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/77663382@N04/6998618399/)
Inforce Top (http://www.flickr.com/photos/77663382@N04/6998618399/) by jstyer (http://www.flickr.com/people/77663382@N04/), on Flickr
The output of the light is very clear and artifact free. But that being said, it is just 125 lumens and doesn’t have a very far throw. I would say that the white light is usable to 50 yards for human sized target discrimination. To put it in more qualitative terms, the beam is nearly identically as bright as a TLR-1, but with not as wide of a beam profile. I’ve tested the IR mode on a moonless night with a PVS-14 and I must say that I was pretty surprised by the throw of the IR light. Identifying a partially obscured human at 40 yards was absolutely no problem.
To acquire the light I spoke with Matthew Wolfe at Inforce (mwolfe@inforce-mil.com). He was very pleasant and straightforward to deal with and was genuinely interested in getting me the light with the features I wanted.
So if I had to break it down it would go something like this.
PROS:
Very Lightweight
Very Low Profile
Easy to mount.
Easy to switch from White to IR
Very useable IR beam.
Waterproof to 66 feet.
Great Customer Service
CONS:
Only 125 Lumens
Potential long term durability risks.
Single mode model only available by special order.
No constant on for one handed operation.
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7092/6998618777_164d100ce8_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/77663382@N04/6998618777/)
Blaster w/WML (http://www.flickr.com/photos/77663382@N04/6998618777/) by jstyer (http://www.flickr.com/people/77663382@N04/), on Flickr
So I just picked up an Inforce WML of sorts. I say 'of sorts' because this is a custom unit that ONLY has the high beam 125 lumen momentary mode and a 75mW IR beam. The normal WML has a strobe mode, low beam, and constant on feature in both the IR and white lights. You can call or email Inforce and request the momentary only version if you're not down with the multi mode stuff. Personally I like any sort of weapon mounted light to have only one beam style. That way I don't accidentally stumble upon another mode when I meant to cook with gas...
http://farm7.staticflickr.com/6056/6852496204_59a578ae84_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/77663382@N04/6852496204/)
Blaster w/WML (http://www.flickr.com/photos/77663382@N04/6852496204/) by jstyer (http://www.flickr.com/people/77663382@N04/), on Flickr
So as far as the light goes, I'm really, really liking it for a 12 o'clock position light. It is super low profile, it has a built in pressure pad, incredibly light weight (3 oz with battery), and it is IR capable. All of that for a light in the $150-175 range. Those features go pretty far in my book. Also, as you can see below, your front sight is not obscured at all with the light in the 12 o'clock.
http://farm7.staticflickr.com/6052/6852496302_587b2ae075_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/77663382@N04/6852496302/)
Front SIght with WML Mounted (http://www.flickr.com/photos/77663382@N04/6852496302/) by jstyer (http://www.flickr.com/people/77663382@N04/), on Flickr
First up is aesthetics/build. I really dig the way the light looks. And I’ve included some pictures of both sides and the top of the light as well as a shot of the light on my gun so you can see how it looks for yourself. The build quality seems decent to me. The manufacturer claims water resistance to 66 feet and it looks like it could stand up to that claim. The switch has a thick rubber membrane over the button and has a very nice tactile ‘click’ to it that I don’t really find on momentary switches like the SR-07. There is also a pretty chunky o-ring at the bezel. Seeing as how the construction is nearly all polymer I’m anxious to see how it holds up to hard use, but right off the bat it doesn’t seem as bullet proof as Surefire’s offerings. I’ll update as I bang it around some.
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7056/6852495890_0d2f63b96f_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/77663382@N04/6852495890/)
Inforce WML (http://www.flickr.com/photos/77663382@N04/6852495890/) by jstyer (http://www.flickr.com/people/77663382@N04/), on Flickr
As far as mounting the light goes, it has by far one of the most ingenious mounting devices that I’ve seen. It’s simply a spring loaded clamp on the side of the light that you can tighten down with a set screw that pushes out from the body and keeps the clamp squeezed down tight. In my experience the light comes on and off easily, and locks down rock solid. I’ve only shot 900 rounds through the gun with the light mounted, and haven’t necessarily slammed the light against anything but it’s held up very well with no loosening so far. Another advantage to the 12 o’clock position, especially if you’re running a fixed sight, is that your light is relatively well protected.
http://farm7.staticflickr.com/6237/6998618495_af8c8ffb4d_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/77663382@N04/6998618495/)
Inforce WML (http://www.flickr.com/photos/77663382@N04/6998618495/) by jstyer (http://www.flickr.com/people/77663382@N04/), on Flickr
When it comes to controls, the light uses the single button on top to activate the light. Which on my model strictly means activation of the momentary feature. There is a flip lever on the side of the light where you can easily toggle from IR to White light mode, there is also a physical rotating lockout device that can be raised over the switch to prevent AD’s. In addition to this you can also twist the bezel about a quarter turn to disable the light. Further loosening the bezel allows you to switch out the single 123 battery. However since it is single button, single mode light; there is no way to activate the light to a constant on mode. For my uses this is not a big deal, but it could potentially be a liability if you need to run the light in a one handed operation situation.
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7060/6998618399_de75ec7c06_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/77663382@N04/6998618399/)
Inforce Top (http://www.flickr.com/photos/77663382@N04/6998618399/) by jstyer (http://www.flickr.com/people/77663382@N04/), on Flickr
The output of the light is very clear and artifact free. But that being said, it is just 125 lumens and doesn’t have a very far throw. I would say that the white light is usable to 50 yards for human sized target discrimination. To put it in more qualitative terms, the beam is nearly identically as bright as a TLR-1, but with not as wide of a beam profile. I’ve tested the IR mode on a moonless night with a PVS-14 and I must say that I was pretty surprised by the throw of the IR light. Identifying a partially obscured human at 40 yards was absolutely no problem.
To acquire the light I spoke with Matthew Wolfe at Inforce (mwolfe@inforce-mil.com). He was very pleasant and straightforward to deal with and was genuinely interested in getting me the light with the features I wanted.
So if I had to break it down it would go something like this.
PROS:
Very Lightweight
Very Low Profile
Easy to mount.
Easy to switch from White to IR
Very useable IR beam.
Waterproof to 66 feet.
Great Customer Service
CONS:
Only 125 Lumens
Potential long term durability risks.
Single mode model only available by special order.
No constant on for one handed operation.
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7092/6998618777_164d100ce8_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/77663382@N04/6998618777/)
Blaster w/WML (http://www.flickr.com/photos/77663382@N04/6998618777/) by jstyer (http://www.flickr.com/people/77663382@N04/), on Flickr