Middle of the Road Pistol Light that works

[mmc45414]

https://www.streamlight.com/products.../index/tlr-rm2

I did also recently buy one of these but have not really used it yet so don't have an opinion.

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[gato naranja]

Streamlight’s TLR-1 HL seems to be the best intersection of quality/reliability, functionality, and price. Knowledgeable users seem to recommend these when pricing precludes purchasing the Surefires. From the limited experience I have (admittedly none with Olight) other less expensive brands don’t last that long when shooting a lot or lack the output.

The above echoes my current thinking. The TLR-1 HL is a good light, and for the money it can't be beat.* I still have an early-production TLR-1 in regular use, and other than modest output by today's standards it remains faultless. I am still susceptible to the "newest and brightest" lights, but I have found that beyond a certain point, more lumens do not necessarily add anything to a light's usefulness to me.

Most of the pistol-mounted lights I have owned have been Streamlights, and the only one that I have not had full confidence in is a TLR-3 (mine has not had any problems even after spending time on a shotgun, but I do not care for the polymer body).

This being said, I am not one who beats the hell out of weaponlights, and maybe more arduous duty would result in a different attitude. Or not.



*I feel the same way about Streamlight's ProTac 1L-1AA flashlight.

[KeeFus]

I’ve got two X300’s and TLR’s (TLR 1, TLR1 HL, and a TLR 7A). For the money I’d go with a TLR. I also maintain our armory and the guns and accessories for 50 cops. We have had TLR1’s on our G17s for 3 years...only one failure (switch latch broke).

Stay away from Inforce lights...theyre shit...we have them on some rifles and, IMHO, they aren’t worth the squeeze. We’ve had a few failures wherein the bezel separates from the body. They’re mostly plastic.

[Lon]

I’ve got SureFire, Streamlight, Nightstick and Olight WMLs. If you don’t want rechargeable then I’d suggest Streamlight or Nightstick. Nightstick can be found for less than $100 if you shop around. I’ve got 4 different Nightstick lights. One on my work rifle and 3 different pistol lights. The TLR sized one can be found here for $80.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/NEW-BAYCO-N...kAAOSwP99feafV

So far it fits fine in all my duty holsters compatible with a TLR. I don’t really run lights on my off duty holsters so I don’t have any kydex stuff to check them in.

[CCT125US]

I've had Surefire and Streamlight fail me. I too was anti rechargeable, until I looked at my $400 pile of CR123A batteries headed for recycling. My issues with batteries is once they are used, I don't know how much juice remains. I know, I know, put fresh ones in, or get a battery tester. Any suggestions, as I haven't found one that works well.

[Nephrology]

Also a fan of the TLR-1 HL series.

[Vista461]

I’ve been using a TLR1 for the 7 years I’ve been in LE. Never had a problem with my old S model or my current HL model.

[coN]

I own multiple Surefire 300s, various Streamlight TLR-1 variants, and various Olight PL-2 Valkyrie variants. All have been proven reliable in my experience.

The only brand I had a bad experience with (and didn't survive me torturing it) was an Inforce APL. Left a bad taste in my mouth. Streamlight is a good middle of the road, a bit more than Olight. But if Olight has a flash sale, i wouldnt say no if they had something i wanted.

[David S.]

I don’t know how it functionally stacks up against the X300, but I prefer the size of the TLR for concealed carry.

ETA.

TLR-HL, X300U-B, Inforce something.

[L-2]

For Post_15, I've got a couple of ZTS-brand chargers which seem to work well with CR123 batteries.
The bigger, more expensive MBT-1, I'll recommend if only one is being bought as it handles several other battery types, too (particularly button cells often used in electronic rifle scopes). There was one battery which didn't test correctly, however, which was some tiny watch battery (I can't remember which size it was).

Regarding weapon-lights, my main experience is with the Surefire X300 and X300U (aka "Ultra"); and the Streamlight TLR-1 and TLR-1HL). I suspect, even though the model names might still be the same, the current X300U and TLR-1HL lights are likely even brighter than the ones I've got as the technology progresses/improves.

Yes, both my Surefire and Streamlight branded lights have broken their switches/battery doors. Although Surefire lights initially cost more, they'll typically send a replacement part back at no charge. Streamlight costs less, but you'd have to buy a new battery door. At least with Streamlight, you can better control the purchase and shipping speed whereas it'll be up to Surefire to get around to shipping the part and it's shipping carrier & speed. In my case, I had to email again as my initial phone call for a warranty request was initially lost or forgotten by the call taker.

If using a weaponlight for work, it'd be a good idea to have a backup light available. My former department made it somewhat easy to decide as it specified either Surefire or Streamlight brands only. The Safariland duty holster I chose worked with either an X300 or TLR-1 (older or newer models for either brand). Unrelated to this thread, but the strobe feature was not approved and both brands allowed the strobe function to easily be deprogrammed out.