I have been through a lot of lights on my belt and seen everything that my co-workers carry for over 25 years. Right now on my belt I carry an L2P with the SF tactical switch and the kaidomain 5 mode U2 dropin. This combo has incredible high for lighting up dark urban areas and large rural environments. The low is really nice and low. The strobe is fast and high. Excellent and useful strobe, many are not. You really need the forward click switch though. Usually that’s not the best choice for multimode lights but you have to have momentary on.
I have a friend who owns the blackhawk mentioned above and it is a nice light. The interface is the best. Expensive though and doesnt have the output of the XML.
You can throw a million scenarios out here but you want one light that does it all and that you feel comfortable with. Momentary on, in my opinion is a must have though, along with a balls out strobe.
I have ordered from manafont the UF dropin with strobe to try out. It is driven a bit more conservatively and I think the quality will be better.
One more thing, an ITP EOS for your shirt pocket.
I would get a Solarforce L2p, then I would buy a Nailbender or maybe a Thrunite drop-in for it. I like cheap dropins from S/F and MF, but if I was a LEO or firefighter, and my life depended on my light, I'd pay more for a Nailbender drop-in just from a quality-control standpoint.
I would also buy an extra tailswitch for the Solarforce, and I might buy a Solarforce Mini for a backup.
I like that idea. The backup backup. Still a lot of light, but very small and light.
I think a Solarforce L2p host is a pretty good choice.
The standard l2 has a better bezel to stab suspects with. Seriously, the solarforce p60's are nice lights. They're same (or imo better) than the pretty common in LE surefires.
Remember to ensure the drop-in is well packed in with copper tape or foil for good heatsinking if you go for a P60 host. I would probably go for a complete light though for day to day use. You're requirements made me think of the new Jetbeam PC25 and the Olight M20 Warrior, though I think they're a bit over budget for you.
For use with a firearm the Shiningbeam S-mini may be a surprise contender. 3 modes, good quality, budget price with a reverse clicky at the tail with a good mode memory function. It is probably the smallest 18650 cell light out there and could be held in a finger grip while keeping both hands on the pistol for better aim.
The S-mini isn't a bad idea at all if you want something more compact that still uses an 18650. 3 nicely spaced fixed modes. Very compact. It is available in a (kind of) neutral tint which I'd recommend. Only problem is it doesn't have a clip.
LE is probably one of the few instances where strobe and maybe even sos would be useful.
Strobe in an LEO situation is effective when making entrance into a dark house. Did a training rotation with the super secret ninja guys(swat) and one of them came in with a strobe , disoriented the shit out of me and next thing I know he was behind me. I bought one the next day.
So would the L2p with the forward clicky be the way to go if I want the ability of a momentary on. They have the l2P in the package below with the forward cliky included.
http://www.solarforce-sales.com/product_detail.php?t=FB&s=7&id=112
Also with the UF drop in from manafont, how does it compare to lets say a nailbender xml 5-mode drop in?
Yes, a forward clicky will give you momentary-on without actually "clicking" the light on. Also, you change modes to the one you want before you "full click".
The Manafont dropin is Chinese made and soldered. The Nailbender one is custom soldered and tested by a guy who is not mass-producing them. In your line of work you do not want the soldering to crack or come loose on you at the wrong time. Thrunite dropins are supposed to be great as well, Malkoffs are pricey but are supposed to be the best.
Forward clicky gives you momentary On, but it is a little trickier changing modes. Some people have gotten the forward clicky and haven't liked it for that reason. Since the light changes modes if it is off for less than 3 seconds, if you use momentary on and then use it again quickly it will change modes on you. If the light is already on and you want to change modes you have to click the light off and then back on. So it's just different. The nice thing with the Solarforce series is you can buy different tailcaps, though the anodizing doesn't always match. There is good post around here comparing all the different Solarforce switches.
The whole point of the fwd switch is the momentary on. Since there's no momentary on to be used to with modes since the two features coincide/overlap in control scheme, it's only useful for 1-mode dropin's
I've used it with 3-mode dropins, you just have to select the mode you want before you click full on.
Yeah, I'm just saying that there no benefit to using one like there is in a modeless light, and in fact somewhat more confusing/annoying.
Lots of valuable advice has been given here already.
there are two principles to follow: Murphy's Law and K.I.S.S.
So, concerning the first, redundancy is the key. One is none, two are barely enough. Carry three lights at least. The first one almost always gets dropped (usually whilst being turned off). The second one almost always develops some case of bad cell or funky driver malfunction. Or both.
On a side note: the stainless head, still available through solarforce, works perfectly with $ureFire's tactical V70 speed holster. I use this combo on a regular basis for about half a year now.
SolarForce L2P is, very much, an improved version of the $urefire 6P at half the price. I own and value both, but the L2P wins over the 6P big time, from every point of view.
A Nailbender? Sorry, I cannot tell, I simply don't have the dough for one. But I can tell that the Manafont 1-mode XM-L T6 4.2max powered by a fully charged XTAR 18700 Li-Ion performed absolutely flawlessly last night around 01:30 AM when we were searching for a heavily alcoholized person staggering around on a local highway, confused and disoriented. Let's just say it was far brighter than anything else that had been brought along, incl. the squad car's searchlight.
link please
Joel
Thanks, but I just did the math. 2 x 3 > 4.2 so I would blow this with 2 x CR123.
Is there something like this for 2 x CR123?
Joel
Welcome, frosstyx. Good to see someone out about that profession here, and good to have someone with whom an exchange on certain topics could be mutually beneficial.
I don't like the idea of a 1-mode light, because cops have the ugly and indimitating habit of shining flashlights directly in peoples' eyes... for extended periods of time, too.
This is something guys learn in boy scouts not to do. And, I mean, by accident. Pullover cops do this to regular people on purpose. To me, it borders on harrassment. No, it IS harrassment in my opinion. If any bloke came up to me with a powerful flashlight and cornered me and wouldn't take that light out of my face, it would be harrassment, maybe battery?, although no touching is required. Certainly wouldn't be appreciated. At scout camp, boys knew better than to shine their stuff at me, and I endeavored to teach them some courtesy and restraint on the topic.
I think cops do this for several reasons: one, so you can't see their face. They want to see yours, they want theirs to be obscured. Kind of a CYA thing, I figure--if they never know who you were, and can't recognize, you, even better. Another, your vision is going to be impaired if you then try to attack them. However, that also means your vision isn't going to be all it would've been when you skiddadle after he decides to not tow your vehicle. Another thing is it humiliates the driver, because they have to look up at the cop's invisible face in a sea of darkness outside the dazzling white spot. It's like he's tempting you to complain about the light being in your eyes, and how rude that is, and thus an impairment upon civilized conversation. Normally, humans, if they can't see the person talking to them, will look away, even if dialoging. However, we suspected perps and mere mortals often have heightened manners while being pulled over by a guy with a gun, handcuffs, a faster car, and a radio to lots of his buddies. So, at least I pretend the light stuck in the eyes doesn't bother me (the only time i ever would), and pretend I can see his face just fine. And have "eye contact" with the faceless master. Whatever you call it (safety, abuse), it's humiliating and unpleasant, even painful.
Reader, have you ever had a cop shine a big Mag-Lite in your face from a couple feet away or less? Remember how bright that was? That was probably only 36 to 50 lumens, MagLites' standard brightness (varies with batteries, i think). Either way, a pittance compared to 18650 flashlights discussed here. An XM-L can do 800 lumens and beyond. That's just downright dangerous. Many manufacturers warn to not shine in the eyes. Even eyesight sensitivity being logaritmic isn't gonna do much. Sure, that MagLite was probably focused. But most LED flashlights today have a reflector and clear lens which produces a hotspot of its own.
Another thing: it's harder to use a Surefire knock-off to bash someone's skull in than a Mag Lite. I remember in the 80's they used to (may still) sell rear battery tube extenders made out of solid metal, specifically for the purpose of weaponizing your MagLite. That was used mostly by LEO's. More officers carry pepper spray now though.
As for recommending the L2P, ironically that is the one which does not come with the otherwise-ridiculous crenelated bezel. This is one application I'd want to have that bezel... especially if I used a holster, which I probably would. I'm sure many would be happy to donate their own :) .
So yeah, if you're going to be dazzling people in a premeditated way, stay away from that 1-mode XM-L and do your neighbors and countrymen a favor. (Manafont now sells an Ultrafire 5-mode, and 2 different Ultrafire 3-mode drop-ins.) Work your job so as to project that "mild government" so often refered-to and hoped for in the Federalist Papers and Anti-Federalist Papers and discussions of our founding fathers. Would it be in any way productive to request that LEO's stop participating in highway robbery? Total conflict of interest, where their agencies are funded in part by the bounty they reap off of mundane traffic tickets. Which themselves are door-openers to searches of persons and possessions. They are now apparently training dogs to sniff around your vehicle, and alert every time, even if there is nothing, and never has been, any contraband in your car. Ask me how I know.. Just watch when it happens to you, reader. They reward the dog immediately when he alerts (whether they find something later or not). Which gives them "probable cause", and permission to enter your vehicle, and they claim they're not violating your civil rights. If they don't find anything, there's no apology, even if they or the dog damages your car. The attitude is that something must be or must've been in there, so--tough luck, as if you kind of deserved it anyway, since you didn't get caught. We've handed over the weighing of our 4th Amendment (which comes to you by grace of the Anti-Federalist Papers, btw) to animals! Animals which only care about biting on a rubber toy as their sole pay.
We didn't learn anything about Prohibition in the 20's. The solution remains worse than the problem. The only difference is modern-day Prohibition has been far more destructive in its unintended (or perhaps intended, or at least financially interesting) consequences. That, and in 1919, Congress chose the wrong drug-and therefore associated ethnic & social groups-to pick on.
I really appreciate all of the help, I am still looking for just the right setup but this information is very helpful. Riddle me this, is there a better 5-mode LED drop in option for the L2p out there that would maybe throw a little better than the XM-L while being a little more efficient on the battery life and maybe put out 300-400 lumens instead of the 700-800 that the 18650 driven XM-L will produce? What I am thinking is maybe go with the one mode L2P with the standard reverse clicky for the car(and for instances where that much light is needed) and maybe get a L2P setup with a little less light in it with a little more run time for my general use(2 of em). I would like to stay with a setup on both ends that can run off of one 18650 so I can just get half dozen batteries, a car and house charger and be ready for w/e comes my way.