A review of the new Olight PL-2 Valkyrie pistol light

Here is a short review of the Valkyrie PL-2.

The light was provided by the charming and ever-delightful Sandra of Olight UK. Thanks Sandra.

I sent this light as a gift to my friend, the indomitable Nils of the Dales, for him to use in his Airsoft games. He uses a Tokyo Marui 5-7 pistol. He has also provided me with his thoughts on the light and also a few nice pictures.

My initial thoughts:

This was boxed in the typical, consistent style that Olight uses (I have a lot of their torches) - strong, clear packaging with a premium look to it. Nicely packaged with the torch are some instructions (this light is very simple to use) a couple of CR123A cells (you can also use rechargeable cells although RCR123A’s won’t be able to be recharged in-situ - you’ll have to remove the light from the pistol and charge these with a normal Li-Ion charger), rail attachments for Glock pistols and MIL-STD-1913 “Picatinny” rails and the relevant mounting tool.

I can compare this light to the Pl-1 II Valkyrie which I gifted to my friend Barry.

Basically, in a nutshell, whilst the PL-1 II is great - the PL-2 is better!! That’s the comparison over!

A few super quick observations of the PL-2:

Side by side battery configuration - doesn’t add a lot of bulk but provides much improved output and runtimes.
Strong battery cover - seems to me like it will last a long time, especially as when mounted it is protected by the trigger guard.
Rail has a great lock - very quick and easy release, heavy duty, simple to use, solid lock-up.
Very precisely machined, no flaws whatsoever - beautiful anodising which will take a lot of knocks.
Switches are crisp and positive. Engage every single time - there is no sloppiness to them, a nice quiet but positive ‘click’ in operation.
Superb on momentary or full on - press and hold for momentary, press and release for full.
Easy to use Strobe - activated by tapping both side switches together.
Very consistent and practical beam - ten yards equals roughly man-height for targeting - much more than that and you need a rifle.
Impressive throw - up to 235 metres from the Cree XHP35 HI LED.
Very clear light - excellent illumination of target using a TIR (Total Internal Reflection) optic lens. 1200 Lumens!!

A really well designed, well engineered light which will do its job reliably and consistently.

Here are a few pics:

Here are Nils’ thoughts and a few of his pics:

Olight Valkyrie PL2

9 / 10, a very nice light!

Pros

+ tactile switches feel great to use. Not just in actuation, with their clicky feedback, but the surface of each button is a nice rubber material that ensures a non-slip grip when activating and deactivating

+ bright as you’d ever need a pistol light to be

+ the beautiful Olight lens focuses the beam into a really nice spot, one of my favourite spots of any light

+ the backwash from the light doesn’t wash out night-vision

+ aluminium case feels durable and robust…

+ … but the system is still very light and manageable

+ doesn’t get in the way of the normal functions of the pistol

+ quick-mount comes with a groove key for both Glock pistols and 1913 Picatinny rails

+ quick-mount has sufficient clamping to not require the key to put the light onto a rail

+ little-to-no play in the Picatinny mount when clamped

+ comes with a torx wrench to change the key with

+ looks great

Cons

- using a non high street battery type means keeping juice in the device is more difficult, and possibly more expensive (though the RC123A isn’t a rare battery, it’s not a strict ‘off the shelf’ kind of thing like a AA, and it does allow the light to shed a good portion of bulk)

- on a full size combat handgun frame, especially models with large finger guards for winter gloves (5-7, Beretta 92, etc.), operation is strictly going to be a 2 handed job. Even on shorter frame pistols, small hands will struggle to tap the light on with the trigger finger.

- I worry that the battery cover is novel enough to be the first thing that breaks, held on at the hinge with just a small steel pin, and latching on a spring loaded camming tab. Although if the latch fails in use, the finger guard of the pistol might be enough to keep the batteries in circuit.

- The hard anodised parts that form the Picatinny rail clamp have a rough surface and the camming engagement wears on both the clamp and the cam. It’s just a nit-pick though, the clamp itself works great, although steel parts have the potential to be both smoother and more wear resistant.

- quick-mount system is so well made, it’s hard to register and attach in the dark as the system has to be placed onto the rail (rather than slid into engagement) because of the key (although why you wouldn’t just keep the light on the rail all the time, I don’t know, but if you think you’ll be fumbling with this on a rail in the dark practise it a bit)

Other

~Cool white tint!

~1200 lumens!

~Awesome Olight TIR lens!

~Superlight!

~Disco Strobe!

There you have it - Olight are adept at continually improving their lights and this new version of their pistol light is no exception.

Thanks for reading.

SP

I'm a Brazilian cop,on Rio de Janeiro.

I'm buying the OLight Valkyre PL 2 and here in It is so expensive to buy 123a battery , that is why i Will choice (i'll need to import) for rechargeable 123a battery.

Wich is the best to use on PL 2?

Nitecore? Fênix?Soshine? The own OLight?

Any eBay, Amazon or anyother site where could buy a Nice rcr123a battery?

Thanks since now for The atention and any help.

God bless us.

Sorry for The horrible english....I'm Brazilian.