How a tactical flashlight can protect you

So you feel you do not need to know how to use a tactical flashlight for self-defence? Ok!

You are walking back from a movie late at night. You start walking down the street to your car. Suddenly you reach a patch that is unlit and dark.

You hear footsteps behind you. You turn to see who it is. No one! You keep walking. Again there is some hustling noise from the tall grass on the roadside. You get Goosebumps and a chilling feeling down your spine.

You turn again but this time you are met by a blow to your face. The assailants steal your money, valuable clothing and your watch. Now you wish you had a self-defence tool. Trust me; there is nothing better than a flashlight.

If like most people, you feel flashlights are only to be stacked away in the kitchen drawers, you are mistaken. There are so many purposes they serve and one of the best is tactical purposes like self-defence.

Tactical flashlights can be used for more than just once a year camping tours and power outage scenarios.

These are a few ways in which you can use your tactical flashlight to get out of a dangerous situation alive.

1. A weapon:

There are some flashlights that come with a bezel. This can be used for various purposes. It is not intended by the makers that you use it to hit someone but then desperate times call for desperate measures. If you are under attack, you can hit back with the bezel – make sure to aim for the sensitive areas of the opponent, like the neck or the eyes.

2. In Darkness:

Most assailants use darkness as their strength to attack or rob someone. Do not let this happen to you. With a flashlight on you, you will always keep yourself safe. A tactical flashlight comes with very strong beam intensity and a long beam distance. Therefore, you will know you are in trouble from a secure distance and then you can do something about it.

3. Identifying:

Identification is another very strong deterrent. If a criminal feels that he or she is going to be recognized later, they do not risk attacking someone. Most robbers do so thinking that no one will be able to track them as they used the darkness to not let you see their faces. If you have a tactical flashlight with you, you will be able to see from far and also to far and so recognizing your attacker will not be a problem.

4. Disorientation:

The last two points were more about avoiding a bad situation but let us say you have landed in one already. Now your only chance is to fight back. Not everyone is trained in martial arts, so you can use the high intensity of the flashlight to blind the other person momentarily and hit them as hard as possible. This will render them helpless.

5. An Improvised Hitting Tool:

Most tactical flashlights are built to be long-lasting and sturdy. You can use them to hit the attackers head or nose. Also, when you are trying to block a punch, you can use your tactical flashlight to do so. Though some are small, they are very strong. So this will give you an advantage over you attacker at all times.

6. A Confidence Booster:

Just the knowledge that you have something that can help you survive will give you a confidence boost. This is very important in a dangerous situation. So always keep your confidence booster at your side.

7. Fend off Animals:

This is especially for those who often go camping, mountaineering; trekking etc. Animals are confused, blinded and disorientated by intense lights. So if you are ever under attack by a bear, wild boar or a vicious dog at night, a tactical flashlight is the weapon to use.

It is imperative that you keep your tacticalflashlight with you at all times. Invest in a good tactical flashlight, even if it means having to pay a bit more – nothing is more precious than your life.

Weapon Mounted vs. Handheld Light – Part 2

With a few exceptions, lights designed to be mounted to your pistol’s accessory rail cost significantly more than a handheld light of equal quality. Not only do they have to pack a lot of illuminating power into a small package, lights that mount directly to your firearm have to include a switch that is easy to reach.

The sensitive electronics must be able to withstand the recoil of a centre fire handgun. The lens material has to endure muzzle blast and fouling without breaking or permanently diminishing the quality of the beam. That’s a lot to ask, and it doesn’t come cheap.

Many weapon mounted lights will function perfectly over the course of a few practice sessions, but only the most rugged lights can withstand the recoil and abuse of being attached to a pistol for several thousand rounds. Consider how often you’ll want to practice with your light mounted to your pistol when making your choice, and assume that if you want maximum durability, it will come with a price tag to match.

Even if you decide not to keep your light mounted every time you fire the pistol, at the very least, fire 200 rounds with the light attached to ensure it’s mounted correctly and will not work its way loose under recoil. Also be sure to check that the light and switch still function after firing. 

Finally, it’s not a bad idea to clean the outside of the light’s lens before storing the gun for emergency use.

Here are a few suggestions from Klarus Light to get you started. There are plenty of excellent lights listed here, always be aware that inexpensive lights typically cannot be expected to stand up to long-term use nearly as well as more costly designs. Remember the old addage, “If it looks too good to be true… it will probably catch on fire when you try to turn it on.”

Klarus XT11
Klarus XT11S
Klarus XT15

Weapon Mounted vs. Handheld Light – What do you use?

Weapon Mounted vs. Handheld Light – Part 1

Do you know what that rail is for on the front of your handgun? Contrary to popular belief, it’s not there to impress the ladies! It’s for mounting accessories, which usually means some kind of “tactical” light. Anyone who carries a handgun or keeps one around the house should also have a good flashlight, and a rail-mounted light is a convenient solution. Handheld flashlights are a popular alternative, and many respected firearms instructors seem to prefer this option.

Here are the basic pros and cons of the handheld light.

No matter which way you lean on this issue, it’s essential that the light selected is of high quality. Even if you skip the practice and training necessary to become proficient with a light, just having ready access to a reliable illumination source is better than waving around your gun in the dark. Below are a few general gear-specific tips and some recommendations to get you started.

Handheld Lights

LED technology has come a long way in the last decade and we now have plenty of remarkable flashlights that put out a great deal of illumination but can still fit in your pocket. However, not every well-constructed bright flashlight is suitable for use with a handgun. Beyond basic quality and light output, the most important feature to look for is a switch that can be activated easily with one hand. This usually means a tailcap switch that is operated with the thumb.

A simple interface is also ideal. Some lights have a strobe function or various brightness modes depending on how many times or how long you press the switch. For self-defence, the light should be stupid-easy to operate so that next to no brain power is required to activate it under stress.

Some lights feature a “momentary-only” style switch, which is useful for techniques that require the user to activate the light only for short bursts in order to avoid becoming a target for a potential attacker. Others boast extraordinary light output, which may be ideal when searching for missing children in the woods at night, but possibly counter-productive when illuminating your bathroom with a glossy white tile floor.

Most tactical flashlights run on one to two batteries, usually AA or CR123. Both battery types are common and affordable, and many of the brighter flashlights will burn through those batteries fairly quickly when used on the highest setting, so keep a good supply handy. No matter the bells and whistles, just make sure your light comes from a reputable manufacturer, like Klarus Light, who have a history of making lights that work every time and won’t die out on you when you need it.

Below are a few excellent tactical flashlights that are both reasonably priced and reliable.  This list should help get you thinking in the right direction.

Klarus ST2C
Klarus XT2C
Klarus XT11
Klarus FH10

This list should help get you thinking in the right direction. Stay tuned because next week we’ll be discussing the basic pros and cons of the weapon -mounted light.

How you can use your flashlight when you go on a camping trip

Flashlights can be used for far more than you might think and you will definitely miss having one at the right time. Flashlights usually illuminate a task for your assistance but there are a lot more functions that a flashlight can do.

Since the advancement of LED technology the flashlights have been passed through a renaissance period of sorts. They are now smaller in size, brighter and can be controlled with microprocessors. They use less energy and they are compact in design. These features have made a flashlight one of the necessary things in your daily life.

Flashlights can be used in many ways and several security services are using flashlights now-a-days. They would be your perfect assistant while you are on camping or hiking. Flashlights are not only used for illumination, but also as a self-defence tool. They can provide you with the support you need to handle any dangerous or emergency situation. For these special purposes, tactical flashlights were invented. Tactical flashlights are very popular in military, police or other armed forces agencies.

So, flashlights can be helpful in camping too. A reliable flashlight for camping is a must have device for everyone. Every camper needs a flashlight; it doesn’t matter if it is for the trip to the toilet block and back, for cooking purposes, for finding your things or to detect something strange in the dark. While you are camping you should always bring a handy flashlight along!

There are so many reasons why campers need to bring a long a flashlight. Those who are frequent campers need a high quality flashlight for camping, take a look at the wide range of on the Klarus Light website. Here’s why:

-- It is useful for outdoor works or activities in the dark such as hiking, driving.

-- Flashlights make it possible to read at night.

-- Cooking after the sunset requires the assistance of a flashlight.

-- It is useful if you need to search for things in the dark and to detect any suspicious object in night.

-- So in camping, flashlights can be used to illuminate the camp zone.

-- Tactical flashlights are very handy self-defence tool. Lighting up the place will make the attacker nervous, and throwing a harsh light beam into the eye of enemy can blind them for a moment.

-- The body or the handle of a flashlight is very hard and it is strong enough to be used as a striking weapon.

Make sure to always keep your flashlight handy when you go on your next camping trip! What else do you use your flashlight for when you go camping?