Advice on Pistol Light...

Slug870

Slug870

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Hey all,

I am looking for a bit of advice here on a light for my Glock 17. Looking around, I have narrowed my choices down to the following three selections;

1. Inforce Dedicated Glock APL
2. Surefire XC1 Ultra Compact
3. Surefire X300U (A or B, not sure which is appropriate)

Now I admit, I have zero experience with any of these lights; in fact I have never fired a pistol with a light. My selections were made after a little research, but I'd very much like to hear what folks who actually own any or all of these selections have to say; both positive and negative. If you've got experience and/or an opinion on my selections, I'd love to hear what you have to say.

Thank you.
 
All your choices work fine. The Inforce is cheapest. I use the X300 which is the older brother of the U. The light works great and throws a fairly wide beam. It gets dirty after shooting as it sticks out over the muzzle. It hasn't happened to me but there are stories of Glocks not cycling well with a mounted light. Usually with G22s though.
My only suggestion would be getting a shorter light that sits short of or flush with the muzzle, just for the carbon/ dirt factor.
So the Compact and Inforce should be good.
 
If you look around on the various firearms' forums, you'll find that the Inforce has had mixed reviews. Surefire's x300 products, on the other hand, are criticized only for their price. I was interested in the APL lights until I got a chance to handle them myself; they do come with attractive prices, but...if you handle them...I think you'll see that the differences in quality are obvious. So that's the brand choice.

Now, for the question A vs. B. The 'B' version resembles the popular Streamlight line...which has it's enthusiastic supporters...but I like it less than than Surefire's 'A' version. It's more cumbersome to manipulate, compared to the 'A' version, and (inadvertantly) over-tightened Streamlight lights have been associated with failures in Glocks, especially Glocks chamberered in .40S&W. Their only advantage is in price - they're cheaper. On a Glock rail, I can tell you, the Surefire x300's 'A' version works perfectly. It's easy to put on and take off, and it doesn't cause any malfunctions. I wouldn't choose anything else.

The price differences aren't worth talking about. "Buy once, cry once."

A: http://www.surefire.com/illumination/weaponlights/handgun/x300u-a-weaponlight-rail-lock.html

B: http://www.surefire.com/illumination/weaponlights/handgun/x300u-b-weaponlight.html

“It’s unwise to pay too much, but it’s worse to pay too little. When you pay too much, you lose a little money — that is all. When you pay too little, you sometimes lose everything, because the thing you bought was incapable of doing the thing it was bought to do. The common law of business balance prohibits paying a little and getting a lot — it can’t be done. If you deal with the lowest bidder, it is well to add something for the risk you run, and if you do that you will have enough to pay for something better.”

— Known as the Common Law of Business Balance often attributed to John Ruskin.
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Wendell said:
If you look around on the various firearms' forums, you'll find that the Inforce has had mixed reviews. Surefire's x300 products, on the other hand, are criticized only for their price. I was interested in the APL lights until I got a chance to handle them myself; they do come with attractive prices, but...if you handle them...I think you'll see that the differences in quality are obvious. So that's the brand choice.

Now, for the question A vs. B. The 'B' version resembles the popular Streamlight line...which has it's enthusiastic supporters...but I like it less than than Surefire's 'A' version. It's more cumbersome to manipulate, compared to the 'A' version, and (inadvertantly) over-tightened Streamlight lights have been associated with failures in Glocks, especially Glocks chamberered in .40S&W. Their only advantage is in price - they're cheaper. On a Glock rail, I can tell you, the Surefire x300's 'A' version works perfectly. It's easy to put on and take off, and it doesn't cause any malfunctions. I wouldn't choose anything else.

The price differences aren't worth talking about. "Buy once, cry once."

A: http://www.surefire.com/illumination/weaponlights/handgun/x300u-a-weaponlight-rail-lock.html

B: http://www.surefire.com/illumination/weaponlights/handgun/x300u-b-weaponlight.html
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Excellent post, thank you very much.

I have ruled out the XC1 after a little more research (constant switch location, beam), so it really came down to the Inforce or Surefire.

The only thing I like better about the Inforce is the fact that it sits about flush with the muzzle, however I a firm believer in buying quality - especially with firearms and associated accessories. I think that my mind may be made up and I'll start looking for the best price on the X300.
 
Buy a surefire X300U and never look back.

Either the A or B version will work fine, but the quick release on the A version is much nicer than the thumb screw B version. That being said, I have a B and have never had an issue.

I prefer pistol lights that stick out past the end of the muzzle. Whether they look better or not is subjective, but functionally, that extra length can act as a stand off or brace for close quarters shooting.
 
I have done very extensive resureach on gun lights ! The only two worth spending any money is x300u and TLR1 HL

The tlr1 hl will be brighter and have a wider beam, also the switch panel is better as it has momentary on function that is very Easy to manipulate. The 300u is way better looking, it is also way tougher ! X300 also sits tighter to the gun, the x300 u is very bright more than bright enough to even be on a pistole. After playing and owning both I decided I prefer the x300.
The light output is higher on the tlr1 hl and has a better beam but the x300 is the better combat flashlight. It is bulletproof
 
The Surefire x300U-B is powerful enough to mount on a rifle and shoot at night out to at least 100 yards. It's also bombproof and won't let you down.

That said, it's big to mount on a pistol, but unless you are trying to CCW the gun, it's not a problem with the proper holster.
 
Thank you to all who have posted; very much appreciated. I've made up my mind and will be going with the X300A.

MikeyScuba said:
Just ordered my X300A!
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Mikey, can you please pm me with the details of where you ordered yours? I can't find a price that good anywhere.

Cheers!
 
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Absolutely the surefire for one simple reason, they always work.

Slug, Calgary shooting center has the X300U's available for 299.99
We're in stock when I was in last weekend.
Or just wait on the EE, I nabbed my x300u A for 200 shipped last fall.
 
FoxAlpha said:
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Absolutely the surefire for one simple reason, they always work.

Slug, Calgary shooting center has the X300U's available for 299.99
We're in stock when I was in last weekend.
Or just wait on the EE, I nabbed my x300u A for 200 shipped last fall.
Click to expand...

Thanks Brother!
 
I was between a X300 and a TLR-1. TLR-1 was a little cheaper, but I did my homework and asked around. Specifically with people who have had to be willing to bet their lives on their pistol lights working. To a man, each one said that a Surefire was the only light they'd be willing to do that with.

I've read that the A is intended for polymer framed guns as they tend to flex under shooting where the B is intended for steel guns. Something to do with the B being able to be cranked down on steel frame guns where that can crack polymer frames. If I remember right, the flex of the polymer framed guns can also cause the screw on the B to back out.
 
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