Carnival of Lights

Benjamin at Reasonablenut has a good link roundup of tactical lights and their uses. My first night gun was the G23 (center) with night sights. Okay for aiming in low-light conditions, but not so good for target identification. I eventually got a handheld Surefire (bottom) to complement it; it's an old model Glock frame with no accessory rail and there were no holsters on the market to accomodate an attached light anyway. The Fobus holster shown is what I use for competition and open carry.

I bought the G22 (top) to save wear and tear on my carry gun which I'd been shooting in IPSC. It had the old railless frame too until I slapped that on a Mektek carbine upper and bought a railed frame, intending to mount a light on it. While my best friend keeps a setup like this as his nightstand gun, I still keep the G23 and Surefire handy for that. My G22 project was inspired by the diabolical stage designers of last year's Superstition Mountain Mystery 3-Gun Competition. One of the carbine courses included a wood frame house completely enclosed in black plastic. There was barely enough ambient light inside to see the targets...rushing in from the bright daylight outside? Forget it! I resolved to have some kind of light on each weapon in case they tried this next year. I sometimes pack the G22 openly in the new Fobus holster when I'm driving at night, keeping a conventional flashlight handy for non-Red Alert moments, because I can't dismount the M-3 while the gun is secured in the holster.

I took the little Surefire with me on my last tour to Korea (locking everything else up in the safe until my return). That's a handy thing to have. When you can't pack heat, pack light.