Streamlight TLR-1 Review
I frequently have co-workers asking me about weapon lights and which one they should buy. When it comes to pistol lights, I really only have experience with the Streamlight TLR-1. My model has the C4 LED and has a claimed output of approximately 135 Lumens.
Also consider the TLR-1HL Review here.
I have had the light for approximately two years and it has really seen it all. The first year the light spent the majority of the time mounted on the quad rail of my service issued M-4 where it received a lot of rough use and survived extreme heat, cold, torrential downpours and even a freak snowstorm.
The TLR-1 proved invaluable during field use and provided much needed visibility when working alone at night. The lights’ C-4 LED produces a truly blinding tight beam of light with a substantial amount of peripheral illumination. It’s really difficult to describe just how bright this light is especially now that you can pick up an updated version that is even more powerful, but lets suffice to say that it is very bright (don’t accidentally point it at air support).
The second year of use has been mainly holstered and used occasionally when needed. I still depend on the light for tactical situations and my Disruptive Products kydex holster was custom molded around it. Battery life is truly phenomenal with over 2 hours of runtime for my light (My light last that long not sure if you will have the same results). Changing the batteries (two 3v) is a royal pain in the butt especially when in the field at night. However, like anything else practice makes perfect and you should always have fresh batteries installed before venturing into the dark unknown. The light dims shortly before running out of juice which gives you some lead time to switch to a backup light or change the batteries.
One downside I experienced was after the toggle switch accidentally turned on and the light spent the night on in my locker. Luckily it was an LED and no fire started however, the TLR-1 does get warm and I believe that it is no longer as bright as when I purchased it. I have not contacted Streamlight about it so I cannot attest to their warranty service. Anyways, I don’t think I could do without the light for that long. The main reason I chose the TLR-1 over the SureFire X300 was price. The TLR-1 can still be found for around $100.00 USD and that is a hard price to beat for what you get. I have compared the TLR-1 to the X300 and they are very similar in light output and it really comes down to personal preference and your budget. Another reason I chose the TLR-1 was because infrared filters (IR) are very affordable. However, IR filters don’t work as well with LED lights and I found myself relying on my Streamlight Sidewinder’s built in IR LED instead. Currently I have a SureFire M952V-TN as my long arm weapon light.
Since posting this early TLR-1 Review, Black Sheep Warrior has founded an online tactical gear store called MTG Tactical. We offer the new version of this light here.
https://megiddotacticalgroup.com/product/streamlight-tlr-1-hl-800-lumen-tactical-light/
Update:
After talking with Streamlight I was informed that the TLR-1 weapon light has a lifetime warranty on all components minus the glass lens and the batteries. They offered to deal with my issue and send me a temporary replacement for $25.00 USD. I will let you know when I get it back.
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– Will
Where to buy:
Amazon Streamlight 69110 TLR-1 C4 LED Rail Mounted Weapon Flashlight, Black
(Purchasing from this link helps support BlackSheepWarrior.com)
