Tangle

I'll have to say that I am impressed with the light, but I'm also disappointed at the same time. And, some of this is simply that it can't be everything in every situation.

One concern I had was that it would be too complex to use in a stressful situation, but that concern is mostly unfounded. You can simply set it for the stressful situation you want and leave it there. If you want to use it for something else, you can change it to a more suitable mode, use it, and then return it to it's "stressful situation" mode.

The light is easy to use. As it comes, you simply rotate the mode ring ccw wise to set up the bright/dim mode, rotate to the middle position for the strobe mode and fully CW for the full on momentary mode. I almost immediately re-programmed the bright-to-dim mode to dim-to-bright mode. My thinking is that I have the full bright on the momentary mode (full CW), so in the other mode (full CCW) I want it to come on in the dimmest intensity and steadily increase to the situation. I would not use that mode in a life threatening situation.

I thought the dim mode would be great to walk in the yard after dark to let the dog do her business. I'd have a choice of intensity so I wouldn't have too bright of a light. Unfortunately it doesn't work that way. Oh the intensity works great, but the light is so sharply focused that the beam that lights your path is only about 6 inches in diameter. You could step in "something" before you saw it. It does have that outer beam, but when the outer beam is bright enough to see by, that sharply focused inner beam is really bright. OTOH, the Surefire L2, has a much broader beam and you can actually see better. However, the L2 is not nearly as effective at 50 feet or so as the Gladius.

Inside, shorter ranges, there's the same problem, that very tightly focused beam that doesn't effectively illuminate the "far reaches" of the room like the L2 does.

For a two cell, CR123 light, it does reach out and it's beam is bright and white. Unfortunately, due to the electronics, some standby current is always drawn from the battery whether the light is used or not. I think three years is about the life of the batteries although they have a shelf life of 10 years in other lights.

Right now, I like the light. If I could have my druthers, I'd druther have a little less focused central beam and no drain when off. This wouldn't be a light you want to keep "loaded" for that SHTF moment.

P95Carry

Thx for the feedback Ron - much seems very good about the light but I was put off by the high cost, plus the fact that (still) I have yet to find anything better for my needs (including size) than the lil' ol' E1e!

Rather like holsters tho - I am somewhat guilty of having quite a large flashlight collection - they are scattered about the place!

__________________
Chris - P95
NRA Certified Instructor & NRA Life Member.

"To own a gun and assume that you are armed
is like owning a piano and assuming that you are a musician!."

If a BG dies as the result of pointing a gun at me, then he has merely succumbed to an occupational hazard of being a thug

hassiman

I have been thinking of getting a Gladius.... My main reason is its never-burn-out LED and the ability to strech out battery life for 400+ hours on low power in case of long-term dire emergency situations.

I also like the idea that it's waterproof to 150+ feet.

David III

Tangle: thank you for the comments. I was thinking about that light, and now I'm still thinking... because with 8 dogs, I do a lot of nighttime walks and stepping in things is something I do want to avoid. I'd probably have already bought one but that big price is difficult to overcome. Hmmm..

Hivoltage

I had one and was somewhat disappointed for the price. Luckily I almost got my money back by selling it on Ebay since it was brand new. I just wasnt all that impressed, so I got me a Surefire E2E and I like it!!!!

__________________
Nothing Wrong With Shooting as Long as the Right People Get Shot.
Clint Eastwood, Magnum Force, 1973

DDGator

Tangle,

I like the Gladius, but I recently obtained a Surefire U2 Ultra and it is a very similar light with adjustable output from 100 lumens to about 5 or so -- but also has a larger head and much wider beam pattern. If you can live without the strobe mode (and with the price), it may be what you are looking for.


DDGator (Duane)

Tangle

I really, really struggled between the Gladius and the SF U2. What really made the decision for me was Botach had a good combo offer on a Gladius and Streamlight TLR-1 or 2. Plus they threw in twenty CR123 batts free.

Although, I recently came into some cash and I've seen the U2s for right at $220 shipped on E-bay. It does seem a shame to pay that much for a light, but we spend a lot more than that on a gun without blinking and a light is a vital part of the tactical package too.

Could I ask where you got your U2?

DDGator

Tangle, I sent you a PM.

__________________
DDGator (Duane)
www.RealWorldCarryGear.com

Tangle

Me!!!! I've got a PM!!!

Thanks!