Universal Housing
Ideally, you should select a universal housing that uses both a temporary-on
pressure tape switch and a dedicated on-off rocker switch. You must specify
Switch Option B to get this combination. Without Switch Option B, you will
have a lot of trouble keeping the flashlight on when you need to use your
forward hand to open doors and so forth.
You also must specify the cable lengths for each of these switches. Laser
Products uses the following coding system:
UXXYYB
where
U refers to the universal housing
XX is the cable length in inches for the pressure tape switch and
YY is the cable length in inches for the on-off rocker switch or a
second pressure switch. The
B indicates Switch Option B. For a 16" Colt AR-15, I've found that
the U0406B works well. I place the pressure tape switch on the right
side of the AR-15 round handguards and the on-off rocker switch on the
left side.
Tip: Use "Ranger bands" to anchor the switches to the handguards.
Don't use the supplied velcro adhesive tape. Heat will make the adhesive
get soft and eventually the velcro will come off. Brigade Quartermaster
sells Ranger bands, which are just glorified rubber bands. Alternatively,
you can make your own bands by cutting up 1" wide bands from 2.25" bicycle
tubing. Stretch the bands over the front sight casting and onto the
handguards.
Lamp Module
A standard six-volt flashlight module is probably all you need. This
means getting either an L60 module or an L36 module (for the M26/A15
mounting system described below).
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L36
Performance equal to the L60 below. This is a 6-volt unit deisgned
to be used with the A15 adapter.
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L60
Output exceeds that of most large 5 cell flashlights. It uses a
six-watt high pressure xenon lamp (R60 Lamp/Reflector Assembly)
that can be powered by either lithium or rechargeable NiCd batteries.
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Nine-volt modules are brighter but it is most likely unnecessary.
Staying with a six-volt module also keeps your weapon-mounted light
compatible with the common SureFire 6P handheld flashlight. You need
to stock only one lamp/reflector assembly -- a P60 (or R60).
Tip: The R60 lamp/reflector assembly works with both
the lithium battery-powered SureFire flashlights and the
NiCd-powered SureFires. The P60 is designed only for
the lithium battery-powered SureFire flashlights. NiCd
powered flashlights are more economical but lithiums
have far superior shelf life. If you have a combination
of NiCd and lithium SureFires, standardize on R60 lamps.
I like to use NiCd batteries when doing a lot of low-light
exercises in shooting school classes.
Single Housing Mounting System
If you plan to mount only a single module (typically a flashlight
lamp module), then you have four mounting options:
- M14/M10 mount
- M16/M10 mount
- M26/A15 mount
- M25 mount
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M10
The M10 mount is a one inch Weaver ring base, and has the standard
"female" Weaver interface built into its bottom.
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M14
Used for mounting to rifle barrels, with diameters between 0.5
and 0.9 inches.
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M16
Same as the M14 only modified to fit under the front sight
casting.
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M25
The M25 mounts to the front sight casting, registering against
its front surface. It is secured by a cross bar that clamps on
the front strut of the sight casting.
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M26
The M26 mounts the same way as the M25.
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A15
The A15 offset adapter provides a means to mount the housing
off to the side and back of the front sight while keeping the
lamp module centered on axis, above the barrel.
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M14/M10 Mount - The M14 is a barrel clamp that attaches
just forward of the front sight. The M10 is a 1" ring that
actually holds the flashlight (or whatever Laser Products
module you select). You can mount the flashlight above or
below the barrel.
M16/M10 Mount - The M16 is a modified M14 mount that
fits directly under the front sight assembly. To use the M16
mount, you must remove the sling attachment from the front
sight casting by either drilling or punching out the rivet
holding the sling attachment ring in place.
M26/A15 Mount - The M26 mount clamps to the front sight
casting and locates the flashlight universal housing (body) 1.2"
along the right side of the front sight casting. The A15 offset
adapter places the flashlight or laser module directly above and
along the barrel axis.
M25 Mount - The M25 mount is a combination of the M25
and a 1" ring. The entire flashlight unit is held 1.2" along
the right side of the front sight casting.
Which Mounting Option to Select
Both the M25 and M26/A15 setups fit all AR-15s and shouldn't
interfere with any accessories. If you use a laser (or plan to
later), then you should select the M26/A15 combination since it
places the laser in-line with the barrel.
The M26/A15 setup is the easiest to change if you switch to a dual
housing system (e.g., laser and flashlight). You simply swap the
A15 offset adapter for an A16 adapter. You can also use an A16 with
an M25 to build a dual housing system, but you have to remove the
L60 lamp module and use an L36 module instead, adding to your cost.
The M16/M10 mount fits all AR-15s as well, but can interfere with
accessories (e.g., M203) and may require sling ring removal.
The M14/M10 mount places the flashlight farther forward on the barrel
and probably won't work with a short barrel submachine gun. It is also
the least expensive option.
Batteries
You need to get Laser Products battery DL223AC, which
consists of two Duracell DL123A batteries wired together,
buffered by a fiber washer to cushion them from recoil, and
shrink-wrapped in plastic.
Alternatively, you can use two regular Duracell
DL123A batteries. But in high-recoil weapons, the batteries
may get pounded against each other and eventually fail.
