Is the Surefire M971 too much light?

[Beat Trash]

I bought a new Surefire M971 (Model with the pressure switch) from a friend at work who is also a Surefire dealer. He got in about two dozen at a close out price, and charged me his cost.

Two years have gone by, and I am now getting around to wanting to mount a light on my rifle (Colt 6920). Yes, I know, I'm not the fastest bear in the woods.

I've been reading various threads and see that the Surefire G2 & G3, along with the Surefire M500's seem to be used alot.

This is not a duty gun, but my personal weapon. It would be used either inside the home, or out to a max of around 50 yds. I am a LEO, but restricted to Department owned rifles at work (Stock Bushmasters, yes, I know... But better than nothing at all)

Should I sell off the M971 I have (still NIB, never been mounted), pocket the money and buy either a G2/3 or a M500? Or should I just mount the light I have?

When I looked at the light today, my first thought is that it's huge. My second thought was that it'd most likely blind me if used inside of a building.

The recent power outage in SW Ohio due to Hurricane Ike has caused me to quit procrastinating.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

[Jerm]

im not sure what the M971 runs at,but ive found that my X300 at 110 lumens is pushing the limits for indoor use.with my eyes adjusted to the dark it can be a little overwhelming.

[Submariner]

I have both Turboheads and standard 9v heads (Z46?). The Turbohead works great outdoors but can overwhelm you indoors. Either get the Z46 with M10 and M11 lamps or wait for their LED upgrade.

[John_Wayne777]

The M971 is one of those face-melting anti-aircraft lights that are almost guaranteed to flashbulb you indoors with the default 225 lumen lamp element. The 125 lumen element isn't too bad, but still a bit bright for my tastes.

The Surefire G2 with a VLTOR mount and a Cree LED replacement should come in at around 100 bucks...meaning you shouldn't have to sell the farm to get one.

If you were going to sell your existing light, I'd sell it and use some of the money to buy an X300.

YMMV.

[Failure2Stop]

Unless you have a need to penetrate into dark areas while outside in broad daylight, or need to push through foliage, it is more than you need, at a heavy weight with a large footprint.

I don't mind high-lumen lights inside because most of the time I am not pointing the light at the wall, I am keeping the gun down to maximize peripheral vision and situational awareness. It is also rare that a light will be constantly on unless unit SOPs dictate for some reason. Flash-bulbing is a much more tactically sound technique than constant on.

The big milennium series lights can do a lot of different jobs, jobs that most people really aren't going to need to do. I personally consider the M96 series to be the biggest I am willing to stick to a gun I have to carry. I prefer the weight and flexibility of an X300.

Mounting is also something to consider. The ability to place the light close to 12 oclock (10 to 2) should be heavily considered when buying a light. The 12 oclock position is the most efficient and verstile position for a light. Though there are angled pieces of rail you can bolt onto your gun and attach the light to, they don't put the light in the right position and is another potential failure point.