Introduction
1st Tactical Studies Group (Airborne) Director, Mike Sparks writes:
"I'm not one to use a flashlight at all in the field if I can avoid it. I want to be able to do everything tactical in the dark. I cut out a dimple in my boot heel to identify the right boot by feel. The Ecotat one-man tent pole insertion and set up is a challenge I'm working on touch memory devices. Everybody TALKS about weapons assembly/disassembly and function in the dark--but few do it as we waste our time on BS lawn and building care and 3 square meals. So its natural that I use the minimalist approach to a red light which is a tiny Photon light on my dogtag neckchain which you can bite with your teeth to shine a light to read a map. But it needs a battery and when its gone, its gone. For a reference light for map reading or looking around in your tent and NOT A WEAPONS AIMING LIGHT, the new Wire Coil Conductor (WCC) flashlights which do not need batteries will do with some modifications"."
While self-charging WCC flashlights are not strong enough for use as tactical weapons lights in concert with pistols and rifles etc. but they are good for emergency and general purpose use to find things in the dark. They represent the last line of electrical lighting before one goes to pyrotechnical lighting from candles. To illuminate for your pistol use high intensity flashlights that can be recharged by AC/DC current means:
We recently bought a pair of WCC flashlights from the Everlife Flashlight Company [www.everlifeflashlight.com] to see how they can be adapted for military use.
There are 3 problems with the EverLife flashlights for military use:
a. They are white light
b. Their bodies are clear and not tactically camouflaged to show the "gee-wiz" self charging coils slide back and forth
c. They lack a lanyard loop to secure them and not loose them though a hole on each end is provided
What we really like about the Everlife Flashlights beyond that they don't need batteries is that they are sturdy and simple. Beware of removing the black lens cap around the top which holds the bubble lens and keeps the guts of the flashlight in. You have to really shake the flashlight for at least 5 minutes to get a decent powered beam, but its worth it not to have to ever worry about batteries!
TACTICAL IMPROVEMENT #1: Add a lanyard
Use gutted 550 Cord to create a wrist lanyard into end of Wire Coil Conductor (WCC) Self-Charge Flashlights
TACTICAL IMPROVEMENT #2: Wrap with McNett Camou tape
CORRECTION: we tried wrapping the clear plastic bodies with McNett camo tape and discovered its not opaque enough to keep extraneous light from shining through. Even two wraps. Therefore, PAINT THE OUTSIDE OF YOUR FLASHLIGHT'S CLEAR PLASTIC BODIES BLACK BEFORE WRAPPING with McNett camo tape. The photos below do not reflect (pardon the pun) this step since they were taken before we had realized it necessary, our apologies...we are learning as we go.
Seal ends with Shoe Goo to keep from unraveling as extra precaution
Let dry...you now have tactically sound WCC flashlights!
The most difficult challenge was determining the best way to retrofit red military lenses. The Large WCC flashlight was easiest.
Removing the lens and end cap you see that it must have the bubble lens pop through the end cap and its opposite side rests against the flashlight edge to keep the WCC guts inside.
Take a colored lens from a G.I. Anglehead D-cell flashlight bottom storage cap and place carefully into the end cap where the bubble lens is.
Now carefully hold the two lens in place and turn quickly onto the the flashlight body to screw them in--DO NOT TURN THE FLASHLIGHT UPSIDE DOWN OR THE WCC GUTS WILL FALL OUT! (Been there, done that was on the floor looking for a small part).
Carefully screw the end cap around the two lenses and VOILA! You now have a military colored lens flashlight capability!
BLUE colored lens is showing for variety, excitement etc.
The small WCC flashlight is much more tricky....
First get a small red lens from say a Mini-Mag flashlight you don't use like my LEGEND with the end cap on/off button to do the crossed hands flashlight/pistol technique that never worked...
When you remove the end cap on the small WCC flashlight youll notice the bubble lens RESTS ON A LEDGE that keeps it flush on the body edge and keeps the WCC guts in place. We tried it every way we could think of like it was Apollo 13 but there's no way to lay a Mini-Mag flashlight lens onto the bubble lens or under it and screw down the end cap to get a decent flashlight effect.
YOU WILL HAVE TO CAREFULLY CUT WITH SCISSORS OR KNIFE THE MINI-MAG LENS SO IT IS A SMALLER CIRCLE TO REST ON THE LEDGE INSTEAD OF THE BUBBLE LENS.
After you slowly and carefully do this, you add the bubble lens on top and screw down the end cap. The only drawback is the end cap doesn't completely tighten down to the base but otherwise its perfect fuctionally.
We found out that the clear flashlight body even after 1 wrap of McNett camou tape still leaks light around the end cap area. Add one wrap of McNett camou tape JUST AROUND THE END CAP AREA to seal the end cap and double the thickness of material there so light doesn't leak out. Obviously if the WCC flashlight were molded in a military TAN none of this camo tape wrapping would be needed.
BUY THE REAL MIL-SPEC SELF-CHARGE FLASHLIGHT: THE NITESTAR
The NiteStar has a powerful magnet which can also be used to pick up loose metal objects like bolts and screws
The Everlife flashlights are somewhat fragile and have clear bodies that need covering. The original self-charge flashlight they copied the design from is made in the USA by Applied Innovative Technologies, Inc. 1310 Factory Circle Fort Lupton, CO 80621 Phone: 303-857-1405 Fax: 303-857-8079 is MIL-SPEC and sturdy: the NiteStar.
www.theonlysurvivallight.com
NSN 6230-01-494-0603www.theonlysurvivallight.com/pdf/NightstarLights.pdf
NightStar(r) Survival, SAR, SEE And Emergency Preparedness Flashlights The Original Combat Hardened Survival Tool ...Not The TV Copy Toys. No dead batteries, no broken bulbs, no maintenance, ever. A disaster kit must. After a ten year storage - Simply shake to shine. Repeat over and over. A new way of thinking.
No maintenance or logistical support required, ever. No shelf-life, hazmat or spare parts. A magnetic force flashlight with an unfiltered red or green LED preserves night vision. No environmental impact - Can you eliminate three 4-hour-battery-sets every night? If you can still shake your hand -- you'll have light -- anywhere, anytime, forever. Extended Deployment? What if your supply line is broken? Flotation Test: Passed = Floats with AIT's proprietary StarCore(r) LED pointed up for SAR and SEE. Temperature Test: Passed = -40°F to +130°F (-40°C to +55°C) Water Pressure Test: Passed = 1400 Feet (Tested to Failure - Sealed and no leaks at 2200 feet.) Drop Test: Passed = 4 Feet
FLASHLIGHTS:
DOD NSN Mfg. P/N Body LED
6230-01-494-0286 N-01 Black White
6230-01-516-9439 N-01R Black Red
6230-01-516-9441 N-01G Black Green Special Order N-01-IR Black Infrared
6230-01-494-0585 N-02 Yellow Clear 6230-01-494-0585 N-03 Clear White
ACCESSORIES:
DOD NSN Mfg. P/N Description
6230-01-516-9442 NSWMK Wall Mount Kit
6230-01-516-9444 NSBH Holster, Belt
www.theonlysurvivallight.com
100% RENEWABLE ENERGY, ZERO WASTEwww.appliedinnotech.com
Bob Ballew, Director of Government Sales
Applied Innovative Technologies, Inc.
1310 Factory Circle
Fort Lupton, CO USA 80621
3E3E7 / OEM
888-828-1405
817-244-3647
ballew@appliedinnotech.comMandatory Executive Orders1 EO # 13148 Greening the Government Through Leadership In Evironmental Management. Sec. 304. Pollution Prevention Return-on-Investment Programs.
• Each agency shall develop and implement a pollution prevention program at its facilities that compares the life cycle costs of treatment and/or disposal of waste and pollutant streams to the life cycle costs of alternatives that eliminate or reduce toxic chemicals or pollutants at the source.
• Each agency shall implement those projects that are life-cycle cost-effective, or otherwise offer substantial environmental or economic benefits. EO # 13123 Greening the Government Through Efficient Energy Management. "...is hereby ordered as follows:..." Sec. 401. Life-Cycle Cost Analysis. • Agencies shall use life-cycle cost analysis in making decisions about their investments in products, ..., and other projects to lower the Federal Government's costs and to reduce energy and water consumption.
• ... agencies shall consider the life-cycle costs of combinations of projects, particularly to encourage bundling of energy efficiency projects with renewable energy projects.
• Agencies shall also retire inefficient equipment on an accelerated basis where replacement results in lower life-cycle costs. EO # 13101 Greening the Government Through Waste Prevention, Recycling, and Federal Acquisition. ...improve the Federal Government's use of ...environmentally preferable products ...it is hereby ordered...: Section 101. ...It is the national policy to prefer pollution prevention, whenever feasible. ...Disposal should be employed only as a last resort.
Section 102. ... agencies shall comply with executive branch policies for the acquisition and use of environmentally preferable products and services and implement cost-effective procurement preference programs favoring the purchase of these products and services. Section 103. ... Steering Committee, a Federal Environmental Executive (FEE), and a Task Force, and establishes Agency Environmental Executive (AEE) positions within each agency, to be responsible for ensuring the implementation of this order. The FEE, AEEs, and members of the Steering Committee and Task Force shall be full-time Federal Government employees. Section 201. "Environmentally preferable" means products or services that have a lesser or reduced effect on human health and the environment when compared with competing products or services that serve the same purpose. This comparison may consider raw materials acquisition, production, manufacturing, packaging, distribution, reuse, operation, maintenance, or disposal of the product or service. Section 208. "Waste prevention" means any change in the ... purchase (of) ...products ...to reduce their amount or toxicity before they are discarded.
Section 209. "Waste reduction" means preventing or decreasing the amount of waste being generated through waste prevention, recycling, or purchasing recycled and environmentally preferable products or services. Section 210. "Life cycle cost" means the amortized annual cost of a product, including: capital costs, installation costs, operating costs, maintenance costs, and disposal costs (with each discounted over the lifetime of the product.). Section 211. "Life cycle assessment" means the comprehensive examination of a product's:
• ...environmental aspects including raw material extraction, transportation, manufacturing, use and disposal.
• ...economic aspects including raw material extraction, transportation, manufacturing, use and disposal.
• ...potential impacts throughout its lifetime including raw material extraction, transportation, manufacturing, use and disposal. Sec. 708. Definitions. "Life-cycle cost-effective" means the life-cycle costs of a product ...are estimated to be equal to or less than the base case (i.e., current or standard ... product). 1
www.pub.whitehouse.gov/search/executive-orders.html
You can order NiteStar flashlights from Brigade Quartermasters:
www.actiongear.com
Item number is P/N NSL11
Proposed Raider Combat PR24 Baton/Self-Charge Flashlight
Mike Sparks writes:
"One of many weak areas in the U.S. military is the lack of Soldiers/marines having 'martial arts' self-defense skills. The cause of this is that the U.S. military is really a place for weak co-dependants to congregate ordered around by narcissistic egomaniacs who fear that if their suppressed subordinates were empowered with martial arts skills they'd then go into bars and start beating civilians up or kill each other. As Dr. Norman Dixon explains in his landmark book, On the Psychology of Military Incompetence, real warrior weapons---and martial arts is indeed a weapon---are always sheathed and suppressed in the volunteer militaries of the west obsessed with personal anxieties and phobias about life itself let alone warfare. In fact, when I was last activated for duty at Fort Bragg, my Soldiers refused an offer from a nearby Special Forces unit for martial arts training instead of absurd sports attire formation running lest they got hurt and couldn't deploy to Iraq and have a chance to self-validate and earn a combat patch to prove their manhood.
The bottom line is in Iraq, incidents like where 4 marines in a fireteam walking down a narrow street were jumped by rebels, overwhelmed and killed before they could fire a shot from their long shoulder weapons demonstrates that our penny-wise, pound foolish anti-warrior ethos is tragically flawed. Certainly, if our Soldiers must do walking foot patrols they should have their M9 wire cutter bayonets already attached to the ends of their M16/M4 rifles/carbines because the FACT is that an enemy charging at you with a knife has the "drop" on you if he is less than 21 feet away. Weapons should NOT be on safe but on semi-automatic and ready to fire with the straight trigger finger as the only "safety" (Condition Zero in Cooper's framework) but if not, having to flip the safety lever (Condition 1) or worse pull back and release the charging handle to lock 'n load the weapon (Condition 3) adds even more seconds of delay in a high stress situation that gives the advantage to the knife-wielding enemy, full of rage, perhaps high on drugs. Add to this that the foe may appear to be a non-threatening civilian who then pulls out a knife or other weapon at close range and plunges towards your neck or other area not shielded by body armor and your long shoulder weapon even if its in your hands at your waist free of a sling (Ranger style) or suspended by an assault sling may not be able to be pointed in time to shoot an attacker suddenly appearing within 10 feet from you. Bayonets should be fixed during foot patrols despite the possible negative public relations effect it may have on local civilians because dead Americans does not inspire confidence that we can protect anybody else if we cannot defend ourselves. The first rule of combat must be DON'T DIE.
Now that you know that there is an anti-martial arts bias and fatal close-in attack weakness within the U.S. military, its time to do something about it via an improved piece of equipment to bypass the BS. After I left the USMC, I worked as a security guard for a time and learned some valuable skills like how to use the Monadnock PR24 side handle baton. William Shatner on the old TJ Hooker TV series often used the PR24 in many of the innovative ways policeman do in real life. Because you hold the PR24 with a side handle, you have automatically a stick protecting your forearm from knife attacks. Moreover, you can swing the PR24 out back and forth in front of you in a half circle and create a powerful zone of separation of yourself from any attackers. Anyone that walks into a swinging PR24 is going to get hurt. The problem with the PR24 is that its long and hard to carry as the TJ Hooker series and the recent SWAT movie with LL Cool J shows resulting in the cop having to hold it down with one hand as he runs, slowing him down. The result is over the years, the collapsing ASP night stick that can be carried on a belt has become popular but it lacks a side handle so if you try to block a knife your fingers are exposed and will likely be cut up, and you can't get the swinging action at anywhere the speeds of a side handle baton to keep others away. I wrote to Monadnock and suggested they make a collapsing PR24 but only in the past 2 years has this obvious improvement become available:
Gall's 2006 Catalog
www.galls.com
2680 Palumbo Drive
Lexington, KY 40509-1000
PR24 NX Expandable Baton with Nylon Shaft
#A-BA083 $109.99
Page 507
As a security guard, I carried a PR24 AND a mag flashlight, so I wondered why not combine the two? This was before we had the internet, so I wrote a paper letter to SureFire lights which makes powerful beam flashlights used in conjunction with pistols with the Weaver stance/grip Cooper teaches (Harris technique) or directly attached to the weapon. I asked them to integrate a SureFire into the short end of the PR24 to create a close-in defensive/offensive capability that is always there whenever you need a light in a dark room or at night. The owner and inventor of SureFire rejected the idea with a host of "no one wants this" type arguments. I want this capability, but I guess that's not enough for some people to act on a good idea.
Let's talk about flashlights. 9 times out of 10 when you turn them on, they don't work because they've been sitting for months and their batteries have died. If you use flashlights a lot, your wallet gets emptied buying batteries even if you recharge them because Lithion-Ion and Nickel Metal Hydride types are expensive. If you lose your charge you are still without a light in a pinch. Bob Ballew of Applied Innovative Technologies has perfected the self-charge flashlight called NiteStar in a hardened Mil-Spec form which offers a powerful LED light after you shake a wire coil conductor up and down inside the tube to generate on-demand electricity using the Faraday principle. It seems to me that the Bob's NightStar would be awesome if integrated into the short end of the Monadnock PR24 NX Expandable Baton because it would never need batteries which means light weight and no change to the current weight of the PR24 and the electrical charge creation can take place automatically when the PR24 is swung around. Let's call this the 'Raider PR24 combat baton/flashlight'.
The Raider PR24 baton/flashlight when compressed would be 14 inches long compared to the current G.I. MX-991/U anglehead flashlight which is 9 inches long is heavy and needs batteries. The Raider PR24 lens could be molded at a 90 degree or have a swiveling head so when you cross your arms using the Harris technique for holding a pistol the light shines in parrallel with the point of aim of the barrel. Another option is to have the light lens come out on the bottom of the baton just beneath the side handle. Experimentation will be needed to determine the best arrangement. The point of the Raider PR24 is simple: replace the heavy and does nothing to protect you G.I. anglehead flashlight with one that does not need batteries yet offers a self-defense and offense capability whenever you use it to help fix the fatal weakness the U.S. military has because it refuses to martial arts train its Soldiers/marines. Having a flashlight with a PR24 baton built-in insures every Soldier/marine has a non-lethal, riot control weapon on him/her at all times so if we need to get separation from hostile civilians we can do it without resorting to deadly force and killing someone whose relatives will then hate the U.S. and want revenge, creating a cycle of violence that may never stop. The Raider PR24 baton/flashlight can be carried on the belt at all times even if a long shoulder weapon cannot."
BREAKING NEWS! A PR24-Style Side Baton Flashlight Now Exists!
Brite Strike offers a side-handle PR-24-like "FLEXATON Baton Integrated Light (BIL)" collapsible baton model SH170HLS
Light output: up to Hi-170 lumens to Lo-80 Lumens
Runtime: Hi (2 hours), Lo (4.5 hours)
Battery: 1 x 123A Lithium battery
Weight: 20 ounces
Length: 17.5" collapsed, 27" extended
BRITE-STRIKE TECHNOLOGIES
11 Raffaele Road
Camelot Industrial Park
Plymouth, MA 02360
(508) 746-8701
www.brite-strike.com
My only complaint about the Brite Strike is its high cost of $220 and that it's flashlight on/off button is not on the top of the side handle so you can have it in a ready position at your forearm when searching with the light. Otherwise, it's a great improvement forward.
G.I. NiteStar?
Here's a pic of how the GI anglehead can be used to fire the pistol at night...arrow points to side switch the pointer finger is depressing...
We need a NiteStar version of this....
WARNING! WATCH OUT FOR THE WIESEL-TERRORIST!
Your attack cat might see the 550 cord on your flashlights and think its time for some combat training!
FEEDBACK!
Martial arts expert, Phil West writes:
"My understanding is that in the incidences when cops got killed or injured by knife men charging it was usually because the cop tired to draw and shoot rather than the correct response, which is to evade and defend from the attack before you counter attack. Gun should be ready to fire but sometimes the sidestep and buttstroke or thrust with the muzzle (even without the bayonet) is more appropriate.
There is a company that makes side handles that will fit on to D-cell lights -I may still have an entry about it I can scan for you
I think I've also seen an ASP baton that fits onto the end of the flashlight -will have to rummage through the archives:
www.selfdefence.com/police/batons/triad.php
Side handles that you can fit onto standard high quality flashlights have been available several years -I'll try and find time to scan one from the USMC (ltd) catalogue -although there is probably an image on the web somewhere. What might be useful is if the operating button could be worked while the torch is being held by the side handle or a repositioned button that reflects the way flashlights are held tactically.
You often see D cells held with the lens at the little finger edge of the hand, which gives you the main length as a club, but wouldn't it make sense to reposition the operating button so it could be worked when the hand is holding the light this way?"
On the back of a catalogue last night I came across a tactical light that could either be used by hand or fit any glock or picanntiny (Sp?) rail.
My first thought was that you could have a clamp on/clip on/glue on/bolt on section of rail you could fit to your baton of choice.
Second idea is even easier and avoids a section of rail that might lacerate a suspect -section of heavy duty velcro stuck to both flashlight and baton. This gives you even more options -peice of velcro on your helmet cover for a "head light" -or on your webbing or epaulette for a shoulder light -maybe even on your watch protector as a wristlight. This would still allow the use of a rail interface for attaching to weapons.
Joe Katzman, Editor-In-Chief, Defense Industry Daily; "Daily News for Procurement Managers and Defense Contractors" writes:
"See the following Surefire article at DID, which notes the idea of the baton-style handle for larger versions like the M4 flashlight and backs it up. Note also the stories et. al. from the front lines and civilian world re: the usefulness of a truly high lumen light source, which the self-charge variety may not provide. Forced to choose, I'm inclined toward high-lumens plus a "hang-down" handle for knife-safe quasi-baton use... and there's stuff in Surefire's own write-in stories that backs this idea up."
Private Murphy's View
