Do you want to be sure of your target? Even in the dark? Well, for that you will need night-vision goggles or a flashlight.
These days, both flashlights and lasers are sleek, compact, and very effective when used with guns. On top of that, if you have a flashlight laser combo, it’s like a cherry on a cake.
The flashlight laser combo can be more beneficial than only using the laser or white light. In situations where you can’t see your sights clearly even when you have your flashlight on, the laser can help with zeroing on the target.
Flashlight with a laser makes it easy to shoot for people with eye-dominance issues. It also makes target acquisition easy for shooting from awkward shooting positions.
But to use a flashlight efficiently with your handgun, you have to be good at handling your gun. Make sure to practice and get comfortable with your gun before you try any weapon technique mentioned below.
You should be good at aiming and managing recoil. The flashlight laser combo will make no sense if you can’t handle your handgun.
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Handheld Flashlight Laser Combo Using Techniques
This article is solely dedicated to how to use handheld flashlights with guns. Even if you own a gun-mounted light, this post can still be useful in case you plan to buy a handheld flashlight in the future.
Some techniques are over 100 years old and might not suit all-size flashlights. So make sure to choose a technique that is compatible with your gun.
The most important thing is the Grip. Before you try any technique you should know how to hold the flashlight. There are two basic grips with a flashlight.
- Sword Grip – In this gripping style you hold the light with your palm upwards. Though this grip style is outdated due to the modern light design, you can still use it if your flashlight has side switches.
- Ice Pick Grip – This is the modern gripping style in which your palm faces downward and your thumb is on the opposite end of the light.
Today modern grip style is more preferred because flashlights are getting smaller and easier to carry and use.
Now let’s cover the flashlight techniques you can use with weapons.
Harries Technique
This technique is one of the oldest but still one of the most popular techniques. The name Harries was given after a firearm instructor named Michael Harries developed this method in the early 1970s.
Though the Harries technique was introduced for use with larger-body police flashlights, it is also well-suited for small EDC flashlights and tactical flashlight laser combo.
In this technique, you hold your gun in your dominant hand and your flashlight in your other hand. Get your dominant hand to the shooting position and place your other hand underneath the shooting hand with your palm facing downward.
This technique works best because when you press the backs of both hands together, it creates tension and provides more stability.
If you own a flashlight laser combo, you can use both laser and light together for more accuracy.
FBI Technique
As the name suggests, this technique is mainly used by FBI agents. This technique is best for people who are looking for a flexible and easy-to-use flashlight method.
The FBI technique is very simple to adopt. All you have to do is hold your gun onto your dominant hand and with another hand, you wrap the flashlight with your palm and fingers and let your thumb rest on the tail cap for extra grip.
Then you extend out your hands from your body and take them to above shoulder level. As per the need, you can adjust the flashlight distance from your body.
If you have a flashlight laser combo with a laser switch at the tail, this technique can work very effectively during tactical situations.
The advantage of using this technique is that you place the light source away from your body. In the dark, most armed attackers will shoot at the source of light assuming you’re there. But their shots are likely to miss because you’re away from the light source.
Neck-Index Technique
If you’re looking for a little more extra support than the FBI technique, the neck-index technique is for you.
This technique involves holding your gun with a dominant hand and holding your flashlight just below your neck. You grip the flashlight with your palm facing downward and your thumb should be on the tail cap switch.
The intersection area between your neck and the shoulder is where you have to place the flashlight. This area of the body gives you the natural corner for extra support.
Flashlight laser combos become so easy to use because it gives you access to different switch options. The benefit of using this technique is you get a full and rare view of your target. With this technique, you can also use only the laser to target your threat.
The Surefire Or Rogers Technique
This is one of the modern techniques developed by FBI Agent Bill Rogers. This technique got so popular that many flashlight manufacturing companies are introducing flashlights specially designed for this technique.
When you use a smaller flashlight like the Arkfeld, this technique becomes really comfortable, but you will still need some practice before you get the hang of it.
Surefire involves positioning the light between your pointer finger and the middle finger of your support hand. Your remaining fingers are wrapped around your handgun’s grip. The light should not touch the gun.
This technique can be used on any flashlight, for better stability you can use a combat ring. The combat ring will give you extra grip and make your shooting more accurate.
In addition to that, if you own a flashlight laser combo, you get more precise target shooting if you use both white light and laser at the same time.
Arkfeld And The Handheld Weapon Technique
If you heard about the Arkfeld flashlight laser combo, you should also have known the shape of this flashlight. For those who don’t know about the Olight Arkfeld flashlight, you can check here (insert link).
Can you use this flat flashlight with any of the weapon techniques mentioned above? Yes, you can because this flashlight has a tail switch. All the techniques mentioned above have a gripping style in which the thumb is at the tail.
Any flashlight with a tail switch can use any of the weapons techniques mentioned above. Coming back to Arkfeld, this flashlight has 1000 lumens output making itself the perfect handheld weapon light.
Arkfeld is a masterpiece in the modern flashlight arsenal. It has an ultra-thin body weighing only 3.07oz and the thickness is only 0.59in. The unique switch control makes it very easy to select light from 5 different modes.
Overall, Arkfeld is one of the best flashlights that you can use with almost any weapon technique.
Learn One Technique At A Time
There are many more weapon techniques that we don’t cover in this article. No matter which technique you choose to employ, make sure to pick one and practice it to perfection.
Trying out multiple techniques at the same time will make you jacks of all trades. Get perfect in one technique and then move to the next.
If you ask me, which one I should start practicing with? I will suggest Rogers’s technique. This technique can be used with both normal tactical flashlights and advanced flashlights like the Arkfeld flashlight laser combo.
The flashlight and gun you own can also determine the technique you should use.
One thing to understand, not all techniques will work for you. If you want to figure out the perfect technique for yourself, try getting some basic training and practice from professionals.