It would likely be a safe bet to say that most people who own a dedicated home defense firearm would like to have a weapon light of some sort mounted on that firearm. And yet, many cannot afford one—at least not one of reasonable quality. Kinetic Concealment has introduced a full-featured combination LED/Green Laser weapon light of quality construction that is also affordable.
Constructed of aircraft-grade aluminum, the KC Green Laser/LED Combo has a 200-lumen LED weapon light at its foundation. While 200 lumens may not seem like much in a world of 800-lumen weapon lights, a 200-lumen lamp was considered an ultra-powerful light just a few short years ago. While an 800-lumen lamp provides an overwhelming curtain of light from which to operate behind (especially when searching a dark warehouse), 200 lumens will do just fine when searching the average-size home or apartment. 10 years ago, a 65-lumen handheld LED tactical light was considered more that bright enough for use in SWAT operations. I used one and was quite happy with its performance.
The KC’s LED operates in three different modes: high, low, and strobe. The light and laser are both operated by digital touch pads located on projections at the rear of the light. The pads are ambidextrous and “constant-on” in operation. The pad toward the front of the light activates the LED. Push once for full-power “on,” once again for low power, and a third time for strobe. The strobe operates in a pattern that varies in rate—with almost a pulsating effect—which should prove quite disrupting to someone on the receiving end. A fourth tap shuts the light off. Because there is not a mode selector switch, you will need to practice cycling through the light sequence with quick taps of the pad to go from “on” to “off” when conducting a search, where you will want to use the light sparingly.
Green lasers are all the rage today, and with good reason: green lasers are more visible outdoors when there is direct overhead sunlight. Even under dim lighting conditions, their appearance is more distinctive than red lasers. However, there have been issues with the green lasers that have limited their universal adoption. Most of these issues have recently been rectified.
A green laser is not produced by putting a blue lens over a red laser; the process to produce it is different than the process to produce a red laser. Because of this, green lasers have been more expensive ($100 or more higher in equivalent systems over red lasers), physically larger in size, less reliable under cold conditions, and harder on batteries (green lasers have required more operational power than red lasers).
Technological development has fixed most of these issues. In the case of the KC Laser/Light Combo, it is obvious the cost issue has been rectified; MSRP is only $85.95. The KC green laser takes up no more room than a red laser, and two CR123 batteries power both the laser and the light. The two batteries are inserted into the compartment at the rear of the light. The green laser is activated by the ambidextrous digital pads that are closest to the shooter. One push activates the laser in a constant mode, while the second push makes it pulsate. The third push shuts it off. The laser and the light can be operated simultaneously or separately. There is an Allen wrench included for adjusting the laser’s point of aim.
When sighting in a laser, you need to remember that a laser beam travels a perfectly flat path, while a bullet fired from a gun is affected by gravity and begins dropping as soon as it leaves the barrel. Lasers have to be sighted in to intersect with the bullet’s drop at distances the gun it’s mounted on is most likely to be deployed. When you decide what the appropriate range is, the laser dot should be sighted to sit slightly atop the front sight when the front is aligned with the rear. And, unlike making adjustments on standard sights, you move the laser dot in the opposite direction that you want the bullets to land instead of the same direction. Since the KC laser is mounted in line with the firearm bore, all that should be needed to be adjusted is elevation. If windage adjustments are needed, they should be minor.
The KC Green Laser/LED Combo attaches securely to rifle, pistol, or shotgun via a Picatinny rail clamp. The light can be tightened into place with the thumb screw, then tightened further via the Allen screw in the center of the thumb screw.
I mounted the KC unit on the Eagle Imports Grand Power P-11 that I tested previously. It mounted securely and the digital pads were within easy reach of index finger or thumb operation. The digital pads stay out of the way and aren’t likely to be inadvertently activated.
For those seeking a quality green laser weapon light for their firearms who were previously prohibited by price, check out the weapon lights (and other gear) at Kinetic Concealment: www.kineticconcealment.com.
