When it comes to shooting handguns in the dark, is it better to have a handheld or a weapon-mounted light?
It’s no secret that bad things happen in the dark. Evil loves the absence of light, which is why some humans are afraid of the dark. Our literature and movies have contributed to this fear with monsters such as vampires and werewolves; it seems like all the really scary things love the nighttime.
Bad guys like the dark, too. They like the anonymity it offers, appreciating the advantage it gives them as an attacker … and the disadvantage it lends to their prey.
But you can fight the night with light, which is why one of the most important self-defense tools is a flashlight. The question is: Should you mount your flashlight on your weapon or carry it in your hand?
Lots of Lumens
Back when I was working the street, the high-lumen compact flashlight was just becoming popular. They were bright as hell but expensive as hell, too. This is, of course, one of the reasons most police officers carried a three-cell Maglite (the other reason being it could double as an impact weapon). I was the first officer in my department to purchase an expensive, compact, high-output flashlight, and most of the other officers ribbed me for spending so much money … well, until they worked a night shift with me and saw the advantage a high-quality flashlight can provide. Today, the high-output flashlight is more common with police officers than donuts.
The higher lumen, lithium battery flashlight soon found its way to weapons, and today they’ve become what many consider a necessity as opposed to an accessory. Some departments now issue weapon lights for handguns, carbines and shotguns, and the advantages they offer to law enforcement apply to everyone else, too. I know folks who have a weapon light on their everyday carry gun.
However, as practical as it might seem to mount a light to your carry gun or home defense firearm, a mistake many make is to assume a weapon light circumvents the need for a flashlight. While a handheld flashlight and a weapon light can provide a distraction to an assailant—along with temporary blindness—the weapon light has a primary purpose. A weapon light is intended to help you shoot better in low-light circumstances. A weapon light is not for searching, because if you’re searching with a weapon light, you’re pointing a loaded gun at everything you want to look at.
Remember the second rule of firearms safety? Never let the muzzle cover anything you are not willing to destroy. This rule always applies, whether you’re on the range for recreation or competition, and even if you’re in a gunfight. You don’t want to point a loaded gun at your patrol partner, wife or one of your children. This is especially true in a high-stress situation when you might also be violating the third rule of firearms safety, which is to keep your finger off the trigger until your sights are on a target you are sure of.
In Gun or Grip?
The point of all of this is to differentiate between a handheld light and a weapon light. It’s not to promote one over the other. In fact, savvy shooters will have both.
For example, let’s assume you’re walking through a dark parking building, and your carry gun has a weapon light. Are you going to pull your handgun and use that light to check your surroundings? No, of course not. The same could apply at home when you hear that bump in the night. You might grab your home defense firearm with its weapon-mounted light to investigate, but you need to be able to safely explore your surroundings without inadvertently pointing a gun at your pet or favorite child.
A more complex example could be a situation where you’re holding a threat—human or otherwise—at gunpoint in the dark. Your weapon-mounted light is keeping the threat illuminated and partially blinded, but what if you hear a noise to your left or right that needs to be scrutinized? Are you going to take your gun/light off the threat you’ve already identified to try to discover the source of another potential threat?
I hope not.
A handheld flashlight is something you should always carry or have readily available. Not only does it allow you to safely search, but you can also use it for shooting in low-light situations. However, the most practical approach is to have a handheld light and a weapon light. I’ve equipped my home defense handgun with a weapon light, as well as my home defense shotgun and carbine. However, next to them, I also have a handheld light. One is for looking, and the other is for shooting.
I do not have a weapon light on my carry gun because I’ve not found a comfortable way to carry a handgun with a weapon light, and comfort is a primary consideration for everyday carry. You, your body type and the way you dress will dictate what and how you carry.
However, I don’t leave home without my Galco Flashlight Carrier, which secures a 2.8-ounce, 350-lumen Streamlight ProTac 1L-1AA flashlight. Aside from security and safety concerns, I use that light almost daily to find stuff that rolls under the couch or my truck seat … or just to read a restaurant menu.
You should be prepared, and when it comes to a weapon or handheld light, both might be the best answer. In either case, follow the rule of the four Ls:
- Lumens: Minimum of 100 lumens
- Lithium: Lithium batteries last longer
- LED: LED bulbs are more rugged
- Lanyard: Use a lanyard on handheld lights
Fortunately—at least for right now—we don’t have to worry about vampires and werewolves. But bad humans and bad animals are a real thing, and just like the monsters we feared as a kid, they love the darkness.
Editor’s Note: This article originally appeared in the April 2025 issue of Gun Digest the Magazine.
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