In law enforcement, there are several rules that we learn to live by. These rules aren't annotated in any S.O.P or general orders manual. They are just rules that we adopt as a bi-product of the unforgiving nature of this job. One such rule is, “two is one and one is none.” Another, “whatever can go wrong, will go wrong.” Military folks also live by some of the same rules or mantras that officers do. It's a way to keep us thinking; keep us prepared, and of the mindset that the environment we exist in can deteriorate quickly without warning. To adjust within these rules, many of us are constantly tweaking which gear we use and the way we do so. We find ourselves living in a world of theoretical and physical redundancies to keep us prepared for gear to fail.
Flashlights are one of the most important redundancies as far as equipment goes. You can’t have just one. If you can’t see the bad thing, you can’t defeat the bad thing. Everybody has a primary duty light. Most people have a backup light. Lots of people like myself have a primary light, secondary light, back up light, attached to a heavy vest light, door panel light, go bag light, and “oops I forgot I had that light” (when vacuuming under the driver seat). The off duty every day carry (EDC) flashlight has been one of the most challenging gear selections I have had to make. I carry a flashlight at all times. Again, if you can’t see the bad thing, you can’t defeat it (which sounds high speed and tacticool). But really, I lose my keys a lot. And the light inside my clothes dryer is burned out. So really, my flashlight is more than just a light saber to illuminate gun smoke, believe it or not. It’s equally as much a tool. I need my EDC light to be a jack of all trades.
First tactical has recently released its TRITAC line of small and medium flashlights. The small TRITAC is what I have been carrying both on and off duty recently. Here’s what I found.
Design
It’s small 3.6 inch length and light weight (0.20lb) make it a great compact light. At work, in uniform, I clip it inside my cargo pocket and don't even realize it's there throughout my tour. Off duty, it fits great clipped in the front pocket of a pair of jeans or in a cargo pocket of other pants. A huge advantage of the clip is that it is reversible, and it’s not some weak little clip that makes you think it’s going to snap off when clipping it to a thicker surface. This thing is robust. The shell of the TRITAC is constructed of an aerospace grade anodized aluminum. That’s a fancy way of saying its durable... and it is. I have dropped it (on purpose) multiple times on asphalt, tile, and concrete with no ill effects. It comes with a smooth bezel at the end of the lens but, in the package, comes a strike face bezel that can be swapped in. Also in the package comes an adjustable bungee finger loop. This attaches to the body of the light and is designed to let you retain the light in your hand but swing it out of your palm for whatever reason while not dropping the light. One CR123 battery is used to power this unit.
Operation and performance
The small TRITAC is not the most equipped light in the world. It is, however, very simple to use and great at what it does. There is a tail cap switch and nothing else. A momentary activation is achieved with a soft press, and a constant activation with a harder press to click the unit on. But here's the reason it’s named TRITAC: The light has three intensity levels. High is 261 lumens, medium is 86 lumens, and low is 18 lumens. Unlike other lights that require a secondary button to toggle intensity levels (and is impossible find quickly), the TRITAC simply requires a press of the momentary tail cap 1, 2, or 3 times. One momentary push activates the high lumen output. Two pushes activates the medium lumen level. Three pushes of the momentary button gets the lowest lumens. A full click of the button to activate the constant “ON” setting will give you the high 261 lumen output. So when you’re trying to read that white registration or insurance paper in the darkness of the night, just give it a few momentary taps and avoid blinding yourself. Now to my personal favorite feature of the TRITAC. The activation button is set into the frame of the light in such a way that you won’t accidentally activate the light when unwanted. This has been my biggest complaint about carrying other lights in plain clothes. I prefer having the LED side down and inside the pocket, but when I bend down or lift my leg high enough, other lights have a tendency to click to the on position. Then, a feeling most of us know occurs. You begin receiving what feels like second degree burns on your leg where your flashlight sits. At this point, you know the light has been on long enough to burn your skin and most likely a huge portion of its battery life.
Price
For under $50, The TRITAC is a small, simple, and highly effective way to keep a flashlight (or many) on you at all times. Its 261 lumens leave nothing to be desired out of this small beast. Visit www.firsttactical.com to check out all of their products.
