BlackHawk® Night Ops Gladius™ Illumination Tool
From BLACKHAWK
Clearly, one of most innovative Tools on the scene today! BlackHawk Night Ops Gladius Illumination Tool! You can look, but you're not likely to fine a more innovative handheld Tactical Illumination Tool! Right off the bat, it's a 6 volt, lithium battery powered, high-output LED, highly water resistant, aluminum bodied, illumination tool designed primarily for handheld use, but make no mistake about it... this baby is robust enough for weapon mounted applications. The Gladius flashlight is designed from the ground up to be immersed into the realities of close quarter conflict and should significantly enhance the capabilities of those operating in low light environments. The body design allows for a variety of handgun flashlight technical applications. It features and exceptional center of gravity and you will appreciate the well-placed anti-roll / retention flares. This light will not slip in your hand during stressful situations I think you'll say it just feels very right. At the heart of this fighting tool is a robust electronics package that can only be described as revolutionary! The Light features a patent pending multifunction tailcap that allows the operator to quickly select various modes including: Momentary Switching, Constant ON, Strobe Mode, Dimming, and Lock-Out all with intuitive, user friendly, one-finger operation. The switching is separated into two components, a familiar thumb activated push-button tailcap and a new proprietary patented rotary dial, also thumb activated. The Night-Ops Gladius light will provide modern warriors with a readily available, high-end illumination option to tip the scale of conflict in their favor. Bezel Diameter: 1 1/4"; Tailcap Diameter: 1 1/4"; Body Diameter: 1"; Length (Bezel to Tailcap): 6 1/4"; Made in the USA. State Color. Order your Illumination Tool today! BlackHawk Night Ops Gladius Illumination Tool
Good flashlight, but not worth the super high price The Gladius flashlight is a pretty good flashlight overall, but after seeing several new LED Maglites, LED Streamlights, Surefire Leds, and the new Pelican 7060 Led Flashlight, I have to admit that the Gladius is not THE brightest light on the market. I will list its advantages first, and then its disadvantages. Advantages: Smaller than Maglites, most Streamlights, and smaller than the Pelican 7060; Rated at 90+ Lumens, which gives it tactical use; It is lightweight, has good ergonomics; You can use the light at full power, which will last 90 minutes, or you can dim it to the lowest beam (.8 lumens), which will allow the battery to last for several days; its dimming capabilities allow you to use the necessary light for whatever task you are engaged in (i.e. you don't need 90 lumens to read a document in the dark, so you can dim the brightness down); the Gladius has a strobe mode, capable of disorienting a non-compliant or hostile individual (although the strobe mode can cause seizures on a small percentage of the population who is sensitive to flashing light patterns); the light has a lockout feature to prevent accidental activation which will drain the expensive CR123A batteries; the light is well balanced, and you can use it either mounted on a weapon, or in your hand by using several tactical flashlight techniques; the Gladius has a smart electrically regulated package that will adjust output when the light begins to overheat; it is also electrically regulated so that its brightness does not dim as the batteries get drained; the LED bulb should never burn out; and finally the flashlight will flash every fifteen seconds to alert you when the batteries are about to die. Another nice thing is that the presentation that the Gladius comes in is really nice: It comes in a hard plastic box with two Blackhawk batteries, instructions, a lanyard, and its protected in foam padding. Disadvantages: If you like a solid, heavy flashlight then the Gladius is not for you. Don't get me wrong, the Gladius can take a beating, for it was made for close quarter combat. However, it's body/barrel is not made out of aluminum and it is very light. This of course is only a matter of personal preference. If you have worked with tactical led lights such as the Pelican 7060 or the Surefire E1b "Backup" mini light, you will be somewhat disappointed at the brightness of the Gladius. The Surefire E1b is rated at 80+ lumens, whereas the Gladius is rated at 90+ lumen, and yet the Surefire is visibly brighter than the Gladius, even though it is only half of it's size. The Pelican 7060 (130 lumens) outperforms both flashlights. The Gladius might come with a holster (depending on who/where you buy it from), and the holster it comes with is Blackhawk brand, and it looks somewhat futuristic, but it is difficult to work with. Also, I am not a police officer, but I know many agencies require police officers to wear their gear on Boston Leather, or Bianchi holsters. So if you plan on getting the Gladius, and you are in law enforcement, you might as well plan on spending some extra bucks on a holster. The Gladius is not rechargeable. Putting rechargeable CR123A batteries into the Gladius (especially rechargeable batteries from Asia found on eBay), might damage the electrical circuits on the Gladius. This means you will be spending tons of money on CR123A's. This is why perhaps you would be better off getting a rechargeable light. The Pelican 7060 is brighter, its rechargeable, lightweight, and it ranges from $110 to $150, where as the Gladius has an outrageous range of $170-300. Like I said, overall it's a good flashlight, but I assume you would expect more out of a $200 flashlight. Goodluck in finding the flashlight that meets your necessities, and be safe out there! Gladius NIGHT_ops vs. Fenix PD30 I own both the Night-Ops and the Fenix PD30. No comparison - the Fenix is SO much better, and only $60. It's slightly brighter than the Gladius. But the Fenix switches to strobe at just a tap, instead of having to rotate the rear knob. The Fenix intensity is easily controlled by rotating the front bezel. Just a slight turn CCW and it's on dim. Tap and it's on medium. Rotate back CW slightly and it's on "turbo." (run time-1.5 hrs.) The Off switch on the Gladius is a joke; so fussy that I quit trying to use it. With the Fenix, a slight twist of the tail is Off. The Fenix is much smaller and the workmanship is superb. What's worrying is that it's not just Made in China. It was DESIGNED in China. American flashlight companies have much catching up to do. Yes, I have Surefires, too. The Fenix was brighter than all of mine, except the 12ZM. Now that's a real torch!
