Compact Rail Mounted Lasers

[Rastus]

I saw a neat looking compact laser from Laserlyte and even neater looking sub compact laser from Laserlyte.  Then I slid over to eBay and saw the NCstar compact with a weaver rail on bottom.  Anyone here with personal experience that has a comment on any of these? 

I want something compact and I like the NCstar because I can hang a light off the bottom of it.  I want the laser as close to the bore as possible so I'm not interested in a light laser combination with the light closest to the barrel.

Also...any comments on red vs green?  Green can be followed back...but I'm using this for critters at night.  Also....I saw other models up to 25mW on eBay.   

I plan on hanging this off the Mosquito for night work on armadillos, so tiny is best and I don't want a pressure pad I prefer a switch on the laser.  Battery life is not a great concern....but pumping up over the standard 5 mW would be a big plust to me (even if I do have to order from overseas).  I understand (correctly?) 5mW is an industry self-regulated limit not a national law/regulation.

Thanks in advance,
Ken

[Big Frank]

I always thought it was a law but I've seen laser pointers for sale that had enough power to set things on fire. It's my understanding that the green lasers are much easier to see than red with the same amount of power, and you can even see them in daylight.

[DDMac]

Hey Rastus, don't kill'em all!
I have a trained Armadillo that fetches beer. He is getting old and slowing down, so I'll need a replacement one day. We still have to import them in central NC.


Thanks, Mac.

[tombogan03884]

Hey Rastus, don't kill'em all!
I have a trained Armadillo that fetches beer. He is getting old and slowing down, so I'll need a replacement one day. We still have to import them in central NC.


Thanks, Mac.

And he's in the company of a TRUE Gentleman !

[PegLeg45]

Hey Rastus, don't kill'em all!
I have a trained Armadillo that fetches beer. He is getting old and slowing down, so I'll need a replacement one day. We still have to import them in central NC.

Thanks, Mac.

We've got a plenty down here....and will ship them to you.....

Reminds me of an old joke my grandma used to tell:

Q: Why did the chicken cross the road?
A: To prove to the armadillo that it could be done.

[Sponsor]

[Fatman]

Insight makes a compact laser/light combo think it's the X2.

As to green lasers, this from Crimson Trace's FAQ section

First allow me to address the hype of green lasers. A lot of laser manufactures are hyping green as the 2nd coming of laser sighting technology. Marketing buzz phrases like "50 times brighter than red," "Day Visible," "Brighter under all conditions," etc.... and they look pretty cool on TV right?

Green laser do one thing semi well and everything else pretty poorly. The one thing they do better than red is they do appear brighter. Power regulations are the same for both colors (can be up to 5mw) so we are talking about a difference of color only and that green is more sensitive to the human eye to see. Under sunlight green is easier to see than red, but all lasers regardless of color mute under bright sunlight, green is no exception. The brighter the sunlight the more the laser will mute until it is visibly useless to the shooter, the difference is with a green laser more bright sunlight is needed to mute it then red.

The problem is being the color green is easier for the human eye to see, under low light conditions (the conditions you are much more likely to need to use your laser equipped firearm in self defense) green offers some very real disadvantages. Under low light the green laser will splash off the target terribly making it difficult to discern the dot. Also under low light conditions the green laser itself is visible, one nice line from shooter to target. Finally under low light conditions the green laser will illuminate your surroundings (this is especially true inside buildings) like a green LED flashlight.

Furthermore green lasers are an IR diode with a chip that brings the color down into the green spectrum, because of this green lasers are 10 times less battery efficient than the current red. Also green diodes are much more fragile and more prone to temperature variations than the long proven red diodes.

To summarize, green lasers are currently not a good "all purpose" laser like the current red lasers are. I am personally of the opinion green lasers should be used or selected only for specialized tasks or missions where engaging bad guys under sunlight will be likely. Green is more of a specialized usage laser choice like IR than a good every day carry, all purpose, what you want on your gun 24/7, color choice like the red is.

As to the question at hand....

Will Crimson Trace ever make a green laser?

I have learned to never say never in this industry but at this time no. Until technology moves forward enough to eliminate problems like green diodes being fragile, being susceptible to temperature variations, and the battery drain problem, it likely will not be until these hurdles can be overcome.

[PegLeg45]

Thanks for that interesting info, Fatman.
I was considering a laser purchase in the future, but had not done much research yet.
This was helpful.
Thanks.

 

[ellis4538]

Why don't you just get a Laser/light combo?  I'm sure they make them but I can't remember who!  H..L getting old.

Richard

[Rastus]

Why don't you just get a Laser/light combo?  I'm sure they make them but I can't remember who!  H..L getting old.

Richard

Well, the reason is that I haven't found a combo that puts the laser next to the barrel (rail).  My reasons are the same as wanting a scope as close as possible to the bore of the barrel.  If I'm 5 feet from a possum with a laser hanging 2+" below the barrel then the next time it's a coon 30' up a tree the closer to the barrel the better my chances of hitting since I don't have as much standoff to consider on that ballistic parabola thing. 

Ideally, I'd like a combo so if there is one out there with the laser on the rail I'd appreciate hearing about it.  My other consideration was weight and profile...this will reside primarily on my Sig Mosquito (can on order) so a compact or subcompact will probably fit it better.

Thanks for the question.  Maybe this additional info will help someone guide me to the "Best Solution" (sounds like a segment on one of MB's shows.....hmmmm?).