Want light for HK45c, help with fitment?

[sqidd]

I would like to put a tac light on my HK45c but I have not seen anything that doesn’t stick out past the barrel pretty far. My problem is that the HK45c is my carry gun and I am already on the edge of being able to keep it concealed. I am using a Comp Tac paddle right now (which is great) but unless I pick my shirt/sweatshirt carefully it likes to peek out every once in a while, which is obviously not good. And it’s not even warm out yet here. When it does I think I may be spending some time shopping for long T’s or start wearing button downs untucked (not quite my style though).

I can’t “raise” the holster to solve the problem either. I have already had to change how I sit while driving because I was about to loose a rib. Going any higher with the holster isn’t going to cut it. And no, I’m not “vertically challenged”, I’m 6’ tall, 180lb.

I see that Hillsman Holsters is making some nice rigs for guns with lights. I would love to be able to put a light on my gun (all the stuff in the house has them) but I am length limited at this point.

If you have a Tac light on a HK45c can you do me a favor and post a pic or let me know what light you are using and if it sticks out past the barrel, and if it does by how much?

If you could help out that would be great.

Thanks a lot!

[C-Class]

I personally feel that weapon mounted lights are great for the home defense gun, but a little cumbersome for concealed carry.

Is carrying a hand-held tactical light an option for you?

My 3 most-carried hand-held tactical lights are:
- Fenix L2D-RB100 w/ tactical clickie (175+ lumens) in a Kydex holster (replacement: https://www.fenix-store.com/product_info.php?cPath=22_65&products_id=362)
- Custom Surefire E2D with 200+ lumen programable LED
- Surefire C2 with a B.O.G. 200+ lumen Cree-Q5 LED module (http://store.bugoutgearusa.com/crq5drmo.html)

My attire determines which light I generally carry.

In addition, having the light separate from the gun allows me to use the light for other purposes.

Since I do a lot of driving, I use the 5.11 holster shirt and buy those western style shirts (with snap buttons) one size larger. It totally conceals my USPc no problem, is relatively easy to access, and I don't have to worry about a covering coat/jacket all the time.

YMMV

[CPshooter]

You don't want to concealed carry a handgun with a light on it..trust me. Having it on a night stand gun for home defense is one thing, but trying to carry a gun with a tac-light is overkill. A good holster and night sights is all you need. As far as lights go for the HK45c...I don't know what H&K was thinking. Don't get me wrong though. The HK45c is an amazing weapon and it's actually my next purchase as soon as I sell my NIB Kimber Ultra Carry II. However, I don't see H&K's logic in putting a military-style rail up front if it isn't long enough to accept a decent light like the Surefire X300 or Streamlight TLR-2. The problem is that they didn't hook the front of the trigger guard like they did on the P30. Instead they made it straight like a USPf or a P2000sk. If they hooked the trigger guard on the HK45c it would give the light more clearance so it could sit further back. The P30 has a shorter barrel than the HK45c, yet because it has a hooked trigger guard it will accept a X300 or TLR-2, whereas the 45c can't.

That said, I'm going to buy one anyways because tac-lights aren't really that important to me. If I need one, I can always settle for an Insight XML mini-light/laser combo. The 45c is still probably THE best compact .45 pistol out there IMO and it makes for a nice carry pistol.

Sqidd-

I don't know where you are trying to carry your gun, but a lot of people will agree that the best place to carry a pistol is your 3:30-5 o'clock with a QUALITY IWB holster. If you carry it in this position behind your hip, you won't have to change how you sit or drive. You also won't ever have anything jabbing your ribs when you bend over or lean forward to pick something up. Try a holster like this (http://www.ttgunleather.com/catalog/i35.html). Custom leather IWB holsters like that one, or a Milt Sparks Versa-Max II will give your gun great support and you'll hardly know you are even carrying a pistol.

[RyuNoKai]

I still have yet to see the X2L on an HK45C. But, I think it would be ok. don't worry about having a risidulously bright light, because it's more apt to blind you as well, just not nearly as much as as the attacker.

[PattayaPistol]

The P30 has a shorter barrel than the HK45c, yet because it has a hooked trigger guard it will accept a X300 or TLR-2, whereas the 45c can't.
Thanks, I have been searching threads from everywhere to get confirmation that the X300 and TRL-2 definitely fit the P30. I need search no more. Much appreciated.
PP

[ScbaSteve]

I have an x2l for my 45c. It works well, but is not as bright as I would like. And as everyone has said, its too cumbersome for concealed carry, but works great for home defense. Give me a bit and I will try to post pictures.

[HKCHEF]

Has surefire started shipping the X400 yet?

[igcsteve]

I mounted a Streamlight TLR-1 on mine for a "nightstand light" but took it off for carry. Here's one of the treads discussing how you need to mount it.
http://hkpro.com/forum/showthread.php?t=77467

Here's another thread that has a picture;
http://www.hkpro.com/forum/showthread.php?t=90771&highlight=TLR-1+HK45C

[sqidd]

Thanks for the input guys. Having a light on a carry gun sounded like a good idea but from what you are saying it’s a lot more trouble than it’s worth. I’ll be honest though, a lot of the reason I want/wanted one is because I like “Tech” crap a lot. I can justify just about any purchase if it’s “Tech Cool”. For example I have a AIM Research LED race dash in my Mustang that has 12 data inputs, GPS for track mapping, lap timer and a G meter that works in all four directions. It will even store an hours worth of data that can be downloaded to my laptop for analysis. Complete and utter overkill for a fast “daily driver” street car.

Sounds like the Con’s far outweigh the Pro’s when it comes to a Tac light on a carry gun and the HK45c specifically. Thanks for all of your input on that.

I was thinking of ordering a few of the 5.11 shirts to see how those worked out for me too. Because of the positive reviews from you guys I will definitely do that in the next few days. In the summer I am a T-shirt guy but I guess there is no reason not to be a “shirt with tails guy”. I used to be able to get away with a T-shirt and my G27 but that was when I was 142lbs (6’ tall). My shoulders were so wide compared to my waist the gun would disappear. I used to Roadrace Motorcycles back when I was 142lbs but I don’t do much racing anymore if at all and I have gone from 15,000 track miles a year down to about 2,000mi. Surprise, surprise I put some weight on. Now I’m 180lbs and my mid section is not nearly as small as it used to be. T-shirts just don’t cut it anymore. And now the carry gun is bigger too.

For the most part I have some sort of Tac light or at least a mini Mag on or ear me anyway. I probably have 6 in my truck right now and even stashed two in the wife’s car.

I just love having a Tac light on my pistols though. My USP45 Tac has H&K’s light on it and when “clearing” my house (just for fun) having the light is great. The contrast between the sights and what I am illuminating is incredible. It makes getting on target easy as pie.

Thanks again for all your input. This is a great site and everyone seems to have very good/qualified opinions on what works or doesn’t. It’s refreshing to post somewhere that every other thread is not about someone complaining about something.

Now that I’m not going to get a light for the HK45 I need to decide what to get instead. I have a lot of .45 but I could use some more 5.56. Or maybe a laser for the AR? Decisions, decisions.

[flintsghost]

With the exception of long guns, professionals do not carry weapons with lights on them when on duty and working. What they do is carry a light that is quick on an off like the surefire series and when they have to go into an encounter at night they grab it click it on and use it. When done, unclip it and holster and move on. The other possibility that I have seen pro's do is have a special dedicated weapon with a light mounted in their duty bag. When called for (such as warrant service or tactical team ops) they retrieve that weapon and do their stuff. Those dedicated weapons will be the ones that have grip switches on them. Otherwise, grip switches have pretty much fallen by the wayside also. The surefire line is quick to clip on and off, is LED rather than bulb (longer life and less likely to break during shooting) , and the clip on spring loaded control works really easily. The light controls usually can be manipulated by the the support or strong hand. The HK light is very good but it suffers from being a bulb type which means that if you shoot with the light on, you could blow the bulb from the vibration and they warn of that in their instructions. I have both. I use the HK light on earlier pistols like the USPc which doesn't require a adaptor. But for pistols with a picatinny type rail the Surefire clip on light i.e. X200, X300 or X400 would be a better choice. I have an older X200 which puts out only slightly less light than a 300 or 400 and works just fine. Other than that a hand held flashlight is a possibility.

[razerface]

+1 on bulbs breaking on the HK light when shooting with it turned on !! I wish they made a LED replacement bulb for it,,,,,

[C-Class]

+1 on bulbs breaking on the HK light when shooting with it turned on !! I wish they made a LED replacement bulb for it,,,,,

It's an area that has been explored by me. LED's require a heatsink to dissipate the heat. The way the UTL was designed makes designing an LED conversion for it an expensive endeavor. I couldn't get the costs down to be reasonable.

For the amount of money to spend converting the UTL to use an LED, and considering how quickly any LED I install will be obsolete, I might as well buy a good handheld light for less money.

Hence my handheld recommendations noted in post #2.

IMO, For the home gun, the Streamlight TLR-1 C4 @ $105.00 or less is probably the best value for your money.

[sqidd]

With the exception of long guns, professionals do not carry weapons with lights on them when on duty and working. What they do is carry a light that is quick on an off like the surefire series and when they have to go into an encounter at night they grab it click it on and use it.

Makes sense. How long could it take to clip a light on right? If you are a Pro chances are you know when you are going into a situation where you need a light



The HK light is very good but it suffers from being a bulb type which means that if you shoot with the light on, you could blow the bulb from the vibration and they warn of that in their instructions. I have both. I use the HK light on earlier pistols like the USPc which doesn't require a adaptor.

I got the H&K light when I purchsed my 45 Tac. It was sitting right next to it under the counter. How could I resist?:D I have left it cliped to the gun for at least 3-400 rounds and the bulb hasn't poped yet. I don't leave it on the gun when I go to the range anymore but I am shooting a match most of the time I am at the range now. I never checked, or read the directions, is their an extra bulb for the light stashed away somewhere? Does Surefire have adaptors to mate one of their lights to the Tactical? It would be nice to have a LED now that you brought it up. I have LED's on my AR's for breakage reasons.

thanks for the help.

[LCSO264]

With the exception of long guns, professionals do not carry weapons with lights on them when on duty and working. What they do is carry a light that is quick on an off like the surefire series and when they have to go into an encounter at night they grab it click it on and use it. When done, unclip it and holster and move on. The other possibility that I have seen pro's do is have a special dedicated weapon with a light mounted in their duty bag. When called for (such as warrant service or tactical team ops) they retrieve that weapon and do their stuff. Those dedicated weapons will be the ones that have grip switches on them. Otherwise, grip switches have pretty much fallen by the wayside also. The surefire line is quick to clip on and off, is LED rather than bulb (longer life and less likely to break during shooting) , and the clip on spring loaded control works really easily. The light controls usually can be manipulated by the the support or strong hand. The HK light is very good but it suffers from being a bulb type which means that if you shoot with the light on, you could blow the bulb from the vibration and they warn of that in their instructions. I have both. I use the HK light on earlier pistols like the USPc which doesn't require a adaptor. But for pistols with a picatinny type rail the Surefire clip on light i.e. X200, X300 or X400 would be a better choice. I have an older X200 which puts out only slightly less light than a 300 or 400 and works just fine. Other than that a hand held flashlight is a possibility.

I disagree, not only do I carry my primary weapon (HK45) with a Surefire X300 mounted, nearly every cop I know carries their primary with a similar set up. That said, we all carry light (SureFire or whatever). Not every encounter calls for a weapon mounted light, but when the situation does, I prefer to have both hands on my handgun, to increase the effectiveness of my handgun shots.. To dismiss handgun mounted lightsis a mistake... We must always use tech to stw k the de k in our favor.. We must be the victors, there are far too few of us (cops) to pass up on tech advantages and possibly let the bad guys win.

[RyuNoKai]

I wouldn't mind an X2L. The light and laser are bright enough to do the job. And let's face it, if we could carry bigger and better, we would. And some of us did. I used to carry my USP45T with UTL and Vortex Flash suppressor attached. But, the Hk45C with X2L should be fine, I think.

[ScbaSteve]

Just talked to insight. CS said that they are working on a subcompact LED light / laser combo. I don't remember exactly what it is going to be called but it is something like w100xl or w100l. They said its in the very early stages but could be out as early as late summer. Im still hoping that they will come out with a LED drop in for the x2l.
Good news none the less.