After some low light classes, I’ve been looking at modifying my light setup.
I started out with a Streamlight TLR-1 mounted to the upper handguard, the TLR1 had poor ergonomics and really wasn’t suited for use on a rifle. It came off. Then came a Surefire G2 in a Vltor offset scout mount attached to the Ultimak rail. It was better in the ergonomics depatment but it lit up the front sight tower and you could not see past it in the dark. Not ideal.
I dont have pictures of either of those setups, but I’m sure you can imagine what they look like.
Problem, front sight illuminated blinding the shooter. Solution? push the light past the front sight. So I tried that. I bought a Surefire G3 and put it in the Vltor mount. This setup worked. It was ergonomic and it didn’t blind me when I activated the light. Unfortunately it was heavy and very bulky.
Exhibit A:
Now to reduce weight and bulk I needed a different light and a different way to mount it. A friend of mine recommended I try a Surefire scout on an MFI barrel mount. It solved the bulk and weight problems, and gave me a brighter smaller light over the G3.
Exhibit B:
Now this light setup was almost perfect. The only deficiency with it was the slight shadow of the barrel at 12 o’clock. This is a less than ideal place for there to be a shadow. At this time, there was no solution for the problem. Fast forward 6 months and Haley Strategic released their light mounts. I picked up a Thorntail mount and tried it out. It placed the light in a much better location to minimize shadows. One of the downsides to activate the light I needed to have the light further back on the rail for my thumb to reach. Now I was back to the original problem of the light hitting the front sight and blinding me. While discussing the problem one night with my friend Sherman, we tried a few different things to alleviate the issue. One of the things he suggested was an AFG mounted to the MFI barrel clamp. This is the result of that idea. It is by far the most comfortable grip I’ve had on an AK. It allowed me to not only push the light past the front sight, eliminating the shadow and blinding myself, but also enables a longer support arm grip on the front of the rifle. Something that, before this, was not possible.
Exhibit C:
So there’s the evolution of my light mount and the reasons as to the constant changing of equipment.
The rifle has about 9k rounds through it so far. Here’s to the next 9!
Mike
