Its not up to anyone but me and my maker as far as “what I need”.
We had a scope on our Ruger P89 until we found out its illegal and we had to take it off. :-)
Do you need one? NO. But it helps.
Red dot on center of mass removes uncertainty.
It depends on the likely demographic of your potential home invader. If they are drunks, a strobe light and air horn work great. Otherwise, a normal light so you can clearly identify your target, and maybe cost them some night vision at night.
Remember, do not “go hunting” for them. If you stay behind cover, you have much more advantage if they come to you. If others are there with you, locate and inform them immediately, so you do not have people walking into your firing line.
Laser: yes.
Light: maybe.
One’s vision generally decreases as one ages. As one who is aging, I have put Crimson Trace lasers on three of our pistols: 1 semi auto 9mm and two revolvers (357 and 38).
The laser highlights where the round is going to impact. Sort of point and click. And it should have a significant psychological advantage when opposing a miscreant, as long as the miscreant is not too far gone on drugs or booze.
The key to the laser is sighting it in at the range. Once completed, and checked from time to time, it should work when needed, as long as the batteries are kept up to date.
When in a rush, and when you have clearly identified the threat, point and click works well when a laser is used.
With many pistols the laser simply becomes part of the pistol grip, which is our case for the pistols listed, above. I really like Crimson Trace. And, no, I don’t work for them.
In most self defense situations all you’ll want to do is point and shoot. Lights and lasers are a distraction, and can delay action.
Sigh. First sentence in the article. No, it does not look highly cool, it makes your pistol look clunky and not good. Practicality is another matter.
For a first-time shooter, a laser can get them into some bad habits. But if you have your shooting form down, it can be handy in terms of speed.
And, if you need to defend your actions in court, they tend to go easier on you if you can prove you did everything you could to deter your attacker first. A laser gives you one more way of giving warning before you shoot. Like Mom said, I was mute when I got my first handgun, so I chose one with a built-in laser sight just so I could point to it in court if I needed to.
Does anybody have a Surefire X300. Is that a good choice for a full size hand gun?
Any other recommendations for a top quality light? I dont want a laser combo.