SureFire M962 Weaponlight Review

SureFire has built a name as one of the best manufacturers of high quality, well built flashlights.  While not known as an inexpensive brand, SureFire is the epitome of the saying “you get what you pay for.”  Their lights are popular with military and law enforcement because you can be sure that the light will work when you need it.  

I can tell you that when working during the night it can be reassuring to know that when you need light, it will be available and bright enough for whatever you need.  Whether locating an address in the dark, or trying to identify a suspect in an alleyway, a high power flashlight will make a big difference.

When it comes to weapon lights, brightness and durability are even more important.  When mounted on a rifle, a light needs the range to illuminate targets throughout the effective range of the rifle rounds.  It also has to hold up to the recoil of the rifle, as well as bangs and bumps from rough handling.

The SureFire M962

The SureFire M962 is one of the company’s dedicated weaponlights.  It comes standard with a picatinny mount so that you can attach it directly to your railed handguard or a bolt on rail.  If you need a quality railed handguard, check out my Yankee Hill free float forearm here.  

The M962 uses three CR123 lithium batteries and puts out a blinding 125 lumens of light.  That may not sound like a lot compared to the outputs some manufacturers claim, but I usually find that SureFire rates their lights on the low end of the scale.  I find that the light is bright enough that if I illuminate a small white room it is overwhelming.  I have a diffusing filter that I keep on the light to protect the lens and to spread out the beam for close quarters.

Pros

The M962 is a durable light that will stand up to years of abuse.  That build quality will give you peace of mind that the light will continue to work when you need it.  SureFire also offers a lifetime warranty for the original owner.  If you have problems with the light, they will almost certainly take care of it for you.

The light is bright enough to illuminate far enough down range that you should be able to engage targets at a reasonable distance.  The exact distance would depend on the shooter, optic and target, but if you need some additional range you can added the included high output lamp to nearly double the output.

There are a number of accessories available for the light as well.  You can add the diffusing lens that I mentioned above, or a blue lens for tracking the blood trail that your trophy buck left.  More of a night time pig hunter?  Add a red lens, or even an IR lens to use with your NV goggles.  

Cons

This isn’t an inexpensive budget light.  While you can fall back on the “you get what you pay for” mantra, just know that this won’t be the cheapest way to get into a weapon light.  

This is also a heavy light.  If you want a lightweight set up, you might want to skip this light.  It is also bulky, which means it will stick out away from your rifle a ways.

While the CR123 lithium batteries have a lot of advantages (high power, long shelf life, etc), they are also pretty expensive.  You can save a little money buying them in bulk from SureFire, so keep that in mind.

Conclusion

If you don’t mind a little extra weight and bulk, the SureFire M962 will provide years of high output tactical light.  I would definitely recommend this light to anyone with the budget/need for a quality light.  If this light is a little too big for you, check out one of SureFire’s hand held lights, such as the 6PX.  These hand held lights can also be mounted to a gun using simple mounts from a number of different manufacturers.  


If you already have this light and want to switch over to LED, check out the KM3 replacement head:

The KM3 provides 150 lumens of white light and offers infrared illumination for use with night vision goggles.   It's important to note that most LED lamps do not emit enough infrared light to be useful as infrared illumination.


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