M2 Universal Tactical Light (UTL) - ArniesAirsoft

Author

PenGun

Registered: October 2004
Location: Dublin
Posts: 549

Review Date: 3/6/08

Would you recommend the product? Yes | Price you paid?: None indicated | Rating: 10

Positive aspects of the product (pros):	Very bright, very tough, mounts to USP perfectly!
Cons:	Relatively expensive. looks grey (?)

I just received this from the US a few days ago and it really has given my USPs a new lease of life!
The UTL was one of the very first tactical lights designed to clip on and off a handgun.
It actually uses a sliding plate that secures the gripping rails (move down to loosen, up to tighten) so whilst mounting the light your hand doesnt pass in front of the muzzle, something the M3-series lights force you to do (which in R/S is VERY VERY BAD practice!!!).
It also allows you to change batteries (2 x CR123a) without removing the light...just slide out the battery compartment and put fresh ones in...I think this is a great idea and shows the thought Insight put into the design of the light!
AFAIK this compartment can only be removed when the light is switched OFF, so no chances of it falling out in use Wink

The UTL also has a slightly different switch directly beneath the front of the USPs trigger guard that is slightly odd to use at first but is quite intuitive and very easy to find in the dark or when wearing gloves.
Unlike the M3-type switch, the M2 has a rubber-coated lever so it is easy to manipulate.
A main ON/OFF switch allows you to make sure the light doesnt come on accidently in use or when in storage.
The light is very impressive: I have lit up my back garden with out to 25m or so and the bulb can be adjusted from spot-to-flood if needed.
The PenGun sh!t-I-can't-see-properly Test resulted in several instances of not being able to see properly for about a minute or so with a definite image of the bulb seared into my retina for even longer Wink

I also bought the UTL remote cord which plugs into a socket at the rear of the unit (once you pluck a rubber gromit out of it).
This is quite short and has just enough cable to allow correct fitting to the pistol grip without leaving extraneous cord dangling all over the place!

Build quality is superb: you can easily tell that this is a real-steel version and not a cheap clone.
It seems to be made of very tough fibreglass or GFRP etc. so durability shouldn't be an issue.
The bulb lens is either glass or Pyrex so it too will take a hell of a beating before it breaks.

In the box you get a set of instructions and even a spare bulb which is actually typical for Insight (who along with Surefire have reputations for superb customer service).

Sure the UTL might cost thrice the price of a King Arms M3 clone but once you consider that a decent adapter for the USP rail will set you back another 40 bucks, the UTL seems like a bargain for the real deal!

Update!!!

06/01/09

Was I sold a lemon? I am beginning to suspect I might have been sold a replica or knockoff...The light began acting up several weeks ago when the rocker switch would stop working altogether and the light would fail to illuminate despite new batteries...
I am not sure if this is due to dirty contacts or maybe a faulty switch but the problem seems to start suddenly then resume working again. Its ok at the moment but I will be keeping a close eye on it!!!

31/03/09:

It seems that the ON/OFF switch (and not the rocker switch that actually controls the light) is to blame for this problem. As long as I leave the light "ON", the light functions perfectly, but switching it off and back on again is dicey...must be a faulty switch but that is rectified easily enough. For the moment I've just glued the main switch on to avoid knocking it accidentally.

P.S. The later M3 series of lights dont have this extra switch and avoid the problem entirely Wink

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