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New review from Mrgunsngear:
Inforce APL Gen 3 400 Lumen Weapon Light Review (HD) |
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I had prior contacted Inforce and they replied back with... "The Glock version does not have the universal rail on it. It slides onto the Glock." That's it. I was like oh alright then. Either way I get my light tomorrow so I'll update further. I don't know why Inforce would even bother with a model specific version but we shall see. View Quote I contacted Inforce and they told me this is why they make a Glock-specific model. Essentially they're saying the universal model doesn't work well with Glocks, in spite of the fact that their web site says it's compatible with Glocks. I told them their web site contains faulty info, and they said they'll look into that. They offered to exchange my APL for an APL-Glock. I should get it in about a week, hopefully with better results. The overall quality of the light seemed very good otherwise. The mount is aluminum, the paddles have a nice positive "click" to them. Beam was pretty nice too. And as I experienced in the past, the customer service was great. Very fast response to emails, etc. |
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Just got my new APL-Glock. I got an RMA, shipped the "universal" APL back to Inforce Wednesday, and got the new one Friday. Can't beat that kind of service.
What the Inforce rep told me is correct. The "universal" model doesn't fit Glocks well. I have no idea what their marketing dept was thinking when they listed it as Glock compatible. Sure, the light will mount solidly on the rail, but it's not guaranteed to be a good fit. The new Glock-specifc model is excellent in all respects. It was worth the wait. . |
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Just got my new APL-Glock. I got an RMA, shipped the "universal" APL back to Inforce Wednesday, and got the new one Friday. Can't beat that kind of service. What the Inforce rep told me is correct. The "universal" model doesn't fit Glocks well. I have no idea what their marketing dept was thinking when they listed it as Glock compatible. Sure, the light will mount solidly on the rail, but it's not guaranteed to be a good fit. The new Glock-specifc model is excellent in all respects. It was worth the wait. . View Quote Props to the YouTube review as well! You do a great job mixing product information with field use & dog humor. |
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Just got my new APL-Glock. I got an RMA, shipped the "universal" APL back to Inforce Wednesday, and got the new one Friday. Can't beat that kind of service. What the Inforce rep told me is correct. The "universal" model doesn't fit Glocks well. I have no idea what their marketing dept was thinking when they listed it as Glock compatible. Sure, the light will mount solidly on the rail, but it's not guaranteed to be a good fit. The new Glock-specifc model is excellent in all respects. It was worth the wait. . View Quote |
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Or Glock needs to use a propietary rail system lol View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes |
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Where is the best place to pick up the new APLc, but not the Glock version.
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Anyone have an issue with their gen 3's (or any gen) flickering when dry firing? When the striker's released (I think) I see the light dim for a split second. Haven't been able to test live fire in a dark environment just yet.
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Anyone have an issue with their gen 3's (or any gen) flickering when dry firing? When the striker's released (I think) I see the light dim for a split second. Haven't been able to test live fire in a dark environment just yet. View Quote All two of my Gen 3's do it. My three APLc do NOT do it. I contacted Inforce for the issue and they sent me a new one overnight. It also did it. I don't think we and Inforce and on the same page when we say "flickering".....it was more of it dimming for about a 1/8th of a second. My buddies two that he bought from the latest shipment to hit DSG also do it. His old Gen 2 does NOT do it. So a sample size of five APL Gen 3's all purchased at different times from different retailers do it.........I guess its just inherent to the design of the Gen 3. The dimming does happen very quickly though. Hard to see it unless you're concentrating on it. |
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Lemme guess? Its on a Glock, right? All two of my Gen 3's do it. My three APLc do NOT do it. I contacted Inforce for the issue and they sent me a new one overnight. It also did it. I don't think we and Inforce and on the same page when we say "flickering".....it was more of it dimming for about a 1/8th of a second. My buddies two that he bought from the latest shipment to hit DSG also do it. His old Gen 2 does NOT do it. So a sample size of five APL Gen 3's all purchased at different times from different retailers do it.........I guess its just inherent to the design of the Gen 3. The dimming does happen very quickly though. Hard to see it unless you're concentrating on it. View Quote |
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Yep. Poly 80 19, stock factory springs in the upper. Like you said, it's just a fraction of a second, but enough to be like WTF. Are the batteries reversed from the older models? View Quote |
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I'll have to test the flicker issue at my range soon and report back. Not like the results will change anything but more food for thought. Any other brand lights do anything similar?
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I have an APL Gen 3 and an APLc, and they both flicker when dry firing/dropping the slide.
Even worse: I shot with the APL for the first time Saturday.. 100 rounds on a SAR K2-45, and it's basically dead. It won't come on no matter how I adjust the threads or play with the paddles. Even tried a brand new battery for shit and grins, and it's hosed. Very unhappy with the quality of the light. |
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Well, mine also flickers when dry firing but it is hardly noticeable. Do any other lights do this?? Hopefully the light won't go OOS when firing at the range on Friday. Although, through this thread I've taken note Inforce has great customer service. Soooo, there's that.
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Yep. Poly 80 19, stock factory springs in the upper. Like you said, it's just a fraction of a second, but enough to be like WTF. Are the batteries reversed from the older models? View Quote |
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I know it's not an apl gen 3 but I just got my apl-c in and I've tried every way I can to get it to flicker like mentioned above and it does not do it.
So I don't know if this is because it's a new batch or what but I did have to wait for them to come into stock again. They were out almost everywhere and everyone was giving the same in stock date. So I'm assuming it's a new batch of lights. |
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Uh oh.. the "flicker" (actually quick dim) is usually a result of not enough spring compression (recoil/etc move the battery enough that it leaves contact with the contacts). Stiffer springs usually help this. After watching MRGNG channel video on it, I immediately thought "wow, it took hardly a bezel turn to lock it out". That's not good, as it means there's hardly any tension between battery and spring.
I hope Inforce addresses this and puts longer/stiffer springs in these things. Was REALLY on the verge of getting one... until I saw that video (and my suspicion seems to show true) and the reports here acknowledging the issue. I'll wait it out and see if they resolve this. |
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Or maybe you could refrain from being a snide, condescending smartass with absolutely nothing to contribute to the conversation? View Quote If you buy something made of plastic and expect to use it on anything short of a safe queen, expect to buy another thing made of plastic. Sometimes, people lose sight of reality. getting upset because something made of plastic broke is one of those times.. maybe you could refrain from the name calling, sport. this isn't GD. |
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..not likely when i see people react irrationally. If you buy something made of plastic and expect to use it on anything short of a safe queen, expect to buy another thing made of plastic. Sometimes, people lose sight of reality. getting upset because something made of plastic broke is one of those times.. maybe you could refrain from the name calling, sport. this isn't GD. View Quote And if you recall, that is if you perhaps read the entire thread, the cracking was relative to Gen2s and a bad polymer manufacturing flaw. That's since corrected with the Gen3. How many revisions do your metal lights have, that the company has made anyone aware of that is? And for your information, a polymer isn't just plastic. It's a chemical combination of plastic amongst several other materials, in this case, Kevlar I believe. So anyway, give it a rest. If it's designed by a human being, it will break. |
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Back on track.
Yes, my Gen 3 APL flickers when drying firing or dropping the slide. It looks great on my M&P 2.0 FDE, except that darn flicker. I haven't shot with it on yet, but I'm gonna try and put about 300 rounds through it this weekend and see what happens. |
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Or maybe you could refrain from being a snide, condescending smartass with absolutely nothing to contribute to the conversation? View Quote Not sure why it has to be said again but there is a reason peopl who go in harms way say Surefire. That’s called a clue. Although streamlight seems good too. The apl has three generations of problems. Seems legit. |
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Pointing out the obvious to people who don’t want to get it is helpful to get you to eventually wake up. Not sure why it has to be said again but there is a reason peopl who go in harms way say Surefire. That’s called a clue. Although streamlight seems good too. The apl has three generations of problems. Seems legit. View Quote |
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Some of you may find it amusing however my Gen3 APL light recently experienced some issues.
The light itself flickers more then that hardly noticeable dimming. It will go full power, drop to half power, then flicker....all during dry fire practice and manipulating the slide for a trigger reset. I did try another battery and couldn't replicate the same results, although after replacing the original battery, it took some use to eventually re-create the same light beam issue. Therefore, I doubt it is battery related. It's also worth mentioning the light has about 400 rounds through it. As someone else mentioned before, the contact tension with the battery is absolutely the issue. Although the spring itself cannot be accessed from what I saw, so who knows. Emailed Inforce and am awaiting feedback. |
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As someone else mentioned before, the contact tension with the battery is absolutely the issue. Although the spring itself cannot be accessed from what I saw, so who knows. Emailed Inforce and am awaiting feedback. View Quote Please keep us posted when you hear back from them! |
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I ended up holding onto the light. Just after contacting Inforce and receiving instructions plus a prepaid shipping label, I tinkered with the light again. No matter what I did, I could not reproduce the aforementioned issue. I took the battery out, pressed on the contact pin, reassembled, and everything has been ok since then. Every night I do a function test on the HD pistol the light is mounted to...without further problem. I admit it is an interesting design but I'm thinking that lockout feature is entirely unnecessary and a culprit.
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Just picked up the universal model and can report that the paddles work fine on a VP9 and SP-01. No dimming/flickering issues noted when dry firing.
To the poster above bad mouthing plastic, I guess we should all throw away our ATPIAL-Cs. |
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As an additional update, I'm sending the light back. It's barely useable now. It sounds silly but prior to this post, I would bang on the light to get the beam to correct to full strength. That absolutely should not happen. So I contacted Inforce to see if my old RMA was still valid, which it is. Long story short, she's going back. I'm still trying to give this company the benefit of the doubt, it's a low profile and powerful little light....and unfortunately I have a Kydex holster mated to it. Standby for an update on the new light, maybe I just got a bad apple.
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Sucks to see that the Gen 3 APLc is not ready for prime time. It looks perfect for the G19...
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Sucks to see that the Gen 3 APLc is not ready for prime time. It looks perfect for the G19... View Quote |
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As an additional update, I'm sending the light back. It's barely useable now. It sounds silly but prior to this post, I would bang on the light to get the beam to correct to full strength. That absolutely should not happen. So I contacted Inforce to see if my old RMA was still valid, which it is. Long story short, she's going back. I'm still trying to give this company the benefit of the doubt, it's a low profile and powerful little light....and unfortunately I have a Kydex holster mated to it. Standby for an update on the new light, maybe I just got a bad apple. View Quote I still suspect the spring is weak (from the reported symptoms). There are a couple of things Inforce could/SHOULD do better. On the WML's, they should integrate an aluminum clamping mechanism, instead of the polymer one. While Polymer is resilient and takes hits well, it also flexes.. enough so that my WML can get knocked off if bumped hard enough. I'm also not happy that my WML (G2) can "lock out" with 1/16" of turn of the bezel. That's WAY too close and probably explains some of the complaints/issues with the APL as well. They should be using stronger springs that have more "travel", so that even hard recoil with a slightly undersized brand battery does not cause power outage ("flicker"). They need to incorporate more play into their battery connections. Hopefully they will listen and learn from customers, because they make FANTASTIC products which are sooo close to perfection. If they can just nudge themselves to resolve the few issues left.. they'll have some serious hate from the big/expensive brands |
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I hope so! This light (size/lumen) has potential. I'm a fan of Inforce WML G2, and I hope this little guy works out as well. I'd be interested in it as an alternative to my (ridiculously overpowered) 1200 lumen Olight PL2 for pistol use. I still suspect the spring is weak (from the reported symptoms). There are a couple of things Inforce could/SHOULD do better. On the WML's, they should integrate an aluminum clamping mechanism, instead of the polymer one. While Polymer is resilient and takes hits well, it also flexes.. enough so that my WML can get knocked off if bumped hard enough. I'm also not happy that my WML (G2) can "lock out" with 1/16" of turn of the bezel. That's WAY too close and probably explains some of the complaints/issues with the APL as well. They should be using stronger springs that have more "travel", so that even hard recoil with a slightly undersized brand battery does not cause power outage ("flicker"). They need to incorporate more play into their battery connections. Hopefully they will listen and learn from customers, because they make FANTASTIC products which are sooo close to perfection. If they can just nudge themselves to resolve the few issues left.. they'll have some serious hate from the big/expensive brands View Quote |
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Another update, ended up sending the original light in and received an identical new replacement. This replacement also has significant flickering/dimming/beam strength issues when operating the light (in both modes with either paddle) in conjunction with dry firing/slide operation. Round count is much less then my original light, chalking up less then 200. I just emailed Inforce about this replacement expressing great displeasure and a vote of no confidence. I even went as far as telling them they would receive the light and my holster molded for the APL, with a refund being expected for both.
I'm puzzled to say the least, how with all the widespread issues, they have not performed a recall. A quick Google or YouTube search reveals numerous results of folks with identical issues. I'm writing this to also bump thie thread alive again, as I wonder how many others have the same experience. If you can relate, please document your experiences here. |
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For the first 1-2 months I noticed no flickering of any kind. Then one day I picked it up and banged on the side of the slide with the light on, and it blinked. I took out the battery, cleaned the contact on it, and it's been good since. But on mine unless I tighten the bezel nut almost fully, it does not connect. In other words all I have to do it loosen it about 10 degrees to disable the light, certainly not a quarter turn as Inforce instructs. That's cutting it very close.
ETA: I just sent Inforce an email, we'll see how they respond. |
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For the first 1-2 months I noticed no flickering of any kind. Then one day I picked it up and banged on the side of the slide with the light on, and it blinked. I took out the battery, cleaned the contact on it, and it's been good since. But on mine unless I tighten the bezel nut almost fully, it does not connect. In other words all I have to do it loosen it about 10 degrees to disable the light, certainly not a quarter turn as Inforce instructs. That's cutting it very close. ETA: I just sent Inforce an email, we'll see how they respond. View Quote |
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Wow, I would have thought this would be an easy fix for Inforce. It really seams like all that's neeeded are stonger and longer battery contact springs...
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Yeah, no kidding. Well after I spoke with the Inforce engineering guy....he eventually emailed back a few days later. He stated that after picking a new light off their shelf, he was unable to replicate any issues I was having. In his words...
"I have personally inspected and tested a replacement unit for you, and I’ve attached a video of me attempting to reproduce the issue that you demonstrated on a Glock 19. I will be sending this replacement unit out to you today." Soooo yeah. I don't know how long he tried messing with the light but we shall see. Maybe for some reason I got two bad apples? Or maybe the light tolerances are so tight, the light module cap literally needs to be tightened down hard....as he sort of suggested in our phone call. No mention of me sending back my current light after receiving that replacement, either. And after really checking and tightening the cap, the light actually hasn't had any problems at all. So perhaps I'll get a free light out of this... |
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So you think your issues are from not tightening battery cap tight enough? Do you consider it fixed?
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So you think your issues are from not tightening battery cap tight enough? Do you consider it fixed? View Quote |
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Quoted: Well it's odd, I usually ensured the battery cap was tightened down hard enough. After talking with the engineer, he said it should be fairly tightened....but not enough to warrant needing tools to loosen. Despite that, it seemed like I had to really crank the cap to get maybe a 1/16 more. By anyone's standards, it would be "damn tight." It has however seemed to resolve the problem but I need to play around with the light a little more. For what it's worth...that engineer mentioned after thousands of rounds said cap can walk itself loose. I'm just wondering if their tolerances are literally that tight. Also, I have noticed what appears to be a bit of blue loctite on the threads of that light housing cap. Still really wondering if others have the same issue... View Quote |
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