The SureFire® E2T-MV Tactician™ hand-held flashlight was designed specifically for close quarters combat and personal defense, as well as for use as a task light. The versatile Tactician has a unique combination of features that make it an outstanding flashlight for these roles.
Size and weight do matter when it comes to everyday carry (EDC). At five inches (12.7 cm) in length with a one-inch (2.54 cm) diameter bezel and weighing only 3.5 ounces (28.35 g) with batteries, the Tactician is small enough and lightweight enough to conveniently carry on a daily basis. At the same time it has enough of a footprint to comfortably grasp and employ in tactical situations. It’s the perfect size for an EDC fighting flashlight.
The Tactician features a rugged 6061-T6 aluminum body and a Mil-Spec (MIL-A-8625 Type III Class 2) hard-coat anodized finish. The heavy duty aluminum housing can be employed as an expedient impact weapon or fist load. The body and tailcap are knurled for a secure grip. The flashlight is o-ring sealed to keep out dust, dirt, and moisture. The Tactician is certified to IPX7, which means It’s protected to immersion in water for 30 minutes to a depth of one meter. It has an impact- and heat-resistant tempered, coated borosilicate glass window.
The flashlight features a strong and very robust Melonite®-coated stainless steel pocket clip for secure bezel-up carry in a pocket, purse or pack. It’s one of the strongest and most robust pocket clips that SureFire has ever offered on a flashlight. The design and orientation of the pocket clip also allows the Tactician to be securely clipped to a hat brim for use as an expedient headlamp.
The tailcap is equipped with a blackened stainless steel lanyard loop. The Tactician comes with a SureFire Z33 lanyard. The lanyard is made from black 550 cord (paracord) and is equipped with two cord locks and a cord fastener. The fastener is designed to break away for safety if the lanyard or flashlight is pulled on with extreme force.
The Tactician features a tactical push for momentary-on/twist for constant-on tailcap switch. It’s simple and foolproof under even the most stressful situations. The tailcap switch has a twist lock-out feature to prevent the flashlight from inadvertently activating in a pocket, purse or bag. To lock-out the tailcap, you simply rotate the tailcap counterclockwise until the light won’t activate when the tailcap push-button is pressed.
The Tactician has dual-output modes: high and low. The flashlight is capable of producing 800 lumens on high for tactical applications or where longer range illumination is needed. And by rotating the bezel counterclockwise a quarter turn it can be dialed back for a five lumen utility/task beam and longer battery life. The Tactician has an intensity of 10,000 candela. All performance claims were tested to the ANSI/PLATO FL 1-2019. Standard.
The Tactician runs on two 3-volt lithium primary (non-rechargeable) 123A batteries (included). Run time is one hour on high and 70 hours on low. SureFire recommends only using American-made UL certified batteries, such as those from SureFire, Duracell®, Energizer®, and Panasonic®.
Inferior quality or counterfeit batteries greatly reduce overall performance and may develop short circuits which can lead to fires and/or explosions. You can purchase SureFire 123A batteries in boxes of 12 and 72 at considerable savings.
Rechargeable 123A batteries may be used in the Tactician. When the Tactician first came out there was erroneous information circulating on the web that rechargeable batteries couldn’t be used in the Tactician.
Although I recommend the use of primary batteries in the Tactician for mission critical applications due to their performance and reliability, the use of rechargeable batteries can result in considerable cost-savings over time if the flashlight will see frequent, heavy use. The use of rechargeable batteries is more environmentally friendly too. An important word of caution, you should never attempt to recharge primary batteries, as it can be dangerous to do so.
The issue of heat management is at the core of many LED-based lighting applications in order to maintain the longevity of the LED. All SureFire LED illumination tools are thermally regulated to keep the LED junction temperature below the recommended limit. When run continuously on the high mode, the Tactician maintains its initial level of output for only a couple of minutes and then begins a decline until it drops out of regulation.
The Tactician features a virtually-indestructible high-performance Cree® LED and specially-developed proprietary CNC machined aluminum reflector that create a wide, smooth MaxVision Beam®, optimized for the visual field and free of imperfections.
The MaxVision Beam is a hybrid flood with throw as far as you need for personal defense while providing maximum peripheral illumination. It produces a lot of usable light and will illuminate all of the corners in a medium-sized room. It’s the perfect beam for room clearing and CQB.
The Tactician has a 115 meter peak throw on high output, measured per ANSI/NEMA-FL1 Standard. The Low output mode is suited for a task light, reading maps or taking notes or as a navigation light. The Low mode also greatly extends the run time. Run time is one hour on High and 70 hours on Low.
To sum it all up, the SureFire Tactician Dual-Output LED Flashlight (Model E2T-MV) is an outstanding, very well thought out tactical flashlight that offers maximum versatility, for both EDC and personal defense.
The Tactician has a suggested retail price of $149.00. It’s backed by SureFire’s No-Hassle Guarantee. As with all SureFire products, the Tactician is designed and made in the USA.
Specifications
Surefire Tactician
Manufacturer: Surefire, LLC
Model: E2T-MV Tactician
Output: High: 800 lumens, Low: 5 lumens
Runtime: High:1.0 hours, Low: 70 hours
Intensity: 10,000 candela
Beam Type: MaxVision Beam
Peak Throw: 115 m
Length: 5.0 in. (12.7 cm)
Bezel Diameter: 1.0 in. (2.54 cm)
Weight w/Batteries: 3.5 ounces (28.35 g)
Batteries: Two 123A Lithium (Included)
Liquid Ingress Protection: IPX7
Origin: USA
Warranty: SureFire “No Hassle” Guarantee
MSRP: $149.00
All performance claims tested to ANSI/NEMA FL1-2009 Standard.
Material Disclosure
I received this product as a courtesy from the manufacturer so I could test it and give my honest feedback. I am not bound by any written, verbal or implied contract to give this product a good review. All opinions are my own and are based off my personal experience with the product.
*The views and opinions expressed on this website are solely those of the original authors and contributors. These views and opinions do not necessarily represent those of Spotter Up Magazine, the administrative staff, and/or any/all contributors to this site.