Some of you may not know this but Insight Technologies has teamed up with EOTech to give the public a single point of contact for Holographic Sights, NV and Tactical Lights.  Lately I’ve had the opportunity to get my hands on the new WL1-AA weapon light from Insight Technologies for review and wanted to share my experience with this awesome little light!

Their new WL1-AA is the newest addition to their family of Tactical Weapon Lights and is the first of it’s kind to be powered by two AA batteries while still maintaining Military Specs for durability and functionality.  They are available in both Pistol and Long Gun packages so obviously I am going to review the Long Gun version.

The Long Gun package includes the standard WL1-AA weapon light and accessories but also includes a momentary activation pressure switch that you can mount on the rifle with the supplied Velcro strip.

I was a little bit concerned at first that by using the AA batteries it would not have a very long run time or be bright enough but I was pleasantly surprised.  The WL1-AA will put out 150+ lumens of bright white light and has a 90 minute run time*.  The best part is the fact that AA batteries are probably the most readily available battery on the planet and they are pretty inexpensive as well.  I can open my kitchen junk drawer and pull out at least 5 of them right now.  🙂 Not to mention that by using the AA batteries the light is much more compact than most other models on the market and is also very light weight at less than 3.5 ounces.  *They do recommend using the Lithium AA Batteries but it will work with standard AA batteries as well just not as long of a run time.

Mounting this weapon light is very simple because if its Quick Release Rail-Grabber that locks on fast without needing any tools at all.  All you need to do to mount the light is lift the lever of the Rail-Grabber and rock it onto the rail and clamp down the lever.  This locks it on rock solid.  They have also included two different Recoil-Lug plates.  The standard one is the 1913 plate but for those rails that are a bit out of Mil-Spec there is the Universal Recoil-Lug plate.

The Long Gun version includes a very nice multi-function switch that works for not only Momentary Activation but also Strobe mode and Constant On mode.  It’s very easy to install. You simply just remove the rubber plug and insert the “male” end of the switch.  The switch is very responsive and has worked flawlessly.  I mounted it on the top rail of my rifle above my Magpul AFG where I usually already have my thumb while shooting.  You can also turn the light on by using the toggle switch located to the left side of the switch port.

With each review I try to highlight the pro’s and con’s of the item.  The Pro’s:  150+ Lumens, Very Compact, Very Lightweight, Easy to Mount, Ease of Use.  The ONLY Con (and it really isn’t that big of a deal):  90 minutes run time.  Most of your CR123 lights have about a 120 minute run time but that is a small trade off for using a less expensive, readily available power source in this case the AA battery.

Overall I think this is a fantastic weapon light.  You can find this light online for right around $200.  Look for Insight Technologies to continue to come out with more innovative products in the future as they continue combine their knowledge and expertise with that of EOTech.  Sounds like a BRIGHT future! 🙂