Reviews

Element 120 Lumens eM600 ScoutLight

Operator7

Having a flashlight usually serves two purposes in Airsoft: adding bling to your primary and the second and most important one: using it as a tactical tool in CQB and night games. Either way you’ll want a lightweight, simple to use and affordable solution that doesn’t break the bank, that does the job and is built to last.

Element have created a product with these considerations in mind, so let’s take a look at how this is covered by the eM600 ScoutLight.

DESIGN AND MATERIALS

In terms of the design of this flashlight, you’ll notice of course the striking resemblance to the Surefire M600 Scout Light, sporting a black anodized aluminium body with integrated rail mount and pressure switch.

The eM600 is quite compact and slim, making it very lightweight and not adding much bulk and weight to my weapon. That is something I really appreciate, since keeping the weight of my weapon down makes me slightly faster.

The aluminium used is quite sturdy and strong, as well as the black finish. However, the latter will show some evidence of wear after playing some rougher games and I begun to see scratches which didn’t affect in any way the operation or integrity of the flashlight.

The lens, with a 1 inch bezel is very clear and strong enough to withstand most common drops, just don’t try to break car windows with it.

One of the nicest features of this flashlight is the fact that it already comes with a mount. In fact, the mount is built into the flashlight, so you don’t have to worry about getting a mount separately, which usually adds to the price of the flashlight. In this case the mount is also made of the same material and very sturdy too. All you have to do in order to attach it to your gun is simply place it on your rail and screw the thumbscrew which will then secure the flashlight in place. Even though the rail mount is incorporated on the flashlight,  I still use it as a standalone flashlight, so you have both options to run it with your gun when you need it and afterwards you can easily unmount it and use it as a traditional flashlight.

BUILD QUALITY AND OPERATION

From my past games experience where it had several close encounter with the elements such as water and dust, lots and lots of it, the eM600 stood up pretty well. This has to do with the way the body is designed along with the sealing o-rings which provide a good seal from outside contaminants that may damage or interfere with the electric part or the LED, so kudos for that to Element.

They didn't specify however, if it is water and dust resistant so I wouldn’t go diving with it into a river, but I’m not shy to use it on a rainy day.

The eM600 comes with both a pressure switch with momentary on/off, as well as a pushbutton tail cap switch with constant on and off positions, increasing the options as well as the possible usage scenarios.

Both the pressure switch as well as the tail cap switch work very well. They are also very sturdy and well made with some strong and long lasting rubber, being that the pressure switch only turns the light on while you are pressing it, and the tail cap switch is a permanent on/off switch.

The cable between the pressure switch and the flashlight is about 7 inches long so you have lots of options on where to attach it to, being that to secure it, Element have included a piece of double sided tape which I would have preferred it was Velcro tape but I can always get it separately, so no big deal.

To replace the pressure switch and use the tail cap, all that you have to do is simply unscrew the back of the flashlight and screw on whichever switch you want to use.

As mentioned before, the whole unit is very sturdy and quite well built, being that it withstands more than enough the rough treatment in Airsoft games without breaking a sweat.

The eM600 is powered by two CR123A batteries which are not included in the original package.

LUMENS POWER

With an Output of up to 120 lumens this is not as powerful as its real steel counterpart, but it is quite effective when you want to temporarily blind and opponent in a low light scenario such as during indoors game or night games. In fact, I tried it on myself and it takes quite a few seconds to recover from being flashed by this small flashlight!

The 1 inch Bezel projects a well directed beam of light which cannot be adjusted. But, as you can see in the photos, has a very concentrated core to maximize the flashing power. So it is really designed to light up a specific part of a room, or subject, rather than to provide and wide span of light.

At a certain distance, around 15 metres (49 feet) the core can spread over 3-4 metres (9-13 feet) wide but it starts to loose brightness after that. So this flashlight is ideal for CQB.

CONCLUSION

For my requirements, this is perhaps the best Airsoft flashlight I can get for CQB situations, since its lightweight, durable and is more than powerful enough to flash my opponents. Plus, it hassle-free --- no tools, no extra parts, such as mounts. It is a solution that is easy and fast to use/attach to any primary with a rail system.

The price point is also very attractive for Airsofters as it only costs $43.72, around £25.99 or  €31.68 at Tiger111HK.

They also have a TAN version in case you want to skip the painting bit and run it with a camo or TAN gun.

Pros

  • Lightweight
  • Price
  • Construction and durability
  • Design
  • Ready to mount

Cons

  • Some Velcro tape would have been nice

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