Mounted you might find you self pointing a loaded pistol at some member of you family in the dark .
This is a training issue.
At its core, it is a violation of Cooper's Rule 2: muzzle control.
The light is not a laser. Even when using a stand-alone handheld, indirect lighting techniques such as baseboard and umbrella lighting are utilized as-appropriate.
There is no reason that indirect lighting, as a weapon-mount light, cannot be used for search purposes if no other choice presents itself (i.e. the primary stand-alone handheld was somehow rendered useless).
Additionally, just because the shooter is using a stand-alone handheld does not guaranty that Rule 2 will not be violated by that shooter. Should the shooter be less trained or simply stressed to the point of breakdowns in technique, any methodology in which the light hand is interlocked with the weapon hand ("Hands-Together" techniques, per Ken J. Good's
Strategies of Low Light Engagements - i.e. Harries, Hargreaves, Chapman, Keller, USMC, Ayoob, Rogers/Surefire and perhaps most of all the Over/Under and the Graham) can potentially cause unintentional muzzle violations.
Think of recoil and where light going . Not staying right on target . Not with a P-11 or a PF-9 with hot loads
And this is alleviated/obliterated with hands-together techniques? Of course, no, it is not.
Even moreso, hands-together techniques can also present problems with beam/bore alignment - severe enough that many less-experienced/trained shooters can suffer complete misses at even just a few yards' distance as they try to erroneously align the hot-spot of the light with their target instead of their weapon's muzzle/sights. Alternatively, the attempt of such individuals to realign the gun to the light can cause them to take their eyes from the threat for a considerable period of time, too.
The simple truth of the matter - which can be verified in a quantitative manner with the use of a shot timer - is that
in terms of the pure mechanical act of shooting, the weapon mounted light is absolutely superior to a stand-alone handheld. The shooter is faster on-target (because of the light moving in-concert with the muzzle, in a fixed manner) and the split times are shorter (due to the better recoil control afforded by the shooter being able to place two hands on the gun, with more dedication towards recoil control even when manual switchgear must be manipulated, versus having to accommodate the various hold and switchgear actuation of a standalone handheld).
If the shooter's gun is lifting in recoil so much that they are losing visual tracking of the target via the light's spill, what does that say about their sight package? Here, the fundamental error is not equipment selection, but rather a breakdown in the recoil control necessary to effectively employ the weapon.
I have cured the night thing. 2 ways little night lights here and their and those burn for ever save energy cork screw bulbs. Get low wattage I have one in a hall way and the night lights . I don't carry a flash light any more haven't for a long time .
While I absolutely agree that for home-defense the best low-light consideration is the manipulation of one's defensive environment with strategic lighting, there nevertheless remains the possibility of a power outage (whether it is due to natural/coincidental causes or was intentionally inflicted by the threat) and/or equipment failure.
