THE COMPANY

SureFire is a story of what can be accomplished with light. The tale begins in 1969 when an engineer with a Ph.D. from Cal Tech decided the future lay in lasers. Dr. John Matthews founded the Newport Corporation to harness the power of the laser for industrial applications. Over the next decade, the Newport Corporation grew to become a leader in the laser field, pioneering a host of industrial uses for the laser. Patents were issued, contracts were won, business boomed. Basking in the glow of success, John’s inventive mind turned toward his hobby and passion, shooting. He wondered if a laser could be adapted to serve as a sight on a firearm. In 1979, John’s concepts became reality as he designed and patented a laser sight.

Starting with the LAPS SWAT Team at the 1984 Olympic Games held in L.A. the technically superb, but expensive, laser-sighted firearms paved the way for future developments. While none proved commercially viable, the willingness of Laser Products to accommodate law enforcement’s needs led to the development of a novel idea at the time, a weapon-mounted flashlight. The SureFire WeaponLight was born, and low-light law enforcement and military operations would never be the same.

Eventually the SureFire name became so synonymous with excellence in hand-held illumination tools that the company name, Laser Products, was changed to SureFire LLC.

Body Materials — Anodized Aluminum and Nitrolon® Polymer

SureFire’s aluminum-body illumination tools are machined from a high-strength aerospace aluminum alloy, making them extremely resistant to damage from impact, crushing, or bending, and allowing them to be made as small and light as possible without sacrificing strength. Some of our lights are made of Nitrolon® polymer, discussed below.

SureFire’s Multi-Axis Computer Numerically Controlled (CNC) lathes ensure precision-machined components. SureFire’s aluminum-body WeaponLights and flashlights are further protected by a finish called anodizing. The anodizing process uses electricity and a chemical bath to grow a layer of aluminum oxide on an aluminum surface. Aluminum oxide is the second-hardest substance known to man, exceeded only by diamonds, and certain anodized finishes can be made extremely durable, such as the Mil-A-8625 Type III Class 2 military specification finish that SureFire uses.

Polymers are durable, lighter in weight than aluminum and are more comfortable to hold in cold weather. Some flashlight manufacturers use relatively cheap polymers such as ABS. In contrast, SureFire’s polymer flashlight bodies and WeaponLight components are made of Nitrolon®, a proprietary high-strength, non-conductive, impact-resistant, glass-filled polyamide polymer.

INNOVATION IS SUREFIRE'S MIDDLE NAME

With the exception of our HellFighter® WeaponLights, all current SureFire illumination tools use an LED (Light Emitting Diode) light source. An LED is a semiconductor chip that converts electrical energy directly into light. An LED is classified as a solid-state light source because it has no gas or liquid components, as do other light sources. The LEDs in SureFire flashlights consists of an emitter chip mounted on a solid base; the chip is attached to electrical leads that conduct power to it, and it’s encased in a clear polymer that is shaped to focus or disperse the LED’s light in the desired manner.

Most SureFire’s LED illumination tools contain a durable, sealed electronic power regulator that supervises the operation of the LED. This circuitry assesses battery output, monitors system performance, and controls power supplied to the LED. Power regulation provides a more consistent light output for the usable life of the batteries. Although an LED may continue to produce negligible light output for up to several hundred hours, the amount of useful light produced is of a shorter duration. Power regulation reduces the period of negligible output and increases the duration of useful light output.

PRODUCT SPECIFICATIONS