Acebeam Defender P17: A Great at Home Tactical Flashlight

TABLE OF CONTENTS

PRICE

FIRST IMPRESSIONS

Just like a handshake, packaging is important as it gives an immediate first impression, and you always want to make a good first impression.

Acebeam nails the packaging of its flashlights. The high-quality boxes are slick, strong, and well-made overall. They also use high-density foam to ensure that all their flashlights stay firm and secure in the packages for transport.

These might seem like small details, but they give great insight into how much effort Acebeam takes to assure the consumer gets the highest quality product.

Acebeam went with a slick look for the Defender P17, giving the anodized body a semi-gloss finish and the strike bezel a high gloss finish.

When you pull it out of the package, the P17 has a noticeably solid frame with a good and yet not overbearing texture.

The dual tail switches feel great upon first press. The tactical switch has a firm detent and a solid audible click at the bottom, letting you know it’s been pressed.

The function switch’s detent is noticeably less, but it still has a good press to it. This is fine, as the function switch is more of a utility switch.

Coming in at 5.79 inches long and with a head diameter of 1.61 inches, the P17 is pushing the limits of what makes for a good tactical EDC, however.

It would feel quite big in your pants pockets, and depending on the pouches on your chest rig the P17 might be too big.

It would still fit easily in cargo pockets or jacket pockets, and if it was attached to your rifle as a gun light, the size wouldn’t be an issue at all.

WHAT’S IN THE BOX

In every package, Acebeam includes, along with the flashlight, two extra O rings for the tail cap, a Type-C charging cable, a lanyard, and instructions on how to operate the flashlight.

FIELD FIRSTS

I gave the Defender P17 its first field test as I was doing my security rounds on base, and it came through in big ways. The 4900 lumens lit up the bays like crazy and had no problem reaching the entire length of the building.

For the purpose of searching, the P17 does well because its beam is a little less focused than, say, the Defender P16. This means its light disperses in all direction to a slightly larger degree.

This also means, though, that the beam’s reach isn’t as far as some other tactical flashlight.

That being said, after I used it outdoors for a time, it definitely does well outdoors, especially within 100 meters. I think, though, that the P17 really shines as a tactical flashlight used primarily indoors for activities such as room clearing.

The Defender P17’s beam would also be devastating on a home intruder at night, whether in your hand or mounted on a rifle.

QUALITY AND DESIGN

BELT CLIP

The belt clip on the Defender P17 is a dual reversible clip. This means it can be clipped to a belt or the MOLLE system on a backpack or vest from either direction.

It can also be taken off and flipped for more carrying options. It isn’t the beefiest of clips, but Acebeam has made it strong and rigid, so it holds firm no matter where you carry it.

The high gloss finish of the belt clip also offsets the semi-gloss of the body, which adds to the slick overall look of the P17.

Having rounded and slightly flared ends also makes it easy to get the Defender P17 on and off when you need to.

BODY

The body of the Defender P17 is made from strong, hardened A6061-T6 aluminum. An alloy so strong it’s used for bridges and trusses.

Acebeam has also given the P17 a premium-type HAI hard-anodized anti-abrasive finish. Aluminum is usually quite slippery, so this finish helps protect the P17 and helps your hand when gripping it.

The main body and the tale cap have decent knurling on them. It’s not as aggressive as, say, the Defender P16, but it does still help with gripping the flashlight.

The body of the P17 feels great in the hand. Overall, it’s very solid, and the width of the body lets you get a good full grip on it. Any bigger, though, and it would be too big for a comfortable grip.

COOLING FINS

Acebeam has added fairly aggressive cooling fins to the Defender P17, which are definitely needed as the 4900 lumens it throws out generate some solid heat.

After a few minutes on turbo, you’ll for sure start to feel the head and neck heating up. I ran it on high for about 30 minutes the other day, and I had to be careful about touching the upper neck as it was so hot.

SWITCHES

Acebeam has done a great job on their switches. Both the tactical and function switches provide confidence for the user when they’re pressed.

The tactical switch has a hard press followed by a solid detent and a click at the bottom. The hard press makes it easy to do a half press for the momentary on without going all the way.

The solid click at the bottom lets you know when you have pressed it all the way. You can both feel and hear the click.

The textured top also helps you to identify the tactical switch when in dark settings and you can’t see the buttons you’re pressing.

The function switch also has a decent press, although it is much lighter than the tactical switch. This is just fine, as it is more of a utility switch than anything.

That being said, though, when you want to use the strobe on an assailant, it will be the function switch you press.

STRIKE BEZEL

The head of the Defender P17 has a steel strike bezel with three silicon nitride ceramic beads set into it.

The steelhead would be enough to smash glass, as I showed with the Defender P16, but the ceramic beads help by providing three sharp, very precise points which focus the impact and cut into the glass.

I tested out the P17’s ability on a couple of single-pane glass windows, and I had no problem at all breaking them. On thicker windows or on safety glass, you would have a slightly harder time, but you could still make it through.

When it comes down to a strike tool like this, a portion of its capability does come from the strength of the person using it. So, in the right hands, it can be an even more effective tool.

BATTERY

The battery in the Defender P17 is the Acebeam 21700 5100mAh rechargeable Li-ion battery, which has a built-in low and high voltage warning, letting you know when it’s time to change batteries.

It is charged directly using a USB-C charger, which Acebeam includes in the box. The P17 comes with an incredible max run time of 20 days which is darn good for a tactical flashlight.

It also offers 40 seconds on turbo before stepping down and 6 minutes on high before stepping down.

The Defender P17 battery also boasts a 50,000-hour life span.

LIGHT SOURCE

The Defender P17 uses one CREE XHP70.3 HI LED. Cree LED created the XHP70.3 to achieve maximum intensity from small luminaires.

Partnering with Creed LED has given Acebeam flashlights the ability to get just that: the maximum amount of light out of their flashlights.

Producing 4900 lumens with a max throw of 445 meters, the Defender P17 produces big light from a little package.

It also has a toughened ultra-clear glass lens with an anti-reflective coating, which aids in the P17’s ability to throw light around.

FUNCTIONALITY

The Acebeam Defender P17 has proven itself to be an extremely functional tactical flashlight as it outperformed what I and my teams’ expectations for it were.

The build quality is exceptional, with the aluminum body being weighty and strong. Again, this instantly instills confidence in the user from the very initial pick-up.

The anti-abrasive finish and the knurling help to make sure the P17 stays firmly in your hand at all times.

The steel bezel with ceramic beads makes the P17 a solid tool for emergency egress out of a vehicle or into if you are the rescuer. It also has the ability to function well as a self-defence tool if your situation comes down to it.

The incredible 4900 lumens and 445-meter throw can both light up a room and completely disorientate an adversary.

Whether you’re a police officer operating in the line of duty or a civilian at home protecting your family, the P17 will give you the tactical advantage at night.

Acebeam’s tactical palm switch and Picatinny rail mount system turn the Defender P17 into an extremely effective firearms-mounted light for police or soldiers needing to operate in the dark.

The ultra-low mode on the P17 gives someone in an emergency situation 20 days’ worth of constant light, and the daily mode takes the P17 from being tactically focused to being a solid flashlight to use around the home.

Everything tested and considered, the Acebeam Defender P17 is a very good and functional tactical flashlight.

WHAT I LIKE BEST

From a tactical standpoint, the feature I like most is the dual tactical switches on the tail. They make the most vital functions of the light, the turbo and the strobe readily accessible when they are needed most.

The quality of the switches also lets you know when you are using them.

The second feature I really like about the P17 is the 4900 lumens that it produces. This is above the industry standard for tactical flashlights, and thanks to the amount of light it throws, the P17 can really light up a room or a perp.

CONCERNS AND CRITICISMS

I do have a couple of concerns with the Defender P17, though.

My main concern is its size. For a tactical flashlight that you would use around home, the Defender P17 is great, but at a weight of 227 grams and with a head diameter of 1.61 inches the P17 is pushing the limit of what makes a solid EDC tactical flashlight.

I would say the P17 is getting to the point of being too big to attach to my chest rig or plate carrier and too big to put in my pocket comfortably.

That being said, if there was a flashlight holder for a tactical belt where you could hang the P17 or if you had larger cargo pockets on your legs where you could stash it, then it would work well.

But to carry in my front pant pocket or on my vest, it’s a little bigger than I would want.

My second real concern is that with 4900 lumens, Acebeam could have really focused this light and allowed the beam to reach out even further, but they chose to go slightly more flood light than spotlight.

In multiple tests my team and I have run, alight with a focused beam is much more effective at disorientating intruders than a light with a less focused beam but more lumens.

CONCLUSION

The Acebeam Defender P17 is a great tactical flashlight and an asset to anyone who needs a good flashlight.

Its aluminum body is strong and durable, its anodized finish protects it from the elements, and its intensely bright light makes it good in any setting.

Although slightly big for an EDC, in my opinion, it is still perfectly functional as long as you have a way to carry it.

And even though its max throw isn’t the longest in its class, it is still above average and will absolutely blind unwanted midnight intruders.

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