When visiting the NC Star booth at SHOT Show this year the big attraction was the company’s introduction of their new “Tactical Blue Laser” devices . Touted as the “first blue laser technology”, NC Star is hoping to promote blue light lasers over traditional red, or even green lasers. The NC Star “Tactical Blue Laser” comes in a laser/flashlight combination, or as a stand-alone blue laser in standard and compact models. Each has a Picatinny rail mounting attachment.

The NC Star Compact Blue Laser with QD release lever.

The benefit of green lasers comes from the fact they provide a bright aiming point in both daylight and lowlight conditions. Red lasers are great in lowlight conditions, but suffer during bright light conditions. The blue laser option also provides a very bright aiming point in both daylight and lowlight conditions, but is designed to extend battery life as much as 4x-5x longer than green lasers. In addition, blue lasers are not susceptible to cold weather like green lasers. However, like green lasers, the blue laser will have a “laser beam trace” if there are particulates in the air. This new technology is very beneficial to shooters and may be the ideal laser selection for brightness and longevity.

The stand-alone laser is designed more for long guns with separate flashlight mounts, but could easily be attached to handguns where the shooter chooses to use a hand-held flashlight. In the same consideration, the blue laser/flashlight combo is designed more for handguns but could easily be used for long guns as well.

The NC Star blue laser with push-button end cap activation.

According to staff, NC Star engineers have been developing the new Tactical Blue Laser for many years to ensure the final product was not only viable, but affordable as well. The technology that brought about the NC Star blue laser aiming device is patent-pending.

NC Star Flashlight & Blue Laser Features (Model #VAQPFLSBL)

• Housing Material – Aluminum and reinforced nylon
• Length – 3.4 inches (86.36 mm)
• Width – 1.4 inches (35.56 mm)
• Height – 1.9 inches (48.26 mm)
• Weight – 4.0 ounces with batteries (113.398 g)
• Flashlight – 200 lumen Cree LED (3W)
• Battery – (2) CR123A (Included)
• Laser – 450nm, max output <5mw, Class IIIa fully adjustable blue laser
• Mount – Fits most Picatinny/Weaver style rails
• Elevation and Windage adjustments for zeroing (tool included)
• Activation – Ambidextrous rear selector switch – momentary or constant-on
• Light Modes – Laser only, Flashlight only, Simultaneous light and laser
• MSRP – $159.99.

The NC Star blue laser/flashlight is a nice combination aiming aid. The 200 lumen Cree LED flashlight is bright enough to illuminate and identify any target out to about 50 yards, with the potential to be successful even out to 100 yards depending on environmental conditions. If targets are expected to be beyond that distance I would recommend using a separate, higher powered flashlight with the NC Star stand-alone blue laser option.

The blue laser/flashlight activation switch is very similar to the Streamlight TLR-1. Unfortunately, my floor photographs of the blue laser/flashlight combination were somehow lost, and NC Star has not added them to their site.

http://www.ncstar.com/new-arrivals/new-optics-acc.html

NC Star Blue Laser Features (Model #VAPRLSMBL)

• Housing Material – Aluminum and reinforced nylon
• Length – 3.5 inches (88.90 mm)
• Width – 1.1 inches (27.94 mm)
• Height – 1.4 inches (35.56 mm)
• Weight – 3.6 ounces with batteries (102.058 g)
• Flashlight – 200 lumen Cree LED (3W)
• Battery – (1) CR123A (Included) – 30+ hours of battery life
• Laser – 450nm, max output <5mw, Class IIIa fully adjustable blue laser
• Mount – Fits most Picatinny/Weaver style rails
• Elevation and Windage adjustments (tool included)
• Activation – Momentary end cap switch or remote pressure switch (included)
• MSRP – $154.99.

The push-button end cap offers momentary on/off.

Mounted to an AR-15 with remote pressure switch.

The NC Star Blue Laser is best suited for long-gun use as the laser controls are not easily turned on/off with one-hand. The remote pressure switch is a great addition that allows the shooter to “illuminate” targets while maintaining the comfortable and natural weapon grip of their choice.

NC Star Compact Blue Laser w/ QD Release (Model #VAQPTLMBL)

• Housing Material – Aluminum and reinforced nylon
• Length – 2.9 inches (73.66 mm)
• Width – 1.0 inches (25.4 mm)
• Height – 1.5 inches (38.1 mm)
• Weight – 3.7 ounces with batteries (104.893 g)
• Flashlight – 200 lumen Cree LED (3W)
• Battery – (1) CR123A (Included) – 30+ hours of battery life
• Laser – 450nm, max output <5mw, Class IIIa fully adjustable blue laser
• Mount – Fits most Picatinny/Weaver style rails with QD release lever
• Elevation and Windage adjustments (tool included)
• Activation – Ambidextrous push-button on/off
• MSRP – $154.99.

The Compact blue laser with QD release lever only offers on/off selection.

The NC Star Compact Blue Laser with QD release lever has several nice features. It is compact, provides the same performance levels as the other blue laser options, and has a QD release lever. However, the push-button on/off switch limits the versatility of its use, making this model a little less palatable for my tastes.