Dark Matter Concepts is trying something new. Founded by two brothers as a small startup, the company has seemingly found a way to protect your weaponlights from excessive carbon buildup with their new Carbon Mitigating Device, or CMD. Fellow writer Jason Mosher covered the initial release (read it here), but now, we’ve actually had a chance to get some real hands-on experience with it.
Most of us are rightfully skeptical when a new, innovative firearm accessory hits the market, myself included. We’ve seen one too many gimmicky and overpriced bits and bobs that just don’t live up to the hype. But rarely do you have an opportunity to catch something that’s still early in production to really give it its fair chance with some real-world testing. Lucky for us, Dark Matter Concepts was more than happy to send me one of their CMD devices straight off the production line, knowing full well that I’d put it through its paces.
No spoilers. Let’s get into it.
Carbon Is The Enemy
Before we get too deep into the CMD and how it performs, let’s briefly discuss the purpose behind it.
As powder burns and hot muzzle gases expand, they leave behind a thick blanket of carbon. On everything. The muzzle of your gun, the action, inside the barrel, and on the bezel and lens of your weaponlight. It’s dark and dirty, and worse, it’s not all that easy to remove.
Now, on most surfaces, a little carbon buildup during live fire is no big deal. It’s gonna happen. But, on a weaponlight, it can spell disaster as light cannot easily pass through heavy, hard-to-remove carbon buildup. Weaponlights are powerful, mission-critical tools, and while they can easily withstand punishing recoil and grueling battlefield conditions, carbon buildup (and hard impacts) is a real buzzkill.
At the very least, a thin layer of carbon can create a “shadowing” effect, which slightly diminishes the overall beam strength of your weaponlight. In high-volume shooting scenarios, however, where carbon buildup is likely to be a bit more extreme, even a high-lumen/high-candela light will be practically useless. The Dark Matter Concepts CMD, however, aims to combat those risks.
Preventing Carbon Buildup with the Dark Matter Concepts CMD
The idea of reducing carbon buildup on weaponlight lenses is nothing new. Some light manufacturers have altered bezel designs to help capture and disperse carbon buildup away from the lens, while others have introduced cleaning systems and removable lens cover strips as a means to remove (or reduce) carbon buildup.
While they work to some extent, they’re not always practical, especially to LEOs and military personnel who just don’t have the time to stop to clean their weaponlight in the midst of a firefight.
That said, the CMD is new in that it is designed to be a permanent or semi-permanent add-on device for select weaponlight models, effectively protecting the bezel and lens of the light from both carbon buildup and direct impacts.
How is this accomplished? Well, science and precise engineering, mostly. Per their website, Dark Matter Concepts created hundreds of 3D prints and dozens of prototypes and performed countless hours of rigorous testing before bringing the CMD to market.
Over-engineered is probably the best way to describe it (in a good way).
Secured in place with two supplied set screws, the CMD is precision-engineered for specific light models, so fitment is snug right out of the box. That’s important. You don’t want the thing flying off and disappearing into Ether under sustained fire. That said, I opted for the SureFire X300-compatible model (currently a prototype) to run with my favorite test gun: my Walther Q5 Match.
In its current configuration, it features an elongated hood that protrudes forward of the lens, creating a natural barrier that disperses burning gases further away from the bezel of the light. Further, multiple precision-machined “humps” on the hood of the device work like speed bumps, if you will, to capture a majority of the heat, impulse, and carbon deposits as the weapon goes boom.
Pretty cool, huh?
Putting the Screws to the CMD
As an up-and-coming company, Dark Matter Concepts made some bold claims with their CMD design. When meeting with the owners, I told them I’d like to push the thing to its limits; to really run it through 40 different kinds of hell to see just how capable it was. These kinds of tests usually send those gimmicky companies running for the hills, but these fellas just smiled, extended their hands for a firm handshake, and said, “That’s exactly what we want to see.”
They wanted me to look at the good, the bad, and the ugly, knowing full well that I’d be honest in what I had to say. Further, they snagged a sample straight from the machine shop and shipped it to me raw, without its anodized finish, knowing I’d be able to spot any imperfections during testing more easily. Gotta respect that.
The Ugly
There’s very little bad I can say about the CMD. Aesthetically, it ain’t bad. It’s obviously not an OEM part, and it does add a bit of length to an already long light. Tooling marks are also fairly obvious in its unfinished state. I’m not sure if they’d be as noticeable with an anodized finish or not.
That’s not to say that the tool marks are huge or gaudy, but they’re there. It’s also susceptible to small dings and dents when dropped on hard surfaces (specifically, the rocky terrain of the backwoods trails of Northern Missouri) due to its aluminum construction. Again, not a dealbreaker, as I’d rather the CMD take a beating than my light.
Lastly, the CMD fits so tightly against the bezel of the Surefire X300 that it does wear on the finish of the light just a bit. Granted, I installed and removed it from my light about two dozen times, but for those shooters who hate any sign of wear, it’s something to be aware of.
I ended up putting just a very light film of Tri-Flow lubricant around the inside of the CMD, which made things a lot easier and eliminated the wear and tear on the light’s finish (without posing a risk of the CMD working itself loose).
The Good
There’s a lot of good about the Dark Matter Concepts CMD.
It’s fairly robust. Even in its raw, unfinished state, the thing held up to just about everything I threw at it. Before I even took it to the range, I popped the light (with the CMD attached) off of my Walther and decided to do some drop tests. I’m a clumsy guy, so a sudden drop on the business end of the light is not out of the question. I dropped the light directly on a big ole slab of limestone about a dozen times, bezel down.
Aside from a small ding on the right-hand edge of the hood of the CMD, no damage to report. The light’s bezel and lens were just fine. Not satisfied, I dropped the light on my concrete driveway from waist level. Several times. Again, the light itself was fully intact, and the CMD, though lightly scratched, was free of any major defects.
But better than that, the CMD did its job and kept the carbon buildup around the lens to a minimum. After firing some 350 rounds of 9mm ammo from Ammo To Go through the Walther with the CMD-equipped light attached, there was a minuscule amount of carbon around the perimeter of the lens.
I can’t tell how much of it was residue left over from wiping the lens clear after using the light countless times before installing the CMD, and how much was new.
That, to me, was a decent indicator that the CMD actually lived up to its claims.
The Dark Matter Concepts CMD: Not just another gimmick
The boys over at Dark Matter Concepts ought to be dancing in their space boots like Napoleon Dynamite with this one. The CMD isn’t sexy (not by a long shot), but it works. Even as a prototype that was pulled straight from the machine shop without its anodized finish, the thing performed exactly as it was engineered to. Granted, it’s a sample size of one, and I’d love to see some more testing from other, more proficient shooters than myself in the future, but I still consider it a big win.
While the sample I’ve tested for the SureFire X300 light is still in its prototype phase, the CMD is currently available for the SureFire Scout (base series only) and the Modlight PLHV2/OKW, with several other models currently in the works, including options for Streamlight TLR-1, TLR-7, and TLR-8 lights.
But for now, it’s safe to say Dark Matter Concetps is onto something that could be a huge asset, especially to LEOs and military personnel, and I think it wise to keep an eye on them over the next year or so. They’re movin’ and shakin’. And I’m here for it.
Hats off to ya, boys.
