SureFire Flashlight Lanyard

I have always wanted a lanyard system for my SureFire flaslight, but never got around to ordering one. After seeing an Instructible by Ubbo, which gave me an idea, I decided to make a solid ring lanyard attachment out of aluminum. For the lanyard itself I used paracord. I also used a paracord serpent knot from an Instructible by Stormdrane. Thanks to both for the idea/inspiration.

Aluminum seemed like the natural material to go with. I found this small piece of an aluminum sign in a junk drawer I have.

To drill, cut, file, and sand this piece into shape you will need some hand tools or possibly some power tools tools. Rough to fine sandpaper can be utilized. Also a lanyard if you have one or some material to make one will be needed. I went with some paracord and used an Instructible by Stormdrane to round this lanyard system out.

TOOLS :
- some sandpaper (120 grit works great at removing paint and smoothing edges)
- pencil or pen (for laying design out)
- ruler
- small half-round file
- rat tail file
- spade drill bit for the hole (I used a ⅝"
- ⅛" drill bit to attach key ring
- drill
- hacksaw with fine toothed blade
- awl (anything sharp to etch in layout)

MATERIAL :
- paracord for lanyard (as per Stormdrane's Instructible)
- key ring (or carabiner, snap, etc.) to attach lanyard to aluminum ring

I sanded the paint off on both sides of the aluminum. I decided to go with a guitar pick design for this and laid out the main flashlight hole and the key ring hole. I went ahead and etched the finished design with an awl on the aluminum just in case handling the sheet erases the layout.

Drill a hole with a ⅝" spade bit. I suggest drilling the hole a bit smaller then the flashlight end cap threads. Using a half-round file and a rat tail file you can then file out the hole to fit exactly over the threads so the lanyard ring isn't too loose. Then drill the smaller hole using a ⅛" drill bit or one slightly larger according to what ever hardware you will use. Make sure to sand and file away any rough edges.

I used a hacksaw to cut out the ring to begin shaping it. I cut as close to the lines as possible to minimize the amount of material to be filed and sanded away. For this I used the half-round file and the sandpaper. Make sure the edges are as smooth as possible, especially on the inside of the bigger hole so as to not cut into the flashlight body.

Okay, this is the finished product. It just slips over the o-ring on the flashlight and is not too loose, though the ring does turn freely with no hangups. At this point you could paint it to match the flashlight color if you are so inclined. Just need to add a lanyard to it.

Okay so I added a paracord lanyard from an Instructible by Stormdrane and now I'm finished and it doesn't look too bad! Thanks to Ubbo and Stormdrane for the ideas!