Streamlight Stinger DS LED HP
Streamlight Stinger DS LED HP (MSRP Dependent On Accessories)
Before Christmas my mother asked me to help her find a gift for my father. She said that he needed a good flashlight. She wanted to find something for him that would allow him to see anywhere on his 13 acres by just stepping out onto his back porch. My thought was this may be a tall order. Of course, I wanted quality so I called Streamlight. I had looked over the product line and come to rest on the Stinger LED HP. I had a brief discussion with the customer service rep and we came to the consensus that I had chosen correctly. I decided, the best thing to do would be test the item out before recommending it to my mother. Shortly thereafter, I received a sample from Streamlight for T&E.
The Stinger DS LED HP is a midsized flashlight at 9 ¼” that is a favorite among law enforcement for many years now. The housing is aircraft grade aluminum, with a textured 1 inch tube. The side switch and tail cap switch both have momentary on ability. The light has 4 modes which are cycled by holding down either switch or by double clicking for strobe. This Stinger is rechargeable and energy friendly, using a Cree C4 LED chip. The deep reflector concentrates the light to some very impressive stats for each setting: High 350 Lumens/56,000 Candela with a run time of 2 hours, Medium 175 Lumens/28,000 Candela with a run time of 3.75 hours, Low 85 Lumens/ 14,000 Candela with an amazing run time of 7.25 hours. You can buy this Stinger with a regular, fast or car charger or any combination of the three. Personally, I use the regular charger because as a household like it stays in the cradle until it’s needed so it’s always topped off and ready when needed.
While the top intensity of 350 lumens is certainly respectable it’s by no means an extreme rating by today’s standards, the lumen rating was not the reason for this choice. I was interested in the Candela rating. Lumens are a measure of short distance brightness, or as I like to call in room filling light. This is the rating you look for with an EDC light you may want to use in combination with your firearm. In this case, I need a light that will shine across several acres of land. For this candela is the key. Candela is more akin to the old measure known as candlepower used in spot lights in years past. Candela is about the directional intensity of light thus giving an idea of how far the beam will travel and still be useful. On the LED HP version of the stinger the candela rating on the high setting is 56,000 which is equivalent to a popular selling spotlight that is much larger in size. In comparison the Kel-Tec CL42 is 420 Lumens with 6400 candela. On the low setting the Stinger carries a 14,000 candela rating effectively pushing the light twice as far at only 85 lumens. With this Stinger LED HP we are able to actually stand on that back porch and look all the way across the longest field on the13 acre property and see the neighbor’s driveway clearly.
Finally there’s the cost of the Stinger DS LED HP; on Opticsplanet.com this light, as I reviewed it, is selling at $125. At first I had a little sticker shock, but then I thought about the cost of some of the other lights I own. I have a M5 weapon light that I paid $125 several years ago, my EDC is the Kel-Tec CL42 which sells at $80. Each of these lights uses CR123 batteries with a fairly short run time. Each battery replacement costs at least $6. A rechargeable light of this power and quality will truly pay for itself in no time.
The only criticism I have for the Stinger DS LED HP is that it was upgraded to its current power levels in 2013. When this upgrade was made there was no change in model numbers. Therefore, it’s easy to end up with the previous model when you find the “sale” price on the internet. Pay attention to the lumens listed in the description; the current model is 350 lumens where the previous model was 200 lumens.
If you are interested in a fairly compact light that will see as far as you can, the Streamlight Stinger DS LED HP is a good choice.
Before Christmas my mother asked me to help her find a gift for my father. She said that he needed a good flashlight. She wanted to find something for him that would allow him to see anywhere on his 13 acres by just stepping out onto his back porch. My thought was this may be a tall order. Of course, I wanted quality so I called Streamlight. I had looked over the product line and come to rest on the Stinger LED HP. I had a brief discussion with the customer service rep and we came to the consensus that I had chosen correctly. I decided, the best thing to do would be test the item out before recommending it to my mother. Shortly thereafter, I received a sample from Streamlight for T&E.
The Stinger DS LED HP is a midsized flashlight at 9 ¼” that is a favorite among law enforcement for many years now. The housing is aircraft grade aluminum, with a textured 1 inch tube. The side switch and tail cap switch both have momentary on ability. The light has 4 modes which are cycled by holding down either switch or by double clicking for strobe. This Stinger is rechargeable and energy friendly, using a Cree C4 LED chip. The deep reflector concentrates the light to some very impressive stats for each setting: High 350 Lumens/56,000 Candela with a run time of 2 hours, Medium 175 Lumens/28,000 Candela with a run time of 3.75 hours, Low 85 Lumens/ 14,000 Candela with an amazing run time of 7.25 hours. You can buy this Stinger with a regular, fast or car charger or any combination of the three. Personally, I use the regular charger because as a household like it stays in the cradle until it’s needed so it’s always topped off and ready when needed.
While the top intensity of 350 lumens is certainly respectable it’s by no means an extreme rating by today’s standards, the lumen rating was not the reason for this choice. I was interested in the Candela rating. Lumens are a measure of short distance brightness, or as I like to call in room filling light. This is the rating you look for with an EDC light you may want to use in combination with your firearm. In this case, I need a light that will shine across several acres of land. For this candela is the key. Candela is more akin to the old measure known as candlepower used in spot lights in years past. Candela is about the directional intensity of light thus giving an idea of how far the beam will travel and still be useful. On the LED HP version of the stinger the candela rating on the high setting is 56,000 which is equivalent to a popular selling spotlight that is much larger in size. In comparison the Kel-Tec CL42 is 420 Lumens with 6400 candela. On the low setting the Stinger carries a 14,000 candela rating effectively pushing the light twice as far at only 85 lumens. With this Stinger LED HP we are able to actually stand on that back porch and look all the way across the longest field on the13 acre property and see the neighbor’s driveway clearly.
Finally there’s the cost of the Stinger DS LED HP; on Opticsplanet.com this light, as I reviewed it, is selling at $125. At first I had a little sticker shock, but then I thought about the cost of some of the other lights I own. I have a M5 weapon light that I paid $125 several years ago, my EDC is the Kel-Tec CL42 which sells at $80. Each of these lights uses CR123 batteries with a fairly short run time. Each battery replacement costs at least $6. A rechargeable light of this power and quality will truly pay for itself in no time.
The only criticism I have for the Stinger DS LED HP is that it was upgraded to its current power levels in 2013. When this upgrade was made there was no change in model numbers. Therefore, it’s easy to end up with the previous model when you find the “sale” price on the internet. Pay attention to the lumens listed in the description; the current model is 350 lumens where the previous model was 200 lumens.
If you are interested in a fairly compact light that will see as far as you can, the Streamlight Stinger DS LED HP is a good choice.
