May 3rd, 2024
6minute read
As any frightened three-year-old will tell you, monsters live in the darkness.
The capacity to push back that darkness is a critical aspect of any survival situation.
Hence, why we value light so very much.
In this Streamlight Stinger 2020 review, Dr. Will Dabbs takes a look at a powerful, yet compact, flashlight that throws 2,000 lumens.
What we will talk about today is the former.
The Stinger Flashlight
Streamlight has carved out a comfortable niche in the rarefied world of tactical illumination.
It offers a bewildering array of onboard weapon lights for handguns, shotguns and rifles.
Weapon-mounted lights are excellent, but you still need a handheld light for things that do not require the immediate application of force.
I live in this world, and their Stinger 2020 sits on my bedside table.
I have no higher accolade.
For starters, the Stinger 2020 doesnt look much like your Grandads flashlight.
A flashlight should be part of your defensive gear. If you employ a gun for self-defense, it’s your responsibility to know what you are shooting at. In low-light conditions, a flashlight will help you do that.
An intuitive mode selector is also thumb-selectable among low, medium, and high parameters.
The Stinger 2020 is powered by a built-in rechargeable SL-B26 protected Lithium-ion battery pack.
On its maximum setting, the Streamlight 2020 puts out 2,000 lumens and is effective out to 315 meters.
Be sure to get quality instruction on the use of a flashlight with your firearm. Low-light shooting skills are unique and include tactics you may not have considered.
In this configuration, it will run for about two hours on a charge.
The medium setting offers 860 lumens for about four hours.
Low power output will produce 100 lumens for a full 24 hours.
The Streamlight Stinger 2020 works with old Stinger chargers as well as the new ones. This allows you to upgrade your light without needing to reinstall a charger in your truck, office or workshop.
Learn runtimeand the the difference aboutcandela vs. lumens.
In addition to the standard offerings, the Streamlight 2020 also has a disorienting strobe setting.
This mode will get the attention of someone far away or foment confusion up close.
The Streamlight Stinger 2020 features switches that are easy to use and very instinctive.
The strobe will flash for nearly 3.5 hours on a full charge.
Stats
The Stinger 2020 is a bit south of 8 long and weighs 12.3 oz.
The light is waterproof to IPX7 standards and drop-tested up to two meters onto a hard surface.
In addition to CCW, the Stinger 2020 makes a lot of sense as a general preparedness tool.
It also looks like something out of the movie Aliens.
Like any advanced tactical instrument, there is a manual of arms.
A light press will activate the light at the power setting determined by the thumb switch.
The light then extinguishes when you release the switch.
A full press creates an audible and tactile click and produces a constant-on state.
A quick double press engages the strobe.
A further solid press in any mode turns the light off.
One of the features offered on a number of high-end Streamlight lights is called the TEN-TAP programmable switch.
However, the Stinger 2020 replaces the TEN-TAP system with the more basic mechanical switchology previously discussed.
The Stinger 2020 is simpler to use as a result.
The lens gets fairly warm during prolonged operation, but the rig is just stupid bright.
A cursory Google search shows the street price of the Stinger 2020 hovering around $140.
Thats not chicken feed, but its not insane, either.
Go to forum thread
StreamlightStinger 2020
HellcatPro Series
