Streamlight Sidewinder

Does anybody have the Sidewinder and what are your thoughts on it?


wolfstyle

A small review here.

-Bill

I returned mine to the store for a refund-not because it isn't a great light, I just don't think I'll use it to it's potential.

Thanks for the link to the review BB. Wheres the cheapest place to buy the Sidewinder?



wolfstyle

Try the CPF friendly dealers on this post (some have discounts too).

www.BrightGuy.com carries the Sidewinder in all of its flavors (camo, desert, with IR or without).

I am sure there are others too...

-Bill

I recently purchased one and so far I have been fairly impressed with the utility of it. Its built like a tank and feels even tougher to me than my Surefire G2 and G3 lights. The output is not enormous but plenty for most indoor and short range outdoor tasks. The three different color led's are fairly neat and I like having the green and red especially.

Its not for everyone, but seems to be a pretty good light to throw in with the camping or hunting gear and its ability to tailstand and angle the head makes it an excellent choice for those times when hands free lighting is a must.

I found it for $44.39 on cheaperthandirt.com. does anyone have any experience with them?


wolfstyle

WDR65 said:

I recently purchased one and so far I have been fairly impressed with the utility of it. Its built like a tank and feels even tougher to me than my Surefire G2 and G3 lights. The output is not enormous but plenty for most indoor and short range outdoor tasks. The three different color led's are fairly neat and I like having the green and red especially.

Its not for everyone, but seems to be a pretty good light to throw in with the camping or hunting gear and its ability to tailstand and angle the head makes it an excellent choice for those times when hands free lighting is a must.

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Well stated, I agree.

I have not heard of this vendor but TateDefense.com had it for $39.95 on the 18th.

Thanks for the link. That site only has the one with the IR led which I have no use for.



wolfstyle

Lighthound has it listed now.

I got mine today (OD Green, Brightguy was out of stock the Desert Tan/IR ones, but that's just cosmetics).

1st impression: A great little light. Feels solid. One of the lights that I picked up and liked immediately.

Lots of tiny little things designed into it. Like the tethered battery cap. Reverseability of the clip and lanyard hole. Swivel head.

If it holds up, this will be my future recommendation for a general utility/emergency light.

elgarak thats great to here. Where did you get your light from?


wolfstyle

Brightguy. $49.95 + shipping.

Not sure what the white LED is. Streamlight claims 0.5W, brightness level is appropriately, i.e. not overly bright. Theres a lens in front of all the LEDS, with an easily removable bezel (O-ring sealed). In front of the white LED is a plastic? TIR optics. The LED itself is mounted on a PCB that holds all the LEDs, electronics, and switch. Not sure how easy more disassembly is. (That's just a service for modders. Light appears to not overly complex to disassemble, though heatsinking could be a problem. No wonder here, it's a polymer light.)

UPDATE:

After play... TESTING it for a bit, some more notes:

No momentary. Took me a while to realize, so the light with its intended use probably doesn't need it. Just mention it cause I usually prefer it.

The mode switch is pretty hard to operate; needs a lot of force to pull out to unlock. Depending for whom this light is intended, this could be a problem.

As to disassembly, all you really need is to unscrew the bezel. Everything else is just pushed into place; the whole electronics is easily accessible.

Sounds good! I have used one before at a Bass Pro Shops. As soon as i picked it up I knew that I had to have one. I will be ordering one next week from cheaperthandirt.com for 44.39. They have it in the OD green with the green LED.


wolfstyle

A friend of mine just recently got one. Played with it for a while tonight. I like it.

As mentioned before, the clip is mounted with a machine screw into a brass threaded insert and can be mounted on either side. It clips into molle / pals webbing securely. Nowdays many packs have a strap or two sewn onto the shoulder straps for mounting small pouches. The adjustable angle head makes this an ideal place to carry the light for hands free illumination.

I also like the adjustable levels for all of the leds. It made the red led really perfect for a lot of late night tasks. The slow strobe would also be useful for those walks where you want people to know you're there.

In short, pretty nice light. Well made and a few features that make it particularly suited for emergency use.

wolfstyle said:

Does anybody have the Sidewinder and what are your thoughts on it?...wolfstyle

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No, but Sidewinder will be the next light I order. It's the first new light I've gotten exited over in quite a while.

.

I'm very happy with mine. Got the one with/IR.
Nice deal to be found at botach.

wolfstyle said:

I found it for $44.39 on cheaperthandirt.com. does anyone have any experience with them?


wolfstyle

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Never any trouble with these folks, most of my winter gear comes from them. Nothing ever returned.

chiphead