Streamlight Ultra Stinger not holding charge long

Hey guys, FNG here, so be gentle I tried the search function, but could not find an answer, as easy as I thought it would be.

Anyway, I have a SL Ultra Stinger that I bought about 5 years ago. It seems to lose it's charge extremely quick. If it sits off the charger for more than a day or so, the light seems to fade real quick within just a few moments of use. I hardly ever use the light, so it hasnt had lots of charge/drain cycles. Is it bad to keep these on the charger 24/7?

Thanks for the help, there is a ton of great info on this site.

Actually it is a good idea to exercise NiCd, and most NiMh batteries, so your NiCd pack is probably not going to perform for you. You might bright it back to life if you discharge it, running the light fairly low, and recharge and run it down, several times. It might bounce back. NiCd's are pretty hardy. Use your voltage meter or DMM to check the voltage. If you don't own one then buy one. Drop the pack down to around 5.2 volts, or so, then recharge it; do this several times.

No, contrary to many, it is not a good idea to leave it on the charger 24/7, particularly if it is not going to be used. If not used, keep it off the charger, and recharge it at least two times a year.

Bill

The same thing happened to my Streamlight Stinger. The Streamlight rechargeable battery wouldn't hold a charge for as long as it should. The Streamlight rechargeable batteries that I've had only seem to last a couple of years with or without routine use. It seems like I've had to replace the batteries every 4-6 years.

Just buy a new rechargeable battery and your light should work like new again, or at least it did for mine. There are also cheaper generic versions of the SL battery available online through a bunch of different websites.

:welcome:

I think I can hook you up with a couple nearly new Ultrastinger battery packs really cheap. I had just purchased 2 new packs for my 2 Ultrastingers when less than a month later the switches in both went bad within a week of each other. So I just gave up and switched to a different light for my nightly work use. I should still have the packs sitting in a drawer at home, I'll check in the morning when I get home. I think they were the better NiMH cells too instead of the stock NiCd.

DonShock said:

I think I can hook you up with a couple nearly new Ultrastinger battery packs really cheap. I had just purchased 2 new packs for my 2 Ultrastingers when less than a month later the switches in both went bad within a week of each other. So I just gave up and switched to a different light for my nightly work use. I should still have the packs sitting in a drawer at home, I'll check in the morning when I get home. I think they were the better NiMH cells too instead of the stock NiCd.

Click to expand...

Don, if there is a SL warranty shop in your area, you can walk your lights in and they will repair them on the spot, free of charge. I have done that when I lived near Santa Rosa, CA, and awhile back when I moved to Woodland and found a warranty shop in Sacramento.

Bill