Short Description:

The Scorpion is a high intensity flashlight made by Streamlight. It is designed for anyone who needs a very small but extremely bright and lightweight flashlight.

The body of the light is machined aluminum and is covered with a black rubber sleeve to improve grip and weather resistance. The bezel is Anodized black. The rubber coating on the body is formed in such a way that it forms a weather resistant seal against the inside of the bezel of the light.

The Scorpion uses a high pressure xenon bulb to produce a very intense white light. This is coupled with a textured reflector to reduce the rings and distortions seen in the beams of common flashlights. The bezel can be rotated to change the focus of the beam, changing it from a sharp beam to a wide flood.

The switch is hidden on the bottom of the light under the rubber sleeve. Pressing in gently will turn the light on momentarily. Pressing in harder will cause the switch to "click" in place, leaving the light on until the switch is pressed again.

For batteries the Scorpion takes 2 123a lithium batteries (Duracell Ultras included) for a runtime of approximately 1 hour.

A belt sheath can be purchased from Streamlight separately.

Reviewer's Impressions:

The Scorpion is perhaps the very best possible combination of size and value for a high intensity lithium powered flashlight. It comes with batteries and a spare bulb to boot. Consider it a "pocket sized" 4-D Maglight.

The fit and finish of the Scorpion is quite good. The anodize is clean and the threads are well cut. The rubber boot that covers the body of the light gives a good grip and makes the light easy to handle in cold weather. The momentary click switch is very welcome, allowing the light to go from "momentary on" to "locked on" by simply applying a little extra pressure with the thumb.

Beam quality is excellent. The Scorpion makes a perfect round spot of light. The fact that the focus can be widened out allows the light to be used for close-up work without needing to hold the light high above your head.

The 123a camera lithium batteries can be quite expensive. They can cost up to about $5 each at Wal-Mart! Luckily, Surefire has recently reduced the price of their batteries to $15 for a box of 12. The Surefire batteries are supposed to be specially formulated for the high drain lights. This is a very good price and makes owning any 123a battery light rather affordable. Two of these batteries will give you 60 minutes of runtime. Order them from an online retailer like BatteryStation.com.

The Streamlight Scorpion is an excellent general use duty light - lightweight, small, easy to carry, and an ample amount of light with an adequate runtime for most tasks. I can easily see this light being carried on the belt of Police Officers and Rescue/EMT techs anywhere in the world. It is a very good light in my opinion, and you'll have plenty of money left over for batteries as a result of the low up-front cost.

+ + + Pluses: Water resistant, Tough, Bright, Easy battery change, Lightweight, Wide focus for up-close work, Can stand on end, 10 year battery shelf life.

- - - Minuses: Short battery life