User Review: Streamlight Septor

Reviewed November 20, 2004 by Brian Chia

Rating: rated 4 of 5 stars
Price Paid: $29.99

Overview:
The Septor is a headlamp manufactured by Streamlight. It is powered by 3AAA batteries and features 7 5mm LEDs with 3 levels of brightness.

Construction:
The Septor is constructed of a tough ABS polymer and has a polycarbonate one piece bezel/lens with a black rubber shroud. It has a racheting attachment to an elastic head strap. The light uses 3 AAA batteries which are inserted horizontally with a plastic battery carrier. The battery compartment is sealed with a black plastic cap, which is a push and turn bayonet type lock. The light source is 7 5mm LEDs, with a plastic reflector. The switch is a rubber 'one touch' push-button. It does not really click or toggle, it electronically activates the different light modes. Both the battery compartment cap and the bezel are sealed with O-rings for water resistance. Expect it to survive a dunk, but nothing more than a few feet.

The overall construction is very sturdy. It has survived drops from 5 feet onto a concrete surface. The rubber bezel helps absorb impact, and the LEDs themselves are not prone to shock as an Incandescant lamp is.

Operation:
Push the button once, you activate 1 LED. 1 LED will run at least 24 hours before reaching 50% brightness, while still providing useful light for at least another 15-20 hours. Press the button again, to turn on 3 LEDs. This will likely last around 12 hours until 50% brightness. Push again to activate all 7 LEDs. This will last a few hours near maximum brightness, but will dim quickly. It will continue to provide useable light for many hours even on the highest setting. Press the button again and the light turns off.

Comments:
-The head band is fairly comfortable, and can be adjusted for both circumference and height. The light itself is not too heavy, and can be angled up or down about 90 degrees.

- The ratchet on the light was very annoying. This was easily removed. The hinge can be adjusted to tighten the pivoting of the head. You will probably want to apply some Lock-Tite to prevent it from loosening over time.

- The LEDs are bluish white, though not as bad as some cheaper bluish purple tinted LEDs. They produce a very nice, soft flood, useful for camp duties or power outages or reading. The reflector of the light is nearly useless, and just creates 'artifacts' in the beam. I removed the reflector and now I have pure smooth light with not lines or spots from the reflector.

- The light is not exceptionally bright, even on 7 LEDs, but it is still very useful. I mainly use the 1 LED setting, and have used it many times while backpacking. 1 LED provides enough light to do most camp chores. It also conserves batteries. I was still using the included OE batteries after 6 months.

- I found myself using the 1 LED setting 90+% of the time, while the other 10% was mostly the 7 LED setting for longer range use. Because the 7 LED setting is not siginificantly more powerful, I would recommend a Streamlight Trident instead, which features 1 LED, 3 LEDs, or a Xenon lamp for long range use. The 7 LEDs simply do not have long range throw. They do provide more flood, but for most uses 1 or 3 LEDs is enough. The Trident is also available in a Green version which features 1 Green LED which does not spook wildlife.

- The switch is my one complaint about the light. You have to cycle through all three modes before you can turn it off again. When your eyes have adjusted to 1 LED and you have to go to full power again just to turn it off, it can be annoying. This drawback may not be a concern to some, but may be a major flaw to others.

Summary:
A great light for camping, backpacking, or emergency use.

Pros:
Good value
Fairly bright, good tint on LEDs
Good construction, fairly sturdy
Comfortable head band

Cons:
User has to cycle through all three modes
7 LED setting is not significantly more powerful

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