Introduction
Nightstick has been been building a portfolio of pistol lights for years.
Many of their offerings compete directly with Streamlight. You can see the resemblance:
To set themselves apart, Nightstick advertises ~20-30% more output than their Streamlight counterparts, at a similar price point.
Now they’ve released the TWM-30-T, which advertises an astonishing 66,000 candela!
For reference, that’s identical to the advertised candela of the much larger, and costlier, SureFire X300-T, and it’s over three times the candela of the TLR-1HL. If it performs as advertised, it’s a no-brainer upgrade for those running the TLR-1HL, and maybe even the X300-T.
First Impressions
The TWM-30-T appears well-built.
A few things I like:
- The switches
- The battery door (even though it requires a screwdriver to open)
- The positioning of the rail screw. For right-handed shooters, the screw (and associated holster channel) will face away from your body.
- The steel(?) cross-rail insert
- Strobe can be disabled
A couple things I don’t like:
- Looks like a TLR-1, but doesn’t fit TLR-1 holsters, leading to confusion.
- Made in China
Key Specs
I’ve included the Streamlight TLR-1HL and the SureFire X300T for comparison.
| Spec | Nightstick TWM-30-T | Streamlight TLR-1HL | SureFire X300-T |
| Lumens | 900 | 1,000 | 650 |
| Candela | 66,000 | 20,000 | 66,000 |
| Runtime | 1.75 Hours | 1.5 Hours | 1.5 Hours |
| Battery Type | 2 x CR123A | 2 x CR123A | 2 x CR123A |
| Width | 1.5 in (38 mm) | 36.4 mm (1.4 in) | 36.65 (1.4 in) |
| Head Diameter | 1.2 in (30 mm) | 30.1 mm (1.19 in) | 28.6 (1.1 in) |
| Price as of 9/12/24 | ~$139 | ~$134 | ~$249 |
| Final Assembly / Country of Manufacture | China | USA | USA |
Let’s go down to the lab and get some real-world data.
Into the Lab: Lumens, Runtime, Candela, and CRI
Lumens
The Nightstick TWM-30-T claims 900 lumens. Let’s see how it does. We have three samples of the Nightstick for this test.
The TWM-30-T under-performed. I’ll dive into this in a moment.
Let’s get a closer look at the first ten minutes:
Key takeaways:
| Light | Advertised Lumens | Max Recorded Lumens | % of claim |
| Nightstick TWM-30-T (1) | 900 | 623 | 69% |
| Nightstick TWM-30-T (2) | 900 | 648 | 72% |
| Nightstick TWM-30-T (3) | 900 | 645 | 72% |
| Streamlight TLR-1HL | 1,000 | 1,265 | 127% |
| SureFire X300-T | 650 | 734 | 113% |
- By the ANSI/Plato measurement standard (which is the average of the highest measurement of each particular sample from 30s-120s), the Nightstick produces 634 lumens, 70% of its claim.
- The Nightstick ran for an hour and forty-three minutes before dropping to 10% of its maximum output, meeting its 1.75 hour runtime claim.
Questions about Nightstick’s Lumen Claim
From the start, I had questions about Nightstick’s lumen claim. Here’s why:
I believe Nightstick is using the Osrarm CSLNM1.TG (or “W1” for short) in this light. This specific LED is a common choice for high-candela tactical lights right now. Osram’s data sheet indicates the W1 can produce 450 lumens. It’s my understanding that this is a conservative rating for constant-on applications like headlights and area lighting, so pushing it past 450 for a flashlight isn’t a problem. But achieving 900 lumens – doubling the factory’s rated output – seems unlikely.
For reference, here’s a few lights that use the Osram W1*, along with their lumen claims:
| Light | Lumen Claim Per Emitter | Max. Recorded Lumens Per Emitter |
| SureFire X300-T | 650 | 789 |
| SureFire EDC2-DFT Turbo | 700 | 778 |
| SureFire Stiletto Pro II | 750 | 762 |
| SureFire XR1/XR2 | 400 | 456 |
| Modlite OKW 18650 Handheld | 680 | 765 |
| Emisar D1K | – | 856 |
| Modlite HOG-OKW | 720 | – |
| Nightstick TWM-30-T | 900 | 648 |
*I’m visually identifying the LED in these lights. Manufacturers typically don’t advertise which model of LED they’re using in their lights. It’s pretty obvious, since the Osram W1 has distinct elements which distinguish it from other LEDs, but there’s a slight chance I’ve misidentified one or more of these lights. For your reference, here are some close-ups of the LEDs:
The key identifier of the W1 is its small, square die, and the line of text underneath (which has changed over the years, but currently, they all appear as above).
If you’re curious, here’s an LED identification chart showing how different LEDs can look:
The industry average output of the W1 is about 720 lumens, making Nightstick’s 900 lumen claim the outlier.
The Modlite HOG, a massive duty-sized handheld with a large 21700 battery, only claims 720 lumens. The much smaller, CR123A-powered TWM-30-T claims to produce 25% more light than the HOG.
The Emisar D1K, even with its larger reflector and battery, still falls short of 900 lumens. Plus I suspect the LED in the D1K is being pushed a bit too hard. In the past some Emisar lights have been known to smoke.
Overall I’m not sure if the Nightstick TWM-30-T’s 900-lumen rating is even theoretically plausible.
Candela
Given that the SureFire X300T can produce 66,000 candela with the same LED and battery type, it’s possible that the Nightstick meets its candela claims. Let’s see.
Here are the candela measurements for the three lights:
| Light | Candela (0s) | Candela (30s) | Candela Claim |
| Nightstick TWM-30-T (1) | 54,630 | 47,280 | 66,000 |
| Nightstick TWM-30-T (2) | 57,220 | 52,040 | 66,000 |
| Nightstick TWM-30-T (3) | 58,500 | 52,130 | 66,000 |
| Streamlight TLR-1HL | 14,220 | 13,740 | 20,000 |
| SureFire X300-T | 56,190 | 62,900 | 66,000 |
While the Nightstick initially makes about the same candela as the SureFire, its output drops off, whereas the X300T continues to increase until the thirty second mark.
By the ANSI-Plato standard, the Nightstick TWM-30-T produces 50,483 candela, 76% of its claim (this is the average of the three light’s max output between 30s-120s).
Questions about Nightstick’s Candela Claim
Candela is a measurement of how effectively a light can focus lumens into a hotspot. High candela requires either a deep, or wide, reflector. Given that the Nightstick’s reflector is shallower than the SureFire’s, with about the same diameter, it follows that it would make less candela given the same LED.
Nightstick’s TWM-30-T candela claim is identical to the SureFire’s. I suspect the TWM-30-T is intended to compete with the X300-T at a better price point. Assuming emitters are the same, I could see significant pressure within Nightstick to claim similar (or better) output numbers.
Some may say our test equipment is inaccurate. Here are a few responses to that:
- Our equipment is calibrated by the manufacturer on a yearly basis
- Our test results match closely to results we’ve received from Underwriters Laboratories (the trusted third party in lumen testing)
- Our test results consistently confirm the lumen claims of trusted manufacturers like Modlite, SureFire, and Streamlight
- Even if our results were incorrect in an absolute sense, they would still be correct in a relative sense – meaning no matter what, the SureFire is emitting a more intense beam than the Nightstick.
Even if our results were incorrect in an absolute sense, they would still be correct in a relative sense
Perhaps I’m missing something. Nightstick seems to be using the same emitter as the competition, with a shorter reflector, meaning it should produce around 700 lumens, and less than 66,000 candela. The measurements vindicate me, and I believe my equipment is accurate, which has been proven with third party testing. Even if my equipment were inaccurate, the inaccuracy should be consistent across measurements – meaning that the Nightstick produces significantly less candela than the SureFire. Since they have the same candela claim, either the SureFire is overperforming, or the Nightstick is underperforming. Both possibilities favor the SureFire.
Color Temperature and CRI
Here is the color temperature and CRI information from one of the Nightstick samples. This performance is pretty typical of a high-output tactical light, that is to say, mediocre. High output often comes with the compromise of poor light quality. I’m not currently aware of any tactical lights that have a CRI over 78.
Here are the key takeaways:
| Color Temperature | CRI |
| 6794K | 71.9 |
Holsters
I suspect this light fits in the larger duty-style holsters from Safariland, and possibly others. As of the publishing date, Werkz does not produce holsters for this light, but that can always change. If you need concealment gear for your pistol with the TWM-30-T, let us know in the comments below.
Conclusion
I have tried to be comprehensive and fair in this evaluation. The Nighstick TMW-30-T appears to be a cost-conscious alternative to the candela-king Surefire X300-T. Performance is similar, at much lower price point.
If the claims on the box were closer to what we found, we could have published this article earlier. 634 lumens and 50,483 candela isn’t bad, but the lumen number is so far off that we purchased an additional two lights to see if sample number one was a low performer. Samples 2 and 3 performed better, and within our expectation for this type of light, but we couldn’t reach the 900 lumens claimed.
What do you think? Do you run a Nightstick? Are you in the market for a lower priced alternative to the X-300-T? Let me know in the comments below.
