Streamlight is one of two big weapon light companies in the industry. They’ve famously produced weapon lights for both handguns and rifles in all different sizes. They make lights for the smallest of guns like the P365, which we’ve reviewed recently. They’ve finally entered the dedicated shotgun market with the Streamlight TL Racker. The TL Racker is a dedicated shotgun weapon light designed for pump action shotguns.
The TL Racker is currently being produced for the Remington 870 and the Mossberg 500/590 series of shotguns. I picked one up for my Mossberg 590 and have been putting it to the test. I’m a firm believer that home defense weapons should have lights and I believe shotguns are excellent home defense weapons. Pump action shotguns can be hard to add lights to. Where do you place it, and how do you run it’s activation?
A semi-auto is easy, but a pump action requires movement forward and rearward. This makes it challenging to effectively run a weapon light when manipulation the weapon. Manipulating the light means releasing a key portion of the firearm you need to control. Because of this the best way to add a light to a pump shotgun is to make it the pump.
Enter The TL Racker
The TL Racker replaces the pump of your Mossberg 500 or 590 series shotgun with a one and light combination. This gives you the ability to manipulate the weapon and the light with ease while maintaining complete control over the shotgun. The TL Racker comes equipped with an 850 lumen light that casts a bright and wide light across a room.
The pump features two 4.5 inch long activation switches. One sits on either side of the pump and is easily activated by a press of the thumb or fingers. The TL Racer has two modes, momentary and constant on. Working between the different modes takes some practice.
To activate the constant on you hit the button and the light comes on and bam you’re done. To activate momentarily you have to do a long hold, by long I mean about a second and now it’s a momentary device. I’d prefer a system that allowed you to switch between momentary and constant, but this system works with some practice.
The TL Racker will run for roughly 1.5 hours and does so with two CR123A batteries, which are happily included. The TL Racker’s beam is wide, bright, and white. It’s a spotlight that fills your vision. This wide beam is perfect for a shotgun since it’s a close quarter’s weapon known for it’s speed on target. One minor issue I discovered was the 590’s bayonet lug does create a bit of a shadow forward of the gun.
While most people likely don’t have a bayonet stub on their shotgun, they may have a sling point in a similar position forward of the light. The shadow doesn’t kill the light or create a blind spot in the light.
Working the Pump
Compared to the competition the TL Racker does offer a more ergonomic pump. It is heavily textured and allows your hand to dig in and hold on shot after shot. The TL Racker also has a divot between the light and the pump. This divot is perfect for wrapping your fingers around and getting a good solid hold on the pump.
It’s wider than the typical pump, but that is to be expected when you incorporate a light. It’s not distracting or uncomfortable when gripped. It’s overall much smaller than the competition and gives you a sleeker package overall.
At the range, the grip never causes discomfort or pain and was easy to utilize when shooting and moving. Most importantly it’s quick and easy to turn the light on and get the gun into action. It takes almost no brainpower and can be done under stress. The massive off and on button and simple system makes it impossible to screw up.
The light stays on and doesn’t turn on or flicker when faced with 12 gauge recoil. This was a true stress test. 12 gauge is a kitten kicker when it comes to recoil and there’s been more than one occasion when 12 gauge recoil killed an optic or lesser light. What can happen is when racking the weapon it’s easy to hit the large light switch when you run a firm grip. However, it’s pretty quick and easy to turn the light on.
I used a camera to film as I fired with the light on to ensure the light never flickered when I fired. The TL Racker had no issues withstanding 12 gauge, I didn’t doubt it, but we trust but verify.
My Final Thoughts
The TL Racker isn’t just a great light system, but it’s an outstanding pump as well. The pump is textured and easy to grip, easy to manipulate, and still manageable size and weight-wise. The forend’s design makes it comfortable for repeated use and it’s tough enough to take it.
If you are rocking a pump action shotgun for home defense, it’s likely a Mossberg or Remington and if so give the TL Racker a look. Price wise it’s competitive with standard weapon lights, and priced well below competitive shotgun forend lights. The TL Racker is an excellent weapon light and gives you an intuitive, ergonomic, and powerful option for home defense.
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That bayonet is directly in front of the flashlight…?
Yes it is!
I was thinking the same thing.. smh 🤦♂️
What purpose does the light have w/ the bayonet directly in front of it??