Film stinger vs. comsumer extension cord?

[Victor Nhat Nguyen]

I know that film stinger are usually set in standard size like 50 and 25 feet. They are also thicker, more durable and easy to coil. But are there any other difference than consumer extension cord found in any convenience store?

 

[Ryan Patrick O'Hara]

I know that film stinger are usually set in standard size like 50 and 25 feet. They are also thicker, more durable and easy to coil. But are there any other difference than consumer extension cord found in any convenience store?

Yes. But it depends on what you buy.

Stores can carry very durable high quality (construction quality) extensions, and they can sell your grandma's flimsy ungrounded lamp extension.

First of all, always buy extension cables with a ground pin.

Second, the gauge of the cable is often the easiest way to tell quality and capacity. In America we have the AWG. This is a gauge rating printed on the cable's packaging. The lower the gauge number, the more current the cable can take. This means lower gauge cables are typically the thicker ones on the shelf, despite immediate intuitive thinking, haha.

If you buy cheap cables that cannot handle the amount of amperage draw needed through the cable, they will overheat and sometimes even melt! It's dangerous!

Also be aware that distance in cable creates resistance. Thus if you are using a gauge of 50' cable that just barely suits your power needs, and then you run three of them (150') to reach a distant light, you may very well be overloading the cable with resistance and it may not deliver the power you need and/or heat up (possibly melt).

This is why 'stingers' or any professional level stinger for film and television are thick/lower gauge. They are typically 12 or 10 gauge, and nothing above (14+).

(Yes, you can use 14 gauge cable if you are running under 12amp's a distance of under 50 feet. Or even 16 gauge cable if running less than 10amps under 25 feet. etc. There are charts in electrician handbooks that can go into more general rule of thumb detail. I recommend the Set Lighting Technician's Handbook)

Otherwise, you should seriously use 12 gauge or 10 gauge cable for long distances and high amperage. This is for professional sets. If you are running one or two LED units or Kino's, for a hotel corporate interview, the amperage draw is so low, you can likely use any decent grounded extension cable.