I need advice with Fenix P2D, please!

[Federal LG]

Hi there

I intend to buy a Fenix P2D to give it to a friend (a gift), but I have some doubts:

1 - Which body color is best ? In Fenix-Store site, they show black, natural and olive. I would like a paint that lasts forever. I know that the black one can "fade away" through the years (by hand contact, the paint can fade, no?)... Does someone have experience with natural or olive colors in Fenix lights ? Are they painted or it´s the natural metal color ?

2 - Which LED do I choose ? They offer Cree Q5 and Rebel 100 in P2D models. I don´t have any Rebel or Q5 lights, so what´s the main difference? I know that Q5 is slightly brighter, but what about their color ? I intend to buy the whitest one.

Thanks in advance for all your help! If someone has pictures of those models, I would love to see it here.

Bye!

 

[BassClefJeff84]

I can safely say that you will NEVER have to worry about the paint coming off the Fenix lights. They are not painted, it is anodized aluminum.

 

[Gunner12]

1. Natural would show wear the least, Olive would be second, and black would show wear the most. They are all anodized, no paint. The color is from dyes within the anodizing layer itself.

2. The Cree would usually be whiter and the Rebel would usually be warmer.

 

[WadeF]

Natural should be the toughest finish. I have the Natural and Olive HA's, they are both nice, the olive is smoother, so the natural offers a bit more grip. No guarantee with the Q5 or Rebel being whiter, it's luck of the draw pretty much.

 

[Federal LG]

Thanks guys, and forgive my ignorance about the "paint". Now I know it´s anodized.

But I already saw some black Fenix that is very scratched, not by shock, but by hand contact between the years... like if it was painted, and the paint is fading away...

 

[Federal LG]

Natural should be the toughest finish. I have the Natural and Olive HA's, they are both nice, the olive is smoother, so the natural offers a bit more grip. No guarantee with the Q5 or Rebel being whiter, it's luck of the draw pretty much.

Wade... I have FEAR about this Cree lottery!
I would like a neutral white Q5, but... :shrug:

Does exist a Rebel lottery too ? Or they are always warmer ?

 

[Gunner12]

All LEDs have a lottery. There can be a difference between LEDs of the same bin.

From what I've seen/read, the Rebels seems to warmer overall and the Crees seem to be whiter overall.

 

[cal..45]

@ federal lg,

I have a Q5 P2D as well as a R100 P2D - both in black. the Q5 I would consider fairly white, while the R100 is definetely more yellowish. which one do I like better? I honestly don't know...

the R100 seem to be more "natural" with better colour rendition but that is what we are used to due the use of incans. however, more important than the tint is spill in my opinion, which is way better defined than the Q5.

the Q5 seems to be a bit brighter but that is in my opinion irrelevant in the field for ranges up to 50meters away.

in my opinion you can't go wrong with neither its just a of matter personal preference, I'm glad that I can choose between boths types whenever I want to.

about the black finish: I wouldn't worry about that at all. like it was already mentioned by other members, it is anodized and unless you want to scratch the light with a file, I don't think it will come off ever by normal (ab)use.


regards, holger

 

[mossyoak]

trust me on this one, get a natural with a cree q5, i have a olive p2d, and its already showing some wear, not that i care since its a friggin flashlight, but the natural colored fenixes that i have owned hardly ever showed wear, and when the do get nicks in the finish they dont show up much. the cree lights are alot nicer i think, unless your getting on of the little LOD lights those things with the rebels are just wicked looking, the small head and small emitter go together really well.

 

[WadeF]

I would get the Natural for 2 reaons:

1) Fenix is discontinuing natural HA, so it will be more rare.
2) It is the toughest HA finish Fenix offers.

I have a natural P2D and I love the way it looks. I almost ordered another with the Q5, but I went with olive only because I don't have an olive Fenix yet.

Talking to David from Fenixstore, who has seen more Rebel's and Cree's than probably any of us, he says you can get a variety of tints with either, and if you go with a Rebel it may not be any whiter or warmer than going with a Cree.

The Q5 will have the most output. My P2D Cree Q5 is on the cool side.

 

[mossyoak]

1) Fenix is discontinuing natural HA, so it will be more rare.

where'd you get this little gem of information from?

 

[WadeF]

where'd you get this little gem of information from?

It was posted on Fenix-store a month or two ago. Wish it wasn't true. Maybe they will bring it back.

 

[mossyoak]

oh well... its not like they will be unattainable
B/S/T is my savior.

 

[Handlobraesing]

Thanks guys, and forgive my ignorance about the "paint". Now I know it´s anodized.

But I already saw some black Fenix that is very scratched, not by shock, but by hand contact between the years... like if it was painted, and the paint is fading away...

I wouldn't expect the "natural" to be any more resistant to wear. It would just have a lesser contrast between the worn area and not worn area, so it'd wear out just as much as the black, but not as visible.

I've read posts that Fenix' hard anodized finish don't live up to the durability of the original Arc or Surefire.

 

[Federal LG]

I know that throw is connected with the type of reflector... (correct me if I´m wrong...) but do you guys know if it has difference (in throw power) between the Rebel 100 and the Cree Q5 ??

 

[Cartman]

I'm really a big fan of the P2D. Since I bought a P2D Rebel 100 in black / P3D Q5 in natural last year, I actually stopped carrying my Surefire's. I like the modes, size and weight of them. But, if I had to do it again, I would have bought the P2D in Q5 as I really like the "whiter" Q5 over the warmer Rebel.

I think the natural will wear better long term but I find that I like the black more.

Hi there

I intend to buy a Fenix P2D to give it to a friend (a gift), but I have some doubts:

1 - Which body color is best ? In Fenix-Store site, they show black, natural and olive. I would like a paint that lasts forever. I know that the black one can "fade away" through the years (by hand contact, the paint can fade, no?)... Does someone have experience with natural or olive colors in Fenix lights ? Are they painted or it´s the natural metal color ?

2 - Which LED do I choose ? They offer Cree Q5 and Rebel 100 in P2D models. I don´t have any Rebel or Q5 lights, so what´s the main difference? I know that Q5 is slightly brighter, but what about their color ? I intend to buy the whitest one.

Thanks in advance for all your help! If someone has pictures of those models, I would love to see it here.

Bye!