This is my first review posted on a forum of any type so please bear with me.
I always wanted a flashlight with a rotary type switch, and I finally received one today.
Packaging compared to the TK11 R2:
Although waterproofness isn't stated on the TA20 package, Fenix's website claims IPX8.
TA20 unpackaged:
Standard gear as with all other Fenix lights. I'm guessing because the TA20 comes with a clip a holster was deemed unnecessary. I would have liked a holster in case I decide to carry the light without the clip. Some CPF'er will dislike the clip. More on the clip later in the review.
Standard flashlight porn:
TA20 in comparison with TK11 R2, 6PD, and 2C Taskforce. Notice the TA20 is almost as long as the 2C Taskforce. Pretty long for a 2 x CR123 light.
Because of the heft of the head and length of the light, when holding the TA20 for extended periods of time it makes me want to hold it like a maglite. I actually like holding my lights this way.
The head of the TA20:
Notice the light orange peel. Of course this will produce a nicer beam than the TK11.
The TA20 bezel vs the 6PD bezel:
I have noticed some people on this forum worried about how the bezel of the TA series will wreak havoc on clothing, holsters, flesh, etc. When I heard people talk about this I was thinking it was razor wire sharp, cut leather sharp, etc.
In reality, the bezel is about as sharp as a standard Surefire 6PD, maybe a little less. So if anyone is wondering about the sharpness of a TA bezel, it will be about the same sharpness as the one on a Surefire 6PD.
TA20 threads on the right vs TK11 threads on the left:
I saw fenix advertising trapezodial threads, I was wondering if this was just marketing. Apparently fenix did change the type of threads they were using. On the left is the TK11 tail threads. On the right is the TA20 tail threads. They look much more robust than the TK series threads.:thumbsup:.
TK11 knurling on the left and TA20 knurling on the right:
Fenix has improved the knurling on their models. You can see the knurling of the TA20 on the right is more "grippy". You can feel the extra grippyness.
TA20 clip removed:
I like the clip on the TA20. It is clipped attached very tightly onto the TA20 body. It would be extremely difficult to rip the clip of the TA20 body. If it were clipped to any piece of clothing, that piece of clothing would yield before the clip came of the flashlight.
TK11 on the left, TA20 on the right:
You can see the TA20 has a substantially thicker body than a TK11. Can't blame the TK11 for having a thinner body, it was made to accommodate larger 18650 cells.
The TA20 design was a winning design for fenix. The rotating dial gives a very nice feeling feedback and audible click when modes are changed. When you reach each level on the light the collar locks into position. There is a slight roughness when turing the dial, but it feels nice, it lets you know you are rotating the dial. The clicks when the dial locks into each level is very mild sound. The clicks are not loud at all, it just lets you know you have switched modes. The dial rotates a total of 100-110 degrees only.
The rotating dial is of good quality. It can rotated using only one hand. It takes a bit of effort, but not hard at all. When rotating with one hand the dial is easier to rotate in the CCW direction, which would increase brightness. The surface texture of the dial is a bit smooth which adds to difficulty in rotating the dial one handed.
I like the clip, the lights heavy head makes clipping the light head down very natural. The clip is a bit stiff, but not as stiff as a surefire E1L clip. I can clip the light to my belt, jean pockets without too much difficulty.
The clip does make utilizing the grip ring a bit more difficult. Because the attachment point of the clip to the body will make the body of the flashlight under the ring larger, you will have less surface area to grip onto the ring. A certain type of grip is more difficult to use. I don't know what the grip type is called, so below is an example of what I'm talking about. If the clip is removed, using the light in the grip shown below is much easier.
A major gripe about the TA20 is the tail cap. The light can tailstand pretty well; which I don't care much for. The little tail fins are longer than the TK11's and the switch is quite shorter than the ones used on TK11's. So to be able to switch the light on, the tail fins gets in the way of my thumbs, making the light harder to turn on. The switch does not protrude out from the light as much as the TK11 which makes it harder to turn on the light. Below is a picture depicting what I am talking about. The TA20 is on the left.
This issue with the tail cap makes the the grip shown above even harder to use. Because the switch is shorter, there is shorter travel to click the light on.
The beam pattern between the TK11 R2 and TA20 is very similar. The spill of the TA20 might be a bit brighter. It is hard to tell because of the different tint of the two beams. The edges of the hotspot on the TA20 is softer, probably due to the OP reflector. I am not sure if I can get beam shots because my camera does not have manual exposure which will make it impossible to objectively compare beamshots. If someone still wants beamshots make a post of it and I'll see what I can do. Just remember the beamshots will be very similar to the TK11 R2.
The claimed lighting levels on the TA20 is 4,50,225 lumens. The 4 lumens is dimmer than the lowest level on the P4 P3D and dimmer than the 3 lumens of the surefire E1L. The 50 lumens of the TA20 is slightly dimmer than the 64 lumens of the TK11 R2 Low. 225 lumen high of the TA20 looks identical to the 240 lumens of the TK11 R2. All these comparisons were made using my eye and the ceiling bounce method.
EDIT #1. Got to play with my TA20 outside last night. Just as I suspected, the TK11 R2 will beat the TA20 in throw. The TK11 has a brighter and smaller hotspot; probably due to being a SMO reflector.
Hope you enjoyed this review. Very cool light
.
I always wanted a flashlight with a rotary type switch, and I finally received one today.
Packaging compared to the TK11 R2:
Although waterproofness isn't stated on the TA20 package, Fenix's website claims IPX8.
TA20 unpackaged:
Standard gear as with all other Fenix lights. I'm guessing because the TA20 comes with a clip a holster was deemed unnecessary. I would have liked a holster in case I decide to carry the light without the clip. Some CPF'er will dislike the clip. More on the clip later in the review.
Standard flashlight porn:
TA20 in comparison with TK11 R2, 6PD, and 2C Taskforce. Notice the TA20 is almost as long as the 2C Taskforce. Pretty long for a 2 x CR123 light.
Because of the heft of the head and length of the light, when holding the TA20 for extended periods of time it makes me want to hold it like a maglite. I actually like holding my lights this way.
The head of the TA20:
Notice the light orange peel. Of course this will produce a nicer beam than the TK11.
The TA20 bezel vs the 6PD bezel:
I have noticed some people on this forum worried about how the bezel of the TA series will wreak havoc on clothing, holsters, flesh, etc. When I heard people talk about this I was thinking it was razor wire sharp, cut leather sharp, etc.
In reality, the bezel is about as sharp as a standard Surefire 6PD, maybe a little less. So if anyone is wondering about the sharpness of a TA bezel, it will be about the same sharpness as the one on a Surefire 6PD.
TA20 threads on the right vs TK11 threads on the left:
I saw fenix advertising trapezodial threads, I was wondering if this was just marketing. Apparently fenix did change the type of threads they were using. On the left is the TK11 tail threads. On the right is the TA20 tail threads. They look much more robust than the TK series threads.:thumbsup:.
TK11 knurling on the left and TA20 knurling on the right:
Fenix has improved the knurling on their models. You can see the knurling of the TA20 on the right is more "grippy". You can feel the extra grippyness.
TA20 clip removed:
I like the clip on the TA20. It is clipped attached very tightly onto the TA20 body. It would be extremely difficult to rip the clip of the TA20 body. If it were clipped to any piece of clothing, that piece of clothing would yield before the clip came of the flashlight.
TK11 on the left, TA20 on the right:
You can see the TA20 has a substantially thicker body than a TK11. Can't blame the TK11 for having a thinner body, it was made to accommodate larger 18650 cells.
The TA20 design was a winning design for fenix. The rotating dial gives a very nice feeling feedback and audible click when modes are changed. When you reach each level on the light the collar locks into position. There is a slight roughness when turing the dial, but it feels nice, it lets you know you are rotating the dial. The clicks when the dial locks into each level is very mild sound. The clicks are not loud at all, it just lets you know you have switched modes. The dial rotates a total of 100-110 degrees only.
The rotating dial is of good quality. It can rotated using only one hand. It takes a bit of effort, but not hard at all. When rotating with one hand the dial is easier to rotate in the CCW direction, which would increase brightness. The surface texture of the dial is a bit smooth which adds to difficulty in rotating the dial one handed.
I like the clip, the lights heavy head makes clipping the light head down very natural. The clip is a bit stiff, but not as stiff as a surefire E1L clip. I can clip the light to my belt, jean pockets without too much difficulty.
The clip does make utilizing the grip ring a bit more difficult. Because the attachment point of the clip to the body will make the body of the flashlight under the ring larger, you will have less surface area to grip onto the ring. A certain type of grip is more difficult to use. I don't know what the grip type is called, so below is an example of what I'm talking about. If the clip is removed, using the light in the grip shown below is much easier.
A major gripe about the TA20 is the tail cap. The light can tailstand pretty well; which I don't care much for. The little tail fins are longer than the TK11's and the switch is quite shorter than the ones used on TK11's. So to be able to switch the light on, the tail fins gets in the way of my thumbs, making the light harder to turn on. The switch does not protrude out from the light as much as the TK11 which makes it harder to turn on the light. Below is a picture depicting what I am talking about. The TA20 is on the left.
This issue with the tail cap makes the the grip shown above even harder to use. Because the switch is shorter, there is shorter travel to click the light on.
The beam pattern between the TK11 R2 and TA20 is very similar. The spill of the TA20 might be a bit brighter. It is hard to tell because of the different tint of the two beams. The edges of the hotspot on the TA20 is softer, probably due to the OP reflector. I am not sure if I can get beam shots because my camera does not have manual exposure which will make it impossible to objectively compare beamshots. If someone still wants beamshots make a post of it and I'll see what I can do. Just remember the beamshots will be very similar to the TK11 R2.
The claimed lighting levels on the TA20 is 4,50,225 lumens. The 4 lumens is dimmer than the lowest level on the P4 P3D and dimmer than the 3 lumens of the surefire E1L. The 50 lumens of the TA20 is slightly dimmer than the 64 lumens of the TK11 R2 Low. 225 lumen high of the TA20 looks identical to the 240 lumens of the TK11 R2. All these comparisons were made using my eye and the ceiling bounce method.
EDIT #1. Got to play with my TA20 outside last night. Just as I suspected, the TK11 R2 will beat the TA20 in throw. The TK11 has a brighter and smaller hotspot; probably due to being a SMO reflector.
Hope you enjoyed this review. Very cool light
.
Last edited:
