PD20/LD20 UI questions

I'm new to Fenix lights and getting ready to order. I've read about the different modes but I'm not sure I understand how each one is activated.

Apparently you cycle using soft depressions of the switch, right? Depending on which of the positions you have the head in, what default mode does the light come on in when the tailswitch is depressed initially? I would hope for tactical situations it would default to turbo.

Also, how does all this differ if you go with the tactical forward switch module? Will this provide momentary contact in turbo mode?

https://www.fenix-store.com/product_info.php?cPath=27_40&products_id=465

I'm sure all this is all very clear once you have the light in your hands, but I'd appreciate a little explanation.

thanks

Head tightened = Turbo mode. Turbo mode starts at Turbo, a soft press gets you to strobe, another soft press gets you to Turbo, and so on,

Head loosened = General mode. General mode starts at low, a soft press gets you to medium, another soft press gets you to high, another soft press gets you to SOS, another soft press gets you back to low, and so on.

If the light is off for more then 2 seconds, the light automatically reverts to the first mode of the group. Head tightened, it reverts to turbo, head loosened, it reverts to low.

The driver switches to the next mode of the group when it senses a cut in the circuit for 2 seconds or less. This cut in the power could be from soft pressing the reverse clickie, hitting the light hard enough to cause the batteries to compress the spring and cut the circuit to break for a split second, or whatever breaks the circuit.

To switch modes with a forward clicke, you'll soft press the stich without clicking until you get to the mode you want, then you click.

It'll make much more sense when you get the light. It sounds more complex then it is.

Great explanation! Thanks.

With forward click looks like the only difference is that you soft cycle through the modes then fully depress for the one you want vs. fully depressing to turn the light on and then soft cycle to the desired mode with the reverse click. I'll have to think about that before ordering the forward click modification.

It does appear you could do a momentary contact with the default modes with the forward click. Just soft push switch and don't fully depress. But you could only do it once or it would move on to the next mode.

Yeah it's very easy once you get used to it. Say you want mode "high", it's just on, tap, tap this can be done in less than a half second once you're used to how it feels. Or with the forward switch, tap, tap, click.

Or switch rapid between turbo (maximum) and low by twisting / untwisting the head just a fraction. (If the light is on, you don't press the switch. If the light is off, you know for sure what kind of light you get when you press the switch).

That twist motion combined with the with the click, click-tap, or click-tap-tap becomes automated very quickly. It's much easier with the light in your hand than from a written instruction.


The major point for me is that you ALWAYS knows what's going to happen when you turn the light on - and you are ALWAYS able to turn on the excact amount of light you want with no fuss. The key is that the circuit resets when the light is off for more than two seconds, so each time you turn it on it will perform EXACTLY like the last time.


Another point is that you start with the low, which usually is good enough. This preserves batteries and kills less of your night vision. If you need more light you do the "tap" or "twist" dance. If the light started on high (as many cheap lights do) you'd kill much more of your night vision and probably only half the time remember to turn it down to preserve batteries. As our eyes adapt very quickly to more light, but very slowly to less light, it is much more uncomfortable to go from more to less light than the other way around.

It really is a great UI. I don't know why many people make a big deal about it having strobe and sos as they're at the end of the cycle and the light resets to low so they never really get in the way.

I recently got a jetbeam with ibs and now realize that a lower low would be great for the fenix lineup, but overall the presets are totally adequete.

Thanks for all the instructions. The UI sounds great and easy to use. I'm looking forward.

I'm ready to order if I can figure out the combo I want. I definitely want the 2XAA body but also want a single cell body, either the CR123 or AA.

If I go the CR123 then I need to start with a PD20 and buy LD20 body tube. Way too many decisions.

Get all 3!

There are battery caps for the bodies so you can use then as water resistant battery storage devices.

I have the LD20 and PD20 and bought the LD10 body with the Fenix tube caps $4. The caps don't fit well and one of them just falls off the tube. My sugestion is forget them and get the "Keep2Go storage tubes" from lighthound, they are great for $6 or 5 for $20 in different colors.