dheim
Newly Enlightened
- Joined
- Sep 15, 2011
- Messages
- 97
the D25A2, one of the brand new D series flashlights from EagleTac, is fueled (as name suggests) by 2 AA cells and sports a Cree XP-G S2 LED. 129.5 mm long, with a diameter of 17.5 mm, it's not bigger than the average penlight, but is obviously thicker. i wouldn't carry it in my front pocket, though, even if the excellent in-built clip looks inviting and definitely solid... the bezel, as well as the clip, is made from stainless steel, and gives this otherwise generic light a competent look. It's a twisty, so it lacks any protruding tail button and can stand safely as a candle.
the light comes in a nice black cardboard box, with a well made lanyard and an excellent rigid holster.
The UI is not what i'd call ingenious... basic twist operation, so tightening the head turns the light on, in low mode. loosening shuts it off. repeating the operation within 1.5 seconds changes mode, so to get medium and turbo/high mode the torch must be switched off every time between different levels (doing it with a single hand is easy but not too pleasant). After two complete cycles the light enters in strobe mode. leaving it off for more than 1.5 seconds resets everything, so the next twist will start again from low level. well... at least it doesn't start from turbo!
I'm not fond of these twisty UIs, and honestly, i find any strobe mode that's not immediately accessible when needed to be perfectly useless... i can't imagine anyone having the time and cold blood to perform subsequent twists (or clicks, for that matters) to scare a pack of wild dogs or to blind an attacker... anyway, levels and modes are the following.
- low: 3 lumens (>100 h declared runtime) - no extra-hyper low modes that everyone seems to love so much, but enough light to walk indoor
- medium: 59 lm (7 h) - enough for general outdoor use
- turbo/high: 209/175 lm (1.5 h) - turbo mode switches to high after 90 seconds to avoid overheating, and it doesn't look like an excess of prudence, the head becomes quite hot at maximum output. high is quite bright anyway.
- strobe ("stunning" quick flashes at constant speed) - flash hi (for general signalling) - SOS (a bit too slow, in my opinion) - beacon - flash low
note: above values are ANSI-OTF readings, but the light is advertised using direct LED readings, with quite unrealistic 325 lm in turbo mode!
the beam is very nice, smooth and floody, in Zebralight style. EagleTac declares an 85 meters maximum throw, a 6.5° spot and a 42° spill, and even if Zebralight declares anlges twice as wide for the SC51 the two beams look very similar, the D25's being even a bit wider. tint is a very pure cold white, without any hint of green
low exposure wall shots... actually the beam looks much brighter!
"real life" outdoor and/or indoor beamshots, as well as comparative shots will come in near future...
turbo (209 lm)
high (175 lm)
medium (59 lm)
low (3 lm)
from left to right: DS25 turbo (209 lm), SC51 high1 (200 lm), Preon2 high (160 lm)
The D25A2 Mini is (or at least looks) well made, with good care of details and a nice presentation, has a very nice beam (at least for my tastes), it's bright and cheap and safe to operate with AA cells, making for an excellent EDC choice, if you can live with the longer 2xAA size. the included holster is nice and solid, even if it's not very small for pocket carrying (yep, i usually carry torches in their pouches to avoid scratching and dirt, i don't like to have light free in my pockets)
personally i don't like the UI, and the twisty all-in-one operation, although handy in very small lights like the Fenix E05, is completely pointless in a not so small 2xAA torch... i would have happily traded a cm more of total lenght for a tail switch (and maybe a twisty level selector). the stainless steel bezel looks great but probably doesn't help with heat management, so turbo mode can be sustained for really little time
the light comes in a nice black cardboard box, with a well made lanyard and an excellent rigid holster.
The UI is not what i'd call ingenious... basic twist operation, so tightening the head turns the light on, in low mode. loosening shuts it off. repeating the operation within 1.5 seconds changes mode, so to get medium and turbo/high mode the torch must be switched off every time between different levels (doing it with a single hand is easy but not too pleasant). After two complete cycles the light enters in strobe mode. leaving it off for more than 1.5 seconds resets everything, so the next twist will start again from low level. well... at least it doesn't start from turbo!
I'm not fond of these twisty UIs, and honestly, i find any strobe mode that's not immediately accessible when needed to be perfectly useless... i can't imagine anyone having the time and cold blood to perform subsequent twists (or clicks, for that matters) to scare a pack of wild dogs or to blind an attacker... anyway, levels and modes are the following.
- low: 3 lumens (>100 h declared runtime) - no extra-hyper low modes that everyone seems to love so much, but enough light to walk indoor
- medium: 59 lm (7 h) - enough for general outdoor use
- turbo/high: 209/175 lm (1.5 h) - turbo mode switches to high after 90 seconds to avoid overheating, and it doesn't look like an excess of prudence, the head becomes quite hot at maximum output. high is quite bright anyway.
- strobe ("stunning" quick flashes at constant speed) - flash hi (for general signalling) - SOS (a bit too slow, in my opinion) - beacon - flash low
note: above values are ANSI-OTF readings, but the light is advertised using direct LED readings, with quite unrealistic 325 lm in turbo mode!
the beam is very nice, smooth and floody, in Zebralight style. EagleTac declares an 85 meters maximum throw, a 6.5° spot and a 42° spill, and even if Zebralight declares anlges twice as wide for the SC51 the two beams look very similar, the D25's being even a bit wider. tint is a very pure cold white, without any hint of green
low exposure wall shots... actually the beam looks much brighter!
"real life" outdoor and/or indoor beamshots, as well as comparative shots will come in near future...
turbo (209 lm)
high (175 lm)
medium (59 lm)
low (3 lm)
from left to right: DS25 turbo (209 lm), SC51 high1 (200 lm), Preon2 high (160 lm)
The D25A2 Mini is (or at least looks) well made, with good care of details and a nice presentation, has a very nice beam (at least for my tastes), it's bright and cheap and safe to operate with AA cells, making for an excellent EDC choice, if you can live with the longer 2xAA size. the included holster is nice and solid, even if it's not very small for pocket carrying (yep, i usually carry torches in their pouches to avoid scratching and dirt, i don't like to have light free in my pockets) personally i don't like the UI, and the twisty all-in-one operation, although handy in very small lights like the Fenix E05, is completely pointless in a not so small 2xAA torch... i would have happily traded a cm more of total lenght for a tail switch (and maybe a twisty level selector). the stainless steel bezel looks great but probably doesn't help with heat management, so turbo mode can be sustained for really little time
Last edited:
