Has anyone tried the Fenix TK10 on an AR? I was just wondering if it would hold up to the recoil?
Im wondering the same thing. I bought one a couple of months ago but I have yet to mount it on any weapon. I have several different Fenix lights and all have been excellent but I have never used one as a weapon mount.
I just got an email on the TK 10. It looks like a pretty good piece of kit with it’s 10 hour battery life on 60 lumens and 225 lumens for 1.5 hours in the turbo mode. I think it also excepts rechargables and well as the CR123s. For $73.00, it’s priced right. I may just pick one up. http://fenixgear.com/store/viewItem.asp?idProduct=1
As far as a stand alone light, I am very impressed with mine. I ordered it about 3 months ago from LA Police Gear. It has been very rugged, the battery life is great and the output is fantastic. I am no lumen head techy, so all I can say is for the price, it is a great light.
I have not mounted it to a weapon, but I can’t see why it would not work. For the price, get one and try it out. If all else fails, you still have a kick ass little flash light.
Did any of you guys ever mount on your rifle and if so how did it hold up?
Now that you have had your lights for a while, what do you still think of them?
I would not trust my life to a chinese light. Fenix lights are inexpensive but you get what you pay for.
I thought that too until I saw the torture tests they put it through on some of those flashlights forums.
Not all of want to spend $600 on a flashlight.
Yikes…! Not knocking you, but I think your cost estimate might be a little high. At the lower end of the cost spectrum, a Surefire G2 in a Vltor mount is a very usable and cost effective option for an AR, and for a couple of hundred $, you can upgrade to something like a Surefire X300 and have a very compact, very effective weapon light. Neither light throws of the 225 lumens mentioned above, but it’s pretty well accepted that a 225 lumen light is not necessarily the best option if the weapon is likely to be used indoors. (For example, if the intended use is home defense.)
I have three friends using the TK10 in a Vltor mount (I believe). The light is working great on their rifles. We usually go out jack rabbit hunting at night and they haven’t had any issues with them.
I know not all of them are that much, I was making a point. Some of the Surefires are in the $400 to $600 range.
The nice thing about the TK10 is that is 60 lumens normal and then has the 225 in what they call “turbo mode”. I really like the option of the brighter light.
By all means if I was in combat I justify needing a high dollar/high quality light that would withstand that environment. But I am not in combat. In all reality my rifle will see range use and if the SHTF or someone breaks in it will get used then.
Right now I have a VLTOR offset mount and Blackhawk’s version of the plastic Surefire. I liked that the Blackhawk light came standard with a tail cap switch that was momentary on and then click for constant on vs the Surefire’s momentary on and rotate for constant on.
The thing that caught my attention was battery life. The TK10 has a 10 hour life vs the 1 hour my Blackhawk has.
I looked around online and saw they made some improvements to the TK-10 in the TK-11 model and it was about the same price so I bought one. From the reviews I read these seem to be very nice lights at a great price.
Just like we are “getting what we paid for” with your post.:rolleyes:
I would bet my life on a $80 Fenix + mount before trusting one of the ridiculously overpriced $400+ Surefire incandescent systems. As for Surefire LEDs, you’re getting the exact same thing (or worse) and paying extra for Surefire’s marketing costs.
Surefire is just like buying a Mercedes. You get an impressive brand name, but it is consistently unreliable and expensive to repair.
A buddy of mine says I’m queer for lights (I have more than I can count at this point) and I have plenty of Fenix lights. I wouldn’t bother putting a TK## on an AR though. Not because I don’t think it would hold up (any decent LED light can easily take the recoil of the AR) but because it’s such a heavy light to mount.
My AR’s sport SureFire G2’s with Malkoff drop-ins. Fantastic brightness and runtime, bombproof in all regards, and still under $100 total. I would not personally but one of SureFire’s LED units: I’d rather use one as a host and get a Malkoff LED for better performance.
I am sure the Fenix lights will work, I just wouldn’t want all that weight on my gun. Also, as a general rule, clickies aren’t as reliable in the long run. I’m not knocking clickies: I have and carry many. I’m just saying that all things equal, a clickie is not as reliable as a push/twist switch. I also like that with the push/twist I won’t accidentally switch the light on when I am just trying to use momentary.
I did look around at weights, but not everyone states whether or not their weight is with or without the batteries.
How much heavier is than say a Surefire or Pentagon?
Fenix TK10 without batteries 5.4 oz
123 cell @ 0.6 oz x2 = 1.2 oz
total approx 6.6 oz
(I actually thought it would come out to be more based on those I’ve handled shrug)
SureFire G2 with batteries 4.1 oz
Probably not a big deal to some people (and less of a discrepancy than I thought in my head), but since lights are usually mounted so far out on the gun, increased weight can be more noticeable.
As to “trusting ones life” with a Chinese light, I would trust my life to a Fenix or an Olight LED much quicker than the American made Surefire Incan, no doubt about it.
All things equal, the Surefire is an utter ripoff in todays lighting industry, compared to that of the Asian manufacturers, who make just as good a quality light (if not better in some cases), with many more features, for much less cost.
The Asian lighting market is miles ahead of the American.
What, “Surefire is lifetime guaranteed” , guess what… So is Olight.
“My surefire emits a massive 90 lumens!!!” , guess what… So does Olight, and multiple other levels of output, up to 250!
“I sure wish my Surefire had a tactical strobe feature” , Yep… you guessed it, Olight does, and for those that don’t like the Strobe feature, they don’t have to use it. It is far better to have it and not need it, than need it and not have it.
That’s not the only market.
Please explain.
Don’t confuse features with quality. Look at the way a Fenix (or other chinese) light is built and then look at the construction of a Surefire or NovaTec. The materials, machining, finish and design are much better on USA-made devices.
High output and strobe features won’t matter much when you bang your rifle and your light quits working.
There is a thread where some guy tossed the thing off a 5 story building after beating the shit in other ways and the light still worked.
If tossing it off that building didn’t kill it, banging your rifle isn’t going to do shit to it.