Maybe it’s just me. But I highly doubt it
I don’t carry my lights with my keys as I love them protected and new.
My newly bought LD12 just develops spots and scratches from a week of carrying in my soft cloth pockets
My Thrunite T10 that my friend gave me for my birthday lasts longer though. (probably more than 4 weeks of heavy use)
My Convoy C8 is looking super new even when it is a year old of heavy usage rubbing against various metals/pocket buttons.
is Fenix dropping quality or is it normal?
also their lens get smudged with oil and dust too easily
I’d always thought it was the pocket clip that causes the scratch but it isn’t the case
plus their threads are extremely grainy as if there’s sand even when it is square cut.
It doesn’t have the thick squares though. They have went through with thin lines now
Cleaned the old grease for regreasing revealed some wear and tear in threads that is common in cheap chinese lights but fenix has it as well?
oh wow man
was trying to show some bare aluminum that was already there the first day I got it.
couldn’t get it on picture
(picture stolen from subwoofer review on his LD12)
my expectations were getting these butter smooth thick phat threads
not on my case
I’ve read reviews about Fenix LD12 being disappointing in beam quality and pwm but not these
I'm not a fan of that kind of knurling... the ano finish always wears out super fast no matter what light. Eagletacs are the worst... few days in my pocket and they look like they've been to war and back.
Overall though, generally, I find their finish to be pretty good... used and somewhat abused tk75, tk76, and they still look basically like new.
Got a slight chat with Fenix customer care.
Common replies like what I expected
“I have check the pictures and it is normal for the anodized coating fall off when you use the flashlight a period time.” - Sophia from Fenix
Don’t think it’s normal for it to wear in less than 2 weeks of careful use. Even my Sipik SK68 looks brand new in 4 weeks of use in cloth pocket.
Well I guess I got a dud.
I do suspect what InfinitusEquitas said. Maybe it’s the knurling that is the culprit.
Nevertheless I hope Fenix isn’t dropping their quality.
I can sense a cut cost phase in their new lights judging from my screw threads as well as visiting my local Fenix store to view other customers new lights.
I do feel as if the LD75C - my newest fenix light, is a slight step down quality wise from the older ones... TK75's, TK76, TK61's and RC40.
The finish seems to be a bit more slick and dark - though holding well so far. The grip indentations are larger, I mean they serve equally well, but aesthetically they don't look quite as good, and heatsink fins on the head are much much sharper. Not to mention they got rid of battery carrier and didn't really think through making it easy to replace the batteries in the dark by touch.
Between the anodizing wear and this, it seems to me that they are rushing the post-machining buffing process. Doing that leaves those sharp edges, pits, and a more uneven surface which makes the anodizing less even throughout. Agreed that this kind of knurling doesn’t help either. It might not be intentional though; metal buffing is something of an art and a new employee with less experience could be the cause.
My recent production E05 takes a beating but is doing as well as I’d expect. As a EDC/worklight among many keys it sees no mercy but fills it’s work-horse role well.
I’ve noticed the same on my PD35. Also thought it was from the clip, but that’s on the other side of the light. It sucks but I guess I’ll live with it.
has very tiny dings on my UC35 when it arrive brand new too, but cant complain much as i exprience the same from nitecore and some other company too, but from what i have tested, olight’s grey-ish coating are the longest lasting ones ive seen so far.