I ordered a couple with raised rings out of habit from my other Hanklights, and found it unusable; my fingers are too thick to poke in there, and the meat of my thumb has no chance. I got a couple of flat rings to replace those, and ordered flat rings since.
The threaded flat rings seem almost as tall as the press-in raised rings, and easily pass “The Table Test”, but are shallow enough to allow a normal thumbpad-press
Haven’t had any problem with pressing the button with the raised rings. I guess my fingertips just aren’t as big as some people.
For those who are having an issue: Turn the light upside down over a piece of sandpaper and grind the ring down.
How hard is it for you to hit both SHIFT keys on a full-sized keyboard? Can you completely hide a DT8 in your hand? I can do both quite a bit easier than most people.
As for sanding it down, it was easier to just get the right rings. Straight-up sanding leaves a sharp edge that needs to be dealt with. And rolling over or chamfering an edge by hand is just something I’ve done too much in machine shops to want to do it again when I don’t absolutely positively have to. Getting it even on round things was something that was easier half a lifetime ago, but nowadays it’s simply a hassle.
Is anyone using the clip with their D3AA? I really like the clip itself. Nice deep carry, heavy duty, broad contact area, good tension. No worries about the light accidently coming out of a pocket.
But the thing is a pocket shredder. The grooves around the head ( I refuse to call them cooling fins… they are just decorative features) have pretty sharp edges. I can hear it snagging on material when it is pulled out for use. I know it is going to tear up any pocket that it is used in very often.
I know, I know, just don’t use the clip. But having the clip available is a must have feature for me with this kind of small form factor light.
I just wondered if this is something others have noticed, or if there might be a work around that I am missing.
For some reason, I didn’t order the clip. I felt the light looked angular and lumpy, and also large for an AA light. I’m not missing having one, the knurling is great, I totally get where you’re coming from. I reckon you could grate nutmeg or file wood with the barrel, just about polar opposite of the silky TS10.
I use the clip but I’ve turned it upside down so it stores with the bezel up.
This way it’s easier to slide the clip on my pocket as the bulky head doesn’t get in the way.
Thanks. I reversed the clip and it is easier to clip on a pocket… still a cheese grater… 
lol… so true
(not my pics):
and the clip groove on the D3AA is too narrow for the new HD10 clip, or any other clip that fits the TS10:
Highly recommend the FLAT switch ring. I just received mine and it is Soooo much better than the Raised Ring…
The rubber button is still below the ring, and it is much nicer to have the option to use the button with the flat of my thumb instead of needing to use the tip of my index finger.
There is absolutely no downside to the Flat switch ring:
I’ll think about it 
How did you go about ordering the flat ring. I don’t see it listed anywhere. Care to say what the bottom line price was?
I sent Hank an email asking if he could sell me one Flat Copper and one Flat Titanium switch ring.
He replied with an offer I could not refuse. So I paypaled him $13 and he shipped accordingly
$8 of that was for shipping… for me it was totally worth it. Im really happy using my Flat Copper Ring:
Sorry for the lousy picture quality. Here’s my D3AA collection, all using stock optic with 5700K Nichia 519a dedomed. From left to right:
Thinking of legoing some of this.
Too bad Emisar doesn’t make Ti heads for their lights. I would have liked a blingy option that is lighter than copper.
What are your thoughts on the ti/cu?
I quite like the Ti-Cu.
The downside is it does add extra weight. Swapping out the copper head for an aluminum head saves a considerable amount of weight while retaining some of the benefits of titanium.
I hope Hank comes out with some “Ti-Colorful” versions of the D3AA.
fwiw, the Ti body, tailcap, and bezel, weigh 13grams more than the Aluminum ones. The Copper Head is 20 grams heavier than the Aluminum one.
Overall the TiCu is 33 grams heavier than an Aluminum D3AA.
No finish to wear off
This can be a big advantage, for example the sharp edges on the head fins and the corners of the switch pedestal, can be smoothed over with a bit of fine Emery Paper and then repolished with a jewelers cloth or dremmel.
Swapping out the copper head for an aluminum head saves a considerable amount of weight while retaining some of the benefits of titanium.
agree,
the TiCy is a popular combo:
that sounds nice, I hope you share a photo 
I recently fed my neighbors cats while he went on vacation.
When he got back he gave me an unexpected pre$ent.
I immediately said “Oh Boy! flashlight money”…
His reply was the last straw “be sure to get a Titanium one”
Resistance was futile, so:
I ordered a D3AA Ti w sw45k, RGB button, flat switch ring, tailmagnet, plus narrow optic.
Then, last night I had a dream that Hank added a White MAO option… I woke up and ran to the computer to check whether to change the TiCu order… no worries… it was just a dream… lol
fwiw, the D3AA anodising is matte and grippy (chalky)
I decided to use a jewelers cloth to polish the ano on my D3AA… The hand feel is smoother, and the color is richer.
Here is the light with only the head and bezel polished, to show the difference:
Emisar D3AA Ti Colorful are now available for sale.
Thank god Hank didn’t do a camo! My wallet escapes, for now 
