This is a quick heads-up on the Fenix PD32R. Anybody who’s considering one or is curious about it has already seen videos and reviews that give all the dimensions and specs imaginable, so I’ll just go to the points that seem most relevant to me, or are not to be found on any “I’ll read you the official script in a different voice” reviews.
Number one… The switch. Oh, the silent switch. What a technological wonder. Now you can surprise your enemies in the dark, see everything they’re doing with 30,000 candelas of pure white light, while remaining perfectly hidden thanks to the silent switch. They can’t hear your light going ON, they’ll never know you’re even there!
Just who came up with the silly idea to use that as a sales pitch???
So, the switch is almost silent. Mushy, long, hard to push, imprecise. Almost silent.
I hate it. Bring back the CLICK.
Two millimeters proud of the tail, just to make sure you can’t tailstand the light. Did I say I hate that switch?
Now, switch aside, the Fenix PD32R is a pretty good light. A very good one in its category, actually. My use is as an EDC. I do a lot of bushwork in the wild, and a good light is a vital tool. My previous EDC (and my reference) for ten years and some was a UC40UE, to which I always came back after brief stints/tests with other lights.
The UC40UE’s switch gave up the ghost a few months ago, and I knew what I needed: more throw, less spill, about the same girth, a tad shorter.
In the last couple of years I bought and tried, in no particular order, the E28R (too short, too much spill, would get inadvertently switched off during use due to the side switch sitting too tall), the E28R V2 (good length, they fixed the side switch issue, much better throw than the E28 but I’d prefer a SFT40 instead of the SST40), a PD36R V2 (too heavy, no tailstand, I don’t like the tail/side switch combo), PD36R Pro (same notes as the PD36R, better switch, very good throw with the SFT70) and a few from other brands.
The PD32R is all I need for my particular use, which includes fitting the light on a rifle and shooting unpleasant critters at night, reason why I am very particular about the spill, and wanted more reach. Point to note: the PD32R has two springs, one in the front of the battery compartment, and one in the tailcap. This should help with its longevity when mounted on a rifle.
Longer or fatter, that’s not good when carried in your pocket. Shorter and slimmer, you don’t have a good grip. Less throw, you can’t see as far. More spill, that’s a handicap in a shooting situation, because branches and bushes close to you are lit up and that’s distracting.
I particularly like the charging port covered by a waterproof ring, that’s neat. Some complain that the battery level indicator is hidden behind that same ring, this doesn’t bother me: how often do you really need to check the battery level?
Lighting modes, the medium at 100 lumen and 2000 candela is a good all-round light level. High at 350/7700 is a good “What’s there yonder?” level. Turbo, 1400/30,000, that’s just when you really need to blast the bugger (two or four legs) in the sunshine, and it does well for that.
Low… Nope. At 20 lumens, that’s too high for the lowest mode. On a good light, you need a mode that is low enough to not play too much with your night vision when you switch off, and 5 lumens is about max for that, especially considering the tight beam of a SFT.
In conclusion? A good EDC light for someone who wants a light that can do a bit of everything and is just the right size to be carried everywhere, with a couple of shortcomings that one can live with. Except the switch. That abomination, I’ll find a way to replace it…