When it comes to flashlights and beam patterns I’m normally more of a flood guy since my work consists of a lot of close up items. But having a good spot light is important, and the advertised long distance throw of the TK20R combined with its size intrigued me, so I picked one up.

Upon opening the packaging you are greeted with the typical assortment of accessories, a lanyard, holster, and spare O ring. Since it’s a rechargeable light, there is also a Fenix-branded 3.6V/2900mAh 18650 rechargeable battery and a USB charging cable. I plugged the micro USB cable in to my USB charger and gave it its first full charge, and the mode button lit up red to indicate the charging status. Once it was green, I was good to go and I ran it through its paces.

The hot spot on the light is very tight compared to other flashlights of its size and you can tell it’s designed for long-throw applications. With that said it’s still great for general everyday use as well. The different modes allow for you to not blind yourself when using it up close, and the strobe pattern is great for any kind of self-defense or alerting situations. The head of the light is a little chunkier than your typical EDC, but the advantage of the tight beam pattern makes it worth it for situations where range is important. I recommended this for a friend of mine who owns a chimney sweep business. He is constantly looking down tall chimneys for issues and general inspections. The reach of the TK20R is extremely advantageous and he always tells me how much he loves it.
The color temperature of the LED is good, you can tell that Fenix uses high-quality LED modules in their lights. As you use the light, you can make sure that your battery doesn’t get too low by checking the mode button for the battery level. When turning on the light, the battery level indicator next to the side switch will display the battery status for 3 seconds and either show green which means “sufficient,” red constantly on which means “poor,” or red flashing which means “critical.”

The only real issue I have seen with the light is only a problem if you use the holster. The tail of the flashlight has a large, cross-patterned piece of metal, which I believe is an anti-roll section. When I was carrying the light in the holster I always had trouble getting the light out smoothly, because the raised points on the tail would catch the inside of the holster and make it very difficult to remove. It appeared like the piece may be removable, but I tried quite a bit to unscrew it and it never really came off.

Catching on the holster aside, my overall experience with the TK20R was very positive. It’s a solid light in the hand and it’s sized appropriately for the applications it is meant for. I wouldn’t pocket the flashlight, but carrying it on the hip feels good and it is great size to keep on a desk or in a glove box. The rechargeable nature makes it super simple to always have it ready to go, and the long-distance beam will reach out and illuminate whatever you need to see.

So if you’re looking for an every-day carry light but you need a little more range than normal, the Fenix TK20R will definitely not disappoint.

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