# Fenix TK45 (testing sample) review - Looong and pic heavy!



## chenko (Jun 7, 2010)

DISCLAIMER: my English is quite good, but not perfect by any mean, so please be kind and forgive the mistakes I'll be eventually doing (you damn spell nazis, I'm yellin' at ya! lol...) 

Well then... Welcome in the dark dungeon of the Enlightened...





...how ironic! 

Back from a 2 days trip on the mountains of Veneto (Italy), here is my hands-on review of the Fenix TK45 prototype! Please do remember that this actually is the pre-production testing sample, final version may differ in different ways, first of all for what concerns the LEDs to be used (those will be R5 instead of the R4 which are in my sample, so it will probably be even brighter).

Some standard pics took on photographic set, as much descriptive as impersonal but nonetheless useful.

Her "triplicity" TK45, stunning and endearing. With such a radical look you either love it or hate it. I'm loving mine! It sure attracts the looks of people and suggests the idea of power.





Tail-standing: the wide base gives good stability, couple this with the high power this flashlight is capable of delivering and here you have a great tool to light up rooms during blackouts.





Inside the belly of the beast...





...lies a powerful heart.





Disassembled.





Now for the outdoorsy part of the flashlight use!
The trip took place on the Cai paths 651, 648 and 647 starting from "Cogollo del Cengio". The route includes the path known as "sentiero delle postazioni" (kinda like "path of the posts"), with thrences, galleries dug in the mountain's rocky heart (some more than 300ft long!) and artillery posts which were created during World War I to resist the advance of Austrian troops. A striking place that carries lots of emotions, a theater for extreme human vicissitudes... a place to visit for the pleasure of finding new things but also very thought provoking...

I'm happy to have brought the TK45 along for the test in the outdoor environment, not just for the fun (and usefulness) coming with it, but mostly because this way I could have real first-hand experience of a test on this kind of gear, made on purpose with a sort of "measuring" (this needs further explanations... more on this later) instead of just a quick impression report. This very aspect is of first importance: never before this trip I had tried to produce consistent "beamshots", not on the classic white wall nor in a complex scene such as the ones that I chose to create the following photographic documentation: deeming the "photo set of reality" more meaningful than a white wall I put on the trusty boots and set off for a new adventure... You'll find white-wall galore in many other threads for sure. You know, every tester is unique... I hope you don't mind me, the "bushcraft-nut tester"!  ha ha!

Anyway, the very very important thing I really feel the urge to hypothesize is the following: despite the technical efforts put into the shooting (use of camera stand, fixed shooting parameters between the shoots, adoption of RAW format with minimal and standardized developing for the groups of pictures etc...) I just realized that PICTURES ARE NOT A RELIABLE WAY TO MEASURE AND DEPICT THE REAL PERFORMANCE OF FLASHLIGHTS! This for what attains to both real perceived brightness and tint.

Essentially, the camera has to be considered as a "filter" in the collection of the datum (human sight is a filter too, but that is a filter we don't really need to consider in this application, mainly because it just can't be avoided or changed). So, HOW is this filter acting? Unfortunately in a complex way, as it is showing at the same time a  REDUCE DYNAMICS (in brightness of course) IN THE SINGLE PICTURE very differently from human perception while conversely INCREASING THE DEPICTED DIFFERENCE BETWEEN TWO OR MORE PICTURES.
Those make for two "alterations" of perception both opposing among themselves and coexisting, making me think that by now the only reliable way to truly understand the differences between different flashlights is trying them first hand, possibly making confrontations between the various samples close in time. Ok, start the bashing... Seriously, don't take it too seriously... lol!

Well, to be able to have a confrontation for the TK45 I just... brought ALL of my flashlights along!  Fear not, for I am... poor! Lucky you (too bad for me actually) I own just a few! 
The flashlights tha enlightened my journey are then:
*Fenix TK45 testing sample* (cool white tint)
*Eagletac P20A2w* (neutral white tint)
*Quark Preon2* (warm-white limited edition, how lovely)
*Zebralight H501w* (neutral white tint)

Now for the beamshots!

Set n° 1: path in the woods - 4900k white balance, -1 tint, ISO 400, f 3.5, 4s exposure, -1 ev in the RAW development





























Set n° 2: cave dug into the rock - 4900k white balance, -1 tint, ISO 400, f 3.5, 0.5s exposure, +0.5 ev in the RAW development





















































Set n° 3: "ceiling bounce" in the cave - 4900k white balance, -1 tint, ISO 400, f 3.5, 0.5s exposure, +0.5 ev in the RAW development





















































Set n° 4: person from behind, in the cave- 4900k white balance, -1 tint, ISO 400, f 3.5, 0.5s exposure, +0.5 ev in the RAW development


















Comparison pic between neutral-white (Eagletac P20A2w) and cool-white (Fenix TK45) tints





Comparison pics between warm-white (Quark Preon2) and cool-white (Fenix TK45) tints









Engines at full force yeehaaahh! All the flashlights on! (an unprecised Petzl headlamp joined the party too!)





*Some thoughts...*
"LOW" settings of all the flashlights are way brighter (and thus useable for night hiking) than what the photos depict, and no, I'm not talking about eye adaption to the darkness: they are just brighter! To tell the truth, event the LOW setting of the humble Zebralight H501W is OK for walking in the woods at night (where the light from the moon can't get through). So the camera is penalizing the lower modes a lot, as much as it fails to show the very external part of the spill and indirect reflexions of light on the walls.
Also, tints of the various flashlights are indeed different, but NOT AS MUCH AS IT SEEMS FROM THE PICTURES: most of all, the warm-white tint of the Quark Preon2 ain't that orange at all, but is instead lovingly warm and useful.


*Weight and size*
The TK45 is sure bigger and heavier than the EDC light you use to carry, it is also the biggest flashlight I currently own, but it ain't excessive. Definitely not a piece of gear you stash in your pocket and forget, that's for sure... Size and weight make it suitable for carrying into a backpack, or on the belt with a dedicated sheath. To make a reference with the Maxpedition products, the TK-45 can be put (with some efforts, because of the tight aperture) inside the Proteus versipack, while squeezing in more comfortably in the upper pocket of the Condor II daypack (a very functional place to store such a flashlight).

*Build quality*
Build quality of my sample is very good, anodization is excellent, grooves are very fine and precise, offering nice grip. All in all the sensation is that of a quality item.

*Beam profile*
I have to admit I was very skeptical in the beginning because of the triple-headed optics layout, but the actual beam really surprised me: truly excellent. Very smooth transition between the wide hotspot and spill, the latter being really huge and "useful" because of its high intensity. What really got me was is the smoothness of the beam: I expected a somewhat visible interaction between the three light sources, because of the particular configuration of the "stand-alone" reflectors, but I have to admit the TK45's beam is running with the best single-led reflectors smoothness-wise. Shining the beam on a flat surface, the three light sources magically blend into a wide smooth circular beam right afterhalf a meter (about 20'')... impressive!

*UI*
I'd dare to define this UI "ideal". The two sidewinder buttons are very comfortably placed there where the thumb should rest: activation and levels changing is as easy as it gets. Accessing the strobe mode and the other beacon/SOS modes is easy but it's also very unlikely to do it unintentionally.

*Power and levels' separation*
Levels are nicely spaced, making the TK45 a very versatile flashlight. For the use in a prolonged hike (of many days) the TK45 pays for it's weight and size offering stunning runtimes. The "LOW" level (the one in which just one led is lighted) is actually very useful and plenty bright in the complete darkness of the nights in the woods, making it possible to see many meters far while offering fully regulated runtime for a s**t-load of hours (Fenix claims more than 200 hours!!), while the "MID" level is bright enough to lead a small party of hikers in the night trek efficiently offering many days of use if using it some hours per night. The cool thing is that rationing the use of the flashlightto the moments of need (no flashaholics games...) and making use of the higher intensity levels just for quick orienteering, one can expect to use the TK-45 for many weeks before being in the need for new batteries.

*Tint*
Tint of my sample is unquestionably COOL white, and I have to admit I'm not a fan of this tone of white: the tint is not overly cold and not "angry blue" by any mean, colours are still effectively distinguishable, but still my preference goes to the neutral and warm tints for the representation of depth and colours, not putting into account that I just find warm/neutral tinted whites simply more appealing to the sight. Having a TK45 in neutral or warm tint version wouls be nothing short of awesome, for what I could test it would be an astonishing outdoor flashlight. I'm also playing with the idea of modding it to achieve such a feature or having someone do it for me... let's see what new warm leds in the XP-G form factor come out for now.

*Other stuff*
Efficiency of thermal exchange is probably high due to the optics system made of three independent heads: a real plus in terms of reliability, it could be very important in scenarios of demanding use such as the "search&rescue", where turbo mode could be adopted for prolonged periods.

*All in all*
The TK45 is an excellent flashlight for both the urban and outdoor enviroments, it lights with great intensity large areas with its useful beam, in which the wide hotspot and spill blend beautifully. Also, thanks to the high power it is capable of delivering it can reach somewhat far distances (useful for the use on the road or for geographical orienteering at night), however this light ain't a thrower by any mean. I'm enjoying this flashlight a lot, I would advise the buy of the final version (which should come soon), even more considering that it will be even brighter than my sample thanks to the more efficient R5 leds! If you care about mental sanity you will want to purchase a dedicated battery chargerwith 8 slots, as imagining to charge batteries in two rounds with a 4-bays charger (maybe even a slow one), just makes my head ache...!


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## Woods Walker (Jun 7, 2010)

Some of the coolest beam shots I have ever seen. Heck that cave/whatever looks like something out of D&D.


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## lostinwv (Jun 7, 2010)

That was one of the most fun to read reviews I've seen. Thanks!


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## StriderSMF (Jun 7, 2010)

That was AWESOME!!!!!:goodjob:


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## SharkyZiff (Jun 7, 2010)

Nice Fenix!!

That thing is EVIL !:devil:


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## fishhead (Jun 7, 2010)

Awesome review! I love the real world beamshots.

Even though I have the TK40, I'm going to have to pick up the TK45 as well...partly because I love that three headed look and partly because it just it so, so bright.


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## recDNA (Jun 7, 2010)

fishhead said:


> Awesome review! I love the real world beamshots.
> 
> Even though I have the TK40, I'm going to have to pick up the TK45 as well...partly because I love that three headed look and partly because it just it so, so bright.


 

I'm waiting for lux, lumens, and white wall beam shots. I hate the clover shaped beam of the M2Xc4. I hope it doesn't look like that.


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## ASheep (Jun 7, 2010)

Great review Chenko! The real world beamshots are great! I'm actually quite surprised at how well the Preon 2 lit up that cave, the throw was impressive for a small light, nothing compared to the might of the TK45! 
Keep up the great work!


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## HIDblue (Jun 7, 2010)

Great reivew chenko! :thumbsup: But stellar, and I mean, stellar photographs! :twothumbs


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## GeetarHero (Jun 7, 2010)

simply put... FANTASTIC Job!!! I never thought I would want a light that size but after seeing your excellent beamshots you have made me reconsider. Wish I had tunnels like that to explore where I live, way cool!!!:thumbsup:


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## Locoboy5150 (Jun 7, 2010)

Super review! :thumbsup: I'm also not a white wall guy, so your photos were fantastic!

Also, thank you for properly feeding your TK45. Some reviews that I've seen on the internet actually used alkaline AAs in their TK45s! :green:


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## Vesper (Jun 8, 2010)

WOW, great shots. Thanks for the review. :candle:


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## ZW99GT (Jun 8, 2010)

Awesome job! That's quite the interesting looking light. Any news on when they will be released?


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## learner-gr (Jun 8, 2010)

Amazing review and amazing crystal clear pictures. 

How many batteries eat the beast TK45?


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## jtblue (Jun 8, 2010)

Great review.

Really liked your out doors beamshots (non of the white wall stuff).


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## kito109654 (Jun 8, 2010)

Wonderful review, thanks for taking the time to post all those shots! 

It makes me want that warm white Preon soooo bad!


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## trav54 (Jun 8, 2010)

Great review! Terrific pictures too!


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## AardvarkSagus (Jun 8, 2010)

Excellent review there. Fantastic photos too. Thanks for doing the beamshots, I can never manage to get those to turn out.


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## DM51 (Jun 8, 2010)

Great stuff! 

Moving this to the Reviews section!


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## GlobalPlayer (Jun 8, 2010)

Great review,
excellent beamshots.
Thanks for this great job.


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## SuperTrouper (Jun 8, 2010)

Thanks for the review - Awesome beamshots!

I can't help but wonder though if the light is different enough to the TK40 for people who own a TK40 already to buy this one too. Maybe the TK40 is going to be discontinued...


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## was.lost.but.now.found (Jun 8, 2010)

Chenko, awesome review, nice work indeed!!

Can you please shed some light on your choice of 4900K for the white balance? It seems this is increasingly becoming one of the most difficult tasks here with regard to finding the single white balance setting that correctly captures what the eye sees for each light on display. Having read volumes on the subject from UnknownVT and Selfbuilt, it seems like some compromises must be met, and I was interested to hear more details on your search for the right WB (I'm completely making the assumption that you did not just happen upon 4900K). Which light's tint would you say is best reflected in your pictures?


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## thedeske (Jun 8, 2010)

Outstanding Photography chenko - Thank You


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## uzirif (Jun 8, 2010)

Excellent work compatriot! :twothumbs


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## DLF (Jun 8, 2010)

Excellent photography, chenko! Between you and the always-thorough selfbuilt, I'm going to have my work really cut out for me in figuring what to say that hasn't already been said about the TK45.


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## selfbuilt (Jun 8, 2010)

Awesome cave shots!  Those are a first. Nicely done.

Nice lightbox photography of the light too - very professional looking. I'm somewhat lazy when it comes to the photos in my reviews (I just do everything off the corner of my desk, and sometimes even forget to blow the dust off ).


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## ninjaboigt (Jun 8, 2010)

hi all, been out of the loop.

did fenix fix the batt leakage problem with the 8xAA batt confireration? ( like the one in the tk40)


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## was.lost.but.now.found (Jun 8, 2010)

ninjaboigt said:


> hi all, been out of the loop.
> 
> did fenix fix the batt leakage problem with the 8xAA batt confireration? ( like the one in the tk40)


 
I don't think that's Fenix' fault, but rather what happens when you run alkalines in series (which are not really best suited for these kind of lights anyway) and one starts to reverse charge.

Edit: Should have clarified that this happens by running alkalines down to empty or having them unmatched and run in series.


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## applevision (Jun 8, 2010)

Superb! Grazie!


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## JKL (Jun 8, 2010)

Awesome review, the real world beamshots are really usefull
and pictures are very nice.

Thanks Chenko. 

_K_

:goodjob:


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## civic77 (Jun 8, 2010)

Awesome beamshots! Makes me want to get this light.

The more I see this light the more I like it. Selfbuilt just posted his review and it is brighter than the current P7/M-CE/SST-50 lights and is very efficient and well regulated.

Good job Chenko on this review :thumbsup: and Fenix for the light.


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## W.Y.N.I (Jun 8, 2010)

Really good job with those beamshots, some of those photos are gorgeous. What camera are you using?

Shame its so ugly lookin, because it seems a seriously impressive light :green:


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## fishhead (Jun 8, 2010)

W.Y.N.I said:


> Shame its so ugly lookin, because it seems a seriously impressive light :green:



Beauty/beholder and all that. I think it looks fantastic, in a sort of retro-futuristic way. I have the TK40 but I *will* be getting the TK45 as well, in large part due to its looks. Plus, I am so, so, so happy that they finally put the switch where it is supposed to go on a light of that size.


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## chenko (Jun 9, 2010)

*Thank you guys!* I'm so glad you enjoyed the review and pics! It was to be honest my very first flashlight review and I put much efforts in that but I'm sure there's still much missing... Overall I'm happy I could gather the pictures in those natural environments and get to do this experience. The TK45 is a very cool flashlight and I hope I will be able to do this kind of testing again in the future.



was.lost.but.now.found said:


> Chenko, awesome review, nice work indeed!!
> 
> Can you please shed some light on your choice of 4900K for the white balance? It seems this is increasingly becoming one of the most difficult tasks here with regard to finding the single white balance setting that correctly captures what the eye sees for each light on display. Having read volumes on the subject from UnknownVT and Selfbuilt, it seems like some compromises must be met, and I was interested to hear more details on your search for the right WB (I'm completely making the assumption that you did not just happen upon 4900K). Which light's tint would you say is best reflected in your pictures?



Capturing the real tone is indeed difficult, if ever possible. I shot using what I thought was the daylight balance on the camera (Nikon D80), but it didn't matter much as I was shooting in RAW format and this way you can adjust the white balance and tint in the whole spectrum. I decided to go minimal with the development of RAW files, so I left the 4900k and -1 tint values it showed as default (however, real "daylight" setting inside CameraRaw show a somewhat higher color temperature setting).

Now for the color temp. performance: 4900k actually depicts the TK45's cool white tone not too bad, but it's a bit colder in reality. It shows neutral white warmer than it is and if I were to choose a compromise value between those two tints I would look for it in the 4300-4500k range. Even with that value, warm white is still heavily altered in tint, showing a yellow/orange cast which is just a lot exagerated. If I were to pick a color temp. value to show the warm white correctly, I would look into the 3500-3900 range.

This is it for me: neutral is neutral to my eyes (a "true" white if that ever exists), cool is indeed a bit on the cold/cyan side, and warm is a bit on the warm/yellow side. It seems stupid to say this probably, but that is how I perceived the tints. Warm is pleasing and I even guess it's useful, it works wonders to show up wounds and things on skin for example. Cool is acceptable but it's very annoying where the light is dim (long distance) and shows color difference on skin tones much worse.

So again, reduced dynamics of the camera act as a complex filter both in showing brightness and tint... I'll stay tuned to see if a more reliable method will be discovered. I'm having a talk with a guy working with an high end digital scan back, I'm just too poor a photographer to own such gear... let's see what he says about color rendition.


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## was.lost.but.now.found (Jun 9, 2010)

Thank you for the thorough explanation.


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## Haz (Jun 9, 2010)

superb pics, thanks for the review


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## mefistofele86 (Jun 9, 2010)

Great review! Thank you Chenko!


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## xoomercom (Jun 11, 2010)

Great review & shots :thumbsup: ..... but still no comparison to TK40


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## en1808 (Jun 11, 2010)

Great review! :devil:


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## solveitstore (Jun 15, 2010)

Right on, Chenko. Much more revealing to see beamshots in a real-life environment, than in a clinical-type testing space. 

That Fenix is mind-blowing at Turbo.


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## Mr.Burns (Jun 16, 2010)

the cave is sweet !! looks like it was made for flashlight reviews lol..thanks for the review


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## bighest (Jun 24, 2010)

Fantastic review!! thanks for all the effort!! but i dont think im gonna upgrade from my tk40!! it still holds it own nicely


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## chenko (Jul 9, 2010)

Being a night animal and home alone for some days, this night I went on the roof with the TK45 to take some beamshots in an urban environment... Enjoy! 

control shot






Eagletac P20A2 - mid





Eagletac P20A2 - turbo





Fenix TK45 - mid





Fenix TK45 - high





Fenix TK45 - turbo





As you can see, although the TK45's beam is extremely wider it still reaches as far as the throwy Eagletac P20A2 reaches. This tells how powerful this flashlight is. oo: I wish it had a neutral-white tint...


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## mefistofele86 (Jul 10, 2010)

This flashlight is POWERFUL. How far is the house?


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## photonstorm (Jul 10, 2010)

Very good photos. 

I enjoyed the exotic locations and the comparison beams with all the other lights.


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## Stress_Test (Jul 11, 2010)

WOW @ that last rooftop photo! The people in the other buildings probably thought that a plane was about to land right on top of them!


By the way, CREE has an XP-G R4 in the neutral color now, so that would be just as bright as these pre-production TK45 samples.... Hmm, makes you think, doesn't it?


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## Hyperian (Jul 12, 2010)

In my opinion, the battery carrier fitted to the TK45 as standard is of very low quality for a torch in this price range.
I like most of the other features but having used several Fenix torches in the past, this is not worthy of their reputation.


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## maschuu (Jul 12, 2010)

Hyperian said:


> In my opinion, the battery carrier fitted to the TK45 as standard is of very low quality for a torch in this price range.
> I like most of the other features but having used several Fenix torches in the past, this is not worthy of their reputation.



Have you handled it in person, or do you judge from the fact that it's all plastic now?

To me it's not any weaker than the one from the TK40.
You may ask why? Because the one from the TK40 was plastic at the top and bottom as well. The metal rods only meant it might break at the plastic first, just as it is the case with the one from the TK45 now.
So it's not really a "real world difference" to me.


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