# Olight T25 Tactical Review



## ernsanada (Aug 20, 2008)

I purchased the Olight T25 Tactical from 4 Sevens.com

Shipping is very fast. 3 days to Socal.

Uses a Cree XRE Q5. The tint on my light is very white. Very smooth beam due to it's full OP reflector. The other Olights I have use the hybrid half OP and SMO reflector.

This is the Tactical version which uses a forward clickie. Has momentary on off. Will remember the last setting when shut off. The T25 can be locked out by slightly turning the rear clickie counter-clockwise.

The 3 different light levels, Strobe and SOS can be accesed by turning the bezel counter-clockwise then clockwise. It's a very simple UI.

The finish is Type III Hard Anodize in black. No mis-match of color. The finish is excellent, I give the grade A+.

The fit is excellent. Smooth threads. O-rings lubed. I give the grade A+.

Powered by 2AA batteries.

Voltage: 1.1v - 4.2v. Do not run 2 14500's or you will fry the light!

The Olight T25 uses a clip. The bezel faces up.

Comes with a holster, lanyard, spare o-rings, spare rubber boot.


Pros

Uses common AA batteries.

Very well machined. The fit and finish.

Forward clickie.

Easy UI.


Cons

Wish it had a clip that faced the bezel down.

Price.

Hot spot slightly off centered.


I have always liked Olights. The Olights are always manufactured A+ IMO. I never have had a bad Olight. I have a total of 5 different ones.


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Comes with a holster, lanyard, spare o-rings, spare rubber boot.































Uses a Cree XRE Q5. OP reflector.











Rear of the Cree module.






The front bezel connects to the top of the battery tube.






The clip can be removed by unscrewing the knurled nut. Make sure you take the o-ring off first!











Forward clickie, momentary on off.






Inside view of the rear clickie.











Holster



























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Size comparisons.

Left to right, Olight T25, Rominsen RC-N3, Fenix E20






Left to right, Olight T25 Q5, Rominsen RC-N3 Q5, Fenix E20 Q2







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I also took lux readings of lights shown above. These are the lux readings I got. I am using a Meterman LM631 Light Meter measured at 1 meter. I waited 2 minutes before taking the readings. I am using Duracell 2650 Rechargeable Nimh AA which were fully charged.








Olight T25 Q5 (High) - 4000 lux @ 1 meter

Olight T25 Q5 (Med) - 830 lux @ 1 meter

Olight T25 Q5 (Low) - 170 lux @ 1 meter

Romisen Cree RC-N3 Q5 - 2780 lux @ 1 meter

Fenix E20 Q2 - 2570 lux @ 1 meter


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Olight T25 Q5 (High) @ 96"






Left, Olight T25 Q5 (High). Right, Romisen Cree RC-N3 Q5 @ 96"






Left, Olight T25 Q5 (High). Right, Romisen Cree RC-N3 Q5 @ 96" Stepped down exposure






Left, Olight T25 Q5 (High). Right, Fenix E20 Q2 @ 96"






Left, Olight T25 Q5 (High). Right, Fenix E20 Q2 @ 96" Stepped down exposure








Olight T25 Q5 (High) @ 32'






Romisen Cree RC-N3 Q5 @ 32'






Fenix E20 Q2 @ 32' Tight Focus






Fenix E20 Q2 @ 32' Wide Focus







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Olight T25 Q5 (Low) @ 32'






Olight T25 Q5 (Med) @ 32'






Olight T25 Q5 (High) @ 32'


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## ernsanada (Aug 20, 2008)

My Olights


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## werdnawee (Aug 21, 2008)

Nice reivew :twothumbs

How would it compare to a Fenix L2D Q5 in terms of output/beam?
(which I currently have)

Like the forward clicky and looks quite tactical (compared to the L2D)


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## ernsanada (Aug 21, 2008)

werdnawee said:


> Nice reivew :twothumbs
> 
> How would it compare to a Fenix L2D Q5 in terms of output/beam?
> (which I currently have)
> ...



Sorry I don't have a Fenix L2D Q5 to compare to the Olight T25 Tactical.


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## qip (Aug 21, 2008)

you know you can flip that clip to face toward bezel right


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## LED-holic (Aug 21, 2008)

Nice review and shots. Thanks.


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## woodrow (Aug 21, 2008)

Great review as always ernsanada! I almost bought the new Fenix AA, but after seeing your T25 review... I am glad I waited. I carry a T20 as my edc light... and I love its bright spill. It looks like the T25 does not dissapoint there either.


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## TONY M (Aug 21, 2008)

Great review, the T25 tactical certainly seems super bright with good spill!

Pity it isn't just a litle cheaper...


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## Watchguy (Aug 22, 2008)

qip said:


> you know you can flip that clip to face toward bezel right



Don't suppose you could show us how.


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## qip (Aug 22, 2008)

just unscrew the ring thats securing the clip, remove clip and face it in the opposite direction as stated here by O-light

although i think people would prefer the bezel down clip near the tail facing down so thats prolly the issue


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## edap617 (Aug 22, 2008)

ernsanada said:


> My Olights


 
I'm planning to get one. 

Which one has the highest lumens rating among the five?


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## nanotech17 (Aug 23, 2008)

one can play lego with Fenix P2D body tube


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## ernsanada (Aug 23, 2008)

edap617 said:


> I'm planning to get one.
> 
> Which one has the highest lumens rating among the five?



When I get some time I can do some comparative beam shots but it might be next Thur-Fri, my weekend.


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## edap617 (Aug 23, 2008)

ernsanada said:


> When I get some time I can do some comparative beam shots but it might be next Thur-Fri, my weekend.


 
I will wait for the beamshots. Thank you so much.


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## dudemar (Aug 24, 2008)

Excellent review! And if you don't mind my saying so, you have a nice Japanese style backyard!

The Olight looks to be a good sturdy light, I honestly wasn't expecting much from them. They look very competitive! Does anyone know if this light is regulated?


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## lukestephens777 (Aug 25, 2008)

Great Review as usual Ernsanada! The Olight's are great lights!


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## hyperloop (Aug 25, 2008)

dudemar said:


> Excellent review! And if you don't mind my saying so, you have a nice Japanese style backyard!
> 
> The Olight looks to be a good sturdy light, I honestly wasn't expecting much from them. They look very competitive! Does anyone know if this light is regulated?



There's another review that can be read here which gives some runtime charts http://light-reviews.com/olight_t25_tactical/

But i prefer reading CPF-er's reviews with beamshots, personal comments and comparisons, seems more personal that way . Great review here by the way!! Think that the Olight will be my next purchase.


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## lukestephens777 (Aug 25, 2008)

edap617 said:


> I'm planning to get one.
> 
> Which one has the highest lumens rating among the five?


 
Hi Edap617,

The Olight T-20M and T-20T are both rated at 220 Lumens.

Olight is releasing the M20 Warrior shortly which is rated at 250 Lumens.

Cheers


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## Sector7 (Aug 25, 2008)

is the T25 only momentary on with the forward clickie.....? can you turn the tail cap to have constant on like the SF 6P?


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## qip (Aug 26, 2008)

for full constant on just click all the way, give a full click...the momentary is just a light press.........it works exactly like a regular maglite , click on and off or soft press to get momentary


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## Sector7 (Aug 27, 2008)

qip said:


> for full constant on just click all the way, give a full click...the momentary is just a light press.........it works exactly like a regular maglite , click on and off or soft press to get momentary


 

Thanks for clearing that up....which switch do you think is more reliable, the T version or the regular one?


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## xevious (Aug 27, 2008)

Sector7 said:


> Thanks for clearing that up....which switch do you think is more reliable, the T version or the regular one?


I don't think you need to worry about reliability - Olight makes great switches. If you really don't need momentary on, you're best going with the regular one for more lumens settings (5 versus 3).


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## xevious (Aug 27, 2008)

lukestephens777 said:


> Hi Edap617,
> Olight is releasing the M20 Warrior shortly which is rated at 250 Lumens.
> Cheers



The M20 is going to be an impressive light. 250 lumens for 4 hours? That's fantastic. Even if it was just 200 lumens for that long, I'd be impressed. The 2nd level is 90, with the third at 7. I think Olight made a great choice on those levels. I wonder how much thicker the M20 is going to be over the T25?


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## BigBluefish (Aug 27, 2008)

Another great review, ernsanada, thanks! 

And is that thing for real??? Is that high what they call "crazy bright?" 

I've been seriously thinking about getting the T20 tactical. Five levels, no #(&%)@#! strobe or SOS, nice long runtimes, and it's a nice looking light. 

But, flashaholic or not, putting two CR123s in a light still makes me worry about the thing going  (am I paranoid, or just misinformed?) I also like the T10 but with the Q5 the runtime on High seems terribly low, I think about 30 minutes. Now, what good is that??? 

So, perhaps I'd be just as happy with this T25, though aesthetically, it has too many grooves and ridges and flutes and bumpy things for my taste. I get a bit put off when flashlights start looking like something that was traveling between planets in the last sci-fi flick I saw. 

Just wish they'd lose the strobe and SOS levels.


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## ernsanada (Aug 27, 2008)

You should be fine with 2 CR123's or 2 RCR123's in the T20. I run 2RCR123's in the Regular T20 and T20 Q5 with no problems.


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## ernsanada (Aug 27, 2008)

edap617 said:


> I'm planning to get one.
> 
> Which one has the highest lumens rating among the five?



I have my lux readings and some beam shots at Various Olights


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## BigBluefish (Aug 28, 2008)

BigBluefish said:


> And is that thing for real??? Is that high what they call "crazy bright?"


 
Owwww, apparently not. Dang! Still a nice light, but the thrill is gone.


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