[subwoofer]

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Author's Statement for Transparency and Disclosure
The test sample/s featured in this article have been provided for technical testing and review by the manufacturer. Test samples are retained by the reviewer following publication of the completed review for the purposes of long term testing and product comparisons.

All output figures and test results published in this review are the sole work of the reviewer, and are carried out independently and without bias. Test results are reported as found, with no embellishments or alteration. Though best endeavours are made to maintain the accuracy of test equipment, the accuracy of these results is not guaranteed and is subject to the test equipment functioning correctly.
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Hot on the heels of its MAG-TAC, MAG-LITE have released a rechargeable version, the MAG-TAC Rechargeable (to be known in this review simply as the MAG-TAC/R)




Taking a more detailed look:

The MAG-TAC/R’s cardboard packaging.




The contents are neatly organised in a foam insert in the tray.




Included are the MAG-TAC/R, charging base, USB mains charger and cable, USB car charger, pocket clip, screw for fixing the charging base to a surface, pocket clip tool and battery removal tool plus the instruction book.




The charging base is sturdy and has a micro USB input.




The MAG-TAC/R without the pocket clip fitted.




On the tail-cap are the two charging contacts. Being circular there is no need to align them for charging (except when the pocket clip is fitted).




I’m including this second photo of the charging contacts to show the minor flaw in the separator between the two contacts. The material appears to be PCB type board and both sides of the light there are these minor flaws. Function is not at all affected, but it is likely yours will be the same.




The switch button is slightly recessed.




For the diameter of the body, the reflector is relatively deep.




A XM-L2 LED is used.




Though not specified as a feature, the head of the MAG-TAC/R has adjustable focus (well, it unscrews and changes the beam). It was easy to take the head off quickly for a clearer look at the XM-L2 LED.




The head/reflector removed. Actually you can use the light like this for a full flood beam.




Very clean MAG-LITE quality threads at the head end.




Taking off the tail-cap you can see the unusual pin contacts.




Very cleanly finished threads.




To prevent the light turning on during transit or the cell being drained by the circuit, there is a plastic insulator fitted. Before using the light this must be removed.




The LiFePO4 cell is retained by a screw-in ring. To remove the ring and cell, there is a special plastic tool.




The proprietary 18650 LiFePO4 cell has an unusual hexagonal raised contact at one end. Also notice it is actually the negative contact which goes towards the head.




And a dual pole contact at the other.




This is a slightly deceptive photo as it is only included to show something a bit confusing. The head-end of the cell has a hexagonal button which happens to be a match for the tail-end retaining ring. They do NOT go together, but if you did remove the cell, you might think this is how it should be.




When the pocket clip is not fitted you can place the light in the changing base at any rotational position. But notice there is a cut out (more on this later).




To fit the clip, remove the tail-cap and slide the clip over the body. The tool provided allows you to tighten the cam-lock, securing the clip.




The clip in place and tail-cap re-fitted.




The clip is a generous size.




For scale here is the MAG-TAC/R next to its 18650 cell.




Now you can see how once the pocket clip is fitted, the clip must be lined up with the cut-out in the charger base to allow it to fit fully into place.




The charger base can be screwed onto a suitable surface using the supplied screw fitted though the hole in the base.




Here is the charger base with Micro USB cable fitted.




And the MAG-TAC/R on charge.





The beam

Please be careful not to judge tint based on images you see on a computer screen. Unless properly calibrated, the screen itself will change the perceived tint.
The indoor beamshot is intended to give an idea of the beam shape/quality rather than tint. All beamshots are taken using daylight white balance. The woodwork (stairs and skirting) are painted Farrow & Ball "Off-White", and the walls are a light sandy colour called 'String' again by Farrow & Ball. I don't actually have a 'white wall' in the house to use for this, and the wife won't have one!


Starting indoors, the beam is a super clear ice white. The spill is relatively narrow, and there is a strong hotspot.




Outdoors you can see how the beam gives you a good clear field of vision.





Modes and User Interface:

Being a ‘tactical’ model, the MAG-TAC/R has a simple interface with three modes (Maximum, Low, Strobe). Maximum can be used as momentary or constant on.

Access to these modes is via multiple clicks, but the MAG-TAC/R has no memory, so from OFF the first mode is always momentary Maximum.

1 Click (and hold) – Momentary Maximum
2 Clicks – Maximum constant
3 Clicks – Low constant
4 Clicks – Strobe
5 Clicks – back to OFF

Multiple clicks need to be within 0.5s of each other to register as multiple.



Batteries and output:

The MAG-TAC/R runs on a proprietary LiFePO4 18650 cell.

To measure actual output, I built an integrating sphere. See here for more detail. The sensor registers visible light only (so Infra-Red and Ultra-Violet will not be measured).

Please note, all quoted lumen figures are from a DIY integrating sphere, and according to ANSI standards. Although every effort is made to give as accurate a result as possible, they should be taken as an estimate only. The results can be used to compare outputs in this review and others I have published.

___________________________________________	________________________________	________________________________
using	I.S. measured ANSI output Lumens	PWM frequency or Strobe frequency (Hz)
___________________________________________	________________________________	________________________________
High	476	0
Low	125	0
Strobe	120	11.6

* Beacon and Strobe output measurements are only estimates as the brief flashes make it difficult to capture the actual output value.

Peak Beam intensity measured 8800lx @1m giving a beam range of 188m.

There is parasitic drain at 434uA meaning the cell will be fully depleted in 250 days.


Despite only having the two constant output levels, during the full run you can see distinct regulated levels at 410lm, 360lm, 200lm and 120lm.

You get plenty of warning of being low on power as once the output drops to 120lm you still get two hours of runtime before the cell is empty.




The behaviour at the start of the trace warrants closer inspection. This is something I’ve noticed with a few MAG-LITE lights where unlike many, the output does not peak and then simply drop off, but instead starts to climb again to a peak just over 60s from turn on. It is only after 2.5 minutes that the output stabilises.





Troubleshooting

This is a new section I am adding to mention any minor niggles I came across during testing, in case the information helps anyone else.

No reliable issues were encountered, but on occasion the switch button seemed to double or triple-tap itself. This might be related to the recessed button design as during testing different thumb positions were used, possibly making the press less ‘clean’.

As per the description of this section, this information is provided in case anyone else finds a similar 'issue' that might be fixed in the same way.



The MAG-TAC/R in use

There is a satisfying weight to the MAG-TAC/R. It feels solid and strong and as if it will shrug off any knocks or drops it might get.

Simplicity is the key here and on a basic level it is just a tactical, momentary operation, maximum output light. Simple and you know what you will get.

The other functions accessed via multiple clicks are then a bonus, and easy to get to when needed.

As well as the light itself being robust, so is the charger base. I have no doubts this will take daily hard use as the shell is strongly made and the contact design simple.

Whether you choose to vehicle mount this or have the charger back at HQ, you can just slam it into the charger without having to be careful or baby it.

The multiple clicks are a handy way of including extra features, but I have found I’ve accidentally multi-clicked when I didn’t want to . Personally I’d prefer a fast click timing for multi-click mode changes. In terms of click speed, 0.5s is pretty slow.

What MAG-LITE have produced with the MAG-TAC/R is a purposeful, robust, simple light that does what it says. It is in the tactical line-up and definitely fits tactical use more than EDC use exactly as intended.



Review Summary

_______________________________________________	_______________________________________________
Things I like	What doesn't work so well for me
_______________________________________________	_______________________________________________
Solid build	Accidental multi-click possible
Robust charger	Proprietary cell
Car and mains chargers included	Recessed button might not work well with gloves
Safety of LiFePO4 cell chemistry
Simple interface

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