When one thinks of flashlights or weaponlights, you usually don’t think about different ways to mount them. Magne-Tech has done just that. They have come out with a tactical flashlight, called the Rigel II, that uses high power magnets to keep it in place. This leads to a unique mounting system that works better than I ever expected. Plus, the light itself is very functional too.

The mounting system of the Rigel II is really what makes the light stand out. I received the kit with an M-Lok magnetic mount. That was so I could mount it to an M-Lok rail, just like one would with any M-lok light mount. The Rigel II flashlight also is magnetic, that’s how the mount and light work together. The mount and Rigel each have two high power neodymium magnets built into them. When you put the two close together, the light literally snaps to the mount. The advantage to this setup is that one can take the light off of the mount, and use it as a handheld light. Now, I bet you are thinking “that will never work”. But it does! The mounts and light are made in such a way that you can not move them forward or backward when they are together. This keeps the light from coming off during recoil, or if you hit it on anything. To remove the Rigel light from the mount, just roll it off sideways and kind of twist. It does take a little bit of force to remove the light. Now you ask, “Won’t it fall off if you hit the light from the side?” I tried to knock the light off its mount, by hitting it against a 4x4, while on the gun. All it ended up doing was rotating the light off its mount, sort of. The Rigel still held on to the side of the light mount. When I moved past the post, the light just snapped back on the mount. I was pretty impressed as I figured that would be how to get the Rigel to fall off the mount.

It’s time to tell you about the Rigel II. The Rigel II is a handheld light that can be easily attached to a bunch of different mounting platforms, the M-Lok is just one of them. Magne-Tech has picatinny, helmet, and some other mounts too, but back to the light. Specifications on the Rigel II are pretty standard. It’s rated at 1100 lumens on high, has a max candela rating of 14,000, and a 237 meter throw distance. To my eyes, the Rigel II’s output was really comparable to the Streamlight 2.0 that I reviewed. It does have a color temperature of 5000k, so it’s a more yellow light. The lower color temperature helps it go through photonic barriers better, like fog or smoke. If you have ever used a light with a really bright white beam, you get light that bounces back off of those photonic barriers, instead of penetrating through them. Magne-Tech uses 7075 aluminum in the Rigel II’s construction. This makes it strong and lightweight. It weighs 6.9 ounces with the supplied 18650 rechargeable battery. I was pleased that it used a standard battery. It will also work with two CR123 batteries. I tried it to make sure.

There is more to the Rigel II than just its specifications. As with most lights, it uses a push button on the tail cap. Push it slightly for momentary on, or click it for full on. This button also has raised protection around it, or at least around most of it. There is a curved recess, in the raised portion, to make it easier to use your thumb on the button. It’s a nice addition, but probably isn’t needed, at least for me. If you want a pressure switch option, you are out of luck. I hear it’s on the radar, which is a good thing.

One nice attribute of the Rigel II is its programmability. It uses a “tap” system to set it into one of the various different programs. It has 12 different ones to choose from, see chart. I personally like the 100% only mode, at least when I’m using it as a weaponlight. This tap system seems to take about 20 “taps” to get it into the programming mode. Once there you can choose if you want a memory to the RIgel, or not. The memory mode sets the Rigel to turn on at the beginning of what mode it’s programmed to, or where the light was turned off at, depending on if you have selected the memory to be on or off. If not choosing the “memory” mode, you enter the programming group mode, which is where you select one of those 12 programs. The programming takes some getting used to. I have to look at the chart every time I change the programming. The 15+ taps it takes to enter into the programming mode is nice because you won’t have to ever worry about the button getting hit enough times to change it accidentally.

The Rigel II has some other attributes that you may not think about. Since the Rigel II has magnets built into its body, it will stick to anything magnetic. This can be a plus, or a minus. If you want to stick it on a car, so you can see to do something, it’s great. If you are using it in your hand, and come near something magnetic, like a steel door, it wants to pull your hand toward the door slightly. Or, if you're not careful, it can actually snap the light onto that door. Another advantage to the Rigel II being easily removed from its mount, is that if you need to transition from a weaponlight to a handheld, you can do it quickly. I can think of a thousand ways where a magnetic light might come in handy.

I think the Magne-Tech Rigel II is a good multi-purpose light. It’s bright enough for a good everyday weaponlight. It’s not a long throw light, but it gives plenty of range for most uses. The magnetic mount gives you plenty of options and it’s super strong. The advantages of the magnetic mount outweigh the cons for sure. If you want to check the Rigel II out, head over to Magne-Tech and give it a look.