Fenix HM65R Shadowmaster Headlamp

Overview

The Fenix HM65R ShadowMaster is a rechargeable fishing headlamp built specifically for anglers working after dark, combining a powerful 1200-lumen white spotlight with a genuinely useful 150-lumen red floodlight. It's a specialist variant of the standard HM65R, developed with fishing and hunting in low-light conditions in mind.

The headlamp's white beam runs across five brightness levels from 50 up to 1200 lumens, reaching a maximum distance of 168 metres, while the red floodlight offers four settings from an ultra-low 5 lumens up to a substantial 150 lumens. Unlike many headtorches with a token red LED, the ShadowMaster's red output is strong enough to provide genuinely useful illumination rather than just a dim glow.

Built around a lightweight magnesium alloy body with a Type III hard-anodised anti-abrasive finish, it weighs just 97g excluding the battery and measures 80.5 x 55 x 40mm. It's important not to confuse the ShadowMaster with the standard HM65R or the newer HM65R V2.0 NITERAY, as all three use different LEDs, outputs and operating modes.

Perfect For

This headlamp is aimed squarely at night sea fishing, whether that's walking out to a mark in the dark, checking terrain along the shoreline, or illuminating further down the beach on Turbo. The 150-400 lumen white range is likely to cover most routine jobs around the fishing station, while the higher settings give extra reach when needed.

The red floodlight comes into its own for baiting up, changing rigs or finding tackle without flooding your surroundings with white light, with the lowest 5-lumen red setting specifically positioned by Fenix to help preserve dark-adapted vision. The IP68 rating and 2m impact resistance also make it a sound choice for rain, spray and generally unpleasant winter beach conditions.

Technical Insight

The magnesium alloy construction allows Fenix to keep the body relatively light while retaining good durability and heat dissipation, an important consideration for a dual-LED headlamp running at up to 1200 lumens. Separate switches give independent control of the white and red beams — holding the left switch activates red, the right activates white — though on the ShadowMaster the two beams can't be combined and run one at a time.

Power comes from an included Fenix ARB-L18-3400 3400mAh 18650 battery, which is removable so a spare can be swapped in during a long session rather than waiting for a recharge. Onboard USB-C charging takes around 3 hours from a 5V/2A supply, and usefully, low white output and medium red output can still be used while the unit is charging — handy if it's connected to a power bank at the fishing station. A four-LED battery indicator and an electronic lockout mode round out the practical features, the latter helping stop the light accidentally switching on inside a tackle bag.