Is the Sofirm Q8 has built in reverse protection? The battery I ordered are all unprotected samsung button top. I have flat top but still works with blf Q8. Sorry if this is mentioned somewhere. Thanks
There is a diode that keeps a reverse mounted cell from ruining the driver, but in this case one cell in backwards and three in forwards will cause you a much larger issue! The 4 cells are parallel, inserting one cell backwards could well cause you to learn a new danceâŚ
All 4 cells in backwards should not hurt the driver, wonât work of course. Possibility of blowing the reverse protection diode though, in which case the driver wouldnât work until the diode was replaced.
HONDARIDER if you figure it out could you PM me please? I messaged Sofirn store and they said they take PayPal. Just wasnât very clear on how exactly to do it.
It creates a short circuit on the battery. Like taking a wire and going from the positive to the negative. The battery could get super hot and explode. Itâs the same as putting a wrench across your car battery terminals. Very, very bad.
In the Q8, the springs usually get hot in less than a second and go soft from the heat ruining the spring.
People are accustomed to putting cells in series, because so many devices work that way. So they may accidentally do the same on items where they shouldnât. Itâs not something people do on purpose.
I remember on the original Q8 thread there were plans to have physical polarity protection around the positive brass ring consisting of two circular slightly raised pieces of plastic. This would prevent the flat negative end of the battery from touching the brass ring. For whatever reason, Thorfire scrapped that idea. Maybe now would be a good time for Sofirn to reconsider adding it. Like an add on accessory for current lights and a factory installed piece on the Q8 v1.5.
Physical reversing protection is more needed on a battery carrier than with the current Q8 because with the carrier you donât see the already inserted batteries very well, while in the Q8, before screwing the head on, you have a clear view of the 4 batteries together, a wrongly inserted one is far more obvious.
Plus, most batteries we use have the wrapper bended around the underside, for those, reversing will cause them not making contact with the brass ring. The Q8 is reverse protected for them.
Plus, as a few people experienced, upon reverse insertion, springs will collapse and contact broken before a battery is damaged.
A Q8 is not a light that I will give my sevenyearold to schoolcamp, for the rest IMO it seems to protect its users well enough.