Review Thorfire PF04 (newest version)

LED Flashlights – General Info Multiple AAA Flashlights
1

I received the New (upgraded) Version Thorfire PF04 for review from Thorfire.

I found this to be another great example from Thorfire, with good build quality and good performance from such a small package. I forgot to mention in the video it has intelligent step down at 3 minutes to medium mode. This is an amazingly bright light for the compact size of it. These lights also have a potted driver so the usual drop of the light wont make it stop working as a lot of them do from being dropped.

Everything else is in the video review pretty much but I would like to say, IF you attempt to take the driver out of this light and reinstall it you will have to use some finesse as it is glued or thread locked in so be aware of that.

Video , link and description below…….

http://www.amazon.com/ThorFire-Flashlight-Penlight-Batteries-Included/dp/B018S0DOOC/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1454473891&sr=8-1&keywords=thorfire+pf04

Very compact and lightweight pen sized flashlight for indoor outdoor everyday carry.
• Extremely bright for this size: CREE XP-G2 R5 LED gives out MAX 210LM
• 3 modes: Moonlight-Mid-High with memory, step down from High to Low in 3 min to save juice.
• IPX-8 waterproof, submersible up to 2m. Not for diving.
• What You Get: ThorFire PF04 flashlight, spare O ring.18-month warranty and friendly customer service
Product Description

Pattern Name: PF04 Upgraded version

Notice: We updated the PF04 penlight , specific adjustment is as follows

More reasonable modes: Moonlight - Mid - High with memory.
Intelligent step-down: It automatically step down from High to Low in 3 Min to save power and for longer lifespan. You can tap to go back to High.

Descriptions:
As the latest mini LED flashlight, ThorFire PF04 Flashlight is designed to provide you with a smaller size yet brighter night working experience.

Rigid Appearance
This flashlight is designed with corrosion resistant aircraft grade aluminum alloy material, which is only 24.5g in weight but solid enough in any harsh environment.

Brighter Illumination
With an improved reflecting technology, this new product is capable of outputting a maximum 210 lumens brightness along with a 55 minutes using time by only 2 AAA batteries(NOT Included).
In addition, the lighting time can last to 240 hours under its lowest illumination.

Portability
This product is only 5 inches long, which means lesser space occupancy and more flexible placement choices. You can simple clip it onto your pocket, bags, notebook or anywhere you want.

NOTE:
The highly intensified light may do severe harm to your eyes, thus, please avoid direct eye contact.

2

I have one of these. Great light! Guess I have an older model as there is no step down on mine. It doesn’t get hot, mine didn’t, so no need for a step down really. This thing will never come on by accident as that switch is hard to press :slight_smile:

thanks for your nice review. Great light!

3

I think the step down is mainly to preserve battery life. And thanks

4

Thanks for the review robo.

5

I received the light for review, and unfortunately it was strike 2 for Thorfire in my book. The switch was faulty - it either was making intermittent contact or none at all. I was able to get light, but only for a short time. I rigged the head up with 2 AAA’s and at least got a good idea of what the light is capable of. I like the beam profile and output. It really is pretty sweet. However, the switch was so finicky on mine, I had to send it back. I took it apart just to see what the deal was, and it’s just sloppy plastic fitment and poor contact to the light body.

I can tell you that had it been in working order, I would have really liked the light. It was surprisingly bright and looked great. Tint was on the cool side, but not too blue. It was a decent cool white I could live with.

On thing I didn’t like was the fact that it’s so frickin’ smooth! Depressing that stiff switch makes the light slide a through your hand or fingers.

6

YW MRsDNF

Sprinkles I agree the switch is a little stiff (not unmanageable for me personally) and I think maybe they could address that issue in the future. As far as the light not working that is a bummer. If you ask I am sure they will send another to you, Thorfire is good about standing behind their product. I have a number of Thorfire lights and have yet any problems though. These are the PF03 penlight PF04 original and upgraded versions, KL04, TM06. VG10, and the 3/5 mode C8, (JM07 on the way) not the first flicker or stutter from any of those yet.

7

If the PF04 is like it’s little brother PF03, the head should be easy to turn.
The PF03 switch is so stiff that I have just gotten in the habit of using it like a twisty, just a slight turn of the head to change modes and you can still lock it out with the switch if you like.

Robo, could you try the PF04 with a 10440 at around 4 volts with a dummy cell please?
Being that it is set up for 2 AAA’s it should be cap[able of handling 2 Lithium primaries which are normally around 1.8 volts new, so 2 of them is 3.6v, not that far away from 4 volts.

I have been running the PF03 with a LifePo 10440 with no issues for a few weeks.
Thanks

8

I actually don’t have any 10440 cells Muto, about the only thing I don’t have a light that requires them, sorry.

I don’t know if it was you or someone else that had mentioned running them in the PF03 and Pf04 without issue at that time though.

I think in the short term or for only using the light for short periods and not running it for prolonged periods, they would be fine. I am just not sure how it would handle the current over time with a lot of use.

9

Cool, thanks for the quick reply.
I’ll be getting the PF04 eventually so we’ll see then.

10

I won the previous PF04 in a giveaway. I liked it at first, with the exception of the way too-stiff switch but then it started getting flaky. Modes were disappearing. Then it would only work in moonlight. Then it died completely. I did contact Thorfire and to their credit they did indeed send a replacement as I had only had the light for about 3 weeks before it self-destructed. The second one started flaking out after about a week. The light would flicker like the switch was bad or something was loose internally. I took it out one morning during hunting season and found that in the cold it wouldn’t even turn on. Once inside and warmed up it worked again but it flickers. I gave up. I don’t even know where it is now. I am glad to see they addressed the mode order but I wouldn’t buy one based on two bad lights in a row. I didn’t bother contacting them the second time. Some of their other lights look quite promising and seem to have a good reputation. I don’t mean to be a downer but I figured I may as well report my experience. Maybe this new one is better…

11

Wow, I have never had the first problem out of either the first edition or the upgraded version of the PF04 (Just received the Upgraded one), or the Pf03 which is basically the same light but only uses 1 cell. The original PF04 has been in the saddlebag of my motorcycle for the most part for about 5 months and I have carried it a good bit too, so it has had a bumpy life for sure.

12

Yeah, I was pretty surprised too. It just seemed like too much coincidence that I got two lemons in a row and I really disliked the switch. I actually prefer a single cell format over the pen style but I know it has some fans. It did have good output while it worked and it’s throwier than most AAA format lights. A lot of people used the Hubsby XP-2 as a penlight comparison and all said it was brighter. The XP-1/XP-2 have roughly the same beam pattern as the PF04 and have good throw from a tiny reflector as does the PF04. I actually would have ordered the PF03 but I just can’t get past that switch. I hate it. That of course is just my opinion. As far as it being brighter than the Hugsby that goes out the window if you have both an XP-1 and XP-2 and you swap heads. You can then run the single cell on a 10440 which I do and it’s every bit as bright as the PF04. The downside to the Hugsby is that it only has one mode. If Thorfire changes their switch design and mechanism I would be willing to give them a try again. It is nice to have decent output in a light that you can run on alkalines when necessary.

13

The PF03 switch is so stiff that I have just gotten in the habit of using it like a twisty, just a slight turn of the head to change modes and you can still lock it out with the switch if you like.

The half presses to change modes are not an issue at all, only the initial press of the switch to turn it on. Anyone care to ‘thumb wrestle?’