[REVIEW] Thorfire TK15 & TK15S (XP-L2, 1x18650) (Pictures, Output, Beamshots, etc.)

The TK15S and SP31 have output measurements within 10% of each other in my copies. There are some subtle visual differences as well if you compare the pictures from my SP31 thread. The TK15S is also about 1mm longer in the head. The tube and tail have the same length although there’s a visual difference in the tubes too - the SP31 has some lines going through it.

:+1:

Thanks for the review! :+1:

Awesome review!

these lights are great!

Y’know, I heard the rumors about Thorfire/Sofirn, but this is getting a little too coincidental.

These, the SF36 and VG10S, Thorfire chargers shipping with Sofirn lights, a few other Thorfire/Sofirn “cousins” that I’ve seen.

What gives?

Tracy made a statement here regarding Thorfire vs Sofirn:

Yeh, I saw that, but it’s still eerie, how so many striking lookalikes there are between T and S. If there’s no partnership, then it definitely looks like someone’s copying from someone else… a lot.

I like both sets of lights, and both mfrs, so I ain’t got a dog in this fight, but one or the other should be pretty pissed at the blatant copying that seems to be going on.

Thanks for the review. Interested in the forward clicky TK15S.

I can’t even touch the quality of SoCalTiger’s review, but I will add my first impressions. And not just because I got a free one for a review. I really like this light.

The ramping between modes on the TK15S is probably not useful, but I love it. It’s fun, and impressive. I still take it out of my pocket periodically, just to change modes and watch it slide up and down.

For those of us that kinda secretly wish for a 1-mode flashlight sometimes, and mostly hate non-bike blinky modes the TK15S UI is awesome. Simple, intuitive, and non-intrusive.

All the minor negatives with this light (no tint choices, no programmability, etc.) are actually advantages for muggles. This is a great light to give to friends or loan to family members.

I have a TK15 on the way from Banggood. Since my needs are simple, I probably will get an Xtar VC2 Plus charger which I can get with Xtar 18650 2600mAh batteries at a good price. The size of the Xtars looks close to the maximum though. The review above said that Panasonic NCR18650B 3400mAH protected batteries are tight at 69.5 x 18.67. The Xtars are 68.8 x 18.6. For the good of the flashlight itself, could there be any long-term problems with having tight fitting batteries? Do springs get worn out? My second choice would be the (apparently unprotected) flat top Panasonic NCR18650B 3400mAH (65 x 8.3). If the large size of the Xtars wouldn’t be a problem, I’d rather go with them.

The measurement on those Xtars is a little shorter so I think it should be fine. Panasonic is a better brand although you’d be sacrificing the external protection circuit. The supplier of the Xtar cells is unknown and only speculation AFAIK.

There is theoretically more wear on springs the more that they are compressed. However, in practice, this is probably not a real issue. Even if springs get too compressed over time, you can always stretch them back out. The compression/decompression itself causes micro-wear but this is not really detectable. Overall, this is probably going to be a non-issue for you.

The only real concern would be if the fit was so tight that someone was using a lot of pressure screwing the cap on to the point of compromising the battery in some way (crushing a protection circuit, denting the battery, etc).

Thanks!

I really like this light (TK15) and it almost being the same size as an S2! I read somewhere that it can actually handle 2* CR123s. I just wanted to get some feedback on that before burning a driver! Thank you.

The SP32A v2 can, not sure about the TKs. Would be nice, though!

The Sofirn just arrived in the mail yesterday! Wow! Even high is over 3A. But I gifted a TK15 and they like to keep it in a oven-hot vehicle. Gotta save a Li- ion!

If I’m not mistaken, ’123s kinda start out at 2.5V or so, and fade downward from there. So 4.2V vs 5.0V? Dunno if I’d personally wanna try it, but I’d ask someone at Thorfire if the ’15 or ’18 can do it.

I took the risk with the TK15. It didn't have a problem with 2* CR123s for the short time I ran it. In previous experience, the driver typically doesn't last more than a second when too much voltage is applied.

With regard to CR123s, they're all around 3.3V+ unloaded and fresh. And Li primaries have very little V sag.

It does work with an 8V input voltage.

So technically, it does support 2.8V-8.4V operation

Hmm, odd. I just goggled “cr123a discharge curve” and came across discharge-pix like

so it had me wondering.

I've only measured them with my DMM and they're the last resort for use in those lights that can use them. I was waiting for good flashlights and rechargeables for the earlier part of my years and that's all I use in practice. My eyes have been opened. I found this too:

https://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?67078-123-Battery-Shoot-Out

Videos are more fun: