(BLF) Sofirn Q8 V1.5: The XPL HI monster, DIY parts + Extended 8x18650 tubes GB Interest List

So, we all love the BLF Q8 right?

WE love modifying it, making it brighter, more customized, better, and cetera.

First off, we have Sofirn which now sells the BLF Q8 MCPCB, the reflector, and the switch for anybody who wants to modify their light and easily swap parts, or make something completely, like a lantern :laughing:

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/BLF-Q8-Accessories-lighted-switch-assembly-Copper-DTP-MCPCB-Reflector-for-Q8/32879434650.html?spm=a2g0s.9042311.0.0.52b34c4dp3XU0f

Second, they also very recently released the BLF Q8 tailcap and tube, so those of us who want to do mods and keep the original tailcap can do them. Also those that lost lockout by deanodizing the top part of the threads can finally get it back without buying a whole Q8.

https://www.aliexpress.com/store/product/BLF-Q8-Battery-tube-only-with-tail-cap-not-a-flashlight-Q8/2933049_32884977070.html?spm=2114.12010612.0.0.26c91196thY399

Finally, I have some major news about a new variant of the Q8, or the BLF Q8 V1.5!

It is going to have an array of 4x XPL HI, an extended battery tube for massive runtime, and a modified driver from what I have seen.

In this case, an image is a 1000 words!

Edit: Changed from 2S driver to modified driver because of confusion.

UPDATE 1:

See what Sofirn said:

1. Yes, the tube will be sold separately, but need to change the both two tubes. Springs better too. Copper alloy.

2. Checked with our factory XHP50.2 NW 80CRI will be considered in next update and XPL-HI will be used this time, for enthusiasts who want better color tint and long range. XHP50.2 will only require modification of battery carrier to work, so XPL-HI releases, flashlights enthusiasts will only modify carriers and driver to work to get XHP50.2 working if not waiting for update.

This is surprising to say the least

And the pic they linked.

UPDATE 2

The BLF Q8 and Sofirn Q8 extended 8x18650 tubes have started to be manufactured.

I will be starting a group buy interest list to gauge interest and how many tubes you want so Sofirn can produce the right amount of carriers and tubes necessary.

UPDATE 3

I told it in another post already, but the BLF Q8 and Sofirn Q8 use different tubes because of a slight threading change, so you need to buy tubes for specific lights.

Hereā€™s the video I also posted earlier this week:

1- BlueSwordm + 2

2- Fate0n3 + 1

3- Sillen + 1

4- contactr + 1

5- Lux-Perpetua +3

6- SebaZ74 +1

7- Unloco +2

8. TheBigLEDowski +1

9. Dirt +1

10. DB Custom +2

11. Kasperrr +1

12. Nguyen +1

13. yasenf +2

14. Robalanj +3

15. Seawolf +1

16. 808HI +2

17. Wieselflinkpro +1

18. deus1ex +1

19. Kasperrr +1

20. HONDARIDER +2

21. Greenlights +1

22. Nite Shadow +1

23. bkp +1

24. Robert B +1

25. Electric Movements in the Dark +1

26. mmalive +4

27. leafty +1

28. ImA4Wheelr +1

29. Satan@103TFS +1

30. klrman +1

31. ikaruz_500 +2

32. maildroid +2

33. DavidEF +2

34. Nicko69 +1

35. AguassissiM +1

36. woodyt +2

37. TheOnlyDocc +1

38. litenutz +1

39. Lexel +1

40. Anthon +1

41. RD +1

42. JordanZHP +1

43. qandeel +1

44. Tom E +3

45. dyates +2

46. cris2pu +1

47. SwissFlashy +1

48. DBSS +1

49. tmxod +1

50. Diomedes +1

51.sbslider +1

I donā€™t know what to think. Is it April foolā€™s?

No, itā€™s not.

Iā€™m not kidding. I have been speaking with Sofirn, and that is what they said:

Yes, Q8 will have a update version, that we will sell it in our store, with extend battery bube and XPL-HI emitter

The reason it led up to this was because I was asking if they could sell the BLF Q8 battery tube and tailcap separately.

Initially, they misunderstood what I said and thought I was speaking about the new BLF Q8 they were building. That is when I discovered about the new BLF Q8, which led to knowing that it would come with XPL HIs, an extended battery tube, and a modified driver.

Wowā€¦ canā€™t wait to see this one!

Yep.

With that, it would be extremely easy to swap the LEDs out, and with 8 cells and sufficient low resistance contacts, swap them for XHP50.2s, and get 15k+ lumens.

That would not be very sustainable though.

This is uhhā€¦ interesting.

This gets back to that Sofirn/Thorfire confusion, (Sofirn has taken over the project now?) but aside from that I look forward to the next gen Q8. Though Iā€™m a bit confused with the configuration. XPL-HI is 3v right? How does 2s work? Iā€™m super newb.

Also I gotta say maybe Iā€™d mount the above pictured ā€œUber Q16ā€ to my truck for a light cannon but I donā€™t know how to otherwise use it. I certainly couldnā€™t carry it on my nightly walkā€¦

(Edit: it suddenly occurs to me Iā€™d better check the Q8 mod thread which Iā€™ve never done. There may be info there Iā€™m unaware of)

Djozz below. Thatā€™s nuts! I guess it would be a (bad) way to carry a bunch of cells. Wait, I know! New Olympic sport. Night time pole vault!

This version will have the normal 3V driver, not be 4P2S but 8P, and will have battery carriers.

(You can just keep on extending if you like, build a 64P Q8 :party: )

Canā€™t wait for this!

I wonder at who needs these kinds of runtimes. My Q8 doesnā€™t drop under 4V after an hour use walking and messing with turbo constantly.

With 8 cells it might be pretty useful to light up an entire basketball court for night games.

I agree that this extension with added parallel batteries is not the most innovative add-on for the Q8 (and it was not an initiative of the Q8 team), but from their perspective this upgrade makes sense as it is easy and not expensive to make and sell, it does add runtime which will appeal to quite some people (the Q8 has a sustainable output of about 2000 lumen, at which output it currently has ~2 hours of runtime, to light your basketball court :slight_smile: wanting 4 hours is not exorbitant), and best it fits all the thousands of existing Q8ā€™s.

This long body tube is quite unexpectedā€¦ It sorts of voids the whole compact soda can concept.

I would suggest a screw in USB charging extension between the head and tubeā€¦ That would only add about 10-15mm to the length and would make the Q8 easier to gift to non flashaolics.

Have you ever charged 20000+ mAh powerbank with usb 2.0?

If they make this, maybe also upgrade the driver to the latest Anduril for some additional features?

They are at least in contact with TomE, so a Narsil upgrade is likely, not sure about Andurilā€¦

Thanks for the info, BlueswordM and djozz.

I donā€™t see much meaning in a 8P setup for this light. For more runtime itā€™s easier to carry 4 additional cells separately than their weight and the tubes weight all the time in your hand.

But if the cell configuration can be changed to 2S4P without too much work, I would rather buy this light as a modding host for 6V LEDs for a proper price.

Shouldnā€™t it be doable with QuickCharge over night?

Quickcharge will cost too much. Was discussed before.

Anyway, for the 4 cell version itā€™s usually not more than 12000 mAh capacity, and thatā€™s not too much for USB-charging over night, and the cells wonā€™t be completely empty everytime.