[Review] Sofirn SP31T (18650, Dual Switch, XP-L HI NW)

bilakos10 · 2018-07-20T14:46:56.000Z

The flashlight was sent to me by Sofirn Official Store in Aliexpress.
Here's the product's link: Sofirn SP31T

The flashlight arrived in a plain cardboard box.
Two spare o-rings, a lanyard and a user manual is what's included.

The SP31T is quite a new design, at least to me.
It comes with a dual switch setup, a relatively long, texturized body and a deep reflector.

The side e-switch is the ordinary switch used in other Sofirn lights.
Notice the deep heatsinking grooves and the line-textured head which reminds me of the Crelant V6CS.

By default the SP31T comes with a thick, sturdy pocket clip installed.
To be honest I don't really see the reason behind including one other than clipping it on a backpack.
It's pretty obvious that the flashlight isn't pocketable.

The rear switch is a regular reverse clicky switch.
Thanks to the protruding ears, the light can tail-stand.

As with almost any recent Sofirn product, the SP31T comes with square cut, anodized threads which allow the flashlight to get
mechainically locked out.

The tailcap's spring is quite thick and is retained by a brass ring.
Notice that the spring bypasses are perfomed by me.

Here's the tail's assembly.

The head is using a 17mm driver - again no factory spring bypasses.

The SP31T comes with a deep, smooth reflector paired with a Cree XP-L HI in Neutral White tint.

Here's the SP31T's reflector (left) compared to the one of the C8T (right).
As seen, the left one is quite deeper and thus provides a tighter hotspot.
The width is about the same.

And here's the emitter mounted onto a 16mm copper star.

The total weight of the flashlight (excl. battery) is around 145gr

And here's a pic to help you see the light's actual size.
From left to right: Sofirn SP32A, Sofirn C8T, Sofirn SP31T

User Interface

The UI of the flashlight is very simple thanks to the dual switch design.

Turn on/off: Single press of the rear switch.
Mode cycle: Single press of the side switch ( Moonlight - Low - Mid - High - Mid - Low - Moonlight)
Strobe: Double press of the side switch
Bicycle Flash: Long press of the side switch while in Strobe mode.

Performance

Here's is the measuremnts that I got using a fully charged Samsung 25R 18650 cell.

And here's Turbo's lux compared to my other lights.

To sum everything up, the SP31T is a nice thrower light with a very fair price.
At the same power level it will out-throw the C8 thanks to the deeper reflector.

Outdoor beamshots will soon to come :)

Tangra · 2018-07-25T20:38:17.000Z

According this review:

Sofirn SP31T has momentary on switch. Is it correct?

gchart · 2018-07-25T20:57:05.000Z

Tangra:

According this review:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x9L5tSwAIPM
Sofirn SP31T has momentary on switch. Is it correct?

That switch sure looks like what you’d find in a Convoy L2 or Brinyte B158 (momentary / forward)

bilakos10 · 2018-07-26T19:26:31.000Z

Tangra:

According this review:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x9L5tSwAIPM
Sofirn SP31T has momentary on switch. Is it correct?

Correct the rear switch is forward clicky and thus allows for momentary power on.

Lightbringer · 2018-07-27T01:05:00.000Z

Interesting critter… are the heads between the ’32A and ’32T interchangeable? That’d be tres kewl…

Lightbringer · 2018-07-27T01:06:10.000Z

Ohhhh, wait. The A doesn’t have a rear switch, does it? Gotta have the firmware match the characteristix of the rest of the light, I imagine.

BlueSwordM · 2018-07-27T01:53:10.000Z

What kind of driver is it using?

A buck or FET driver?

Edit: Never mind. It’s a buck driver.

the4ds9 · 2021-09-13T02:38:17.000Z

I don’t mean to dig up an old thread at all. I only wanted to add in the year of our Lord, two thousand twenty-one, a forward clicky allows for “tactical” control of the spotlight. While the Sofirn C8T throws farther and brighter, the SP31T’s forward clicky tail cannot fit on the C8T. I will have to use the SP31T as it has a forward-clicky “tactical” tail switch. The CREE XP-L HI is quite bright and best used as momentary spotlight work.

I am putting it back to work for momentary spotlight use. It saves me $57 to $100 from having to buy a new Klarus XT12GT or Nitecore New P30 or new Nitecore P30i. The four cell Nitecore TM38 Lite is just a little too big and bulky.

This Sofirn SP31T should do the trick!