I received my T1 yesterday and I don’t understand why it seems that none cares for this flashlight. It’s (almost) great!
The mode changing mechanism (twist head) is smooth like slicing hot butter with a knife and switching to low modes is done by only a tiny bit of unscrewing… Have you used a Jetbeam with a twist-head mechanism to change modes? Compared to T1 it’s like comparing a fart to a poem (T1 being the poem :bigsmile: )…
T1 has three modes, “artificial daylight”, “enough for everything” and “should have been lower” in two group settings (tightened head: High, loose head: Medium and Low). This translates to 505 lumens, 202 lumens, 50 lumens (I measured 1.57A, 0.62A, 0.08A). On some angles my camera catches some white dots moving away from the beam which look like PWM especially on low, so it isn’t current regulated. The good news are that it hasn’t the camera freaking PWM of some other budget flashlights (like TR3-T6 for example) but seems like a high frequency PWM. As you imagined, I don’t have the tools to measure PWM frequency so guessing is what I do… I would prefer Low to be lower but I can live with the existing Low in most cases (going to the bathroom in the middle of the night while my eyes are adapted to darkness isn’t one of those cases).
Edit: Measured by the (thank you): PWM is 393Hz, High = 517 lumens, Med = 207 lumens, Low = 31 lumens (OTF, after 30s).
Modes change easily and the user - sometimes - knows on which mode it will come on… If head is tightened, you can be sure you have high, if head is loosened a bit you can be sure that you have either medium or low. This uncertainty exists because of the strange way the memory works… Solarforce says that it has an “after 3 seconds memory” but that doesn’t work for me, even 5 sec on / 5 sec off doesn’t work but I found that it registers the last used Low mode the moment you turn it on High! After some more testing, I can say that I have no clue how memory works, I find it totally unpredictable. This is not really a problem, in my opinion, as with only two modes on “Low” group it’s easy to switch to the mode you want even if it wasn’t memorized but it’s kind of a strange behavior. If Solarforce is listening, a 1 sec (while off) memory would be ideal, just as the much loved Ultrafire 3mode XML dropin works. On the plus side, no disco modes!
T1 is IPX8 rated, waterproof and submersible… As with every new light I get, my T1 spent 30 minutes in a sink full of water and didn’t leak. As a sidenote I will mention that no Solarforce ever leaked on my tests or in real use.
Construction quality is really good. Threads are accurately cut and they look square to my eyes. The threads of switch modes + change battery came lubed (but not enough) and the threads of the SS head weren’t lubed at all (possibly to avoid unscrewing the SS part of the head by mistake instead of unscrewing the whole head to change mode group). I lubed all threads, screwed the SS head tight and left the mode changing head lightly tight so I can easily switch modes with one hand even while holding the SS head.
Some dirt on the threads got there after I got it, lubed it, used it, sunk it and carried it in my pocket for a day… When I received it it was perfectly clean. The only imperfection I found are those tiny aluminum thingies on top of the outer side of the pill which look like splashed aluminum from the pill to the body. They shouldn’t be there but they don’t affect the flashlight in any way and they are normally hidden by the orange peel aluminum reflector.
Clip is sturdy and not overly snug so it will not rip any pockets. If for some reason you want it to be more snug, you can easily unscrew it, reshape it a bit and screw it again. T1’s HAIII anodisation is perfect with no visible marks or scratches, knurling also looks perfectly machined and it isn’t overly aggressive. The white letters on body are not so sharp and they could have been whiter, also the text on body could have been less. T1 tailstands and the “ugly” stainless steel head is not so ugly in reality… I didn’t believe that I’d say that when looking at the official photos but while holding a real T1 in my hands, I like the SS head!
T1 also came with a nice adjustable lanyard, two spare o-rings and a spare tailcap.
As I wrote before, T1 has a forward clicky switch. A very good, smooth, short travel, non-squeaking with positive feeling forward clicky switch… My $140 Nitecore IFE2 broke down in tears when it saw the $27 T1’s switch… My $80 Sunwayman V10R also cried… I am not telling to my TK-35 because it’s better than its’ switch too… In a few words, T1’s switch is also a poem.
Beam is smooth! T1 is - as we would expect from an XM-L light with a tiny head - mostly a flood light… It lights everything in front of it for 40-50 meters (I haven’t tried it at longer distances yet) with its huge hotspot and generous spill. Beam color is pure white (my camera sees it as green but it’s white). Beamshot distance is about half meter from wall, if I go three meters away from wall, spill covers a 3x3 meters area!
Battery space… I don’t believe T1 would have any problem fitting any 18650/18700 battery… I am using it with a Trustfire 3000Mah (Thunderflames) and it has space for a much fatter (and I believe longer) battery. But it doesn’t rattle because on + and - there are two tough springs which hold the battery still. It can also use 2xCR123A and as the max input voltage indicates, 2x16340.
Conclusion, at $27 it’s a steal for such a nice light… Buy one (or two)! I will surely get at least another one for my BOB.
I purchased my T1 from here: solarforceflashlight-sales.com - Informationen zum Thema solarforceflashlight sales.
Some more photos
T1 with Nite IZE headband
Solarforce T1, Jetbeam BC20, Nitecore IFE2, Solarforce L2
The XML-U2 is perfectly centered
Tailstanding
Candle mode
Outside beamshots are not in my camera’s abilities but the next best thing I can do is post a video that I found on youtube (not my video) which shows T1’s abilities.
