The E1 uses an XR-E emitter coupled with a textured reflector. The first thing I noticed about this light is how well the emitter is aligned. I'm not over stating when I say that the emitter and reflector are perfectly aligned. You will definitely not be disappointed, especially if you're the type who's picky about emitter and reflector alignment. Another thing that sets this light apart from the rest is that the opening at the reflector's base actually cover everything but the dome of the emitter. Even the silver ring which usually shows at the bottom of the reflector in other lights, sits below the reflector in the E1. The dark circle you see around the emitter in the image to the right is the the effect of light not reflecting back into the camera. It is actually part of the reflector and is polished as well. The reflector is textured and nicely finished. The head has a band of knurling about 0.7cm wide around it, however due to it's polished finish, it's pretty smooth and doesn't provide much grip. Just above the threads on the head you will find a rubber o-ring which helps with water resistance and also provides nice tension for the twist switch action.

This flashlight claims to be the first in the world to be made out of bronze. Personally, I have not seen any other production lights made from bronze, so this could very well be true. It's also a limited edition run of 200, and each light has it's own serial number printed on the battery tube. My sample is number 069. When looking down into the battery tube, you can see the bare bronze material which is used. On the outside surface however, the E1 is polished in a chrome like material and further coated in clear type 2 anodizing. The surface finishing is very well done, as with it's machining. The threads fit together nicely with minimal play and is very smooth with no signs of grinding or cross-threading. The battery tube has 6 flat faces machined onto it, and a 4 point base which has a hole for lanyards and such. Overall very similar to the Fenix P1. There's also a band of knurling at the top of the battery tube, about 0.4cm wide. This is most likely for cosmetic reasons, as the flat faces do a much better job for grip. As you might have guessed, this light has a pretty hefty weight to it being made of bronze. Bronze has similar weight to brass and stainless steel.

If you own a Fenix P1, you might have noticed that the head doesn't fully screw down even when the light is turned on. That's to say, there's a gap between the head and battery tube. With the Solarforce E1, the head screws down flush against the battery tube with no noticeable gap when using CR123 cells. With 16340 cells which are slightly longer, there will be a slight gap, but still not too bad. Using similar 16340 cells in the Fenix P1 for example, causes the rubber o-ring to be exposed. Overall, I have nothing but praise for the build quality of the Solarforce E1. If this is any indication of the type of lights they make, I'll be looking forward to more products by Solarforce.

The Solarforce E1 is a standard single mode light. The beam profile produced is a medium spot, similar to other lights of this size. The tint on my E1 sample is nice and white, with a color temperature slightly on the warm. Runtime is good but output is below average when running on CR123 compared to other similar XR-E lights. This is a shame when compared to it's build quality. If only the manufacturer had put as much thought into it's electronics as they did to it's machining.

The Good - Superb build quality, overall feels very solid in when held. Perfectly aligned emitter and reflector.

The Bad - Highly polished coating can be slippery if you have greasy hands. Output is below average on CR123 cells.

The Relative - Made of bronze and has a hefty weight.

Head (front view).

Head (side view).

Head (rear view).

Battery tube (front view).

Battery tube (side view).

Battery tube (rear view).