winter lights

Felix-da-house-mouse

looking to get a set of lights for winter training, ideally ones that i can use to see where i'm going with as i live in the sticks but i dont want to pay stupid amounts of money for them, any1 got any reccomendations or ideas?

p.s i've read cycling + on said subject

JWSurrey

Tough call, if you're looking to keep the price down.
I guess if you're training something halogen with a lead-acid battery wouldn't be an issue then.
SJS cycles have something that looks OK, on their website - last time I checked.

There are some LED home-builds that work out well, however by the time you've purchased a voltage regulator, or constructed one from discrete components, and bought the high output LEDs and a case, you're still going to be in big-bucks territory.

keith57

I'm also looking for some decent lights for use on the road (not trail!) Has anyone here used the Exposure Race MaXx 2008? it doesn't have any external wires, 3 hours of light at 480 lumens from 2 LEDs - which seems quite good to me.

JWSurrey

Well, I'm running a 3x Luxeon LED Solidlights unit - Luxeons allegedly kick out half the light power - Now that's pretty much bright enough on max power for the unlit country lanes I ride, being arguably better than the light we have on the moped, so you shouldn't have any problem with the Exposure model.
I can't comment on specific use of this unit though.

cooper.michael1

For £40 a couple of Infini contrails from chain reaction would do the trick.

1 watt LED, self contained...not at good as lights with a full on bettery but with two of them perectly enough to see. See the review everyone likes them.

Tesco to AA rechargers for £7 or something stupid, but the run time is like 20hrs (one advantage over the battery pack lights which last about 2-3hrs)

As said the above suggestions are brilliant if you have a budget of about £150!

popette

I initially bought a cheap cateye - £40 reduced to £20 in the Edinburgh bike sale - but found it pathetic in the unlit country lanes. I felt invisible and vulnerable.

I then went on the turbo trainer for an evening and thought that there's no way I can do this twice a week for the next 5 months. So, I did something I thought I would never do and bought an expensive front light:

http://www.wiggle.co.uk/ProductDetail.a ... nt%20Light

I personally feel that it was worth every penny. I've now gone out when it's already dark and feel confident that I can be seen and that I can see where I'm going. I also bought a hi-vis jacket and have reflectives on my trousers, gloves, overshoes etc.

my rear light is one of those cateye cube things for around £29. That's good too.

fizz

JWSurrey wrote:

SJS cycles have something that looks OK, on their website - last time I checked.

I jsut got a set of the Smart 10W from there, I tried them out last night and I have to say I was really impressed at how bright they were, I can finally see where I'm going in the dark now and I think they were reasonably priced to. If it were me I'd get them direct from SJS, they are also selling the same product via ebay, but the postage on the ebay ad is £8.50 whistl if you buy from SJS the postage is £5 and the lights have been going for more on ebay than you'd pay if you bought them direct.

jgr

I got a Princeton Tec Yukon HL from Chain Reaction for a 24 hour adventure race last summer. It rained all night long and it was on a mountain bike in the countryside, no street lighting at all and up fire breaks and tracks in forests. I was able to see pretty well. For about 50 quid it was the best light output / battery life (AA not rechargeable pack) I could find for the money. They have loads of others to choose from too.

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Mode ... elID=10561

Chris5150

Cor blimey I ride with the Supernova P99D rated at 1600lm...and I still struggle at 25 mph +
I do most of my night riding on totally unlit country roads. No way could I night ride with anything less and feel safe at all. yes they are expensive but what price my life?.
I also like the natty power meters built in so you know how long battery power you have left.
They now have an online store to order direct
http://www.nova-factory.com/store_en.htm

best lights by a mile, but yes blooming expensive too!

speedstersimon

I'm also looking for some decent lights for use on the road (not trail!) Has anyone here used the Exposure Race MaXx 2008? it doesn't have any external wires, 3 hours of light at 480 lumens from 2 LEDs - which seems quite good to me.

I've just brought one of these this week for my commuter. I was warned in the shop not to look directly at it and when I turned it on after charging I could see why!! The Race Maxx replaces a Cateye EL530 and, although it costs significantly more, there really is no comparison. It's all (and more) than you'll ever need fo road riding in the dark on unlit paths IMHO, and the flashing mode is like a strobe light for those early mornings/overcast days. The metal handlebar mount is excellent and very secure (way better than the Cateye plastic jobbie). Thorougly recommended.

Simon

keith57

speedstersimon wrote:

I'm also looking for some decent lights for use on the road (not trail!) Has anyone here used the Exposure Race MaXx 2008? it doesn't have any external wires, 3 hours of light at 480 lumens from 2 LEDs - which seems quite good to me.

I've just brought one of these this week for my commuter. I was warned in the shop not to look directly at it and when I turned it on after charging I could see why!! The Race Maxx replaces a Cateye EL530 and, although it costs significantly more, there really is no comparison. It's all (and more) than you'll ever need fo road riding in the dark on unlit paths IMHO, and the flashing mode is like a strobe light for those early mornings/overcast days. The metal handlebar mount is excellent and very secure (way better than the Cateye plastic jobbie). Thorougly recommended.

Simon

Thanks for that Simon, nice to know its bright enough!