Bar and helmet mounted lights

landrew

What is the best way to combine bar and helmet mounted lights? Should the bar mounted light illuminate the trail further ahead and the helmet mounted light light the trail closer. Or should it be the other way round? Or some other arrangement?

Anonymous

I think it's personal preference. I don't tend to use a helmet light at the moment.
Years ago, I tried ONLY a helmet light, but i found the strange lack of shadows due to the lightsource being almost the same height as your eyes a bit disconcerting.

So now i just stick to bar lights, and I'd still suggest that bars is probably the best place for your main light.

bannedbiker

Commuting (which at its knarliest goes through some wooded tracks) I just stick to main lights on my bars.
Out for a proper night-ride I keep my main lights on my bars and mount a diving torch on my lid. I've got Blackburn X8's on the bars so aim the spot far ahead, the flood quite low and my lid-light somehwere inbetween, roughly where I tend to be looking.

bartimaeus

I have my main beam on my bars (p7) which gives a nice even spread of light. I use my helmet light (a C1 - less bright but more focussed) to supplement this when required, and whenever I'm anywhere that twists and turns... I want to see where I will be going next, and that's not necessarily where my bike is heading right now.

There is no point in a having a beautifullly illuminated tree right in front of you, if you cannot also see the corner that helps you avoid it.

JonKula

I try and have my helmet mounted light (Exposure Joystick) pointing where I'm looking and my bar mounted maxx-d pointing at the trail kinda 20-25ft ahead. A good combination.

Offroad night riding is frikkin awesome.

jmillen

I use Ay Ups and have the long/narrow beam on the helmet and shorter/wider beam on the bars.

UncleMonty

Bartimaeus wrote:

I have my main beam on my bars (p7) which gives a nice even spread of light. I use my helmet light (a C1 - less bright but more focussed) to supplement this when required, and whenever I'm anywhere that twists and turns... I want to see where I will be going next, and that's not necessarily where my bike is heading right now.

I have the exact same set up, I've tried both lights on the bars but found it hard spotting turn offs and stuff,

VWsurfbum

I have my magicshine on my noggin and my Cateye on my bars, through twisty single track you can always see where your going then. i would always suggest the more powerfull of your lights on your nut.

schlepcycling

jmillen wrote:

I use Ay Ups and have the long/narrow beam on the helmet and shorter/wider beam on the bars.

+1

Neil Fat man on a bike

jmillen wrote:

I use Ay Ups and have the long/narrow beam on the helmet and shorter/wider beam on the bars.

and me too !

Northwind

The standard wisdom is floodlight on the bars, spotlight on the helmet. But I just went with excessively powerful flood on head and bars. Means the question of aim doesn't come up really.

Anonymous

Northwind wrote:

The standard wisdom is floodlight on the bars, spotlight on the helmet. But I just went with excessively powerful flood on head and bars. Means the question of aim doesn't come up really.

Good thinking!