Commuter light to replace Magicshine.

andyrr

It does seem that if if something is cheap then there is probably a reason for that.
I've now been through 2 complete Magicshine lightsets plus an additional battery pack. When the last battery failed in some way I used the replacement for the last few weeks or so of the shorter daylight days as we came into Spring. Battery had a couple of top-up charges whilst it sat unused for a few months or so then I tried it a few nights ago - nowt. Charged for a couple of hours, tried again - the tiniest of feint red lights at the rear of the light but no light output.
It's heading for the bin - peed'd off with it - light output was really good, spread not the best but there was sufficient for about 95% of my commute without having to knock off any speed. The previous light, Light and Motion Solo Logic, did about 75% of what the Magicshine did although it did blow a couple of bulbs and these were £13 each so not ones to hold a couple of spares as I had done for older and cheaper halogen lamps I'd had. I've still got that light and it functions fine.
So, what's recommended, for not massively over £100 given that I don't actually need it for a good few months ? Any bargains at present ?

moonshine

Ay-up
http://www.ayup-lights.com/
Over your budget but they are awesome. The first & last set you will ever need.
I sprung for a set last year after thinking about Magicshine...
I worked out that a couple of duff sets would almost pay for the Ay-ups so the Magicshine could be false economy.

The quality of the Ay-ups in excellent & I appreciate the engineering everytime I use them.

I got the intermediate ultralite kit for the road bike and it is more than adequate. Cars think you are a motorbike and no one has pulled out or turned right in front of me.

Gerry

andyrr

Yeah, the Ay-ups seemed to be a fair option for price/light level/positive reviews.

rake

try it on a nimh battery. those lipo's degrade with time and temperature/voltage just sitting.

andyrr

Haven't seen a mention on here of Bikeray lights : anyone at all familiar ?

900 (claimed) lumen :
http://www.bikeray.co.uk/bikeray-ray-ii ... &p=1&so=0#

1280 Lumen
http://www.bikeray.co.uk/bikeray-ray-ii ... 0&p=1&so=0

macnmud

Would definitely recommend the Ray III. Absolutely love mine for the output, beam pattern and burn time.

If you're looking for batteries with longer runtime still you can get them from Open Light Systems

http://www.open-light.co.uk

Treated myself to the 17.4Ah bottle battery for a night marathon event I am doing in a few weeks.

http://www.open-light.co.uk/open-light-17.4ah-magicshine-bikeray-compatible-bottle-battery.php?it=318

andyrr

Cheers - have you used your RAY for long ?
Wondering if these are too new to the market for any reliablility issues to have surfaced. The Magicshines light sets have very mixed reviews, myself being one that reported initial great price/performance then, having gone through 1 complete lightset replacement and now a replacement battery failure (fairly sure this is the problem now), I'm wary of too good to be true lights. Looking for the 700+ lumen output (ie Magicshine) with decent reliability but cannot cough-up £200+

andyrr

Follow-up to this :
suggestion on another thread was to switch to NiMh battery - simple to do whilst keeping the existing light and with no loss of light output ?
Alternative, other than the aforementioned Ay-Ups or Rays ?
Are the high-output P& torches and similar more reliable longer-term than the bike-specific lights like this
http://www.dealextreme.com/p/ha-iii-ssc ... -set-25149

For a short time Wiggle had a Exposure Race Mk5 light at around £150 - not sure if they are bright enough (2 x 300lumens) but their quality is surely a step above these cheap ones ?

keef66

I went for the middle ground. Fenix L2D torch, twofish bar mount, some 2900 mAh Nimh AA rechargeables and a smart charger. Probably £90 all in.

It's light, compact, and very well made. Plenty bright enough for spirited riding on completely unlit roads, and after 3 years so far completely indestructable / completely waterproof.

Depending on temperature I get a couple of hours out of a pair of batteries, and I always keep a spare pair fully charged in my jersey pocket.

The Spiderman

I have been running an MTE P7 torch with a lock block for about 3 years now.Tough as old boots and if it dies replaceable for about £30.

CarlosDSanchez

How about something designed for road use so you don't dazzle on coming traffic?

http://www.bike24.com/1.php?content=8;n ... =251;pgc=0

You can also get it in silver....
Google "phillips led bike light" for some reviews and stuff. I use one and on the Dunwich Dynamo at the weekend there weren't many that were brighter and I didn't see anything with a better spread.

andyrr

Cheers - just wonder if the light output is as good as the bike-specific lights such as the Magicshine ? Claimed 900 lumens but I think closer to 500 is more truthful but still, noticably, not hugely but deffo noticably, better than my L & M Solo Logic which is a nice well built light but since it was around £100 at the time and a) has blown 2 bulbs and b) is heavier (MiMh battery) having an LED alternative to that and the MS is my ideal. And if it costs max £100 then that'd be lovely with the proviso of hopefully a decent lifespan then that's all the boxes ticked.

northpole

I've been using a hope vision 2 for the past couple of years which I find perfect for road use. Just done the Dunwich Dynamo which, due to the extremely leisurely pace of my group meant relying on it for 12 hours!! Admittedly I had it on one of the lower settings but it was still adequate to see what was coming on the road and to keep highly visible to other motorists.

Peter