The big LIGHTS thread 2011-2014
Comments
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kevinharley wrote:Apologies guys - I really should do all my research and roll my questions up into one post rather than several ... :oops:
Anyway, a view, please, on how these headtorches would fare:
http://dx.com/p/cree-q5-310-lumen-3-mod ... 650-132747
http://dx.com/p/cree-xp-c-r5-xr-e-r5-28 ... amp-134276
I presume with both of the above, the batteries are sold separately, and I would still need a charger?
but I suspect this is not realy going to be bright enough?
Yes you would still need batteries and chargers for the top 2.
This is a headlight I use and find fine for (slow) night running on unlit roads. http://www.lightmalls.com/yt-120a-cree- ... lamp-3-aaa
It is probably lighter than most of the other options and runs on AAA batteries and I also like that it is simply on or off.
It will not be as bright as the other options but if you don't need the extra light it may suit.0 -
Not sure if someone could point me in the right direction ?
DX P7 lightset has developed a duff connector at the head - battery connection, fault is on the head light connector. Now I have an earlier model of light (just the head unit - that battery pack gave up the ghost) that I can use but the connector on that one is slightly different to the newer duff one so I thought it might be easiest to swap the leads over. Having unscrewed the front bezel I'm then faced with the inner led and no obvious (to me) method of removal.
How is that removed ?
Is it then going to be easy enough to remove the cable from the 2 head units and swap good one for bad ?
Edit to add : this type of lightset : http://dx.com/p/p7-waterproof-ssc-p7-3- ... -set-82509
the problem is very close to the actual connector and I'm not sure how easy a nice, sturdy and waterproof any repair that I might achieve would be.
2nd Edit : turns out it is the battery lead, faulty at the connector to the headlight lead. Will need to get inside the insulation to see where the problem is and maybe chop the end off and repair it.0 -
Had read through some of this epic thread and bought myself a solar storm. Very impressed with the light output which sadly thrashes my old Hope vision MK1. Look forward to seeing how it holds up out on the trails.
Are there any lights similar to the larger Exposure lights with 4 batteries inside the light housing ? I have seen the various torches that look similar but not found any mounting brackets designed for them.0 -
This:
http://www.lightmalls.com/skyray-king-b ... ht-4x18650
But people struggled with the mount. Though personally I think you can bodge something fairly easily.
The other option is to get something that will take 4.2v input and use a usb power pack as power source.
On the power pack with removable cells.
this:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/3A-Mobile-Power ... 2c7271abff
but you will need to create a custom USB cable (USB to light connector) still it gives an option of 7.5v or 9v and room for 6 decent cells assuming it can be mounted.0 -
diy wrote:This:
http://www.lightmalls.com/skyray-king-b ... ht-4x18650
But people struggled with the mount. Though personally I think you can bodge something fairly easily.
The other option is to get something that will take 4.2v input and use a usb power pack as power source.
On the power pack with removable cells.
this:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/3A-Mobile-Power ... 2c7271abff
but you will need to create a custom USB cable (USB to light connector) still it gives an option of 7.5v or 9v and room for 6 decent cells assuming it can be mounted.
Thanks
Did another search and found this in this very thread viewtopic.php?f=20005&t=12807034&start=1120 about half way down the page. From the report there it does not sound like an ideal set up.0 -
Still using the skyray king but it no longer looks like that! I've removed the middle section to make it shorter, drilled the head for the mount, and added an external 8cell (homebuilt) battery under the bars.
Solar storm looks like a lot less faffing about!my stripped and polished push-iron http://www.bikeradar.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=127542860 -
sparky.2002 wrote:Still using the skyray king but it no longer looks like that! I've removed the middle section to make it shorter, drilled the head for the mount, and added an external 8cell (homebuilt) battery under the bars.
Solar storm looks like a lot less faffing about!
Yes can't complain about Solar storm on first outing with it last night. So much light only needed to use it on it's lowest setting for most of the ride. When I did turn up the wick it was honestly more light than I could ever need unless going for some crazed down hill world record
Things have come a long way from my first ever set of light nearly 30 years back. Everready night-riders were lights of choice. I think my freebie rear led gives out more light than those Everready's could.0 -
Things have come a long way from my first ever set of light nearly 30 years back. Everready night-riders were lights of choice. I think my freebie rear led gives out more light than those Everready's could.[/quote]
I had those as well with rechargeables and seem to remember they had two modes, dim and off.0 -
Oh Marone wrote:Things have come a long way from my first ever set of light nearly 30 years back. Everready night-riders were lights of choice. I think my freebie rear led gives out more light than those Everready's could.
I had those as well with rechargeables and seem to remember they had two modes, dim and off.[/quote]
Ha ha yep their the puppy's dim and off about sums them up but they were the best you could buy in their day.
Moved on to a BLT home bodge with gert big lead acid gel pack. I was the envy of the cycle club until we had to go up hills.0 -
broona wrote:Eventually ordered the following, hopefully they all work together, lol :-
UltraFire WF-502B CREE XM-L2 5 Modes LED Flashlight Torch(1*18650) - See more at: http://www.lightmalls.com/ultrafire-wf- ... Ik0Uu.dpuf
Panasonic NCR18650A 18650 3100mAh 3.7V Protected Rechargeable Li-ion Batteries (2-Pack) - http://www.fasttech.com/product/1315402
Nitecore I2 Lithium Li-ion Ni-MH Ni-Cd Smart Battery Charger - http://www.fasttech.com/product/1119500
And typical with my luck, I got a refund from Fasttech as they're having problems with the postal service and batteries! :evil:
So, I've got a torch but no charger or batteries, anyone recommend both from a UK supplier or a HK supplier who can get them to the UK?
Looking for 3000mAh+ batteries and a reliable charger that won't break the bank!
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I need a replacement laptop battery for a Lenovo N500. I then get to harvest the old one.
How do I know that the ebay replacement won't blow up when charging.
I wasn't nervous of batteries before I read this tread.0 -
This guy. His stuff is genuine and in the UK.broona wrote:broona wrote:Eventually ordered the following, hopefully they all work together, lol :-
UltraFire WF-502B CREE XM-L2 5 Modes LED Flashlight Torch(1*18650) - See more at: http://www.lightmalls.com/ultrafire-wf- ... Ik0Uu.dpuf
Panasonic NCR18650A 18650 3100mAh 3.7V Protected Rechargeable Li-ion Batteries (2-Pack) - http://www.fasttech.com/product/1315402
Nitecore I2 Lithium Li-ion Ni-MH Ni-Cd Smart Battery Charger - http://www.fasttech.com/product/1119500
And typical with my luck, I got a refund from Fasttech as they're having problems with the postal service and batteries! :evil:
So, I've got a torch but no charger or batteries, anyone recommend both from a UK supplier or a HK supplier who can get them to the UK?
Looking for 3000mAh+ batteries and a reliable charger that won't break the bank!
http://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/big_f_d_d/m.h ... 1543.l2654I don't do smileys.
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Parktools0 -
Yep those panasonic NCR18650b are going to give a decent 3Ah-ish They are actually rated by panasonic at 3250mAh.
Chargers - I'd go for a USB 18650 power supply since its more useful.0 -
brunch rider wrote:I need a replacement laptop battery for a Lenovo N500. I then get to harvest the old one.
How do I know that the ebay replacement won't blow up when charging.
I wasn't nervous of batteries before I read this tread.
Watch my vid..
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RjtwE41PX1g
test the voltage when they come out. min 2.8v - ideal 3.5v+
charge them gradually 1hr, rest 5 mins, another 1hr charge, rest etc.
check they don't get too hot when charging
check the voltage at the end 4.1v - 4.3v
They should have the 2.7Ah - 2.9Ah cells in - pretty good.
Alternatively you could buy some ultrafire cells and have some 10 year old laptop cell with barely 1.5Ah capacity with a new sleeve on with a 5Ah claim.
Laptop cells will generally be from good Japanese sources.0 -
Thanks for the reply DIY.
My question was more how to be sure that the replacement laptop battery will be of good quality.
kevinharley I would be interested to hear what you went for and how it worked out.0 -
I'll guess it's to do with heat management. Could be wrong however. Would i be right in saying a cell charges faster at steady temps?-Archie- wrote:
May I ask what these periodical 5-min charge interruptions are intended for? :roll:diy wrote:charge them gradually 1hr, rest 5 mins, another 1hr charge, rest etc.0 -
Dartmoor rider wrote:Oh Marone wrote:Things have come a long way from my first ever set of light nearly 30 years back. Everready night-riders were lights of choice. I think my freebie rear led gives out more light than those Everready's could.
I had those as well with rechargeables and seem to remember they had two modes, dim and off.
Ha ha yep their the puppy's dim and off about sums them up but they were the best you could buy in their day.
Moved on to a BLT home bodge with gert big lead acid gel pack. I was the envy of the cycle club until we had to go up hills.
My first lights were the woefully misnamed "Wonderlights" :roll:
To complete the nightmare, they used a funky flat rectangular battery which was pretty scarce to find...
*These* are the good old days!0 -
Wingnut made of plastic?!? :shock: I was pretty sure it's purely modern Chinese invention...KokaKona wrote:My first lights were the woefully misnamed "Wonderlights" :roll:
Quite common thing in Europe and Soviet Union for ages till now, BTW.To complete the nightmare, they used a funky flat rectangular battery which was pretty scarce to find...0 -
brunch rider wrote:Thanks for the reply DIY.
My question was more how to be sure that the replacement laptop battery will be of good quality.
kevinharley I would be interested to hear what you went for and how it worked out.
@Brunch Rider ... not sure if you mean headlight for running, or a double-head unit for riding?
If the former (ie Headlight), I'm still undecided:
This looks fabulous value - Hong Kong seller, but free postage, all for £12.OO! Think they might be overkill in terms of the amount of light (although I guess it won't actually get close to 2000L?!). I think I would cope with the weight, but would prefer something a little lighter (less weighty!)
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/350913750614? ... 852wt_1536
Saw this option - quite tempted by this instead! UK seller, smaller, lighter, not as powerful (but still 500L claimed), runs on AAA batteries, which is handy, but only has high or flashing options, so I suspect the batteries won't last that long. Anyone care to estimate approx run-tiem for me? I'd need it to run for up to 2 hours - would AAA batteries last that long in a light like this?
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Ultra-Bright- ... 678wt_1315
Re. the double Head unit and separate battery pack for riding, I've written to Santa requesting this (which Ouija first recommended a few pages back!)
http://www.manafont.com/product_info.ph ... ed-p-135420 -
@kevinharley
I am interested in the headlight.
I have the middle one you list and it throws useful light for road running. The flash option is no use for me. I would like to see this light with a 18650 battery option.0 -
kevinharley wrote:
This looks fabulous value - Hong Kong seller, but free postage, all for £12.OO! Think they might be overkill in terms of the amount of light (although I guess it won't actually get close to 2000L?!). I think I would cope with the weight, but would prefer something a little lighter (less weighty!)
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/350913750614? ... 852wt_1536
2000 lumens my Arse. No single XM-L can output that. And running at 4.2v instead of 8.4 it's not going to get anywhere near 1000 lumen (about 6/700 is closer). Got two 4.2v head units like that and they aren't anywhere near as bright as the four 8.4v single head units i've got (which are also capable of being mounted on your head as well as handlebars).kevinharley wrote:Saw this option - quite tempted by this instead! UK seller, smaller, lighter, not as powerful (but still 500L claimed), runs on AAA batteries, which is handy, but only has high or flashing options, so I suspect the batteries won't last that long. Anyone care to estimate approx run-tiem for me? I'd need it to run for up to 2 hours - would AAA batteries last that long in a light like this?
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Ultra-Bright- ... 678wt_1315
Nope. Not going to run long at all on full brightness. Lithium Ion batteries have much longer runtimes than old AAA batteries (typically three times as much for a similar sized battery) at over two and a half times the voltage and even a single 18650 battery isn't going to power that for more than an hour and a half (q5's aren't as bright or energy efficient as modern XM-L's). I'd imagine 30 to 40 minutes for AAA's. Don't add up the mAh of the AAA's as they are wired in series to achieve a similar voltage as most Li-Ion batteries so three 1000mAh AAA's doesn't give you 3000mAh.0 -
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brunch rider wrote:@kevinharley
I have the middle one you list and it throws useful light for road running. The flash option is no use for me. I would like to see this light with a 18650 battery option.
@Brunchrider ... the implication of your experience with that light is that while OK for the road, it might not be quite bright enough for running trails (woods, fells, moors etc) at night? Besides which, as Ouija points out, the batteries aint gonna last long enough ...
Its a dilemma ... I think what I will probably end up going for is the first one I linked to, or something similar (even at 1000 lumens, that ought to be more than bright enough?), mainly because it seems such good value for that amount of light, and is in a dedicated headtorch arrangement (rather than my single head unit xml with separate pattery packs that I generally use on the bike).
What I think I really need (but haven't yet seen) is ...
- a more modern version of the cree light, ie xml version,
- but a smaller and lighter head unit
- outputting in the 500-1000L range (rather than either the claimed 1600 - 2000 range, or the 200 - 300L range)
- just with 2 of the 18650 batteries
- high and low (or medium) setting, with up to 2 hours runtime on max, and longer on low/medium
- all for under £15.00
Suprised this doesn't seem to exist ... but if anyone has seen one, would be grateful for the link ...
I also keep reconsidering the light Ouija recommended when I first posed the question (ie this: http://dx.com/p/ultrafire-h4-cree-xpe-r ... 670-120477). I presume the 350L is likely to be more genuine? I guess that whilst it is not expensive, what puts me off is that I want two lights now (one for me and one for the wife), and can get two of the larger cree xml headtorches for pretty much the price of one of the dx ultrafire ones when you factor in the additional cost of the charger and batteries ...0 -
Tonight I tried out one of those "Cree x3 T6 XM-L" and surprisingly, it works lol. Not only does it work but works well. I shopped around and got it for £23 by using "Amazon Prime" (otherwise it would have been £30)
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Bicycle-Headlig ... ED+Bicycle
Not sure what usual prices are for a light as bright as this but I know it ain't £23. Even those £70 ones in Halfords/Decathlon type places are nowhere near as bright as this.
First setting is adequate. Second setting is far brighter. Third setting is barely brighter than the second but uses way more battery. I think what I am trying to say is I should have got a double not a x3 lol. Now I have got the battery pack though I could get a double one for like a fiver and sell the one I have, or keep both.
Hell even if this packs in tomorrow I got my moneys worth. How they can sell a 18650x4 battery pack + charger + UK adapter plug + bike mount + helmet mount + the Cree 3x LED all for under £30 posted (£23 if buying from Amazon and using Prime) I have no idea!
The icing on the cake is this thing got delivered in two days, after all the reviews I read said people were waiting 3 weeks. I think the vendor imported a ton of them into the UK, must have.
This is touted as a 3600 lumen but people estimate about 600-800 per LED realistically, well its still around 2000 lumens then.
As the dark nights draw in (Batman pun non-unintentional) lets see how long this thing lasts on the second setting in near-freezing temps. They reckon 4 hours on the lowest, 2.5 hours on medium and 1.5 hours on high. Seriously this thing is bright enough to only need the brightest/third setting if you were doing silly speeds on a singletrack with no other lighting. Personally I will just leave it on the lowest one, I am on a road bike, its enough in the dark and I might even say it is overkill on lit roads even on the lowest, it is "brilliant white" light. Gotta make sure to keep it pointed down.0 -
kevinharley wrote:
I also keep reconsidering the light Ouija recommended when I first posed the question (ie this: http://dx.com/p/ultrafire-h4-cree-xpe-r ... 670-120477). I presume the 350L is likely to be more genuine? I guess that whilst it is not expensive, what puts me off is that I want two lights now (one for me and one for the wife), and can get two of the larger cree xml headtorches for pretty much the price of one of the dx ultrafire ones when you factor in the additional cost of the charger and batteries ...
Yeah, it's always going to be a battle between run times and brightness. If you want bright and long run times you just have to live with lugging a lot of battery around with you.
On a side note, you can get that Ultrafire H4 with a XM-L T6 (the Ultrafire H6). I have one but still prefer the H4, mainly because the H6 only takes 18650 batteries so you have to run around with what looks like a great big pack of Rolo's stuck to your forehead (you can do that with the H4 if you really want longer runtimes with the longer 17670 batteries and barrel extender). The H6 also has a timer that only allows you to run it at 100% output for 1 minute before powering back down to 60% output at which point it's no brighter than the H4 though it will probably run for longer.0 -
Manc33 wrote:. Seriously this thing is bright enough to only need the brightest/third setting if you were doing silly speeds on a singletrack with no other lighting. Personally I will just leave it on the lowest one, I am on a road bike, its enough in the dark and I might even say it is overkill on lit roads even on the lowest, it is "brilliant white" light. Gotta make sure to keep it pointed down.
I think the general consensus on those is they are really bright but can run a little hot and don't allow you to vary the brightness of the emitters, it's simply a case of one on full, two on full or three on full which is fine for offroad riding but makes it nigh on impossible not to blind oncoming motorists when used for road riding.0 -
@kevinharley
My comment was restricted to running on (unlit) roads because I do not run off road.
The light throws useful light at your feet unlike this type http://www.lightmalls.com/high-power-cr ... ht-1-18650 which I found threw the light too far ahead for running.
I think a head unit like this http://www.lightmalls.com/yt-120a-cree- ... lamp-3-aaa but with with a 18650 battery and a modern led would be ideal whenever they come up with it.
Let us know what you get and your thoughts on it.0 -
brunch rider wrote:@kevinharley
My comment was restricted to running on (unlit) roads because I do not run off road.
The light throws useful light at your feet unlike this type http://www.lightmalls.com/high-power-cr ... ht-1-18650 which I found threw the light too far ahead for running.
I think a head unit like this http://www.lightmalls.com/yt-120a-cree- ... lamp-3-aaa but with with a 18650 battery and a modern led would be ideal whenever they come up with it.
Let us know what you get and your thoughts on it.
Maybe something like the HX-T6 (XM-L and 18650 with a head unit that doesn't protrude or look too clunky)...
Available in four AA or two 18650 versions, with or without handle bar mounts and remote switch (type HX-T6 into the sites search field to see four different versions at different price points).0 -
Cheers for that linkhttp://www.lightmalls.com/power-style-hx-t6-bright-cree-xm-l-t6-led-headlight-2x18650 Ouja, although I'm not sure that there is much difference between that one, and the one I linked to earlier, ie this:
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/350913750614? ... 852wt_1536
The head unit may be a little smaller / less protrudery (!) - its difficult to tell from the pics, but both have the same LED, and a 2 x 18650 battery option? Is there a difference in power / brightness / running time (sorry, the electronics specs just go straight over my head! :oops: )
The one you linked to doesn't include batteries, so would need to purchase these separately, but it looks as though the battery carrier has a charging socket - presumably I will be able to use one of my dx / MTB Batteries chargers to charge these batteries?
Dilemma ... but perhaps, given the price, and the fact that both will give off plenty of light, I should stop agonising and prevaricating, and hit the 'buy' button ... seeing as I need two headtorches, I may as well buy one of each!
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