Side lights/wheel lights

kenan

Interested in making myself/bike more visible from the side. I have good front and rear lights, but nothing from the side. I'm not interested in reflective stuff as the car etc needs to be pointing at you to get a reflection.

Any recommendations on what people are using would be interesting. I like the look of these as you would stick out a little: http://store.monkeylectric.com/M210_Mon ... p/m210.htm There are cheaper versions on EBay but they only illuminate on one side of the wheel.

eyebee

+1 for the spoke reflectors. The best thing i done to be seen from the side was get a helmet torch. A look in the direction of a driver, especially on roundabouts has made a massive difference to my commute.

WildGooze

I remember seeing the spoke reflectors in Aldi towards the the end of last year when they brought their bike kit in. I never brought any as they didn't look that impressive, however that youtube vid is making regret it slightly! I might need to revisit the place to see whether they managed to get rid of them all.

kenan

Decathlon do them in a pack of 72 for £10: http://www.decathlon.co.uk/reflective-s ... 91875.html

mudcow007

halfords sells spoke straws to

Alinshearah

or here if you wish http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/36-3M-Scotchl ... 4313128149

unixnerd

My winter bike has Schwalbe Marathon tyres. They have a reflective strip about 4mm high all the way round the sidewall, really stands out when illuminated.

McNulty

eyebee wrote:

+1 for the spoke reflectors.

+2

smoggysteve

kenan wrote:

Interested in making myself/bike more visible from the side. I have good front and rear lights, but nothing from the side. I'm not interested in reflective stuff as the car etc needs to be pointing at you to get a reflection.

Any recommendations on what people are using would be interesting. I like the look of these as you would stick out a little: http://store.monkeylectric.com/M210_Mon ... p/m210.htm There are cheaper versions on EBay but they only illuminate on one side of the wheel.

Do not use anything like this on a bike on the road. They are illegal. refectors only from side. white light/reflector front, red back. nothing more

whoof

I found some wheels lights in Poundland, not surprisingly they cost a pound. I've had them for at least seven years and they are still going. I've ridden in all weathers and they have even been submerged many times in extra deep puddles. They are about 4 inches long, attach to the spokes like reflector and can be seen from either side. Might be worth a look if you are passing to see if they still do them.

smoggysteve

oxoman wrote:

IMHO anything that makes me more visible to drivers in bad light or darkness has got to be better than nothing. Current wheel reflectors are next to useless. I cannot see major retailers or LBS selling spoke reflectors/ straws if they are illegal. Given that current road laws for bikes are years out of date i don't really care. I'm pretty sure iv'e seen them on my local PSCO's police issued bike come to think of it. Better safe than sorry.

Spoke REFLECTORS are legal because they are not a light source, they reflect. You are not allowed to have light from the sides apart from indicators. Thats the road law. If you are a bike or a car you follow the same laws. Its to stop other road users being distracted or dazzled. It doesnt matter if they are low light or you feel they are low light. the law is the law and its not worth getting pulled up for it cos they can still fine you.

kenan

Is rather be pulled over than run over. Anyway chances of getting pulled down my way is very slim.

fossyant

Spoke reflectors are great. See loads used. I just have a few on my mudguard stays, mainly as I don't want them on my wheels, but have them on my sons school bike.

Cycloslalomeur

Old-fashioned, clunky, cheap, polycarbonate spoke reflectors reflect much more light than any tape or spoke straw does. This has been shown in a number of tests carried out in Nordic countries where they take reflectors very seriously indeed.

Frankly I don't give a flying toss what the law says about side lights. I run Spokelits in my daily hack used to ferry mini-Cyclo about, in orange because lorries' side running lights are orange. They make a big difference in dawn, dusk and fog when other vehicles may not even have their lights switched on. Remember, reflectors need some light to reflect.

Cycloslalomeur

Or you can combine the two: http://dx.com/p/bicycle-wheel-spoke-mot ... 032-119347

Cycloslalomeur

http://www.decathlon.co.uk/wheel-reflec ... 34421.html

Cheaper in Germany, but then you'd have to pay for postage. If ordering from there, look for Straßenverkehrs-Zulassungs-Ordnung (StVZO) certification.

cougie

You can get tyre flys and glue them to valve caps.