Night riding

rockmonkeysc

I do enjoy a good night ride but unlike most of my mates I like to use the absolute minimum (150 lumens) of lighting so that it still feels like night.
Everyone else seems to go for as many lights as they can carry.
Does anyone else go for my style of night riding? Or is it just me?

slindborg

I'd go for night vision goggles, if you could guarantee no oncoming lights

capoz77

I still use my hong kong £30 1600 lumen monster

viewtopic.php?f=10002&t=12807351

still for sale here

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/130568084707? ... 1423.l2649


I light to light the trail up like a second sun, have a fenix torch for the helmet too

thegreatpoobarr

slindborg wrote:

I'd go for night vision goggles, if you could guarantee no oncoming lights

Very little depth perception using them, should make things VERY intersting.

tenfoot

Well,,,,, if I'm out on my own, I do use mimimal lighting on trails that aren't too technical or that i do know well. I like the feeling of being out at night too. I have ridden using the moonlight a few times, briefly too. My eyes get accustomed to whatever light levels are available.

However,,,,, when i'm out with the pack, it seems to have turned into some sort of arms race, with the main problem being the shadow their lights cast, leaving me with a dark patch of trail i can't see any detail on. So in a pack, I up my lumens, just to be able to see where I'm going.

Antm81

thegreatpoobarr wrote:

slindborg wrote:

I'd go for night vision goggles, if you could guarantee no oncoming lights

Very little depth perception using them, should make things VERY intersting.

Then there is the weight of them, you'd have a broken neck by the end

Greer_

One big light does me rightly. Hasn't stopped me going over the bars in places where the ground disappears though!

MrM

Some cyclist need an eye test & an IQ test. There is no need for 1000 to 2000 lumen's specially when they have three lights (or more as well as a direct stare head light) flashing away an hour before sunset. My eyes work so I can cycle on unlit roads/tracks with up to 150 lumen's

YeehaaMcgee

MrM wrote:

Some cyclist need an eye test & an IQ test. There is no need for 1000 to 2000 lumen's specially when they have three lights

eh? Why does having three lights make any difference?

(or more as well as a direct stare head light) flashing away an hour before sunset. My eyes work so I can cycle on unlit roads/tracks with up to 150 lumen's

Depends how fast you want to go, and how technical the terrain is. That's why rally cars have BIG lights, whereas road cars, generally, don't.

I would quite happily ride round Llandegla red, for example, with a half decent light, but I'd think twice about riding down the woods above Llanberis without some considerable illumination. (not that I'd ride there obviously, since I'd get shouted at by jobsworth types )

swod1

i tend to use 1 xml t6 light and keep a spare in my backpack, othertimes i use both on the front.

I need to get more waterproof protection for the battery packs though.

welshkev

when i'm climbing or riding a fireroad I usually just use my 300 lumen torch thingy. if i'm going fast over some rough/technical stuff then 2 torches and a 900 lumen magic shine for me.

I want to see the tree, stump, rock or whtever that I crash in to

Thewaylander

or the frsot patch you can hardly make out with out decent illumination....

personally i say it dependsont he terrain, a little up fire tracks, alot down trickier terrain for me.

RidingSeed

what if your light goes out while you're in the middle of nowhere :shock:

YeehaaMcgee

RidingSeed wrote:

what if your light goes out while you're in the middle of nowhere :shock:

Well, that's when the bogeyman comes and gets you.

welshkev

YeehaaMcgee wrote:

RidingSeed wrote:

what if your light goes out while you're in the middle of nowhere :shock:

Well, that's when the bogeyman comes and gets you.

Yep, the monsters come out in the dark.

To be honest my battery has gone before. Scared the shit out if me lol

njee20

I don't hugely enjoy night riding, I generally do it because in winter particularly it's basically always dark at the times when I can ride, therefore I like to use bright lights.

I totally get why you'd not want to use super bright ones, just not for me!

prawny

I like two on the bars and one on the lid, all XML T6 on medium power to make sure I've got enough juice to get me home. I smashed one of the torches in a crash at the end of last winter though so I'm thinking of getting a proper T6 bike light again for this year. Definitely need a light on the bar and one on the head though, it's horrible riding in the dark without either.

welshkev

prawny wrote:

I like two on the bars and one on the lid, all XML T6 on medium power to make sure I've got enough juice to get me home. I smashed one of the torches in a crash at the end of last winter though so I'm thinking of getting a proper T6 bike light again for this year. Definitely need a light on the bar and one on the head though, it's horrible riding in the dark without either.

yeah, my magic shine goes on my helmet. it's horrible when you've got no light the way you are looking...fun though

prawny

welshkev wrote:

prawny wrote:

I like two on the bars and one on the lid, all XML T6 on medium power to make sure I've got enough juice to get me home. I smashed one of the torches in a crash at the end of last winter though so I'm thinking of getting a proper T6 bike light again for this year. Definitely need a light on the bar and one on the head though, it's horrible riding in the dark without either.

yeah, my magic shine goes on my helmet. it's horrible when you've got no light the way you are looking...fun though

Not when you hear creaking in the trees :shock:

jairaj

I've got an old Hope LED on the bars (don't judge me - they're from back in the day when cheapy DX lights weren't available) and a home made head torch. I think in total probably have something like 500 lumens when its all on full power.

I only need that when I'm descending something technical or going very fast so I can look well ahead, if climbing or going slow then usually I'm happy with putting the lights on their lowest settings prob 200 lumens in total. Its not that I want the night ride experience, I just simply don't think I need more for the trails I have locally.

Although recently mates have started to join in and they have some mini suns on their heads and end up casting shadows over my lights so thinking of getting an upgrade.

njee20

Aah yes, the light arms race is a big problem, in fact I think that brighter lights alone have driven the need for brighter lights, if that makes sense!

Even with my older 960lm Maxx-D and a Joystick of about 200lm you're entirely in shadow if someone with a Six-Pack or Reflex rides behind you!

supersonic

The XML T6 with quad battery packs can be had now for a paltry £15 on ebay. Are a bit spotty, but work well with a floody torch, or just put some frosting on the lense.

lbalony

Just looking on eBay now at cheap lights. Some bargains. 5000lm cree for 25 quid. Are they any good though or should I spend the extra and get the Magicshine double one?

lbalony

lbalony wrote:

Just looking on eBay now at cheap lights. Some bargains. 5000lm cree for 25 quid. Are they any good though or should I spend the extra and get the Magicshine double one?

http://bit.ly/15lgBgL

lbalony

lbalony wrote:

lbalony wrote:

Just looking on eBay now at cheap lights. Some bargains. 5000lm cree for 25 quid. Are they any good though or should I spend the extra and get the Magicshine double one?

http://bit.ly/15lgBgL

Anybody have that ^^^^. Looks alot like the magicshine one.

supersonic

No way is it 5000 lumens, complete fantasy! 2000 at the very most. Still, for the money, looks like it could be very good.

Kowalski675

On Thursday evening I was still out after dark (hadn't intended to be, I don't have any proper lights), and on the way back the canal towpath was very, very dark with only one LED marker light to see by. Nearly got very wet, lol...

lbalony

supersonic wrote:

No way is it 5000 lumens, complete fantasy! 2000 at the very most. Still, for the money, looks like it could be very good.

Ha your prob dead right judging by the chinese digi box I once bought and its great advert but very under powered lump of plastic I received. Still 2000 Lumens is good. Only concern is battery life/quality! But at that price think its worth a try!

Anyone any experience with the batteries that come with these things? Or good cheapo ones to upgrade too?

prawny

I looked at that one, the smooth reflectors are more spotty than orange peel ones (I think, someone correct me if I'm wrong) so probably not ideal for on the bars, also for dual led ones I'd prefer a 6 cell battery to a 4 cell one, but I suppose you're still getting double the cells per led compared to a torch.

Hmm, time for serious thinking is now.

jairaj

The battery packs on these are usually a bit rubbish but ok for the money you are spending.

A reasonable upgrade might be getting a new pack made up by someone like MTB batteries.

Ouija

I was looking at that one as something new for this winter but ordered this Trustfire the other day instead...





.. as it has a remote switch to save you taking your hands off the bars and a rubberised battery pack. And Manafont is a company i've ordered loads of stuff from before without any problems. Oh! And it works out at £28 including shipping.