Decent lights

casatikid

After getting caught out in the dark I realised my Cat Eye front light just isn't good enough for total darkness,green lane riding.However,after looking at whats supposedly the dogs Bs it seems they are all at least £150 plus.Could any road cyclists out there recommend a quality light that wont cost a monthly mortgage instalment?

homers_double

I've had this on test for a bit.

http://go.redirectingat.com/?id=71026X1 ... tz=0&abp=1

Review here:- viewtopic.php?f=10002&t=12983631

styxd

homers double wrote:

I've had this on test for a bit.

http://go.redirectingat.com/?id=71026X1 ... tz=0&abp=1

Review here:- viewtopic.php?f=10002&t=12983631

That might be fine for off road, but at 2000lm it'll be too bright for road use.

Look for something with about 500 lumens such as a cateye, niterider, lezyne etc.

wishitwasallflat

2 torches, 18650 batteries charger and mounts easily got or under £40 check the MTB Buying Thread for all the wisdom and just point them down at the road if you fear the myth that cheap and bright unbranded torches will dazzle motorists!


PS Choose on MTB reccomendations and they are reliable mine are going strong after five years all weather usage.

iron-clover

Hope Vision 1 gets my vote (great 2nd hand lights as rechargeable AA batteries are cheap and easy to buy) - there was a thread about it just a couple of days ago though.
viewtopic.php?f=40042&t=12997019

markyone

hope r4 I use, really really bright light has 3 settings but only use the 3rd setting still bright enough

northpole

Hope are great - decent amount of light and they are engineered to last for ever and a day! (Hopefully fate won't have it in for me saying that!!). I find the Vision 2 great for commuting in London and the R4 when out of town.

Peter

zak3737

I bought a Lezyne Macro front recently, with 400 lumens, - £46 on CRC.
Its got about 5/6 different modes/power modules, incl. 2 Flashing modes, and at its full 400 - its more than adequate for unlit country roads, as I found last night.
Has a 'Race' mode too, which just alternates between 400 & 200 modes, so easy to click it down for oncoming cars if you need.
Really pleased with it, USB chargeable, bargin.
Rear is a very bright Cateye - and again for £13, bargin. 2 AAA's required, but lasts for yonks.

£60 all in, job done.

I know you can get brighter, - I used to have a Cateye Stadium light for MTB'ing, but in all honesty, for road use, totally un-useable, it literally stopped traffic if ever used 'on road'.

homers_double

styxd wrote:

homers double wrote:

I've had this on test for a bit.

http://go.redirectingat.com/?id=71026X1 ... tz=0&abp=1

Review here:- viewtopic.php?f=10002&t=12983631

That might be fine for off road, but at 2000lm it'll be too bright for road use.

Look for something with about 500 lumens such as a cateye, niterider, lezyne etc.

Not if you want to see potholes in the dead if night. Plus 2000 is on full belt, there are two lower settings.

ai_1

Accidental post deleted

OwenB

My mate has just bought one of these http://www.tredz.co.uk/.Smart-500-Lumen-USB-Front-with-R2-USB-Rear-USB-Rechargeable-Light-Set_74191.htm?sku=233207&utm_source=Google&utm_medium=AdwordsProductAds&utm_campaign=Adwords&gclid=CPLqpKWO4cECFQHJtAodS34AEA For the money he reckons it's great, it is however in my opinion a little ugly!

navrig2

I got one of these frm JE James for £25. It is pretty good and I've used it on night rides on unlit country roads quite happily. I even found the equivalent on eBay for about the same money.

http://www.7dayshop.com/products/7daysh ... led-DS-009

It probably hasn't got the right beam shape for those who know better than me but I haven't found that to be an issue.

schlepcycling

I recently bought one of these http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Torchy-BK500-500-lumen-bike-light-USB-charging-swivel-mount-/121458800942?pt=UK_SportGoods_CyclAcces_RL&hash=item1c4782392e for my commute.

diy

2 x 501b with XM-L2 LED - google them lots of sellers. Don't pay more than £6-7.

viewtopic.php?p=19199687#p19199687

Video of some older XM-L (v1) here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-kQL6UnNmjk&t=0m50s

Video makes them look darker than the eye sees - look at car headlights for comparison.

Easily mounted with some inner tube.

macleod113

i have these but for some reason i got them for £55 last year and now they are over £100

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Electron-Terr ... 20ee4cbbe6

thecm

Magicshine?

MJ808 with a split kit for a stonking rear light too. I have the MJ880 as well which i occasionally use on the bike but mostly for night orienteering.

Both well built and lasting well.

alanholden

I use a Cateye Nano Shot Plus, not had any experience of any other light but it is definitely bright enough for riding on unlit roads and the beam focusses fairly evenly all over the road, but nowhere else. There are also now at least two newer models, which may be even better.

Manc33

http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_sb_nos ... 0x3%20bike

Brightness: Absurd.
Cost: Peanuts.

Initialised

Manc33 wrote:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_2?url=search-alias=aps&field-keywords=cree x3 bike

Brightness: Absurd.
Cost: Peanuts.

+1 I use one of these, on the lowest setting it's fine in total darkness on wood covered off road paths well away from street lights. I've yet to try it on MTB trails but I'm sure it'd be fine.

Some warnings:
The battery indicator is near useless and seems to be temperature sensitive, anything other than three bars at the end of the ride and it'll need charging.
It lasts longer when I unplug the battery as soon as I park the bike.
I have a Cateye that I thought was pretty good, cost twice as much, is less than half as bright.
The mount is a bit poor, I re-purposed a Cateye mount so mine's nice and tight now.Buy it from eBay, same price but you'll get a mediocre rear light thrown in for free and some will let you specify a UK charger (and Amazon treat their suppliers badly).

diy

Be careful buying cheap lights with external shrink wrap style 4 * 18650 packs, they often contain refurbished cells and don't last long. Better to source a pack from a reputable source, make your own up using an old laptop battery or get a light that can take removable cells. The second thing to watch out for is more LEDs does not necessarily mean more light. A lot of the multiple XM-L lights are running on rubbish drivers pushing less than 1A to each LED. CREE XP series and XM-L series work well at around 1.5 to 2.5A

annoyingtwit

Manc33 wrote:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_2?url=search-alias=aps&field-keywords=cree x3 bike

Brightness: Absurd.
Cost: Peanuts.

Last night I became tired of having a rubbish front light, so thought I'd buy something from Wilkinsons as a stop gap until I get something better. It's a single CREE bulb torch style light bought for a tenner. Compared to my previous light it's extremely bright. When I got home I searched for other CREE lights, and found the above among others. Given how much light is given off by my single CREE light, I can imagine that 3x that would be absurd. But on ebay there are lights at 'reasonable prices' with 9x bulbs. What on earth kind of light are they going to give off? Googling around, I find quite a lot of discussion about bicycle lights being too bright these days. Does anyone really need more than the 3x bulb lights linked to above?

Previously I was assuming that since I'm not spending big bucks on any of my bike stuff, that I wouldn't be able to go cycling at night. I think that my Wilkinson light at full power should be OK on normal roads.

Ouija

Depends on what model of Cree LED. It's a bit like saying "i just bought a Ford and it's pretty fast" without saying which one. They (Cree) make many models of LED's that run at different brightnesses depending on voltage/amps. They don't make lights, by the way, just the LED's that other companies put in their Lights/torches.

Where you ride determines a lot how much light you need as well as in what conditions. Dry roads go a slate grey and throw a hell of a lot of light back at you, requiring less light. Wet roads require almost twice as much as they absorb light like a sponge. Dry mud is only slightly better than wet roads and wet mud and wet trees throw back almost nothing. So you could create a minimal lumen list as:

Dry road = 500 lumen
Wet road = 1000 lumen
Dry mud = 900 lumen
Wet mud = 1500 lumen

and double those figures if you don't want to be squinting at the lower end of visibility.

Manc33

diy wrote:

Be careful buying cheap lights with external shrink wrap style 4 * 18650 packs, they often contain refurbished cells and don't last long.

This was exactly my experience. I got a Cree x3 with a battery included and the whole kit was £23 delivered.

Well I know a battery pack alone costs that, so I had a look around and DX.com sell a 4x18650 and a 6x18650 "waterproof" pack. Not only are these batteries better because they keep the rain out, they last miles longer than the battery pack I got with the lights.

Adding the cost of those two battery packs along with the £23 for the light kit it all came to under £45. Now I have ten hours of lighting on the bike, what ride ever lasts that long.

diy wrote:

Better to source a pack from a reputable source, make your own up using an old laptop battery or get a light that can take removable cells. The second thing to watch out for is more LEDs does not necessarily mean more light. A lot of the multiple XM-L lights are running on rubbish drivers pushing less than 1A to each LED. CREE XP series and XM-L series work well at around 1.5 to 2.5A

I should have got an x2 one not an x3 since I never use (or would use) the third LED. Doing that uses 50% more power and the brightness increase is barely noticeable, whereas from 1 LED to 2 LEDs on it is literally doubled.

Might flog mine and get one of those Storm thingy ones with 2 in but I don't know if the batteries and chargers are all compatible, the Solarstorm one seems to screw in whereas mine doesn't.

Those packs:

http://www.dx.com/p/8-4v-3600mah-waterp ... GeuZqparjJ

http://www.dx.com/p/8-4v-4800mah-waterp ... GeuaaparjI

Yes it gets here. No I don't know if customs might charge you something. Yes the batteries are good.

In fact that Cree x2 is about £15 on eBay so you're looking at around £40 and you then have a spare "crap" battery pack, just flog it on eBay and recoup a few quid back. Those ones they include are not suitable for use in the UK. Its damp here nearly every day. The waterproof packs are another thing entirely and seem like quality cells.

Ouija

Funnily enough, the last two rubberized packs i got from DX and Kaidomain went straight in the bin (kept the rubber casing to make my own with though). It's not always a sign of quality.

And yes, the packs work with the Solarstorms, which don't screw in, they just have a outer thread so that the two pieces can be kept together by screw cap on the lights lead (kinda ugly so i always cut mine off).