Head lamp/light?

joecamel

Winter approaching and the commute is going dark.
What headlamp(s) to attach to the helmet? What're you all using? Good or bad?

2 Solarstorms on the bars with a Y cord/splitter is fantastic but a little more visibility on my head for traffic in those blind corners is needed.

thomasmorris

I wouldn't use a 'to see with' helmet light for commuting, unless off road.

Head lamps are for great MTBing where turns are so tight a bar mounted light doesn't cover the corner exit. I have never come across a road which has corners this tight.

Plus there are several downsides to head lamps 'to see with':
- They will dazzle other road users, no matter how careful you are
- Bright light source close to your eyes means you won't see shadows, so actually makes it harder to see broken surfaces
- If not balanced well can cause neck issues on longer rides. Means you have to do up helmet tighter (uncomfortable).
- Questionable safety if you have a fall (depends on how it is attached, but having something strapped to your helmet is unlikely to increase it's effectiveness).

Getting more visibility up high is a good idea though, but some cheap £1.50 rubber band types things will be perfect.

edit: Not sure which model solar-storms you have, but with two I'd say you're bordering on overkill as it is. I have one for the MTB, but I wouldn't use them on the road as beam is so wide no matter how much you point down it will shine in peoples eyes. Safety wise I think you maybe better with two independent front lights for redundancy in case the battery fails.

figbat

thomasmorris wrote:

Plus there are several downsides to head lamps 'to see with':
- They will dazzle other road users, no matter how careful you are
- Bright light source close to your eyes means you won't see shadows, so actually makes it harder to see broken surfaces
- If not balanced well can cause neck issues on longer rides. Means you have to do up helmet tighter (uncomfortable).
- Questionable safety if you have a fall (depends on how it is attached, but having something strapped to your helmet is unlikely to increase it's effectiveness).

- if you ride in a group, every time to turn to talk to someone you will blind them and wreck their night vision.

thomasmorris

ha yeah, MTBing there is always that one who doesn't switch off their headtorch at the trail head, and treats the group to some retina burning immediately before tricky descent!

joecamel

thomasmorris wrote:

I wouldn't use a 'to see with' helmet light for commuting, unless off road.

I have never come across a road which has corners this tight.

Both good points.
The head light is for me to be seen rather than to see, although visibility is just as dark as any off road.
Commuting about 25k with maybe 1k of that lit, the rest is dark country roads, high hedges, lots of bends that peeps treat like a racetrack.
2 SolarStorms tilted down slightly gives a great spread, helps avoid pot holes, of which there are lots AND 2 Solarstorms still can't compete with 2 car headlights on main beam, which is the norm on dark country roads.

Decent helmetlight for me to be seen rather than to be able to see?

fenix

Just stick with the light on the bars - a light on the head confuses drivers - and if you're looking left or right - they may see no light at all from the front.

If you want a light on the helmet get a flashy cheap one, or you can even mount a small maglite type torch - like one of the Fenix range - with some O rings and a bit of padding.

figbat

Topeak Headlux?

thomasmorris

I use these on my helmet.
Bands are stretchy and go around the vents. Light weight, probably would rip off in a crash, and if not they're mostly silicon. Super cheap. Batteries last a winter, buy a new set next autumn.

If you really want something brighter, then maybe this: https://www.evanscycles.com/moon-aerolite-helmet-light-EV246500 I've not used this light, but my other moon lights have been very good. 60 lumens is more than I'd really want for the sake of others, the lower modes may be more acceptable (hard to tell without beam pattern etc..).

I'd feel it was getting to the size where I'd question the pros of increased visibility reducing risk of being knocked off versus the increase in risk of injury should you get knocked off. But everyone will have different perception of risk on that!

joecamel

thomasmorris wrote:

If you really want something brighter, then maybe this: https://www.evanscycles.com/moon-aerolite-helmet-light-EV246500

Thanks thomasmorris . That's exactly what I was looking for, bright enough but not too bright. Dual ended too.