Smart 1/2 Watt LED for €5

blorg

Normally I don't post these things but this is incredible value for the best rear LED you will buy IMHO. £4.32 with free shipping to Ireland.

http://www.probikekit.com/display.php?code=M0004

DirkVoodoo

I have 2 already, brilliant light. Solid build and I have got a lot of miles out of the original batteries. It makes my front cateye 3 LED light look pathetic in comparison.

A must have now that the days will be getting shorter.

kenmc

savage, already have 2, have now ordered a few spares. 10.99 on wiggle!
Absolutely fantastic lights, even more so for the price here!

Nietzschean

how many of these do ye need???

kenmc

well i have 3 bikes. and my gf has one.
and i have 2 lights on my commute bike

Bunnyhopper

I don't need a rear light just now, but it's a very good price so I ordered one as a back up.

Hmm, now that I think about it I should probably order a new bike to attach it to...

blorg

I already have at least 4 that I was happy to get at over twice that price. I suspect I have spares already. Might buy a couple more though, in case I lose or break some.

Four on the bike during winter:

DualFrontDiscs

blorg wrote: »

I already have at least 4 that I was happy to get at over twice that price. I suspect I have spares already. Might buy a couple more though, in case I lose or break some.

Four on the bike during winter:

<snip>

You've just inspired me to buy six (6) for my big bike. Next step up will be http://rockthebike.com/down-low-glow

DFD.

kenmc

DualFrontDiscs wrote: »

You've just inspired me to buy six (6) for my big bike. Next step up will be http://rockthebike.com/down-low-glow

DFD.

I think a certain boardsie should justify his name with one of these

**Timbuk2**

Thanks Blorg - that's a bargain. They are very bright - your picture encouraged me to get off my ass and get my credit card (although if the site accepted paypal I wouldn't even need the card!).

I was considering buying rear lights for a while - thank God I saw this before I bought something else. Thanks Blorg (my bank balance thanks you as well!)

DirkVoodoo

kenmc wrote: »

I think a certain boardsie should justify his name with one of these

Tut tut...(I'm not good at searching for old posts)

**Timbuk2**

kenmc wrote: »

I think a certain boardsie should justify his name with one of these

Sorry to thread hijack, but I was searching for good, padded handlebar tape and the glow in the dark feature looks good. Is that a good bar tape? How is the padding?

DirkVoodoo

Read the wiggle customer reviews, they are actually quite handy when there are a few of them.

blorg

DualFrontDiscs wrote: »

You've just inspired me to buy six (6) for my big bike.

Is this a challenge? Right.

The tax man

Cheers Blorg. For once the CC didn't take a hammering.:D

Lumen

blorg wrote: »

Is this a challenge? Right.

For some reason I feel the need to point out that the Blackburn Mars 4.0 has a 1 watt LED. It is however, many times the price of the Smart.

So the Smart may be the best VFM, but it's not the brightest.

If you're going to win a war, don't go in with peashooters. :pac:

I'm also toying with the idea of fitting a red diffuser on a 240 lumen torch. But that would just be silly.

kenmc

Lumen wrote: »

I'm also toying with the idea of fitting a red diffuser on a 240 lumen torch. But that would just be silly about bright enough.

fyp

Bunnyhopper

I notice this is now out of stock at PBK: blorg should ask them for a commission

kenmc

better than that!
Stock : -15

blorg

Bunnyhopper wrote: »

I notice this is now out of stock at PBK: blorg should ask them for a commission

Haha, there goes my plan of buying a few spares so... I guess 4 is enough.

Ghost Rider

Strangled by your own thread there, blorg. I bought two and mentioned it to flynnr, who also bought two!

blorg wrote: »

Haha, there goes my plan of buying a few spares so... I guess 4 is enough.

DualFrontDiscs

blorg wrote: »

Haha, there goes my plan of buying a few spares so... I guess 4 is enough for one bike, for now

FYP.

Just got the email confirming my six have left the warehouse!:)

**Timbuk2**

Ordered 2 on Wednesday (29/07) and received them today (04/08).

kenmc

mine arrived this morning too.

**Timbuk2**

Wow, did anybody else make the mistake of looking at the light as soon as the batteries were inserted? Very bright!

Does anybody know how long these last?
According to amazon.co.uk
190 hours run time on steady mode. 30 hours of runtime on flashing mode.
According to PBK:
Run Time: 30 hours constant / 190 hours flashing.

Which is right?

DualFrontDiscs

**Timbuk2** wrote: »

According to amazon.co.uk
190 hours run time on steady mode. 30 hours of runtime on flashing mode.
According to PBK:
Run Time: 30 hours constant / 190 hours flashing.
Which is right?

The batteries should last longer in flashing mode.

colm ó maonaigh

Thanks for that Blorg. My 2 arrived today also. They are a really good light. My wife is convinced I have a fetish with lights, torches etc. but these are by far the best so far.

DualFrontDiscs

My six arrived today.

Already 'lost' two to colleagues in the office!

Four just doesn't seem enough.

Thanks Blorg.

DFD

**Timbuk2**

Are flashing red rear lights road legal in Ireland?

Or are they only legal in addition to a steady red rear light?

tomasrojo

**Timbuk2** wrote: »

Are flashing red rear lights road legal in Ireland?

Or are they only legal in addition to a steady red rear light?

According to the Bike wiki, it is not legal in Ireland to have flashing-only lights attached.
http://wiki.boards.ie/wiki/Bike_lights

However, the link it cites for that statement doesn't really mention flashing lights:
http://www.citizensinformation.ie/categories/travel-and-recreation/vehicle-standards/lighting-of-bicycles-in-ireland/

From that link it appears that you definitely need to have a front and rear light attached to your bike (rather than to your person, though you can use those in addition), the front emitting white or yellow light, and the rear emitting red.

tomasrojo

I think in the UK the use of flashing lights alone has been permitted for a few years. Before that, I think the use of flashing lights _in addition to_ steady lights was ok. If the relevant legislation hasn't been changed here, then I assume this second case is ok here too.

Jawgap

Here's mine......

blorg

To be honest this is another area where I would disregard the specifics of the law and go with whatever makes you most visible... I generally have more than one light and keep at least one steady but if I only had the one on I would go for the flashing mode.

blorg

Note legislation relating to bicycle lighting post-dates independence so what the UK law is or isn't is not very relevant. Presuming the 1963 regulations haven't been updated (and I don't _think_ it has), these are the rules for a rear light:

S.I. No. 189/1963 &#8212 wrote: »

(4) A rear lamp fitted to a cycle shall—

(a) when lit, show to the rear of the cycle a red light visible during lighting-up hours for a reasonable distance,

(b) have an illuminated area of at least 2 square inches and of such a shape that a circle of 1 inch in diameter may be inscribed therein,

(c) be fitted—

(i) on the centre line of the cycle or to the right of that line,

(ii) so that no part of the illuminated surface of the lamp is more than 3 feet or less than 12 inches from the ground,

(iii) so that it is not more than 20 inches from the extreme rear of the cycle.

Note that is written expecting a filament bulb and basically rules out any modern LED light due to insufficient surface area. Is there any chance of the above being enforced if you are well lit? No, there is not, the gardaí have common sense in this area and appreciate any cyclist that goes to the effort to make themselves visible.

tomasrojo

blorg wrote: »

Note legislation relating to bicycle lighting post-dates independence so what the UK law is or isn't is not very relevant. Presuming the 1963 regulations haven't been updated (and I don't _think_ it has), these are the rules for a rear light:

Sorry, when I said "the relevant legislation", I had in mind the 1961 Road Traffic Act in Ireland, or something like that which pre-dated LED lights. I didn't mean to imply that UK legislation had any meaning here (except to inform case law when looking for precedents, I assume).

kenmc

IIRC the law requires a "fixed red rear light". Does not mention blinking or constantly on, so one could argue that as long as it is attached to the bike it is 'fixed'.
To be honest though, I'd say if you're actually stopped by the cops for having a flashing led it'd be to congratulate you on actually having lights at all.

Bunnyhopper

**Timbuk2** wrote: »

Wow, did anybody else make the mistake of looking at the light as soon as the batteries were inserted? Very bright!

Aaiiieee - my eyes are burning :eek:

Mine arrived this morning. Nice light, particularly at that price. Thanks again, blorg.

Home:Ballyhoura

Thanks blorg for posting this! I had already seen the offer but never looked twice at it, but I also ordered one and was very happy with how extremely bright it was and how neat and well made (it seemed) it was.

However, I took it out for a spin yesterday evening and as it happened I was caught in a torrential downpour and spent about a half an hour (just doing a TT) splashing through the usual puddles etc (but not to worry I thought to myself, this thing is durable and water resistant!)

However, when I got home it all seemed grand. It was working perfectly, but when I was going to bed (NOTE: I keep my bike hanging on the wall in my room) the light was back on again and flashing again. I went to turn it off buy the switch wouldn't work. When I came back after getting a coin it was now on constant mode (obviously faulty) and when I opened it up there was drops of water inside the casing.

I have since dried it out and it all seems to be fine and working again, but I am just wondering are these lights actually delicate and sensitive to water or could I just have got a dud one with a bad seal (or could I have possibly put it back together wrong after putting in the batteries? I can't imagine so somehow!). Does PBK deserve to receive this one back for a replacement? What are your experiences and what advice would you give? Cheers

blorg

My general experience with the lights (bought at £10-15 range) is that they can be a bit sensitive to water etc in REALLY bad conditions but they dry out fine. If you like you can send it to me and I will send you a fiver There can also be issues with sensitivity of the switch through the casing. I note they have it back in stock now at £12 or something.

AstraMonti

They are back in stock, but in their normal 15euro price.

blorg

AstraMonti wrote: »

They are back in stock, but in their normal 15euro price.

Haha yes I had it on stock notification and clicked on that one expectedly allright.