Light recommendations

a148pro

I've been through a few cheap sets of lights at this stage and they're generally so crap I've come to regard them as essentially disposable.

So can anyone recommend a decent set thats decent value? Either available on the internet or in our local friendly bike store.

Kintarō Hattori

I'm quite the fan of Smart. They are cheap, bright and the build quality seems to be excellent. I know my two local LBS stock them and they are also available online.




http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Models.aspx?ModelID=56539

DeepBlue

It's kinda getting to that time of year again.
Time to re-browse the epic 400+ post Front Light For Dark Country Road Commute thread to check out recomendations.

-Chris-

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Electron-Nano-Ultra-Bright-Lights/dp/B002DQ9000/ref=sr_1_1?s=sports&ie=UTF8&qid=1314137956&sr=1-1

I have the Electron 9 as a front light, it's excellent.
I have a Smart for the rear, I'd second KH's recommendation.

-Chris-

Electron 9 is here: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Electron-Nano-Led-Front-Light/dp/B000NOO3SS/ref=tag_dpp_lp_edpp_ttl_in

Out of stock for some reason...


Edit - in stock here: http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Models.aspx?ModelID=14397

a148pro

DeepBlue wrote: »

It's kinda getting to that time of year again.
Time to re-browse the epic 400+ post Front Light For Dark Country Road Commute thread to check out recomendations.

Well I picked up a pair of those velcro wrap around straps today having strayed accross a similar thread here.

Ten fecking euros in Halfords. Safety ain't cheap.

Dubba

Hope Vision 1 - expensive but well worth it:

http://www.wiggle.co.uk/hope-vision-1-led-front-light/

cipo

Exposure lights are fantastic.
Well made, excellent battery life....

Can't recommend them enough...

Lumen

a148pro wrote: »

Ten fecking euros in Halfords. Safety ain't cheap.

DeepBlue

cipo wrote: »

Exposure lights are fantastic.
Well made, excellent battery life....

Looking through Wiggle there's quite a range of them with some having pretty hefty price tags.
Which particular one do you recommend?

NeedMoreGears

DeepBlue wrote: »

It's kinda getting to that time of year again.
Time to re-browse the epic 400+ post Front Light For Dark Country Road Commute thread to check out recomendations.

For some reason link didn't work

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=62463756

I think this may be it - definitely epic.

a148pro

Lumen wrote: »

a148pro wrote: »

Ten fecking euros in Halfords. Safety ain't cheap.

As in ten euros is a lot for a strip of reflective Velcro, not a lot to spend on safety

Thanks for recommendations lads gonna order one of them online

tomasrojo

a148pro wrote: »

As in ten euros is a lot for a strip of reflective Velcro, not a lot to spend on safety

Tesco sells rolls of reflective tape for very little. They also sell a Velcro knock-off for not much either. Then you can make as many reflective wrist-bands and ankle-bands as your heart could desire (four, I'm assuming, unless you're Doctor Octopus).

Holyboy

A bit controversial but how about these http://www.reelight.com/ ?

I really like them but they don't suit everyone.

a148pro

tomasrojo wrote: »

a148pro wrote: »

As in ten euros is a lot for a strip of reflective Velcro, not a lot to spend on safety

Tesco sells rolls of reflective tape for very little. They also sell a Velcro knock-off for not much either. Then you can make as many reflective wrist-bands and ankle-bands as your heart could desire (four, I'm assuming, unless you're Doctor Octopus).

Alas i've bought the feckers already, will Bear in mind tesco though. Word them tonight but didn't feel they were up to much, have to see them on other people I suppose.

I am still alive after cycling lightless from balbriggan back into town after dark so they can't be too bad I suppose. It's amazing how not getting your **** together will have you ending up doing stupid things just cos it's more convenient.

twinsen

Dubba wrote: »

Hope Vision 1 - expensive but well worth it:

http://www.wiggle.co.uk/hope-vision-1-led-front-light/

I have one of these. It is Very bright to say at least. Very comfortable to cycle in pitch black with speeds like 30kmh.

cdaly_

Holyboy wrote: »

A bit controversial but how about these http://www.reelight.com/ ?

I really like them but they don't suit everyone.

I'm using two of these in front (one axle mount, one fork crown mount) and one rear. Very handy as I'm always lit without having to think about it. The axle mount ones tend to bounce a bit on their long mounting brackets. I also use a second battery-powered flashing rear light and have a Fenix TK11 front light for winter commuting...

a148pro wrote: »

Alas i've bought the feckers already, will Bear in mind tesco though. Word them tonight but didn't feel they were up to much, have to see them on other people I suppose.

You have to see them from a car at night to assess them. Best place to wear them is on your ankles as the vertical movement will stand out.

Kintarō Hattori

Holyboy wrote: »

A bit controversial but how about these http://www.reelight.com/ ?

I really like them but they don't suit everyone.

Why are they controversial? They don't cause any friction so I can't imagine what issues someone could have with them.

tomasrojo

Well, they do hamper the rotation of the wheel very, very slightly (I doubt it's an issue for any commuter), but I think the main objection to them is that the light is mounted way too low.

EDIT: I was about 100m behind someone with this as his only rear light (apart a multi-LED arm band, which was ineffective due to each of the many lights being too dim and too small). It was ok from a distance, it did catch my eye. But as you get closer in a car or truck it's soon obscured by the dashboard. I think there's a legal minimum distance from the ground for rear lights, but I can't remember what it is or whether these meet it. I seem to remember it's equivalent to about half-way up the seat stay.

-Chris-

When you stop at a red light (I know, it's a craaaazy idea), will the reelight stop shining, or are they able to hold charge for a few minutes?

tomasrojo

-Chris- wrote: »

When you stop at a red light (I know, it's a craaaazy idea), will the reelight stop shining, or are they able to hold charge for a few minutes?

They must have a capacitor or something; they keep flashing.

Lumen

tomasrojo wrote: »

They must have a capacitor or something; they keep flashing.

Yes, it's a capacitor.

droidus

These look good: http://fibreflare.com/

tomasrojo

I went for the 1W Smart rear light recently. I was using two 1/2W, but I decided the 1W was fine on constant on its own. It's very bright indeed. I don't use this, but it has a nice option that combines flashing with constant in the same unit (big bright LED flashes while the two smaller LEDs stay constant). It also has an option where just the two smaller LEDs are on and constant for group riding.

Not that cheap though.

frant2

http://www.bikeradar.com/gear/category/accessories/lights/front/product/terra-2-light-39893/

I got these - or you can get them as a single - seem to be good value compared to some of the top end schtuff

They are seriously bright on full beams, I sometimes have to cycle on dark roads at nighttime and they light up the road nicely so you can see potholes well in advance.

studiorat

Been doing some "research" since I'm looking for some lights for night time MTB. Found these : Top of range Ay-Up lights Can't justify the price though...

And these : Super Cheap lights from china 900 Lumen etc... The cheap ones get pretty good reviews here and there. Don't forget to have a look around for the team kit shorts and jersey for $41.

And my favorite, Rear light with laser beams!! with USB and mains charger.

tomasrojo

RE: Reelights

http://www.irishstatutebook.ie/1963/en/si/0189.html

(Rather lacking in metric all this)

(6) (a) No part of the illuminated surface of a lamp shall be less than 15 inches or more than 3 feet from the ground.

A Reelight is about axle height, I think.



Axle height is 35cm on a 700C wheel, which is about 14 inches. So too low for this regulation.

galwaycyclist mentioned this a while ago (same document):

(8) (a) The lamp fitted to a bicycle shall be so fitted that it is not more than 20 inches from the extreme rear of the vehicle.

This implies that it's mostly not legal to mount your light under the saddle.

I'm sure these will never be enforced, but I guess it does mean that a Reelight isn't a legally compliant light (unless a subsequent law has superseded the 1963 regulation).

Anyway, as I said, I think they're ok, but I think they probably need supplementing with another light, just because they're so low.

cdaly_

tomasrojo wrote: »

Well, they do hamper the rotation of the wheel very, very slightly (I doubt it's an issue for any commuter), but I think the main objection to them is that the light is mounted way too low.

EDIT: I was about 100m behind someone with this as his only rear light (apart a multi-LED arm band, which was ineffective due to each of the many lights being too dim). It was ok from a distance, it did catch my eye. But as you get closer in a car or truck it's soon obscured by the dashboard. I think there's a legal minimum distance from the ground for rear lights, but I can't remember what it is or whether these meet it. I seem to remember it's equivalent to about half-way up the seat stay.

They have addressed this with a stay/fork mounted coil and a seatpost/carrier/handlebar mounted light unit. Basically back to the dynamo lights setup but without the friction. In my view they are good as extra lighting but not as bright as some of the battery-powered lights and the low level ones are not sufficient alone.

They do have the advantage that their flash rate is proportional to your speed so you can have a strobing effect going on which should draw the eye in good time. You're welcome to hop on my wheel and have a look...

studiorat

I'm sure there was also a law about having a strip of white paint on your back mud guard. And a bell of course.

tomasrojo

Yeah, the bell one is still there.

tomasrojo

cdaly_ wrote: »

They have addressed this with a stay/fork mounted coil and a seatpost/carrier/handlebar mounted light unit. Basically back to the dynamo lights setup but without the friction. In my view they are good as extra lighting but not as bright as some of the battery-powered lights and the low level ones are not sufficient alone.

That sounds pretty good. You are losing some of the simplicity of the original design, but still neater than a bottle dynamo.

zil

The dealextreme lights are amazing when it comes to light output and battery life but the soldering can be a bit suspect so it's quite easy to sever the connections with repeated plugging and unplugging. If you've got access to a soldering iron they'll last forever but if not you'd be lucky to get two winters out of them.

studiorat

zil wrote: »

The dealextreme lights are amazing when it comes to light output and battery life but the soldering can be a bit suspect so it's quite easy to sever the connections with repeated plugging and unplugging. If you've got access to a soldering iron they'll last forever but if not you'd be lucky to get two winters out of them.

Shouldn't be too hard, all the spares are available as well. Two years you'd probably have a better light for lower power anyway.

I wouldn't be able to resist popping them open for a snoop around, so the soldering and heat-sink improvements would probably happen anyway.

BostonB

Kintarō Hattori wrote: »

I'm quite the fan of Smart. They are cheap, bright and the build quality seems to be excellent. I know my two local LBS stock them and they are also available online.




http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Models.aspx?ModelID=56539

Have to agree with this, I think the Smart lights are vastly better than the Cateye ones. I have Smart (slighter older than these) and think they are great.

However these lights are mainly for being seen. They aren't strong enough to light a road/path where there isn't street lighting. So I also have some cheap 1W lights from Deal Extreme, which are much brighter (and still cheap) and use the smarts as my flashers.

http://www.dealextreme.com/p/1w-2-mode-50-lumen-led-bike-light-with-mount-4-aaa-18307

That said, I haven't used them much, so I'm not sure who good the battery life is, they uses AAA's which isn't ideal, or how they'll stand up to a wet winter. My Smarts have no problem in the rain. I should probably get some rechargeable batteries for them. But I find normal battery last a good long time on these LED lights. I'm not commuting everyday though.

If I had more money I'd consider something like this. http://www.bike24.com/p214244.html

You also want to watch that you don't let the lights go too dim on a low battery before changing them. The point is to be seen not save on batteries.

This was a fairly decent light too.
http://www.dealextreme.com/p/bright-5-led-5-mode-red-safety-rear-light-with-mount-for-bike-2-aaa-39442

I tend to have one flasher, one steady light, front and rear. So 4 lights. Then another light, flasher on my back somewhere. Because I noticed people which lights in different locations, seemed to stand out more.

Lumen

BostonB wrote: »

If I had more money I'd consider something like this. http://www.bike24.com/p214244.html

http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?287452-Philips-LED-bike-light

BostonB

This is a bit pricey, but I'd love to try it.

http://www.dealextreme.com/p/rechargeable-7-mode-red-5-led-safety-bike-tail-light-with-7-mode-2-red-laser-beam-35mw-90117

Kintarō Hattori

studiorat wrote: »

And my favorite, Rear light with laser beams!! with USB and mains charger.

Crazy stuff but surely it can't be legal?

BostonB wrote: »

However these lights are mainly for being seen. They aren't strong enough to light a road/path where there isn't street lighting. So I also have some cheap 1W lights from Deal Extreme, which are much brighter (and still cheap) and use the smarts as my flashers.

Well that's it, I use my lights just to be visible and they are great for that. As you mention battery life is superb.

I forgot to mention that I also use these for added side visibility by placing them on the forks:

cdaly_

studiorat wrote: »

And my favorite, Rear light with laser beams!! with USB and mains charger.

Kintarō Hattori wrote: »

Crazy stuff but surely it can't be legal?

The lasers are pointing at the ground and are drawing a 'lane' so they should be fine legality wise. The dangerous aspect of laser light is when shone steadily into your eye, not when being waved around at the ground...

Kintarō Hattori

cdaly_ wrote: »

The lasers are pointing at the ground and are drawing a 'lane' so they should be fine legality wise. The dangerous aspect of laser light is when shone steadily into your eye, not when being waved around at the ground...

Hmnn interesting... I'd consider buying it in the future just to try it out as it seems like a mad concept.

kenmc

studiorat wrote: »

And these : Super Cheap lights from china 900 Lumen etc... .

These 900 lumens look suspiciously like these, even the same product code!

zil

kenmc wrote: »

These 900 lumens look suspiciously like these, even the same product code!

I'd say they're almost certainly the same. I know there's one or two uk resellers of the magicshine lights who charge quite a bit more than dealextreme but provide a superior warrenty service so maybe this is something similar.

studiorat

zil wrote: »

I'd say they're almost certainly the same. I know there's one or two uk resellers of the magicshine lights who charge quite a bit more than dealextreme but provide a superior warrenty service so maybe this is something similar.

Magic shine is run from a fella's house in Northampton, you can basically order through Deal Extreem through their "UK warehouse", which I'd imagine is the same thing. I suspect Deal Extreem is a portal site to lots of dealers.

The warranty service would most likely depend on stock levels at the time IMO.

brayblue24

droidus wrote: »

These look good: http://fibreflare.com/

I have one of these. Absolutely terrific. I even get motorists asking me where I got it

Crow92

brayblue24 wrote: »

I have one of these. Absolutely terrific. I even get motorists asking me where I got it

Did you purchase it in ireland?

blorg

Magicshine and all the others are generic lights made in China.

DX are Hong Kong basically shipping direct from source.

Yer man in Northampton is importing from China and selling on, DX are not buying from him!

My own take on it: the DX stuff is extremely cheap but QA is lacking. If you are willing to fix can be a good option. My own Magicshine broke (the mount, so soldering wouldn't help) and DX weren't a lot of help. I actually got as far as posting the mount back but never heard any more. But hey, it was cheap, and I can still attach it albeit less securely with a LockBlock.

Fenix are also made in China but have good QA and are reliable. So if you want it to keep working, that is the best choice. There are several other Chinese brands with excellent reliability- Candlepower forums is the place to look.

Secondly, 900 lumens is overkill for road riding and without a shaped beam you won't be able to use it without dazzling traffic. 200-250 lumens is more than you will ever need on a road, I have done 70km/h descents with this (Stocking Lane.) I actually use my Fenix on medium (60 lumens) for much general road riding for longer battery life. Here in Asia I have been surviving on I think a 10 lumen general/60 lumen Turbo light as I don't want the weight/charger of the Fenix and it is OK.

Also remember the tradeoff, brighter light means shorter run time or more/heavier batteries. Magicshine uses 4 18650s for same runtime on 1 in a TK11.

If you spend more you can get a shaped beam from the likes of B&M. More money for less light but it is being used more efficiently.

TL;DR: having tried a few options, for value/lumens/battery/reliability my preference is a Fenix TK11.

studiorat

Should have made that clearer. The company in KenMc's link is yer man in Northampton. DX are an outlet/warehouse in Hong Kong apparently.

Well, I pulled the trigger on a couple of different types Seoul Semiconductor and Cree LED's including one similar to the Fenix and threw in some different types of mounting hardware.

The plan is to use these for night-time MTB trips, so I'm hoping I won't need more than 2 or 3 hours at a time.

Will probably receive them next March! will keep you posted.

cityhunter

how about this one？
http://www.focalprice.com/LH059X/10_LED_AllPurpose_Bike_Warning_Light.html
Good quality.
Lighters are very good!!
It takes 4 battery AAA on fordward light and 2 battery AA on backward light.

Kintarō Hattori

cityhunter wrote: »

how about this one？
http://www.focalprice.com/LH059X/10_LED_AllPurpose_Bike_Warning_Light.html
Good quality.
Lighters are very good!!
It takes 4 battery AAA on fordward light and 2 battery AA on backward light.

It looks like a cheap generic Chinese light set. I would imagine the build quality is pretty woeful.

langdang

Kintarō Hattori wrote: »

It looks like a cheap generic Chinese light set. I would imagine the build quality is pretty woeful.

Ya, if it's not from a reputable brand OR doesn't mention the brand of LEDs (Cree, SSC or whatever) then it's a front light that might be OK for being seen, but won't help you see much. That's a complicated way of saying what KH said already

BostonB

Some cheaper of the branded lights sub €50 aren't that made that well either. Or to put it another way, they are made well enough for most people, and the branded products are often no better made than the unbranded ones. I had something similar to those LH059X lights I think its a generic design thats copied and branded by a few other well know brands.

When you buy more expensive lights though, you are probably getting customer support and a warranty that you don't get with the cheaper lights.

But I'd have to echo what was said, they are mainly best at being seen. Perfect for that. But not really powerful enough to see an unlit road or path.

BostonB

People should really look at the power output of the lights and even online reviews. You can pay 50 for a dire light or a very good one.