Offroad Bicycle Lights

[joe.ford]

Hello All

Hope someone can help.

I'm in need of some super bright lights, for those night time rides where there are no street lights.

I'm low on funds at the minute, and therefore being a tight

I've managed to find 2 that seem to be bright enough

1. 2 x 1300 lumen torch with mounts

2. 2 x 1800 lumen bike light with a head strap

Which would be best?

 

[Chiseller]

Without looking at the links I'd say massive overkill on lumens. You could permanently damage someone's eyes with those. Especially on a head band. You need summat that throws. A wide-ish beam as well as deep. I use an 180 lumen on my head and it's more than good enough for fast wood trails aswell as road use.

Sent from my HTC One X using Tapatalk 2

 

[Wook]

180 lumens is seriously underpowered for night time downhill trails.

For a long time the gold standard among mountain bikers was something like the Betty Lupine range at 700 lumens, but they cost a bloody fortune.

Some clever so and so took to making cheap Chinese copies of these lights which were 90% as good, but only 30% as expensive. The result is the MagicShine range:

http://www.magicshineuk.co.uk/

I have one on my to-buy list, and if you're looking for cheap but good lights for offroading, I don't think you can go much cheaper and get something that'll do the job.

I'm currently running 2 180 lumen Fenixes as my front lights for road cycling, but on muggy damp nights that isn't enough illumination. When the road is dark because it's wet they don't provide enough contrast and it is easy to miss a turn or pothole. On clear nights I would rate them as just passable for road cycling. No way would I use them for offroad though.

Yes 1000+ lumens is retina searingly bright, but they can all be dipped to a lower setting if someone is coming the other way.

 

[ebt.]

with the chinese stuff you need to "adjust" the lumen ratings (ie they're over egged).

I use a couple of WF501B's (1 x 18650 cell in each), which claim to be 900lm. One on the bars and one on the helmet (held on with a couple of bungee loops). Total spend is less than £20 (deal extreme).

Usually I just have 1 on across the downs, but if Im coming through singletrack/woods I stick them both on.

The helmet one points down a bit, but if a motorist is being a dick I find a quick lift of the head makes them notice you.

 

[fredster]

Ah Mr Ford, we meet again! I've got a cheapo chinese torch (£10) with a cheapo chinese handlebar mount (£5) and its all good enough for a normal night ride. Torch is a cree jobbie, don't buy one that isn't. That £50 set you link to looks good value to me, and certainly bright enough for your needs.

 

[joe.ford]

Ah Mr Ford, we meet again! I've got a cheapo chinese torch (£10) with a cheapo chinese handlebar mount (£5) and its all good enough for a normal night ride. Torch is a cree jobbie, don't buy one that isn't. That £50 set you link to looks good value to me, and certainly bright enough for your needs.

Could even mount em on the front of the canoe, for those night paddles

 

[EdS]

http://www.hopetech.com/page.aspx?itemID=SPG407

Enough said

 

[Wook]

Joe the problem with using torches of any sort is they often don't put the light where you need it. In the case of my Fenixes for example they are really rather too focussed for use as cycling lights, but I overcome this by using 2 which I aim at different points on the road.

Dedicated bike lights will ideally shape the throw of the light into a more optimal configuration.

 

[boatman]

Could cyclists not use lights on their heads on roads especially extra bright ones? Last winter As I drove along a narrow but two lane road I was dazzled and confused by a group of bright lights at different heights bobbing about all over the place as a group of cyclists came the other way. A fixed white light on the front of the bike is what they should use on the road at night.
https://www.gov.uk/rules-for-cyclists-59-to-82/overview-59-to-71

 

[dogotter]

The magic shine lights are really good. My friends that use them at least once a week for riding in the peaks swear by them.
Check out Deal extreme. Cheap as chips.

 

[Cogola]

I've found Ay Up lights to be pretty good. The kit I got came with a head band so I can even use the lights for Rogaining. Certainly a step up from my old Petzl.

 

[Lyope]

The sweet spot for power vs not-much-money is something like this:

http://www.7dayshop.com/7dayshop-ss...ike-bicycle-head-light-handlebar-mounted-lamp

The subject of lighting is usually discussed to death on the bike forum I hang out on here:

http://yacf.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=59808.0

 

[joe.ford]

Thanks all for the advise.

In the end I went for the twin torch's, for the sole reason that they could be delivered in time for my planned night ride

They were far better than expected, shining up the road almost as well as my brothers proper bike lights

 

[Syrio]

I have the 2nd setup myself. You can get those for 17 pounds each now on ebay which is an insane bargain.

If anyones interested you will also want to get a wide angle lens for one of them which I have done and most other also. This gives more short range flood lighting on one, and long range beam lightning on the standard one.

Only downer is the charge time is quite long, though not really an issue if you are prudent with charging.

 

[gravelmonkey]

Don't want to come across as namby-pamby captain health and safety but watch those charging cell's like a hawk, some of those chargers have a habit of going over 4.2V; best case- you wreck the life span of the li-ion cells, worst case- housefire.

Oh and grab some silicone grease and smear a bit on the o-rings where the light screws together- it'll keep the rain/mud/roadkill out of the light. That tube should last pretty much forever with normal use.

 

[alpha_centaur]

Anything that stops "sorry I didn't see you there mate" Is fair game in my opinion.

 

[joe.ford]

Anything that stops "sorry I didn't see you there mate" Is fair game in my opinion.

Yep they certainly do make you noticed.

In fact I even have cars pull right over onto the verge to let me and my little bike come through. For some reason having 2 headlamps makes them think you are big

 

[kenthompson]

Go for the head strap! Much more convenient

 

[Dandaman_24]

I have one of these ebay 1800 lumen head torches. Had it 2years and use it pretty much every morning and night in the winter for walking the dog in the field. Great Bit of kit for the money. Yes it does dazzle if shone in the direction of passing cars people, but its tester to be seen than not.

Any idea where I can get a lens to give a wider spread of light ?

 

[gravelmonkey]

I have one of these ebay 1800 lumen head torches. Had it 2years and use it pretty much every morning and night in the winter for walking the dog in the field. Great Bit of kit for the money. Yes it does dazzle if shone in the direction of passing cars people, but its tester to be seen than not.

Any idea where I can get a lens to give a wider spread of light ?

You can use something translucent stuck to the lens should give you a big flood of light, some of the best stuff I've found is called 'DC-Fix' - its actually designed to be applied to windows for privacy. Translucent scotch tape works okay, cheapest solution probably.