Commuting - Blinkie Rage

Ok...I knew I should've gotten a few reviews on it before I bought it, but the Mars 3.0 was available cheap from nashbar and I wanted a good blinkie. It looked pretty damn bright enough in the description, and when I got it on my bike, it was as far as my concerns go.

Then this morning I went head over handlebars...(filtering forward in traffic and I put my front wheel in a drain) I got back up and didn't have much time to look around before the light changed (I was at the front of the line at this point, so I had to go) but when I got to work I realized that my blinkie apparently got catapulted over the handlebars at the same time I did, because alas, it was no longer there. aside from this I was completely fine save a small amount of embarassment.

That clip mechanism sucks because this was a 5mph or slower incident.

so, any advice on a good bright and reasonably priced blinkie that won't go flying?

I like my Blackburn Mars 2.0...

The bracket on my rack broke (for the second time) and the Mars went flying. No damage, it's blinking again.

How did you have the 3.0 attached?



But it's the Planet Bike Superflash that all the superfly commuters are sportin' this fall...

I used the stock mounting equipment, but my seatpost is incredibly thin tubing (just over 20mm...the smallest thing out there afaik) so it didn't fit. instead I used that hose-clamp like mounting clip and attached it the top of my seatstays (the tubes running from dropout to seatpost...I think that's the name for them) right before they join the seatpost/downtube/toptube. I suppose if I had mounted it to the seatpost that it would've hit the seat and not flown quite as far. I'll look for it on the return route if I've got daylight, otherwise its going to be a walmart blinkie until I can locate something as bright or better than the Mars....it was a great blinkie, I think i'd rather have a clip that requires a button to be pushed in order for it to release. my computer and headlight have that and seem to be more secure.

I have my 2.0 screwed directly onto the rack... works good for me.

I'd recommend the Planet Bike Superflash. Dunno if the mounting is that great, but it's very bright and not a ton of money.

Take off the clip and mount it with a screw, directly onto a reflector mount.

If you're asking for suggestions on another light, I love my Serfas tl 2000. It's bright enough to be visible during the day light.

I have the Mars 3.0 and I just clip it onto my seatpost bag which has a strap across the back of it. Seems to work just fine.

My Trek Disco Inferno bracket broke. Pretty bright, but won't stay in place.

so, any advice on a good bright and reasonably priced blinkie that won't go flying?Planet Bike "Blinky SuperFlash" or "Blinky 5" maybe. The Blinky 5 is down in the $10-$12 range and the SuperFlash is about $20. I assume you want to mount the blinkie on your seatpost or seatstay? Amazingly, even the Blinky 5 is making a brighter "hot spot" on my wall than my NiteRider superblinkie, plus the Blinky 5's lens is also a passive reflector. So it could be an all-around value if you don't mind that it's wider than the Blackburn or the SuperFlash.

Cateye's LD1000 is another nice one, with LEDs aimed sideways as well as rearwards.

I have the Mars 3.0 and I just clip it onto my seatpost bag which has a strap across the back of it. Seems to work just fine.

Me too

$10-$15 seems reasonable to me. You can get a xenon strobe for that that put most common blinkies to shame. See www.allelectronics.com and others. I recommend silicone caulk or a genuine potting compound squirted into the works to block fatigue failure of parts on wires like capacitors. My commercial strobes have all worked on from 5 to 15 volts at 1 to 2 watts.

I don't have a blinky. Mostly because the ones in the store looked fragile. I went the DIY route. My lights are all Princeton Tec head lamps. I got some discontinued ones cheap. Removed the head strap hardware. Threaded some shock cord through the holes in the lamp housings. Tied knots in the shock cords. I have 3 of them. One has a red lens and a carbiner on the cord. That one wraps around my seat rails in back and the carbiner clips it in place. It giggles around a bit, but mostly points rearward. The elastic strap on the other two wrap around my handlebars and the end of the loop goes over the lens housing. They hang below the handle bars and mostly point forward. When I hit a pot hole, they tend to point upwards a bit and I have to adjust them again. It isn't a perfect solution, but its a hell of a lot more durable than the cheap plastic quick release crap the bike store sells.