Fifty Plus (50+) - Looking for illumination

Literally. I know Autumn is a ways off yet but I'm looking ahead.
I will need a light for my LeMond -I already have one for the Fisher.
It's, uh..., OK- but can't/don't want to be swapping it back and forth.
Better for each bike to have its own dedicated light.

THIS (http://www.bikelights.com/Products/vega.htm) has caught my eye... and they're a "local" company. Local enough, anyway.

It's hard to compare lights and even harder to read the specs and get a feel for how bright they really are.
Anyone care to weigh in with an opinion? You haven't been shy so far :lol:

Thanks!

I don't know anything about the light you posted but I've been extremely satisifed with my light setup.
http://www.turbocatusa.com/

I don't know anything about the light you posted but I've been extremely satisifed with my light setup.
http://www.turbocatusa.com/

Beverly, which one of those do you use?

http://www.off-road.com/jeep/projects/projectjeep/lightforce/truck.jpg

Beverly, which one of those do you use?

I talked to someone at the site, described the type of night riding I did and they recommended the S10 with a 15 watt flood bulb. Most of my night riding is done on a dark river trail at 13-15 mph. I've really been satisfied with them.

Literally. I know Autumn is a ways off yet but I'm looking ahead.
I will need a light for my LeMond -I already have one for the Fisher.
It's, uh..., OK- but can't/don't want to be swapping it back and forth.
Better for each bike to have its own dedicated light.

THIS (http://www.bikelights.com/Products/vega.htm) has caught my eye... and they're a "local" company. Local enough, anyway.

It's hard to compare lights and even harder to read the specs and get a feel for how bright they really are.
Anyone care to weigh in with an opinion? You haven't been shy so far :lol:

Thanks!

I've successfully used a 3 watt LED mini mag light for riding road and MUP in the dark. That light is a 4 watt light on high and I guess it would work fine in that application, as long as you are willing to slow down a little at night, or you will outride the beam.

Bike Forums has a sub forum answering your questions.

Link
http://www.bikeforums.net/forumdisplay.php?f=259

Those Luxion lamps are impressive in the light out put they give but are not a cheap way of getting lots of light. What is also important is the battery life aswell.

I have twin 5 watt luxions and at high power I get 2.5 hours of blinding light. At low power- I can get 8 hours of light but low power is not used that often. Now if you are looking for an economical lamp that gives out light- then look at the Halogen lamps.

Don't know what it actually means but the luxion 4 watt leds only put out 85 lumens of light- The 20 watt halogen puts out 390.

I use a Use Exposure and one thing it has in common with the Vega is that it is a self contained lamp. That is a godsend- no separate battery or leads to lose connection with.

Depends on how well light your route is- But don't take the Vega offroad- It will not be powerfull enough. Mine is.

Cute little light OP. If you start riding in heavier traffic you might want to go for a little more power.

I liked the looks of SKT's candidate, then I found out it carries a list of $180!! Wow! I would have never guessed that given that it is such a small light.

I liked the looks of SKT's candidate, then I found out it carries a list of $180!! Wow! I would have never guessed that given that it is such a small light.

At that price- Definitely look at the Halogen lights.

You already have one lamp on the other bike- Get a spare mount for the LeMond.

AND I forgot to say it- But the most usefull lamp you can use on a bike is a helmet fitted lamp. I went to an outdoor Pursuits shop and got a Lamp that would fit the helmet. (Take the helmet to make sure it will fit) Then just get a cheap lamp to fit the bike to be legal. That helmet lamp I have is mutipurpose. First of all it will see round corners and not just where the Bars point. It has a spot that is good for 50 yards so is powerfull enough. It also has 3 leds. I led and I can see the controls and computer. 2 and I can read a map and 3 and I can see enough to repair the bike if necessary.

Admittedly my Use Exposure was a lot more expensive but that is for Offroad use. BUT The twin 10 watt Halogen has a life of 4 hours with one lamp and I could have bought 5 of these for the proce of the exposure--And to be honest- is just as good. The cateye in the pics is my spare on the bike and is the legal one.

I think that there is a sticky in the commuting section here. I am to scared to ride at night so I use the sun. If it was not for all the dog sneak attacks I could have a blast at night. I used to motor at night and there was nothing like it in the hot summer.

They moved the light selection sticky from commuting to Electronics, lighting and gadgets

http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php?t=142723

"The Vega’s Proprietary acrylic reflector focuses the kind of smooth, even beam pattern that Light & Motion is famous for. No more weak green fuzz, the Vega gives you a broad, white swath of light to ride behind."

I'm not sure what a focused, broad, white swath of light looks like. Personally, as a rider who likes to have headlights that could peel the paint off of a car in front, I'm not (yet) comfortable with current state of the art in LEDs. I would pass on the LED as something only to be seen by and instead go with something brighter that would light up the road ahead a lot more.

I've successfully used a 3 watt LED mini mag light for riding road and MUP in the dark. That light is a 4 watt light on high and I guess it would work fine in that application, as long as you are willing to slow down a little at night, or you will outride the beam.
+1
I use the 3-watt Mini-Mag flashlight as well. Wal-mart has the 2 AA version on clearance sale for $19 if your local WM is not sold out already. Rumors on the flashlight forums say a 5-watt Mini-Mag flashlight is in the works so there trying to sell off the remaining 3-watt flashlights before the 5-watt flashlights will be shipped. Anyway, mounting a flashlight like the Mag-Lite Mini-mag is so easy. Just use an EMT conduit hanger with small peaces of inner tube rubber glued inside to prevent scratching the flashlight and providing a very good grip so it never gets loose and "escapes" to be dashed on the pavement. Here is a photo showing how a Mag-Lite flashlight was mounted on a bike.
http://i143.photobucket.com/albums/r154/n4zou/swingpipe.jpg

+1
.....Rumors on the flashlight forums ............

Flashlight forums???

I use a Use Exposure and one thing it has in common with the Vega is that it is a self contained lamp. That is a godsend- no separate battery or leads to lose connection with.

+1: < http://www.use1.com/exposure/ >. I got the Exposure Enduro Turbo, based on Stepfam's description and picture of it in use. There may be a bit of recharge-time involved, especially if you use the turbo-power like I do in the metroparks after sundown ... about a 1:1 ratio of turbo-power use-time to recharge-time. So if I get back from a ride at 10:30 PM, I may not be able to complete a recharge before midnight ... and the wife threatens me with bodily harm if I leave the headlight recharging while we sleep. < http://www.use1.com/exposure/products/exp_enduro/index.php >

Flashlight forums???

There is a fairly large following of the latest and greatest in flashlights, custom set ups, arguments over which battery charger is best, who has the best deals, who got ripped off on an import deal from China and so on. A lot like cycling forums, only for lights.

The only issue with the L&M is that battery--and it depends on which side of the fence you're on.

The integrated battery is nice, compact and neat. There are no wires hanging about or battery packs velcroed to the bike.

On the downside, you can never have a spare battery pack. When the built-in cells go bad, you throw the whole thing out. And it's another proprietary charger kicking around the house,that's good for nothing else.

It's for this reason I went with the DiNotte, $150 at Geoman Gear. It takes generic rechargeable AAs and uses a generic recharger. I can charge and carry as many spares as I like. When one goes bad--which has happened--I replace only the battery and still have the light, charger, etc.

I use a Lupine Wilma headlight and a Dinotte tail light. I don't ride at night but I commute at 4:00 am and I can tell you you will be safer at that time than any other time of day. There are seldom any cars and when one comes along you hear it a half a mile away and they see your lights way sooner than a driver would see you in the daytime. The other benifit is you can ride like your in a pro race going all over the road.

Besides my DIY dual halogens mounted on the bike I use an older CygoLite dual halogen set up on my helmet. That allows me to ride some of the other bikes in low-light conditions.


http://www1.shopping.com/xPC-Night_Owl_Optics_Cygo_Lite_Night_Rover_Halogen_Light_12_5W_6V_Gel_Cell_Bottle_Battery_Black

I use the CatEye HL-EL320. I like the flashing mode which provides a better clue to motorists while saving on batteries if I don't need a constant beam. Mine is 1,000 candle power but they have ones that go up to 1600 candlepower.

There is a fairly large following of the latest and greatest in flashlights, custom set ups, arguments over which battery charger is best, who has the best deals, who got ripped off on an import deal from China and so on. A lot like cycling forums, only for lights.
Don't forget the homebrew flashlights as well. Some of those home built flashlights can start paper burning if you hole the light close to paper from the heat generated by the bulbs used.

reviews of Vega

http://www.mtbr.com/reviews/Lights/product_124612.shtml

Scroll to the bottom of the page.

Yep, I had found those reviews earlier. Mostly favorable.
I really like what I see of the Use Exposure you recommed but -yegads- it ain't cheap

The Use is not cheap over here either but it is UK made and goes out at a comparable price to the Cheaper imports from the US. For Offroading at speed on the Tandem it is just about good enough. Plus we have the helmet lamps aswell. BUT on the road- it is fantastic. I do not go for 8 hour night rides but I only use low power on the road and that is plenty powerfull enough. Round towns I can definitely be seen with it and When I lose the street lights- I can see adequately. Mid power is Too much use -except on the MUPS and when I go to searchlight power- It is daylight.

Literally. I know Autumn is a ways off yet but I'm looking ahead.
I will need a light for my LeMond -I already have one for the Fisher.
It's, uh..., OK- but can't/don't want to be swapping it back and forth.
Better for each bike to have its own dedicated light.

THIS (http://www.bikelights.com/Products/vega.htm) has caught my eye... and they're a "local" company. Local enough, anyway.

It's hard to compare lights and even harder to read the specs and get a feel for how bright they really are.
Anyone care to weigh in with an opinion? You haven't been shy so far :lol:

Thanks!

I purchased a Light and Motion Solo Logic light set last year while it was on sale at Nashbar. I had the chance to try it and the Vega and the halogen was head and shoulders better. Looks like it's on sale again... and you can get an additional 15% off for the next two days..

http://www.nashbar.com/profile.cfm?category=&subcategory=&brand=&sku=15862&storetype=estore&estoreid=1017&pagename=Estore%3A%20Summer%20Light%20%20And%20Electronic%20Sale

I must admit, that Joystick looks awfully intriguing

I bought the L&M Vega from eBay for around $120 last winter. I had previously been using a Cateye EL520. No comparison, the Vega is much brighter. However, a few caveats:

- The light has a "breakapart ring" whose function is to break and release the light (in order to minimize damage to the light) in the event of a crash. So one night I'm doing about 35 kmh down the shoulder of a busy highway and I went over a hard bump. The breakapart ring broke apart, dumping the light onto the roadway. I had to brake hard and ride back to pick up the light. No way to mount it until I got home. For some reason, it didn't come with any spare breakapart rings as advertised in the instructions (eBay vendor kept them?). So I just used a steel washer. The breakapart feature will no longer work, but who cares? At least the light is not going to fall on some cheesy bump.

- Even after tumbling down the pavement at 35 kmh, the light still worked fine. The crystal is inset slightly, so no scratches where it matters.

- I'm supposed to be getting over an hour of light at the high (4W) setting. I get maybe 50 minutes before the indicator starts flashing. At the second highest setting, I get over an hour.

- The instructions say that to remove the light from the mount, you need to press down on the front of the light. Wrong. You need to lift up on the front of the light as you pull it back.

- The light will rotate left and right in its mounting. I think it rotates too easily. I would have preferred the light to just be fixed in one position, pointing dead straight.

But having said that, it beats the hell out of the other lights I have used. Light & Motion makes lights for underwater use. Vancouver in winter is very wet. No problems with water seeping into the light. Previous lights (Cateye and Planet Bike Superspot) were not impervious to water, especially in the inverted postion (I like to mount the light underneath the handlebar so it's slightly closer to the road). (I'm running the Vega in the upright position, though.) I like having the battery and light in one package. I just carry the charger with me to work and let the light charge during the day, then recharge after I get home at night.

I'm waiting for HID lights to achieve roughly the same price and form factor...

- L.

I have the L&M Solo Logic but it's not 50+ (it's more like 3-) so I guess it doesn't qualify.

It's really not hard to build an excellent light yourself. Get one of the outdoor halogen fixtures, put a 12 degree spot bulb in it. Add a little loctite and silicone sealant to vibration-proof it. Mount it on your bars using a conduit hanger, and wire it to your choice of battery pack. Cost of materials should run under $80 if you stick to SLA batteries. More exotic batteries cost a bit more. Fore more info, check this thread (http://bikeforums.net/showthread.php?t=42629).

Having recently upgraded my lighting from a 10 year old 6 watt system, I suggest that it is remarkably important to think about how, specifically, you'll be using the light, what you want it to do and under what circumstances. For example, battery run time for some people is very important. Something with a run time of 1.75 hours just isn't enough if you've got 2.5 hours of riding ahead of you. Additionally, there is a big difference between charge times for some systems. This can be an issue if you commute distances to and from work. You may need more time for a full charge than your work day provides.

The speed at which you ride, as suggested by others, is also an important factor. If you ride at 20mph, you'll need a pretty strong beam. Riding at 12 mph you can get away with less power. If you ride trails, that usually requires more light at the same speed than on residential streets that are lit. Additionally, there seems to be a difference between the shadow and three dimensional detail you can easily see with halogen vs. LED lights.

I know in my search I though I had it all figured out only to find that the "ideal" lighting system was less than imagined because the clamping system seemed flimsy and was hard to put on and take off (I needed to switch the light back and forth between different bikes.) Given the expense of high powered systems and the range of costs, I found it important to take a few weeks to really work through all of these things. I'd make one final recommendation. Consider purchasing your system from a seller who will let you return it, no questions asked, if you find it's not meeting your needs.

Oh, yes, and I ended up with the Cygolite Dualcross 200, because it met my needs pretty well.

Just found it. In My previous posting I showed a picture of my lamps and in it there is a twin halogen lamp- Twin 10w lamps. These were good enough for me to go offroad with and were very cheap. Only problem with them was the weight of the Battery and the size to fit on already crowded bars. Overcame that by fitting one of the "Extra" anciliary bars on the bike and fitting the Battery in the bottle cage. We used it for 3 years on the Tandem and it is good. They are still available and are cheaper still this year. Link to the Online shop lighting section and to the actual lamp. It is called a "Smart" lamp and the only smart thing about it is that it works superbly. £30 or $60 to you lot and it it works.


http://www.sjscycles.co.uk/category-LIGHTING-111.htm


http://www.sjscycles.co.uk/product-Smart-Smart-BL201-HB-Twin-Headlamp-system-lead-acid-rechargeable-10W-+-10W-(MSRP-£59.99)-1886.htm

That light forum thread is dated 2005. Tech is changing way to fast to rely on that. Is there an update I missed?

It's really not hard to build an excellent light yourself. Get one of the outdoor halogen fixtures, put a 12 degree spot bulb in it. Add a little loctite and silicone sealant to vibration-proof it. Mount it on your bars using a conduit hanger, and wire it to your choice of battery pack. Cost of materials should run under $80 if you stick to SLA batteries. More exotic batteries cost a bit more. Fore more info, check this thread (http://bikeforums.net/showthread.php?t=42629).

http://img485.imageshack.us/img485/9872/pict0072kg8.jpg

I found this track light in a thrift store for $1. I removed the base containing an 115VAC to 12VDC converter and used an EMT conduit hanger as a clamp as well. I use a 7AH SLA battery and 20 watt MR-16 bulb with it.

Anyone care to weigh in with an opinion?

How about a generator hub (Renak, Schmidt, Shimano, Sturmey-Archer) and light? A good place to start:

http://www.peterwhitecycles.com/lightingsystems.htm

The light can go on the fork or bars, or you can attach it to the hub for a completely modular alternate front wheel w/ light.

HTH,
TCS

This thread, and links off of it, has been informative. I have been thinking of getting a light that would sufficient for riding a rail trail at about 10-12 mph. The Cateye HL-EL530, which some use on roads and others say is not bright enough for road usage, sounds like it would be more than sufficient for a trail. Likewise for the Mini-Mag Lite 3W LED flashlight.

Two things you want from a lamp- To be able to see----And to be able to be seen. On the road with street lighting- It is that being seen that is more important. Over here a flashing light is not a legal lamp and I like to have 2 lamps fitted. My Use has a flashing mode- so I set it to that and the other lamp is a constant light so makes the bike legal. Roads without lighting and you want to see and be seen. Two lamps again- one as a distance lamp and one shining in front of the wheel.-Unless you have a Use or other such power in your lamp and then the second lamp is just a spare. However- On trails or Mups or Even offroad and you want to see. The lamp you get must be powerfull enough for you to see with at the speed you are going at. Pointless wanting to do 20 mph if your lamp will only let you see far enough in front at 10mph. Our Use lamp is good for 30mph offroad but downhills do require caution at that speed. The shadows are different at night and "Is that a big puddle or is it 6" of Mud" Or even a change from dry soil to damp stuff.

I used to use the EL 500 and this is a spot lamp. Fine for seeing where you are going to go at 15mph but not a wide enough beam if set up in front of the wheel to see the broken surfaces or holes. Then we added an EL300 to it and this was a Wider beam. The pair together worked but By far the most usefull lamp was a helmet lamp. It shines where you look and not just where the bars point.

You can spend a fortune on Lighting for a bike but you have to get the right lighting for your use. And don't forget to carry spare batteries as a lamp turning into 1 candle power does not make for enjoyable riding.

This thread, and links off of it, has been informative. I have been thinking of getting a light that would sufficient for riding a rail trail at about 10-12 mph. The Cateye HL-EL530, which some use on roads and others say is not bright enough for road usage, sounds like it would be more than sufficient for a trail. Likewise for the Mini-Mag Lite 3W LED flashlight.

Tom: You might be surprised at how quickly the illuminated area disappears even at 10-12 mph. Is there anyone from which you could borrow a 3w LED light and get a first hand test ride with it. I'm amazed at how quickly my illuminated area seems to get smaller with modest increases in speed.