Commuting - Light and Computer advice needed

I'm getting back into commuting after taking a year off due to school and distance limitations. With the return to commuting, I hope to return to bikeforums on a regular basis.

I leave my house at 4am so I am in need of a light. I would like to keep the light under $50. Any recommendations?

Then for the computer, I would like one that supports 3 different wheel sizes so that I can easily move it between my 3 bicycles. If no 3 wheel size computers are available, what would be a good 2 wheel size computer?

Hi,
if you are leaving at 4am; I have a question for you. Is your life worth more than $50? On the rear, I am using the Cateye 5 led flasher; I may get a 2nd one, they are cheap and bright. Up front, I am running a pair of Cateye EL300 lights. They were a little over fifty bucks; and now that fall is closing in; I am looking at more powerful lights. They are fine for occasional use; but I want more now that I leave the house in complete darkness.

I already have a rear light that I am happy with. I believe it to be fairly bright and it blinks. Plus, I don't have room for any more lights on the back without doing some major modifications to my setup.

The roads are not heavily travelled at that time. I guess the main reason I want a light is so people will see me from the front before turning out onto the street I'm on.

I can only spend $50 because of budget issues. I'm a begining teacher that has student loans to pay back, a house payment, and I'm still taking college classes at night.

Hi,
I did a brief search, and found this. Shipping will knock it a little over $50; but it's a 10 watt halogen. Hope it helps.
http://www.nashbar.com/profile.cfm?category=101&subcategory=1067&brand=&sku=9719&storetype=&estoreid=

Computer wise -Sigma BC800 is a good 2 wheel option

FYI, I have never seen a computer with 3 wheel sizes but then again, I tend not to use a computer on my mountain bikes I MTB with, I just have a computer on my commuter and 2 road bikes that I have.

Jay

The new Sigma BC800 only supports one wheel size. If your LBS carries last year's stock, the old BC800 would be a good option. Sigma also changed the way the 'puter mounts on handlebar :(. That is why I have a VDO computer currently. Nice, but more pricey.

I came pretty close of buying two separate basic computers, because I could not find a basic model with two wheel sizes. The two-wheel-size -computers all seem to come with loads of added functions that I seldom need.

--J

Originally posted by Richard D
Computer wise -Sigma BC800 is a good 2 wheel option

I was looking on Nasbar and the BC800s are for one wheel size.

Ok. I'm looking at the Sigma BC1600 and the Nite Hawk Raptor 10w Light System. I'm looking at getting both from Nashbar, unless there is a better place.

Any last minute opinions on these? I'm planning on purchasing late Monday afternoon.

Originally posted by kobyj
I was looking on Nasbar and the BC800s are for one wheel size.

I can't think why they've lowered the spec from when I bought mine - perhaps it's worth buying two separate ones (or three in your case ;) ).

I use a Specialized 03 Speed Zone Sport Classic

(03 Speed Zone Sport Classic (http://www.specialized.com/SBCEqProduct.jsp?section=12980&browselevel=top&JServSessionIdroot=ej9715ssru.j27006) ) .

It was the cheapest/best value I could find with the features I wanted for 2 bikes a few months ago ($19.99).

You have to buy a '99-03 Speed Zone Spt/Cmp Classic & PBrain Kit' $9.99 for the second bike. Click on Details/spare parts.

Good Luck!

You need to know whether you need the light to see your way around and to lighten up the potholes, or simply to be seen?

As far as I know, the Cateye EL-300 is a great light for being seen. It's large so people don't need to focus on it to see it, and bluish so it is easily distinguished from streetlights and the like. It's rated at 30 or 50 hours (I can't remember, but at about half the rated value, the light starts to dim a lot.

If you aim it horizontally, people will see it. But don't count on it to identify potholes (maybe a second one?)

Other prospects would be a 10 W rechargeable light, or even a dual headlight (or 15-20 W) if you face a lot of left-turning traffic.

Another totally different avenue would be to look at a generator headlight. A decent system based on a Lumotec headlight provides good illumination on the road, and because the Lumotec is large and quite adequately focussed, the light is on the road, not in the sky. See http://www.peterwhitecycles.com for lots of info. With the Dymotec bottle generator, you could get a kit at $100; it's a little bit more expensive with a Shimano Nexus dynohub, although you could save money by building your own wheel around the generator. The dynohub is silent and works even in rain, ice and snow.

Regards,

Originally posted by kobyj

I can only spend $50 because of budget issues. I'm a begining teacher that has student loans to pay back, a house payment, and I'm still taking college classes at night.

Cateye makes an LED front light one has 3 LED's the other has 5 LED's.

The 3 LED is about $24 at my LBS. One good thing about these is that batteries last about 35hrs! Great for a commuter. I don't know if it would be bright enough for total darkness, but if your commuting in town you should be good.


OptiCube 3 LED Headlight. The EL200 is a big improvement over the extremely popular EL100. This model has more powerful white LEDs as well as a focused lens to increase the light on the road. The EL200 also has a flashing mode for much greater visability. http://www.cateye.com/images/products/el200.jpg


Five LED OptiCube Headlight. Welcome to the new world of bicycle headlights! Cat Eye engineers have done it again by combining the powerful white LEDs and our exclusive OptiCube lens technology. This is the first time LED lights have projected enough light on the road to see...all that and about 30 hours or run time!
http://www.cateye.com/images/products/el300.jpg

Hi,
I have a pair of cateye 300's, same as in the pic. Even with 2 going, I don't feel they are enough for total darkness. I leave at 6 am; and if it's cloudy, it's very, very dark. So I am looking for a more powerful light. It is very good for making boxheads know you're around.

A friend has the 5-led Cateye. It is true what they say, it really does enable you to see a small area of the road. The bluish colour of the leds makes it even better. But the beam is too small and too close for riding long stretches without any ambient lighting. I would say it is OK for commuting in the city, if there are no completely dark sections in your commute.

--J

I run one and I agree it's a light to be seen rather than a light to see by - It'll light up road signs but I wouldn't rely on it for telling you what road surface conditions were like if there's no ambient light from elsewhere. Their EL 400 looks interesting, hopefully the beam is fairly focused.

Ok. I'm looking at the Sigma BC1600 and the Nite Hawk Raptor 10w Light System. I'm looking at getting both from Nashbar, unless there is a better place.

Any last minute opinions on these? I'm planning on purchasing late Monday afternoon.


kobyj,

Per the Hot Deals post, try using code CR182 through 10/6 or W183 for 10% off at Nashbar. This may help with your $50 budget. Safe riding!

You might want to try this. I just got the Viper and am upgrading to the 10 watt bulb, which is basically the same as this Raptor. I got the Viper for $20 plus about $16 for the 10w bulb. This might be a cheaper way to go.

http://www.performancebike.com/shop/Profile.cfm?SKU=17690

The 5 watt bulb works fairly well for me, especially in total darkness, but the 10 watt will be much better. An important factor though is your time on the bike between charges. If you have a long commute and/or commute both morning and night, you may begin to have a challenge keeping an adequate charge. This system will give you 4 hours per 5 watt bulb (2 for 10, 1 for 20).