Just got a basic 3W Dinotte headlight from Peter White Cycles. The battery pack is wired to put all four batteries in series. My good old analog multimeter says about 5.8 volts. I pulled out a little 6 volt lead-acid motorcycle battery that's been used for powering an old incandescent Petzl headlamp. Mmeter shows about 5.9 volts. The thing weighs almost 2 pounds but I figure it'd power the Dinotte for about a month :D
Am I risking harm to the Dinotte by using that lead-acid battery?
How many of you have built alternatives, such as a 4-pack (or 8-pack) using "D" cell NiMH's?

I'd really like to see some ideas that provide longer run-times than the 4 AA's

Thanks!

The longer run time issue is solved by the lithium battery lights that Dinotte sells.

Unless you got some sort of super deal (under $50) you might want to consider returning that light to Peter White as it is super old technology and only around 65 lumens, while the newer DiNotte lights for about the same price are 200 lumens.

I run a 4 sub-c pack 4.8 volts which is rated 5 amp/hrs. I can run it on high for my round trip commute and more.
Note: My round trip commute can run 4 hours.

I had tried putting multiple 4AA packs together in parralel but it was a pain and I wanted to try just the one 4.8 volter.

Ziemas -
Now I'm freakin' out. How do you know the basic 3W is old tech? I e-mailed PW before placing the order because I was unsure about these lights. I asked if they were selling the latest stuff and they claimed they were.

I did not get a killer deal and I'm going to be very disappointed if they pulled a quickie on me...

Here's a pic of the one I bought. Can you tell if it's an older version?

Ziemas -
Now I'm freakin' out. How do you know the basic 3W is old tech? I e-mailed PW before placing the order because I was unsure about these lights. I asked if they were selling the latest stuff and they claimed they were.

I did not get a killer deal and I'm going to be very disappointed if they pulled a quickie on me...

Here's a pic of the one I bought. Can you tell if it's an older version?

I can't tell which light it is from the photo, and I think that the bodies are the same anyway. The term '3W' is what Dinotte used for an older generation of lights. The current lights are called the '200l'. What did the packaging say? Perhaps you can call PW and ask for clarification; it's possible that he just didn't update his website. Please report back on what you actually got.

http://store.dinottelighting.com/shared/StoreFront/default.asp?CS=dinotte&StoreType=BtoC&Count1=559047877&Count2=476188302&ProductID=2&Target=products.asp

OK, thanks, Ziemas -
It might take a few days but I will call them. Probably also call/email Dinotte and find out how to verify for sure. Now that I'm suspicious I need to know for sure...
Then I'll report back here.

Thanks again

I believe the original 3W had just three modes: high, low, and flash, whereas the 200L adds a medium steady mode, and two additional flash modes. You definitely want the 200L--it's significantly brighter and has a longer runtime.

Good luck,
Jack

Telkwa,

Contact Rob at Dinotte. I forgot where I read this before (probably MTBR.com) but when you plug the battery pack into the light there is a code of flashing lights which tells the manufactuer (sp) which model you have. I don't know if the Dinotte 3W or 200L have that flashing code series but I know the Dinotte tail light which I own has that when you plug the power in each time.

I really appreciate you guys helping me out with this. When connected to the battery pack, the left half of the on/off button flashes red twice, then the right half of the on/off button flashes green twice, then the main bulb pulses just once.

I'm popping back and forth between websites as I'm writing this.

Apparently the "200L" designation refers to 200 lumens.
http://www.dinottelighting.com/Products.htm
They describe the AA series lights as "Pro Series", so I assumed that the "Pro Series" described on Peter White's website was the same thing.

On the Peter White website
http://www.peterwhitecycles.com/dinotte.asp
the one I bought is referred to as the "Pro Series Basic 3", partway down the page. I noticed just now that the description of the Basic 3 says "65 lumen output". Dammit
The Pro Series Ultra 3 listed just below is described as 80 lumen output.

As mentioned earlier, I was confused about models so e-mailed PW asking whether they stocked the newest ones because I didn't want old stuff. I was assured they had the newest models from Dinotte. Instead of reading the fine print, I just bought and assumed the best.

So, PW is selling the "Basic 3" for $120. Looks like a brand new 200L is about $170 or thereabouts. Not much question which is the better value. if this turns out the way I think it's going to, Ziemas' advice to return the Dinotte to PW will be the way to go.

^^^

The 200l without batteries and a charger is $129, $159 with batteries and a charger, from Dinotte, shipping included.

http://store.dinottelighting.com/shared/StoreFront/product_detail.asp?RowID=2&CS=dinotte&All=

Just to answer the posters original question, when I ordered the light directly from Dinotte I asked the sales guy about using bigger batteries and they threw in a case and battery holder for 4 "C" size batteries in my order. It's just a case which holds 4 "C" size batteries and uses the same connector as the "AA" battery stuff, so they probably sell something similar at RadioShack.

However, the catch is that real "C" size rechargeable batteries are really expensive, and you can't buy them at Target. If you look closely at the ones you can get from Target or Walmart, you'll see that the AA batteries are 2500mah, and the C size batteries are also 2500mah. They just make a AA battery, add some padding around it, and sell it as a C size battery.

If you want to buy real C size batteries with better capacity, you're looking at a minimum of $26 for 4 - and that's not including shipping, handling, sales tax, or the cost of a charger:
http://thomasdistributing.com/shop/-nimh-rechargeable--c-nimh-batteries-c-122_104_247.html

All that for only twice the run time. Personally, I wish I knew more about batteries so I could hook up AA's in parallel - but honestly, it's easier to just carry an extra set in an extra battery holder and swap them when the first set runs out of juice.

First off, what kind of batteries are you using now? 4x AA duracell 2650mah nimh's are $13 which gives just under 2 hours runtime. WIth the spare pack, it's under 4 hours. If you wanted any higher then you should've gone with the li-on option.

I really appreciate you guys helping me out with this. When connected to the battery pack, the left half of the on/off button flashes red twice, then the right half of the on/off button flashes green twice, then the main bulb pulses just once.
That's the same sequence as my 200L, so either it's not a unique model identifier, or Peter White Cycles silently updated their inventory.

Have you tested all of the modes listed in the manual (http://www.dinottelighting.com/manuals/200L_INST_A.pdf)?

Personally, I wish I knew more about batteries so I could hook up AA's in parallel - but honestly, it's easier to just carry an extra set in an extra battery holder and swap them when the first set runs out of juice.

Paul -
If you're not used to screwing around with electricity even the really simple stuff can be inscrutable. Do you have a basic multimeter? If so, load four AA's into the carrier, and touch the probes to the 9V connector. The smaller of the two buttons is positive. Your MM will show roughly 5.7 - 5.8 volts. All that means is that the carrier is built so that the four batteries are lined up electrically nose to tail. Those four batteries are in "series". That means they add their voltages together. Two AA NiMH's in series would push about 2.9 V, three would push about 4.3 V, four makes almost 6V.
You can see the way it's done if you pull the batteries back out and carefully follow the little wires molded into the carrier.
You would get the same effect if you lined them up on a table nose to tail, taped them together to create a series configuration, and touched your MM to the positive post on one end of the line and the negative post at the other end.

To make it really easy to visualize adding a second bank of batteries in parallel, do this: tape together four more batteries on the table just like the first set. Line your two battery banks up next to each other so that the positive ends are facing to your left and the negative ends are facing right. Now, take some little chips of wire and tape them onto your two battery banks so that a wire jumps from one positive end to the next positive end, and another piece of wire connects the negative ends together. Poke your MM under the tape. You'll still only read 5.7 V. But you will have doubled the available amperage, which means you'll get twice the runtime. It's perfectly safe to run your Dinotte like this. Once you understand what it actually looks like, it's a relatively simple thing to round up a soldering gun, a second 4AA parallel battery carrier, some 9V connectors, a few bits of heatshrink tubing, some electrical tape and some scraps of wire. You could use a small digital camera pouch as a carrier.

OK, I just realized the above paragraph could be dangerous. If you do the "on the table" simulation of a series/parallel battery bank, I want to make absolutely sure you understand what I described. You want two banks of batteries laying next to each other. Four batteries in each bank, taped together nose to tail. The positive ends of both banks are facing one way, the negative ends facing the other way. You're going to electrically connect the two positive ends together, then electrically connect the two negative ends to each other. If you mistakenly got the two banks reversed, so that the positive end of one bank was facing left and the positive end of the other bank was facing right, then started taping wires on, you would create a short circuit as soon as the last wire was connected. That would not be a good thing. The batteries would get very hot very quickly and would probably do something catastrophic.

Just for fun, and to help you understand this better: if you taped your two battery banks nose to tail, creating one long series of 8 batteries with all positive posts facing the same way, you would see about 11.6 V. Don't touch this to your Dinotte headlamp or you would have another catastrophic event. I imagine the Dinotte would go poof unless there is some sort of overvoltage protection built in.

ephemeron -
Thanks very much for checking your 200L's beep codes.

I talked with Linda at PW yesterday. She handles the lighting orders. She said DiNotte changes their stuff so quickly she couldn't say for sure what I got. A few months back DiNotte asked PW to send all their stock back for upgrades. Linda's not sure what Dinotte did, but she thought they made them brighter. She said she'd talk to her contact at DiNotte and get back with me.

I'm probably being too hopeful, but it might be possible that PW's existing stock is some sort of hybrid - older units with 200 lumen bulbs. I imagine the circuitry would also have to be changed out but I don't know about that part...

Anyway, I'll be back here when I find out for sure what the heck is going on.

I wish there was some way to visually verify that the light is or is not a 200 lumen. I mean, the 65 would be much dimmer and it would take about one second to know for sure if I could just compare a 200L to mine.

ephemeron, if you look directly into the glare, how long does it take before it hurts your eyes? Just kidding :D

ephemeron -
Thanks very much for checking your 200L's beep codes.

I talked with Linda at PW yesterday. She handles the lighting orders. She said DiNotte changes their stuff so quickly she couldn't say for sure what I got. A few months back DiNotte asked PW to send all their stock back for upgrades. Linda's not sure what Dinotte did, but she thought they made them brighter. She said she'd talk to her contact at DiNotte and get back with me.

I'm probably being too hopeful, but it might be possible that PW's existing stock is some sort of hybrid - older units with 200 lumen bulbs. I imagine the circuitry would also have to be changed out but I don't know about that part...

Anyway, I'll be back here when I find out for sure what the heck is going on.

I wish there was some way to visually verify that the light is or is not a 200 lumen. I mean, the 65 would be much dimmer and it would take about one second to know for sure if I could just compare a 200L to mine.

ephemeron, if you look directly into the glare, how long does it take before it hurts your eyes? Just kidding :D

This thread might be of interest to you.

http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php?t=303634

Have you tested all of the modes listed in the manual (http://www.dinottelighting.com/manuals/200L_INST_A.pdf)?

Your link went to a "404 ERROR" page..

I went to DiNotte's website and looked at the 200L manual. The newer lights have more functions than mine. But I'm almost sure that I have a 200 lumen light. It does have a flash function (I just didn't know how to get to it) and a hi/low. I wrote Rob at DiNotte, as suggested, and he wrote back just hours later saying the same thing Linda at PW did - that he upgraded all of their stock a few months back. He said the 65 lumen was retired quite a while ago, and it was highly unlikely that's what I got. However, I might have older circuitry, which would explain why I don't have as many different modes.

I went to DiNotte's website and looked at the 200L manual. The newer lights have more functions than mine.
Sorry about that -- my punctuation accidentally got into the link.

But I'm almost sure that I have a 200 lumen light. It does have a flash function (I just didn't know how to get to it) and a hi/low. I wrote Rob at DiNotte, as suggested, and he wrote back just hours later saying the same thing Linda at PW did - that he upgraded all of their stock a few months back. He said the 65 lumen was retired quite a while ago, and it was highly unlikely that's what I got. However, I might have older circuitry, which would explain why I don't have as many different modes.
So it looks like you got the current LED and the old firmware, for $10 less than the current model? Could be worse. (And I get to keep my eyesight! :))

So it looks like you got the current LED and the old firmware, for $10 less than the current model? Could be worse.

That's pretty much what I was thinking. This story is not yet finished. While carefully inspecting the light for any signs of a model # I noticed the black plastic nacelle that holds down the lens was cracked across one of the screwholes. Emailed DiNotte, asked for a replacement, Rob said he really wanted to look at the light and fix it under warranty.
I don't want to pay more shipping than I already have. But I can have my questions re: this light answered once and for all. Rob can tell me exactly what combination of old/new hardware and software I ended up buying. (I didn't know there was software, but he used that word twice!)
Sending the light to DiNotte this morning (7-26). I'll be back in a week or two with - hopefully - the final update.

If the "Pro Basic 3W" lights that Peter White is advertising as 65 lumens are actually refurbished to 200 lumen units, I'm thinking they oughta make a note of that on their website. If not, they'll be sitting on that stock forever. I mean, how many more clueless shoppers such as myself could be out there??

One point of clarification: the 4-AA 200L doesn't have all the modes that the Li-ion version does. It only does high, low and blink.

Enoy you light. I love mine! My only regret is not spending the extra money for the Li-ion version with the longer runtime.

One point of clarification: the 4-AA 200L doesn't have all the modes that the Li-ion version does. It only does high, low and blink.

Mine does everything on the instruction sheet -- steady light at three intensities, and three different blink patterns.

I did just buy mine last month, so does this mean that Telkwa and DScott got an earlier revision of the light while I have a newer one?

One point of clarification: the 4-AA 200L doesn't have all the modes that the Li-ion version does. It only does high, low and blink.
Incorrect.

Mine does everything on the instruction sheet -- steady light at three intensities, and three different blink patterns.
Mine too (at least for both of my 140L-AA-R models, which I bought almost a year ago).

Ditto with the "My Dinotte AA light has all 3 modes, to". :lol:

Very interesting to hear from a handful of folks who have DiNottes of various vintages. I'm wondering if you could make an older light act just like a newer one if you knew how to download the instructions? Or is this a hardware issue?
Not that I want to try and hack my light when it's returned. :p

The correct link for the manual is http://www.dinottelighting.com/manuals/200L_INST_A.pdf

Short version: when it's on and in "beam" mode, each press of the button should change the intensity, high -> medium -> low -> high. The status light should stay blue continuously when it's on high and blink with different patterns for medium and low.

First off, what kind of batteries are you using now? 4x AA duracell 2650mah nimh's are $13 which gives just under 2 hours runtime. WIth the spare pack, it's under 4 hours. If you wanted any higher then you should've gone with the li-on option.

The original poster could have had reasons for going with the AA version over the li-ion dispite the li-ions higher energy and runtime. I personally went with my Dinottte AA Taillight for a reason. I have a lot of AA's around and even if I did not have all the AA's around if I was riding out ~60km into the rural areas and such it is easier to find a corner store or petrol station and buy AA's off them (tho at a rip off price) and still be able to keep on riding safely home. That is something you can't do with li-ions. Even if you plan on doing long range riding and tours later.

There is a way to double your runtime via AA without the need of a soldering iron.

As stated above the most easy way is to get a 4xC or 4xD battery holder then stick the corresponding cells in and you're good to lock and load.

If you want to stay with the AA's and have a hotglue gun or hell.. good o'l gun tape (duct tape) you can tape the connections together. It's better if you hotglued it. Obviously it's best if you solder the connections together.

What you want is the following:

1. 2 x 4xAA battery holders (like the one that came with the Dinotte.). These can be found at any electronics part store or RadioShack (called The Source by Circuit City up here after some name dispute something but same staff as before just wearing a new shirt).

http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2062239&cp=2032058.2032230.2032264&allCount=28&fbn=Type%2FAA&f=PAD%2FProduct+Type%2FAA&fbc=1&parentPage=family

or

http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2062244&cp=2032058.2032230.2032264&allCount=28&fbn=Type%2FAA&f=PAD%2FProduct+Type%2FAA&fbc=1&parentPage=family

Both will work tho tho the flat one you can glue it to make it a one piece or something. Just make sure you get the one with the 9v battery top on it.


2. 3 x 9v battery clips http://www.hvwtech.com/products_view.asp?ProductID=318

3. About 5-10mins



What you want to do is make a Y connection in PARALLEL. I'll have a photo on my flickr site tonight (I have the parts here) to show you how to do it. Each battery pack is ~4.8v (or ~5.6 hot off the battery charger) so basically you're making a PARALLEL Y connection which will maintain the 4.8v while doubling your battery capacity. Make sure you're using the SAME batteries in both battery holders to ensure give or take the same battery capacity. ie. If using 4 x 2500mAh batteries then use another 4 x 2500mAh batteries. It is best to use the same brand/make for consistancy. WHen you're done you will have a 4.8v battery but with 5000mAh capacity.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/49184877@N00/ That's my flickr. I'll update the post later tonight. Need to have some food and water. Feeling dehydrated (It's been in the 30C+ range mostly this week >_<;; Ran out of water in a 2hr ride and only had enough water for 1hr -.-;)

Edit: Those shopping websites are jsut reference links to the items for visual reference so you know what to look for. Personally I only buy from the RatShack if I'm desperate. Thier pricing is high. Like the same switch at the local electronic shop was ~$1.00 while at the RatShack it was ~$4.00 >_<;;

zero -
Thanks for the nice post! It's very helpful when links and pictures are included.
Agreed that Radio Shack gouges ya. If you just gotta get something done that day and it's a small item, what the hey, but I resent the fleecing...

I'm sure the Li-on unit is more powerful. I went with the AA's for a couple of reasons. I've got over 2 dozen NiMH AA's and a few chargers. One of the chargers is a nice CCrane that's supposed to discharge/recharge the batteries intelligently. With the cheaper chargers the batteries get alarmingly hot and I've read that's not good for them. The CCrane charger doesn't do that.

I don't like the idea of proprietary batteries. When getting into digital photography a few years ago I intentionally chose cameras that took plain old AA NiMH's. Since I'd already started down the path of NiMH AA's for electronic gadgets it seemed I should stick with the program.

zero -
Thanks for the nice post! It's very helpful when links and pictures are included.
Agreed that Radio Shack gouges ya. If you just gotta get something done that day and it's a small item, what the hey, but I resent the fleecing...

I'm sure the Li-on unit is more powerful. I went with the AA's for a couple of reasons. I've got over 2 dozen NiMH AA's and a few chargers. One of the chargers is a nice CCrane that's supposed to discharge/recharge the batteries intelligently. With the cheaper chargers the batteries get alarmingly hot and I've read that's not good for them. The CCrane charger doesn't do that.

I don't like the idea of proprietary batteries. When getting into digital photography a few years ago I intentionally chose cameras that took plain old AA NiMH's. Since I'd already started down the path of NiMH AA's for electronic gadgets might as well stick with the program.

zero -
Thanks for the nice post! It's very helpful when links and pictures are included.
Agreed that Radio Shack gouges ya. If you just gotta get something done that day and it's a small item, what the hey, but I resent the fleecing...

I'm sure the Li-on unit is more powerful. I went with the AA's for a couple of reasons. I've got over 2 dozen NiMH AA's and a few chargers. One of the chargers is a nice CCrane that's supposed to discharge/recharge the batteries intelligently. With the cheaper chargers the batteries get alarmingly hot and I've read that's not good for them. The CCrane charger doesn't do that.

I don't like the idea of proprietary batteries. When getting into digital photography a few years ago I intentionally chose cameras that took plain old AA NiMH's. Since I'd already started down the path of NiMH AA's for electronic gadgets might as well stick with the program.

Telkwa,

Sorry for the delay mate. A few things happened out of my control.

1. Power outage for a while and I lost my posts before so I have to retype

2. Hot water pipe somehow leaked and flooded the basement. :notamused::mad::(

3. Trying to get the lawn to look some what decent after longtime not maintaining it.


I've gotta do a light beam shot for someone else tonight on anohter forum (Candlepower) so I'll try and get you the photos either tonight or tomorrow night (today is Simcoe day and a holiday here. Well at least it is for me but I'll be yardworking like a raisin :lol: (it's bloodly hot :notamused:) ).

One step up fromthis basic Y cable that I can think of is if you wanted to make two Y parallel cables and carry 4 x 4AA battery holders and use a switch in between so when one pack is getting low you just flip a switch to activate the second bank of batteries in the Y parallel. I can cover that later once I get the basics in photos and you're comfortable with it first. It's really a small step up but helps you learn building stuff in baby steps to digest it better.

Gotta get back to work.

Telkwa,

Ok, the step by step guide is on my Flickr page now.

You can view the instruction set here. Sorry for the delay before. http://www.flickr.com/photos/49184877@N00/

You can also use two of these 9v type connectors to connect tot he battery.

http://www.rpelectronics.com/Default.asp?Main=/English/OnlineCat.asp?Menu=/English/Content/Categories/CatM_57.asp%26Detail=/English/Content/Divisions/Div_57_800.asp

However they will not fit on the Dinotte connector whichi s why I said only to get two if you wanted something more heavy duty. I personally have used both and for my lighting I'm using the heavy-duty clips but have used the norla clips before. The normal ones will fray the plastic over time and wear while the heavy duty is plastic case enclosed.

Note sometimes you have to use a small set of pliers jsut to pinch the 9v connector heads if they are loose from being on/off al the time to retighten them. This is no biggie.

zero -

I don't like the idea of proprietary batteries. When getting into digital photography a few years ago I intentionally chose cameras that took plain old AA NiMH's. Since I'd already started down the path of NiMH AA's for electronic gadgets it seemed I should stick with the program.

Yah I agree propritary batteris is sucks when it comes time to replacing things. Tho with bike lighting tho you can always get another battery from say www.BatterySpace.com and cut off the connector on the old battery and put on the new one so it's not too bad with bike lights. The problem for me is more when t's in small electronics and some bike lights with enclosed batteries in custom housings where when it's time to replace the batteries you get bent over royally for those replacement batteries. SUre you can DIY a battery that works withi t but it won't be as well enclosed and more exposed and fugly then. Personally I don't mind fugly onsome stuff but with PDA's and such no. :notamused:

I went with AA's more because if Iwant to tour later I can have the flex of finding power anywhere I want or shoud I want to go off the grid I can solar charge my cells while on tour or barter with passersby for AA's or find AA's anywhere in the world easy.

Zero_Enigma - thank you for the very helpful post, instructions and pictures - will try this sometime :-)

I would like to note that you can find a cheap soldering iron at any electronics store or your local www.craigslist.com .

This DIY is -NOT- critical of what type of soldering iron you have. Obviously if the iron is bloodly hot like say 850F temp rating you'd either have to be a super fast ninja on soldering your points or melt like 2 inches of the plastic sleeve on the wire pronto. The thing is if you're looking for a soldering iron I will admit upfront I've not done any soldering iron shopping before. I'm only using my dad's Weller and it has 350-850F range which basically means I can do pretty much any type of soldering work and have a temp range appropriate for that application without burning up stuff.

I think you can find a ~450F soldering iron for about $20-30 I guess. It is a fixed temp unit but the heat of the unit is good enough for most things. With soldlering wires like these it works quite well. This is a at your risk Macguyvering if you want a soldering iron on the Macguyver level but I have heard before (yet to see one in person)that you can take a long thin screwdriver and file the tip into a long sharp tip. Next turn on the stove and heat the tip up real hot. You may want ot wear mitts while holding the screwdriver or use a pair of pliers or aligator grip pliers.

You will still need to buy solder wire tho I've heard if you're at a college around the area swing by it and check out the electronics dept. and ask some people there. You need at the most 1/2ft of solder wire and even then that is more then enough for this as you'll only use like 1/2 an inch of solder per solder point. A desoldering tool is basically a pump which sucks up the molten solder. I've heard of people using a straw but I WOULD NOT RECOMMEND THAT FOR OBVIOUS REASONS. A desoldering tool is something like $4 bucks at the cheapest while not the best unit out there but for something like this project it's a low cost item to get and if you do more projects and end up wearing out the cheap desolder pump then you know it's time to buy a better one knowing you're actually getting good use out of it and hopefully having lots of projects to share with other people.

Also WEAR SAFETY GLASSES WHEN WORKING WITH A SOLDERING IRON. Molten solder in the eyes is NOT fun. While it is rare to have any hot solder come to your face I'm not sure what happened once when some molten solder ended up spraying a little towards me (must have flicked the iron I think like a pencil) and got two hits on me. One on the arm which was a small burn but hurt like hell for a moment till the heat fulled drained out and the solder hardened. The other small bit hit the safety glasses near the middle of the eye area. Thankfully I had the safety glasses on. That's just a real potential hazard from experience I wanted to share so others can be safe while keep on creating.

I've not done a research on the pricing of the parts and only going off my memory from my local electronics shop so these prices may vary pending the shops you go to. All parts can be aquired at local electronic shops or Radio Shack. No need to buy online and pay extra S/H.

- ~$2.50 , 1 x 4pack (came in 4) 9v battery clips

- ~$1.50 , 1 x 4xAA cube-long battery holder. You can buy the flat type 4xAA holder if you want and get two of those and glue them back to back with epoxy and have a one piece battery unit or go with the 2 smaller cube-long units to distrobute the weigh in the back of the jersey if you're using it as a helmet light.

So a total of $4 to make this assuming you have the tape/hotglue gun/soldering iron handy.

I forgot if the Dinotte came with two battey holders but I bought a spare holders for other uses (like my Muhahaha high power red/blue DIY cop lights ;) More on that DIY later if needed).

zero, have you found any good off-the-shelf solutions for carrying these multi-battery power packs you've been building? I haven't been able to visit your flickr site yet (stupid dial-up) so don't know if your pictures show anything.

Thanks

Haven't gotten the Dinotte back yet nor heard any word from them

zero, have you found any good off-the-shelf solutions for carrying these multi-battery power packs you've been building? I haven't been able to visit your flickr site yet (stupid dial-up) so don't know if your pictures show anything.

Thanks

Haven't gotten the Dinotte back yet nor heard any word from them

I don't ride withthe extended runtime battery. I only did this DIY to help others looking to double thier runtime. I normally just carry a spare pre-loaded 4xAA in a battery holder while I'm riding as I'm a ~2hr local rider.

However just thinking off the top of my head I would take the 2 x 4AA holdersand go to any big box store and look at thier sub/compact bags and put the holders in (if you plan on putting the holders into the bag with AA's pre-loaded TAPE THE CONTACTS TO PREVENT ANY SHORTING CIRCUITING OF THE BATTERIES as some of the bags have metal zippers.

My thinking is that if you have a bike rack you can use said camera bag and put the batteries in and runt he Y-parallel cable out to the Dinotte and say ziptie the bag to the rack or velcro strap the bag to the rack. If theif is a problem in the area then velcroing the bag would make easier for removal (not the easiest like sliding quick releases) and also velro straps are reuseable.

Also I'm thinking if you have some rubber rubbing or say pipe insulation tubing and use say some old bike tubes or an old dishwasher love to line the inside of the insulation tubing then tightly zip tie the pouch tot he seat post you can put your light setup there and good to go.

I'm trying to find something to slowly unfulglify (sp?) the bike look to give it less a 'hobo' look like some of the commuter bikes I've seen.

Found a replacement light in the mail today. I don't know if DiNotte just sent me a new one or pulled parts out of the original or updated the firmware or what, but it appears I now have an up-to-date DiNotte. Changes:
1) The on/off button glows blue and gives feedback as to the brightness or strobe settings. The original did not.
2) 3 brightness settings. Original had 2.
4) More strobe modes than I could count. Original had one strobe setting. I think it only had one anyway.

Kudos to DiNotte for customer service. In the end I got more than I paid for :)

zero, I finally got to your website with a broadband connection. Thanks for the pictures of the parallel connections. Some of your creations (page 6) look a little frightening. A co-worker looked over my shoulder and thought you were posting directions for building bombs.

Found a replacement light in the mail today. I don't know if DiNotte just sent me a new one or pulled parts out of the original or updated the firmware or what, but it appears I now have an up-to-date DiNotte. Changes:
1) The on/off button glows blue and gives feedback as to the brightness or strobe settings. The original did not.
2) 3 brightness settings. Original had 2.
4) More strobe modes than I could count. Original had one strobe setting. I think it only had one anyway.

Kudos to DiNotte for customer service. In the end I got more than I paid for :)

zero, I finally got to your website with a broadband connection. Thanks for the pictures of the parallel connections. Some of your creations (page 6) look a little frightening. A co-worker looked over my shoulder and thought you were posting directions for building bombs.

The only 'bombs' I would be building would be 'bombshell blondes (and brunettes)' :love::love::love:

Like I said it's not sexy because it's not heatshrinked or soldered. I only posted a quick way to make that Y-parallel connector cable so you can temporary extend your run time till you can find a friend of buy a soldering iron to make yours more solid/robust.