Electronics, Lighting, & Gadgets - Helmet Light Suggestions - High Lumen

I have a nice HID handlebar mounted light but now I’d like to add a bright LED helmet mount. I’m looking for suggestions. My desires are:

> 200 lumens (ideally > 300 lumens)
> 2 hour run time (ideally > 3 hour)
Lightweight (remember helmet mount)
Good helmet mount strategy
Easy charging
< $350

I have been considering the following

NiteRider Trinewt Headlight (too heavy?, too expensive?)
Light & Motion Stella 200L (would like more lumens)
DiNotte 200L-LI-2C (would like more lumens)

But I’m also intrigued by all these DIY lights. I see a lot of posts about these P7 lights. I’m open to a small project. Is there an easy way to split the light and put the battery in my jersey pocket or pack? Other suggestions?

Thanks, Scott

Check this link http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php?t=553504

I bought the flashlight in question and have had people flash their high beams at me, very bright. Handle bar mount.

Joystick from Exposure Is the berries!! Sold in the us/by ibex, this little light is the best i've ever had, go for it!!!

Joystick from Exposure Is the berries!! Sold in the us/by ibex, this little light is the best i've ever had, go for it!!!




+1

The Joystick is the first thing that popped into my mind when I read the OP. If you are willing to make compromises on some of your requirements then you will find a lot more options.

There is also the Magic Shine P7 bike light from Geoman which can be used with the Lupine helmet mount. It's a cheap light, and some people have reported quality issues with it, but Geoman stands behind his products so in my opinion it's worth it if you buy from him. http://www.geomangear.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=4_41&products_id=138


There is a kit, or you can home brew, to attach a battery pck to a flashlight. Sorry I don't have the link, but hopefully someone here does.

I have a nice HID handlebar mounted light but now I’d like to add a bright LED helmet mount. I’m looking for suggestions. My desires are:

> 200 lumens (ideally > 300 lumens)
> 2 hour run time (ideally > 3 hour)
Lightweight (remember helmet mount)
Good helmet mount strategy
Easy charging
< $350

I have been considering the following

NiteRider Trinewt Headlight (too heavy?, too expensive?)
Light & Motion Stella 200L (would like more lumens)
DiNotte 200L-LI-2C (would like more lumens)

But I’m also intrigued by all these DIY lights. I see a lot of posts about these P7 lights. I’m open to a small project. Is there an easy way to split the light and put the battery in my jersey pocket or pack? Other suggestions?

Thanks, Scott

http://cygolite.com/products/new/MityCross/mitycross.html

http://www.ayup.com.au/index.php

320 lumens

No mention of the Dinotte 400l? It is well below $350 and quite bright.

I ride with the 200L on my helmet. It's brighter than you think, but quite a narrow beam. I supplement it with a 600L on the bars and think it's a great combination.

i'm using a Fenix TK11 excellent!

my handle bar has a P7
and another red- P7 for the rear

How about this

Magicshine 900 lumen Cycling Light $83.99 (http://www.geomangear.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=4_41&products_id=138)
Same as the DX Extreme light

Lupine Helmet Mount $35.00 (http://www.geomangear.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=139)


The battery pack has a long lead. you can run it to your jersey pocket.

... and another red- P7 for the rear
Is this a red P7 LED or a red filter? If it is a red P7 LED, what flashlight or flashlight plus drop-in LED unit are you using?

Thanks in advance.

You could far exceed all your criteria with a DIY "Pond Scum" light. The main drawback would be the extra work and the weight - but the weight wouldn't be on your head - it would be in your back pack or Camelbak.

This setup would cost less than $150. You'll get 1500+ lumens for 2+ hours if you use a 20W bulb. You'll get about 700 lumens for 4+ hours with a 10W bulb. These numbers are for a 14.4 volt, 5 AH battery pack.

I've made a couple lights like this for my handlebars, and will make one for my helmet soon.

Thank you to all the folks who took the time to respond to my post. It is funny; I did a fair amount of research and was all set to buy one of the three lights in my initial list but totally missed the Cygolite Mitycross and the Dinotte 400l. I guess that shows the power of these forums!

Right now I’m thinking I’ll go with the Dinotte. But I am still intrigued by some of the inexpensive DIY lights like the Magicshine for $85. I just may have to pick up one of these as well to experiment with.

Sadly, the days are getting shorter so I need to pick up a light in the next month. But, when I get the second light I should have over 1000 lumens on my bike so I should be visible.

Thanks again, Scott

I prefer the SB L-Mini for a helmet light, one of the smaller 18650 lights on the market and now uses an R2 emitter.. I know it's only 250 lumens but the runtime is solid and the light is very small and you hardly even feel it on the helmet..

For mounting you can use the Bikeblocks, parallel mounting, same company that sells the Lockblocks for the handlebars.. Or the Zefal Doodad works great too..

http://www.amazon.com/Zefal-Doodad-Plus-Bicycle-Strap/dp/B000AO3FTE

http://www.shiningbeam.com/servlet/the-152/**NEW**-MG-L-dsh-MiniI-II/Detail

Look over on MTBR for some DIY options that may intrigue you. Much better than anything you can get off the shelf
http://classifieds.mtbr.com/showcat.php/cat/27

I ride with the 200L on my helmet. It's brighter than you think, but quite a narrow beam. I supplement it with a 600L on the bars and think it's a great combination.

200L spot light on the helmet, 900L more floody on the bar. 2 PBSF on the back. It seems that when I add more light, I experience better visibility and I want to add even more lights! The brighter flashlights are impressive, but they are heavy and large.

Thank you to all the folks who took the time to respond to my post. It is funny; I did a fair amount of research and was all set to buy one of the three lights in my initial list but totally missed the Cygolite Mitycross and the Dinotte 400l. I guess that shows the power of these forums!

Right now I’m thinking I’ll go with the Dinotte. But I am still intrigued by some of the inexpensive DIY lights like the Magicshine for $85. I just may have to pick up one of these as well to experiment with.

Sadly, the days are getting shorter so I need to pick up a light in the next month. But, when I get the second light I should have over 1000 lumens on my bike so I should be visible.

Thanks again, Scott

At the risk of commenting on something you're already purchased, if you get the 400L you might want to order the lense kit while you're at it so if you find the beam to narrow you can make it wider. I'm also intrigued by the headband - I think I'm going to try it this winter as it might let me mount my light on my helmet over the top of a helmet cover.

How about this

Magicshine 900 lumen Cycling Light $83.99 (http://www.geomangear.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=4_41&products_id=138)
Same as the DX Extreme light

Lupine Helmet Mount $35.00 (http://www.geomangear.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=139)


The battery pack has a long lead. you can run it to your jersey pocket.

This one is probably the hands down winner in terms of cost and output. At the price of the lamp and mount you can buy 4 of them for the price of one Dinotte 600.

You could also by a MTE P7 flashlight from Deal Extreme (same emitter and reflector) but after buying the batteries, charger, miscellaneous hardware for mounting, etc., you'd probably come out just about the same in terms of cost. The external battery pack of the Magicshine is worth it's weight in lithium:o

You could far exceed all your criteria with a DIY "Pond Scum" light. The main drawback would be the extra work and the weight - but the weight wouldn't be on your head - it would be in your back pack or Camelbak.

This setup would cost less than $150. You'll get 1500+ lumens for 2+ hours if you use a 20W bulb. You'll get about 700 lumens for 4+ hours with a 10W bulb. These numbers are for a 14.4 volt, 5 AH battery pack.

I've made a couple lights like this for my handlebars, and will make one for my helmet soon.

Here's a link (http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php?t=368772) for the Pond Scum and my version of the overvolted halogen. Not as lightweight as an LED but the light output per lamp is much, much better than anything I've seen. The light is even better than the lights on my Tahoe...not a really good comparison, however:rolleyes:

This light is light, small, and on medium should last at least 2 hours. On high it's good for about one hour. The quality is better than the DX lights.
http://www.shiningbeam.com/servlet/the-136/**NEW**-MG-PLI-Cree/Detail

This light is light, small, and on medium should last at least 2 hours. On high it's good for about one hour. The quality is better than the DX lights.
http://www.shiningbeam.com/servlet/the-136/**NEW**-MG-PLI-Cree/Detail

I can get 80-85 minutes with mine on high using 3000mah cells.. Medium mode is plenty bright for use as a helmet light.. The light is a little tighter than P7 lights but still offers more of a floody beam..