Electronics, Lighting, & Gadgets - "We thought you were a motorcycle"

If you're looking for an opinion about the effectiveness of the Magicshine 900/Nova 900 (sold here (http://www.geomangear.com/index.php?main_page=index&manufacturers_id=22) and here (http://cgi.ebay.com/MajicShine-LED-Bike-Light-900-lumen-P7-Li-ion_W0QQitemZ270452396941QQcategoryZ22689QQcmdZViewItemQQ_trksidZp4340.m263QQ_trkparmsZalgo%3DSIC%26 its%3DI%26itu%3DUCI%252BIA%252BUA%252BFICS%252BUFI%26otn%3D10%26ps%3D63)), something happened this morning that may help: I started my ride in pitch darkness, and when I passed a couple other cyclists going the opposite direction, they stopped me because they wanted to find out what kind of light I was using. They were amazed by how bright it was and said they both thought I was a motorcycle until they got close enough to see that it was another bicycle. So, I'd say it's a pretty darned effective light!

This light has failed to garner nothing but amazement. I hear "that's a bright light!" all the time from pedestrians, all my friends want one, I've been stopped by a couple of other cyclists wanting to know what kind of light it is and a bike cop caught up to me and wanted to know what kind of light it is because he wanted one :)

The coolest thing though is the compliance rate from automotive traffic. It's an attention grabber. Even during the day I'll leave it on flash a lot and cars coming around curves immediately slow down and cars on side streets rarely try to jump out in front of me.

Miy Magicshine arrived Monday and today was the first time I left home early enough for it to be really dark. The light is nothing short of amazing. There is some issue with the speed of the strobe which was mentioned in another thread - it is just way too fast, but no complaints about the beam this thing throws down the block.

Are the claimed run times accurate?

How does the battery pouch attach to the bar/frame?

Here is a good discussion.
http://www.socaltrailriders.org/forum/general-discussion/38538-magicshine-900-lumens-light.html

http://forums.mtbr.com/showthread.php?t=545163

Are the claimed run times accurate?

Yes, some folks have tested them and reported slightly over 3 hours runtime on high. Longest I've been out with mine is a bit over 2 hours and it was still going just as strong as when I turned it on.


How does the battery pouch attach to the bar/frame?

The battery bag has a velcro closure. Just wrap it around any place that's convenient. (stem, top tube, handlebars, etc.)

Are the claimed run times accurate?

How does the battery pouch attach to the bar/frame?

Yes, they claim 3 hours on high and I get 3 hours 10 minutes. They claim 4.5 hours on low; I haven't tried it but my measurements of current drawn from the batteries indicate that I should get 8 or 9 hours on low (it draws 1/3 the current that high does).

The battery pouch has a flap with velcro; you just wrap it around and it velcros to itself.

Can ghe light be stem mounted?

Can ghe light be stem mounted?

Not in its out-of-the-box configuration. You'd have to modify it somehow to mount it on the stem.

Not in its out-of-the-box configuration. You'd have to modify it somehow to mount it on the stem.

Thanks.

Not in its out-of-the-box configuration. You'd have to modify it somehow to mount it on the stem.

MAYBE with the new helmet mount that is available for $10.00.

Just a crazy thought! lol

Chris

Sounds like a great light. Just wondering why other lights with the same lumen's cost three to four times more.

Sounds like a great light. Just wondering why other lights with the same lumen's cost three to four times more.

Because that's what the market will bear. Take a look in any bike shop. Why would someone spend > $100 on a friggin' jersey?

To be fair, the market is changing VERY FAST. 6 months ago, a light that performed like this in this form factor (ready to mount, built for a bike) was at least $300. Now it's $90. Most companies can't change their products or distribution that fast.

In fact, it's very likely that lights like the Lupine Tesla 4, which is essentially identical to the MS 900 light, will never drop in price that much, because there are dealers who have it in stock and they probably paid $300 for it. They wouldn't like it if Lupine suddenly changed the MSRP on this light to $150.

So the manufacturers will have to introduce new lights with a lower price. In order to not ruin the market for the lights that they still have in the pipeline, the new lights will be very cut back in some way; no features, low run time, whatever they can get away with and still be at all competitive with the cheap Chinese lights.

Eventually they'll get there but it'll probably take 12 to 18 months at least. And they'll never get quite as cheap, but they won't have to. There are always people who will pay more for one name or another.

Honestly, if someone were building these in the US, I'd pay maybe $150 for that. Not because I think they'd necessarily be of better quality (though it's likely, IMO), but just to keep the money/jobs close to home. But I wouldn't pay $300 or $400 for the US equivalent of a $90 Chinese light. For that much of a difference I'd rather keep the money in my wallet.

Can ghe light be stem mounted?



If you get this, you might be able to mount it on the stem.:thumb:


http://www.paulcomp.com/stemlightmount.html

Thanks, guys. Just placed an order. I can't wait to get it! :)

You can get a Marwi offset handlebar mount which will place the light over the stem. This guy sells the Marwi mounts as well as an adapter for the MS light.

http://www.el34world.com/Misc/bike/BikesLights38.htm


(oops, meant to "reply with quote". This was an answer to dekindy's question about mounting on stem.)

sounds good. I'll get one from China.

sounds good. I'll get one from China.

For the extra $10, you'd be a lot better off getting it from Geomangear. Not only will you get it much quicker, but try dealing with DX on a warranty issue :(

For the extra $10, you'd be a lot better off getting it from Geomangear. Not only will you get it much quicker, but try dealing with DX on a warranty issue :(

+1 for geoman. He's also come down a bit on the price and now it's only an extra $5 vs getting it from DX. It was more than worth it at $10 for his speedy shipping and customer service, at $5 it's a no brainer. Even if he's out of stock, you'll still likely get it much faster than DX.

Yeah, I order from DealExtreme several times a year. If you haven't ordered from them before, be aware that 3 weeks is typical shipping time from them, I've had stuff take 4 weeks. Once they ship stuff only takes about a week, but it's common for them to take a week or two to ship even if everything you order is "in stock".