saturnsc2

actually those dynamos were part of a wierd vintage florescent dynamo light system that i never seen before... can't be too bright, but that light must have needed a lot of current to work

saturnsc2

so your using 2 modern led lights? if so where did you find a led light that's 12 volt?

noglider 

My LED lights are six volts. If I'm overproducing voltage, the internal regulators keep input low.

saturnsc2

peter white sold a 12 volt dynamo system & he always said that if one uses 6 volt lights with the 12 volt system they will eventually fail. now long are you using this system? it seems like your overvolting them so they burn bright at low speeds, but what happens at high speeds?

noglider 

I haven't used this system much. Maybe I should measure the voltage at load. I did hit about 30 mph on Saturday, and it kept working. It was very loud.

saturnsc2

out of curiosity what led lights are you using? my single iq cyo premium is more than enough on any road... with no drag felt also...

noglider 

It's a Dosun U1, made in Taiwan. I wanted to try something not made in Europe. The story I read is that they prepared for compliance with the German law but then found it was too expensive to get certified. They claim they would pass the test if they entered it. The beam certainly is shaped like a rectangle with a sharp cutoff at the far end.

I bought it from idc1947 on ebay. It seems the seller doesn't have it any more. No matter. It seems like a good enough light but not amazing.

I just tested the light I put on my wife's bike, a B&M Eyc IQ2, rated at 50 Lux. Holy lightbeams, Batman! It is bright and sharp and far-reaching. I got it from xxcycle, and as you can see, their prices are quite good. Right now, they're selling it for 37.42€. It's also a tiny light, about the size of my thumb.

saturnsc2

i never heard of this light, but if you think the eyc is bright at 50 lux you should try the iq cyo premium at 80 lux! asweome!

saturnsc2

here's one on ebay: Vintage Bicycle Bike Dynamo Generator Lighting Set 20V Made in Japan 1960s | eBay

pretty pricy, but i wonder how bright these are being 20 volts......

noglider 

That's crazy. I paid about $15 or $20 each for old dynamos. But mine are used. This one might be NOS. But who needs NOS?

saturnsc2

probably because it's a 20 volt system & rare. if you bought this system & used it & a bulb burned out i wonder if you could replace it. probably would be better off using led's & a whole bunch of them with that 20 volt bottle....

noglider 

Hmm. More volts, but does it produce more watts? If not, you can't run more lights. They wouldn't want it to produce a whole heck of a lot of drag, so the higher volts could be at the expense of amps.

saturnsc2

their 10 watts the highest i ever seen out of any dynamo. drag must be miserable, but these lights still probably are much dimmer than today's worst led 6 volt lights...

noglider 

It would be great if Shimano or someone produced a higher power dynamo hub, as the drag wouldn't be as "miserable" as from this bottle dynamo. It would also be great if German law relaxed about maximum light output so B&M and others could make some brighter lights.

ThermionicScott 

Jan Heine says he'd do PBP on one of those, so they must be decent. I'm trying to decide between that one, or one of the fancier/brighter models, while I've got the wallet open.

noglider 

I installed it on my wife's bike without her requesting it, and she may never even use it. I think I'll ask her if she minds if I trade that light with another so I can have it. I'm so impressed with it, though, again, my test was very brief.

saturnsc2

schmidt talked about a 12 volt 6 watt hub years ago, but it never materialized. i guess the 6 volt led's of today are adequate enough so it's not needed....

mrbubbles

Very bright dynamo lights are already here, Supernova triple and Exposure Revo.

saturnsc2

i never heard of this exposure revo. 800 lumens? sounds exagerrated. has anybody used this light? i didn't see any beam shots of it. probably a narrow beam to achieve that brightness?

mrbubbles

800+ lumen dynamo lights have been around for a while, Exposure Revo is an off-road light with a symmetrical beam.

Before commercial light makers got into this game, DIY was the way to go.
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OneLessFixie

My 2¢ worth:

I have the Lumotec IQ Cyo T with a Shimano hub. And I love that thing. I'm a confident, 24/7, all-weather cyclist with it. When cars see it, they stop. I think they think I'm a motorcycle (not that I'm going anywhere near that fast. Except downhill in a hurricane. But I digress.)

noglider 

Wow, a 3-watt power source can make a bright light? I didn't know. I might consider a Supernova headlight in the future.

pdlamb

Get the eDelux. Or the IQ 2 Luxos. The Eyc may be good, but those top-of-the-line lights are awesomer. I have an older (3 years?) eDelux, which I thought was the bees knees until I rode with a guy who had the Luxos U. Now I want a new one!

saturnsc2

i got a b&m iq cyo premium. 80 lux. awesome! very bright & a wide beam much better than the 60 lux old cyo or edelux......

i'm curious what that 100 lux b&m light that's comming out will look like.....

zacster

I was out with my Cyo premium last night. It startles other riders when I come up behind them and it outshines their light on the ground in front of them, casting their own shadow too. And when I got into Prospect Park in Brooklyn, the cyt (not to be confused with cyo) I passed at the entrance rode up to me and started asking about it. I of course had to give the complete explanation. And she looked at my rear light and could see that it was also different, so I explained eddy currents. I think I lost her there. (I've achieved every geeks dream of being able to talk to girls, even in geek speak, without being boring. It only took 60 years! If only Peter still worked... )