There is a great independent review of many different lights at the following link, with more being added almost daily. http://reviews.mtbr.com/blog/category/lights-shootout

Many thanks for that, I'll check it out

well i have 4 lights on h/b at mo, give em a proper try next week, when probably 3 will go back in the drawer. but instead of spending yet more money on so called cycle lights,
i think i will go back to last years solution, which was a 5 'D' CELL maglite running on 6 'C' cell rechargables.
will do the tests again this time, but from what i remember could get about 6 x 1 hour rides over a couple of weeks on each charge. and most importantly i can see where i'm going along the country lanes.

Prices went down and technology went up.
I just got this one for $40 with shipping, Cree xml t6 from eBay, including head mount, battery pack , charger and few gifts from our Chinese friends ;-) Shipping just 6 days...

where did you get a MS light for 40.00, please post link..

He mentioned eBay.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Bicycle-CREE...item27be09a9ce

That's what I bought. Really happy with this so far.

Care to post up a review? Or answer a few questions?

-Run times
-Charge time
-Flash rate/pattern
-Water resistance
-Stability of the cord connections- do they wiggle/come loose easily

I don't have one but isn't that the Magicshine? Lots of info about that on here. It's a popular light.

It looks like a MS, but I don't recall seeing make/model info other than 'XML T6' for the emitter and 'Cree' on the included headband...

It's to early for me to comment about this light, but so far it's very bright ( like car headlights ) with good light pattern, looks like really well made.
Comparing to the "original" copy of lupine light which is magicshine, the headlight is identical, with solid,but different and more complicated bicycle mount, battery pack is two cells, battery case design is ok, batteries or the case are not waterproof, cable is long, it came without any manual or retail box.
For around $40 it's a steal, and all I hear from my biking buddies is WOW.
If price is the most important factor - go for it. If you want some peace of mind , you can buy cheapest magicshine for around $90.

This thread was definitely tl,dr for me tonight, so what I got out of the first page or two is that
This light:
http://www.dealextreme.com/p/ultrafi...-1-18650-39359

with this battery:
http://www.dealextreme.com/p/trustfi...pack-blue-5790

and this charger:
http://www.dealextreme.com/p/digital...y-charger-6105

would be a good combo. I feel like I'm missing the mount itself... Or does that flashlight come with a mount? And do the mounts work on the stems or 31.8 handlebars?

Look for a light with the Cree XM-L emitter. It is brighter and more efficient. Check out Shining Beam for a quality light.

http://www.shiningbeam.com/servlet/t...-Lumens/Detail
how about this?

Today, I ordered this:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Cree-Q5-248-...item1e644ae1fa

I thought it was a great price for the package. I know, the battery and charger could be better and the light won't impress the flashlight fetish crowd, but this was my top price point after my old cheap 3 aaa light got stolen off my bike the other day this seemed a fairly good compromise between price and features. I will report back with a review once it arrives.

The only thing I know I don't like is the blue color of the click button, but I plan to fix that myself with an indelible ink laundry marker.

I have 5 of these lights...I'm sure you will be happy with it, but from my experience I know that the best result you will get only with two of these together - one for throw and second as a flood ( they have adjustable zoom ) I'm using them with 3 AAA batteries, so I can replace them easily. On AAA batteries this light works for a very long time, probably for several hours on high before they go gradually dim. They are perfect for rides in complete darkness, but not that helpful for riding on the streets with streets lights...just not strong enough to see perfectly. In my opinion and after several hundreds of night rides, 250 lumens light is just enough, that's why two of these are much better.

I JUST NOTICED, THAT SOME PICTURES THAT SHOWS PERFORMANCE OF THIS LIGHT ON EBAY LISTING FROM YOUR LINK, ARE FALSE AND PLAIN LIES... AT LEAST ONE OF THE PICTURES SHOWS DIFFERENT LIGHT WHICH IS MUCH STRONGER, AND IT WAS USED ON OTHER LISTINGS AS A MAGICSHINE CLONE DEMO... I WOULDN'T TRUST THIS SELLER...
THE LAST TWO PICTURES ARE NOT THE LIGHT YOU WILL GET...

Hey Lopek (and anyone else who is interested),

Fortunately, i already knew that the bottom group of photos was not for this light and did not expect that level of brightness. However, assuming it is really a cree q5 emitter, given that I rarely ride in total darkness, and that when I do i don't go more than 15 mph, I should be generally happy with the brightness level. I live in chicago and we have fairly well lit streets. I bought from that vendor despite the misleading photos because of the low price for the entire package and the fact that they ship it from the US and I wouln't have to wait so long for delivery. Reading the description with its poor English, i just assumed the vendor is simply the US warehouse for some chinese company, so I'm not really expecting too much in the way of customer service.

I did however just find the same exact light and accessory package much cheaper ($17) here:

http://www.tmart.com/Q5-3-Mode-LED-B...0_p124037.html

However, from that vendor, the product ships from overseas and a) I have never heard of that vendor and would not get Paypal protection, and b) I needed the light in a hurry as my last one was stolen.

If I like the light and feel that I need another, I may try getting it from tmart for less $. My order has shipped and I should have it by the end of the week. Will review once it arrives.

One selling point for me is the 360 degree rotation of the mount and apparently it is rubberized to resist becoming brittle in cold weather. I plan to mount it on my fork rather than my handle bar where it can focus straight ahead to slightly downward and be close enough to the street to light my way without shining into the eyes of oncoming cars and cyclists. It will be the same height off of the pavement as where a typical car light sits. Also, i only pais $22.60 for the pacage as it was "on sale" when I ordered.

The Ebay listing given doesn't say that the lights work with AAAs, though I have seen 18650 lights that come with an adapter that make them work with 3xAAA lights (and a sleeve to make an 18650 work.)

If your light accepts 1x18650 or 3xAAAs ... I strongly suggest the 18650. One rechargeable 18650 contains about 2.5 to 3x the energy of three rechargeable AAAs, so it can last 2.5x as long, or put put 2.5x as much light (if the light supports that), or something in between. Also, the LiIon batteries have lower self discharge rates (unless you use eneloops or similar batteries) so they last longer even when not used. And when it comes to charging and swapping out batteries -- one 18650 is more convenient than 3xAAAs. It's easier to keep a spare 18650 in your bag (especially with it's low self-discharge rate) than 3xAAAs.

I bought these lights from few different sellers. One came with " extension"( additional aluminum ring) to make 18650 battery fit, and all of them came with 3 AAA holder.
For me, AAA is a much better option. I ride a lot and many rides are really long, or few days long trips. It's easy to have few extra sets or to buy new batteries when needed at any store or gas station.

I made two VIDEOS showing how well this light works on AAA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-_Ri...e_gdata_player

Ok I am still soooooo very lost after reading through this thread... Someone on page 10 or 11 asked for an idiots guide, and he got a decent response, but the links were mostly outdated and didnt work.
Can someone post a more recent idiots guide to a good light setup under 50$?

For buying new sets out on the road, yes, AAA wins (really, AA wins even more, but you've chosen lights that only take AAAs). But beyond that ...

1 18650 battery is approximately the same size as 3xAAA batteries, but lasts longer. NiMH AAA's have about 700-1000 mAh, and alkaline AAAs are about 1200 mAh. 18650 cells have the same voltage as three AAAs (so it replaces three of them), but have capacities around 2400 mAh.

They cost $4 each, which is about the same price as 6xAAA (buying three batteries twice because they have half the capacity) alkalines -- and being rechargeable, you can use them over and over.

Being Li-Ion, they'll keep a charge for many months if not used (same as alkalines, but not non-LSD NiMH cells.)

Unless you're touring (and your trips last for many weeks and you don't want to bring a charger and won't even have electricity), I'd suggest that just buying enough 18650 batteries to last through your longest trip would be a cheaper (and more environmentally conscious) plan. It would also be lighter than bringing the needed AAA batteries with you, though of course it's not lighter than simply buying alkalines as you need them and throwing away the dead ones. (You probably won't be able to find a proper place to recycle them on the road most of the time.)

Though if you insist on buying alkalines as you need them rather than going rechargeable, I'd suggest getting a light that takes AAs instead. AAs cost about the same as AAAs but have about 2-3 times the energy -- so it'll cost that much less for the same amount of light. Something like the Planet Bike Blaze 2W would be a fine light.

You are right and wrong at the same time ;-) The lights we are talking about , are my backup only and my main light is MagicShine.
These little torch light are 5 watts - so pretty bright, I'm buying 48 AAA batteries for around $9 at Costco - pretty cheap, I will never install 18650 batteries in a closed metal tube ( torch light ) - there is a reason why these batteries have vent holes in them. 18650 can get really hot while charging and discharging, and quality wise, they are far from being completely safe.
Another thing is that on some of my trips I can't recharge my batteries ( no stores or gas stations + what's the point of sitting for hours just to recharge batteries ;-)
And about tossing batteries in the trash - Dec. Consumer Report just said its OK to do that... I don't agree with that...

A few thoughts if I may.
I respect the use of AAA vs 18650, but in the end an AA battery/light will be a better purchase and output.
Regarding battery disposal of non-rechargabale batteries I also thought it was bad to dispose of them into the garbage. I do know that
the problems in the past was mercury/lead that was used and now is no longer used or sold in the USA/Canada. The major battery companies
Eveready, Duracell say just toss the NON-rechargables.

Lasly, if you do choose to use NON-rechargable be aware that the cheapo batteries, Costco, CVS, Walmart brands will never last as long as a better quality battery. With 3 batteries being used each time, if one is bad the group of 3 are tossed. Perhaps again an AA single light will be a more prudent investment.

Robert

Robert, Costco batteries are the best value/performance according to Consumer Reports, and they last about the same as Duracell copertop for what I need.

[QUOTE=lopek77;13448929]Robert, Costco batteries are the best value/performance according to Consumer Reports, and they last about the same as Duracell copertop for what I need.[/QUOTE

Noted: Bottom line is that it does what you need.

Safe Riding