AcornMan

I'm comfortable with the visibility created by my headlight and tail light, but I often wonder about whether vehicles can see me well enough from the side. Personally I find it fairly difficult to spot riders in the dark unless I'm looking at the front or rear of their bike (assuming they have good lights).

Does anyone here use spoke lights to address the issue of visibility from the side? This is the one I came across on Amazon. Any thoughts? Other suggestions?

CCrew

My only concern would be battery life. I pass a guy every morning now that it's dark that has these front and back, and I will say that when he's moving and spinning they're visible as heck. Look pretty cool actually because at speed they look like a red ring, not just a single light. .

znomit

New from cateye I think:

https://www.cateye.com/en/product_detail/576

Shimagnolo

Yea, though I ride through the valley of the shadow of night,
I will fear no evil: For thy Marathon Supremes art with me;
Their reflective sidewalls, they comfort me.

10 Wheels

Tires and a little bit of reflective tape do the job.

IronMac

What about Reelights? They don't need batteries at all.

As for side visibility, yeah, I worry a lot about that. So much so that I purchased a Dinotte 400L set of lights for both bike and helmet. I also equipped my bike with Schwalbe Marathons and will be getting Reelights later on this month.

SlimAgainSoon

I've got tires with reflective sidewall on two of my bikes.

The best are Panaracers, because they have a six-inch section on each sidewall that is not reflective -- this means that a driver sees not only the distinctive circle of a bicycle wheel but one that is rolling around.

The other are Michelins.

Flash a beam on either of these tires with reflective sidewalls and they really light up. I strongly recommend them.

I'm surprised reflecto-tires are not standard on commuting rigs, but mine are the only ones I see in my town -- but then, there are few commuters where I live.

10 Wheels

Here is some bikes on a dark ride.

landstander

Interesting... I'll have to take a look at this beastie once it becomes available next month. I was considering a Nite Ize SpokeLit, but the Cateye version claims twice the battery life (15 vs 30 hours on steady, 18 vs 50 hours on flash).

DallasSoxFan

I've got a red bike. I bought a roll of red reflective tape. It perfectly worked out that the reds are an exact match. During the day or parked, you can't tell that there is tape. Under a nighttime beam of light, the whole frame is lit up.

My rear blinky also has two sideways pointing LED's that do okay.

wirehead

Reflectors only work if the other people on the road have functioning headlights and have them turned on, you know.

I keep thinking I'm just going to make my own set of safety lights that mount where I think they ought to be mounted...

ellerbro

If you really want side visibility go with a MonkeyLight. Never rely on reflective material alone for visibility. Too many drivers forget to turn their lights on.

Iowegian

I've used those and liked them. I find the blue color works best since that in combination with a red light are the colors used by our local law enforcement. There is something about the flashing blue and red lights that really gets drivers attention. The colors are such a close match that I've been worried I'll get stopped and told that I can't use those colors but it hasn't happened yet.

Nachoman

I'd buy that. Linkey says not available until October.

crackerdog

I use Monkey Electric. Also if a car is about to turn into you, the headlights aren't lighting up your reflectors until too late.

dekindy

You need to have at least 28 spokes with a 2, preferably 3 cross lacing for these to work as advertised. They middle attaches to a spoke and each end has to have a spoke to provide leverage to hold it in place. If you have the proper spoke count and lacing they work great. I cannot use them on my 24 spoke 2cross front wheel.

I don't know where they got them, but my friends got me some valve stem mounted lights that work great. Usually you have to have two or three per wheel but the valve stem mounted one that I received as a gift works as long as you are going 16 miles per hour which is our average night riding speed. The packaging was generic so I don't have a make or model to give you and I didn't ask where they purchased it. A year has went by so they will probably become more available.

Fenway

Someone needs to take the induction principle of the reel light and apply it to spoke lights. Put magnet mounts on the fork and seat-stays and have the induction powered lights be attached to the spokes.

So bloody simple for side visibility, yet no one has marketed it yet. Maybe we could modify a reel light set? I mean how hard is it just to reverse the mounting locations?

Damon Tsao

[link admin deleted]

colleen c

I thought about spoke light, but with the amount of bikes I have, it was something I did not wanted to deal with. Instead of spoke for side light, I chose mini blinkies on my helmet instead. One on each side, and the addition of the P7 gets their attention. The batteries are 2032 and I can get a bulk pack from DX for a low price. Good news, most driver from side such as a stop sign will yield for me, but there still some who just don't know what to do as if they are surprise or confuse at the amount of light I have. Much more driver education is needed.
Edit for: Forgot to mention, another reason I use a higher mount side light instead of low is because driver next to me side by side see my light at the helmet much better than wheel mounted in which case where most of the time, the wheel mounted light is blocked by their door especially when you are on there passenger side.

nwmtnbkr

I bought a pair of spoke lights last year. When they work, they're great. However, they eat through batteries very quickly. I'm getting reflective tape and putting it on my rims and a few other strategic spots. It's the most economical solution, I think. If I get anything thing else for active lighting, it might be a couple of these, which I'd attach to the frame (and wire to a 9V battery).

https://cgi.ebay.com/LED-LIGHT-TUBE-B...item5ad5d5cc89

Celos

colleen c, what are those side lights on your helmet? I can't quite tell. I've looked at knog frogs and other things for side visibility. Always looking for more options.

I have the NiteIze Spokelit on both wheels. I get about a season's worth of life out of the batteries in solid mode -- running about an hour a day. So not great, but not terrible. They do make a difference, though. I get comments on them all the time.

jack002

I agree, and it IS so simple. Add a capacitir and you can have all the free light you want.

colleen c

They are Sigma micro light. Link to Amazon:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d.html/r...9&a=B000JIXJD8
they have velcro which I used to loop around the slot on my helmet.

REI at Automall Parkway sell them but in pack of one red and one white. A LBS around you that have them is Cyclepath in Hayward. They sell similar to Sigma brand and work just as well and even brighter with two mini led. I use them because my flaslight do 't have strobe mode and it also don't shine sideway either.

dekindy

Has anyone tried the Anvii Luba Lights? How well do they attach to spokes?

willtsmith_nwi

I don't think anyone has come up with a "gotta have it" spoke solution yet. Spoke reflectors are VERY dependent upon the angle that the light is approaching. I use the Spoke-Lit product but I am aware that they aren't the brightest thing in the world. An "all in one" would be nice as it does take a little time getting these things on and off the bike.

In any case, Reflective tape around vertical(ish) bike tubes is VERY effective since it will present a 360* target for any headlight.

BTW, if you are going with Spoke-lits, I recommend the Disco and Greens. The discos cycle through a rainbow of colors and flash red. The greens are the easiest to see (in my opinion). Though, I'm intrigued with the new Cateye Amber Spoke light.