socalrider

price is right for this, have had good luck with romisen lights in the past. The fact that it is a 2 mode is not a big issue since using as a bike light.. under 30.00 for xm-l light is a pretty decent deal for a romisen + has a larger head which I like.

Anyone have this one yet?

https://www.shiningbeam.com/servlet/t...T601-II/Detail

BetweenRides

socal:

I did a quick search over at CPF (nada) and BLF, found an older post on the 5 mode version, so I updated the thread and maybe someone will post later on. BLF has members world wide and sometimes it takes a good 24 hours to generate activity. I also checked with a riding buddy because I thought the light looked familiar. He has the 5 mode version and loves it - his favorite torch. I have checked it against my UF C8 and Palight C8 - Romisen is much nicer than my budget lights and with the smooth optic it is a decent thrower. Price seems very reasonable and SB has great customer service and ship times - looks like a good buy to me, especially with the lack of strobe/SOS.

socalrider

pulled the trigger and bought it this morning.. should be here in 3 days..

labrat

socalrider,

Looks like it's been about 3 days . . . any chance of a mini-review?

Thanks in advance

Chris516

How does it mount to a bike frame, or even a helmet? I don't see anything in the details about how it clamps on, or attaches.

seeker333

What? A flashlight sold without special provision for attaching to a bicycle? How can this be?

I am outraged, writing a letter to my Senator now...

Never mind, a five year kid playing in the street just told me this is how all flashlights all over the world are sold.

a1penguin

This for the bars and a 1" diameter light and this for the helmet assuming you have a helmet with vents.

seeker333

This works too, if you can't figure it out ask my 5 year old neighbor for help.

seeker333

Beamshot, please.

Is it adequately floody for bike use, or a laser-like thrower?

mechBgon

socalrider

Took the light on a ride last night.. Is a good mix of throw and flood.. The 2 mode lights are nice, don't have to cycle through useless modes.. Looks like the the low is around 70% of high, good to last a little longer on night rides. The light works fine with a lockblock.

The light is a little bit heavier than some of the smaller xm-l lights, might be a little heavy for a helmet light. Still would look at S-mini for helmet light

https://www.shiningbeam.com/servlet/t...sh-L-T6/Detail

Richard Cranium

Do me a favor - test the light for "regulation" - put in a battery at about 3.8 volts and see if the light actually cuts off - or whether it is the battery that shuts down the beam....... you can check by reading the battery after it quits - if there is no voltage then its the battery turning the light off - it there is - then light is actually "regulating."

socalrider

I used the light the other night and ran it in high mode and it lasted 80 minutes before swapping out for fresh cells. The light seemed to run very steady for about 1 hour before I noticed some diminished output.. The lower output was still very useable.

During my rides I have 1 or 2 places I stop for breaks depending on how long the ride is. This ride was just over 2 hours in length so my 1 stop came 80 minutes in, so not sure how long it would run before needing a battery swap.

The output of the light has a very defined hotspot, much more defined than some of the lesser expensive ultrafire xml lights you can find online for 20.00. The sidespill is right on par with other xml lights I have but less sidespill than a P7 or MC-e led.

The nice thing about this light is the solid build and the 2 modes is ideal for riding, both modes very useable and no mode switching during my ride which has some pretty bumpy roads. The cheap UF XM-L's always had mode switching issues, some better than others..

For an under 30.00 light, it is far and above the best of the bunch in its price range..

Like I said above, the 5.8 ounce raw weight may be a little heavy for a helmet light but works fine in lockblocks, which is what I use on all my bikes, except my mountain bike (fenix light mount).

Richard Cranium

For whatever reason - Solarforce will "hold" the full 700 lumen when loaded with two cells -but in one cell usage -it just slowly dims - you never know just when you should replace the cell - on average Li Ion cells do run pretty steady with a quick drop......

socalrider

FYI

I am running UF 3000mah cells, these are the real ones not the ones mostly sold on ebay. The best cells I have used are AW / Panasonic / UF Japanese cells.

I have bought many of my items from overseas sellers but the most reliable has been HKEQUIPMENT on ebay.. Never had a cell from him not meet expectations. He is priced a little higher but it is worth a few bucks more..

https://www.ebay.com/sch/hkequipment/....c0.m270.l1313

black_box 

https://www.shiningbeam.com/servlet/t...Bicycle/Detail
this looks decent? damn, now I'm thinking flashlights instead of a dedicated bike light.

A10K

If that's the same mount sold on DX, it is way too large for most AA lights- Romisen RV-235's included, without a shim. Probably would work on an 18650 light. The velcro-strap LockBlocks and their DX clones are extremely versatile for 2xAA lights. They work a lot better when you put some kind of soft padding/bar tape between them and the bars, keeps them from tipping forward and back whenever you hit a bump.

no1mad 

Welcome to the club!

Flashlights make sense for a lot of people.

socalrider

I tried that mount and unless you use some rubber shim, the light will move around.. The part that always made me nervous was the clip that held the light in place had a lot of play and I worried the light would go flying off..

The most secure light mount is the fenix but only works on 25.4 or 26.0 bars, it will not fit 31.8 bars. I use the lockblocks and have no issues with single cell 18650 or aa lights, they are a little flimsy for 2 cell 18650 lights

https://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...m=300647403734

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Fenix-Bike-M...item23179c00c4

a1penguin

I really like flashlights without having to worry about an external battery pack and wires. I have a Shiningbeam S-Mini (XP-G) on the helmet and it is the best helmet light I have used. It is also the smallest, which probably makes it the lightest. My criteria for helmet light is under 5" long and under 1" diameter; straight body only, no large head allowed. If I hadn't purchased a KD C8 for the bars, I would get the Shiningbeam. You'll actually get customer service and a working light. It still hasn't rained here so I don't know how the cheap lights will hold up. I'm thinking of what kind of waterproof wrapper might work to keep most of the rain out while still allowing heat transfer.

BetweenRides

That mount only works with some lights - some have parts too large to fit in it, some are too small a diameter to properly clamp down. On my flashlight orders from China suppliers, I will generally include 2-3 mounts just to see how they work. As usual, you get what you pay for. I have found that the good old twofish lockblock is probably the most versatile of any out there.

BetweenRides

I'm with you on this. I think your measurement criteria are right on. I now have a few nice ones for helmet use:

Shiningbeam P-Rocket
N-Light ST50
Yezl Z1 (Poor man's S-Mini)

socalrider

For those focused on a good helmet mount, look at the zefal doodad plus. This is normally used to mount a bike pump but works great as a helmet light mount.. The twofish bike block - it has parallel mounting is a good one too..

https://www.amazon.com/Zefal-Doodad-P...26073356&sr=8-
https://www.amazon.com/Two-Fish-Block...6073501&sr=1-1

socalrider

Had a few rides with the new light and works great, does not have any mode skipping, threads are nice and smooth, swapping cells is easy mid-ride - fits fine in lockblocks.. In high mode, it seems to give pretty constant light for around 45 minutes and then another 20-30 minutes of usable light before I switch out the cells.. It seems to just give diminishing output over time..

For the price a great light..

mechBgon

That's good news, I like ones that ramp down instead of just abruptly turning off (or waiting for the cell's protection circuit to cut them off).