maltess2

What about battery charging? I charge untill I get the green light (green light tells means the battery is charged), then I disconnect the usb cable, and connect the usb cable again and I get the flashing red light, like if I were to start charging from the beginning. is this normal?

Wittyname

Yes. Give it a minute or so and it will show green

maltess2

I think I may have an issue then. I get the green color and if I replug right after I get like one hour of the red flash before going green again

bakes1

Good point. Style should definitely be one of your first priorities when choosing a safety light

Wittyname

This is bicycles. Style is one of the first priorities, period

lbastosm

Just bought one yesterday. It seems I've got the same issue reported above: Even as the charging led turns green, I cannot turn it on and If I connect again I get the red initial flash again, like if I was starting again the battery charging. I just cannot turn it on... Any thoughts on that ?

Thank you.

BounceCT

HOw's this light during the daytime? Do you think drivers can see the light during day time?

DaveLeeNC

While I hesitate to call it The Best daytime red light, it is as visible as any that I have ever seen.

dave

floridamtb

It's as bright as any I've seen and it casts a wide beam both day and night. Gives me a warm & fuzzy feeling of safety

floridamtb

Agreed

BounceCT

Thanks for the replies on the daytime brightness. I may pick one up soon.

WalksOn2Wheels

I've posted this in another thread before, but the biggest thing for me with the Flare R for daytime visibility is the irregular flash pattern. We're dealing with some zoned out people in cars and a standard on/off steady flash is barely going to register. The irregular pattern is much more likely to confuse their brain if they see it out of the corner of their eye and catch their attention.

As far as actual brightness in daytime, it does very well. I had a Serfas tail light that has the same lumen rating and side by side they were just as bright. I have had a person in a car tell me they could see the Serfas from half a mile away, so I trust the Bontrager to do the same and the irregular flash adds a little bit of "hey, REALLY look at me."

lbastosm

Hi guys, sorry to insist but i think the unit I bought may be defective. Has anybody had the issue I reported before ? Even as the charging led turns green, It does not turn on and If I connect again I get the red initial flash again, like if I was starting again the battery charging...

Thanks a lot in advance.

dwing

I've been using the Flare R since April 2015, and have never had any issues with it not working. I just took the time to charge it to Green, unplugged it, let it sit for a minute (without turning it on), then placed it on charge and the red lite starts blinking again. So, that's probably normal.. it just resets and starts trickle charging. I don't know how many hours it lasts between charge but I've gone 8 hours of run time and it was still going.. though it goes into a low brightness level. I usually put it on charge after every 2nd ride out of habit.

If yours is getting the green lite (charged), and it's not turning on (push button on opposite end of the charging port), then I'm guessing yours has an issue. You should probably exchange it. If you can't exchange it you might be able to open it and troubleshoot the on/off button.

lbastosm

I guess I really have an issue, because it really does not turn on... I will exchange it. Thank you very much.

PhotoJoe 

If you buy the RT version, you can buy a handlebar-mounted remote control for it!

bored117 

Very good light. Have to use steady low mode on group ride as I found myself getting blinded by my wife's one. I wish the mounting mechanism had provisions for aero seatpost though..

budopo

Sorry for resurrecting an old thread, but I just picked up a Flare R and was trying to decide on which flash pattern to use. Basically, I'm trying to find a happy medium between visibility and battery life. For battery life, I'm just thinking about the number of charge cycles the battery sees, and also having to remember the last time I charged it (although I can just charge it after each ride).
I've heard the normal Day Flash mode can be annoying for other riders.
Has anyone found the All-Day Flash to be satisfactory? It's 35 lumens vs. 65 for the normal Day Flash, so in bright sun (or riding into a low sun) is it still ok? Playing around with it at home, it still seems pretty noticeable.
How's the Night Flash during daytime rides? It's 65 lumens, but to me, it doesn't seem as noticeable as the irregular pattern of the Day Flash.

cyclozone

I use the day flash if I'm riding in an area with congested traffic, but the night flash otherwise (2 Low intensity flashes followed by a 65 lumen flash) which works well enough (a riding buddy of mine uses the Flare R with the same settings so I can observe it's effects). That seems to be the best battery-visibility compromise to me. Flashing lights are more visible to drivers compared to constant beam IMO.

budopo

I ride in a pretty rural area, so my concern is visibility in bright sun or low sun, and riding between sun and shadows (well, inattentive drivers are the biggest concern. but that goes without saying). I try to avoid early/late day rides just to avoid sun glare, but this time of year it's tough.

So, the night flash is pretty visible during the day? Day flash is more attention-grabbing, but for rural roads, the difference over night flash isn't so much?

oujeep1

I use the night flash most of the time, but we have all agreed in my group that if we are group riding we use the steady rather than the flash, less annoying to the person behind you.

shelbyfv

I found an RT on the road a couple of months ago. I figured out how to charge it but never used it. Now I see it has the blink with the really bright one mixed in. I think I'll try it, make sure it's secured well to the seat bag And yes, no flashers in a group ride.

GlennR

I just had my Flare R replaced for the 2nd time.

Luckily, Bontrager has a great warranty.

floridamtb

Curious as to why it was replaced? A few months ago I broke the piece that connects to the seatpost strap on my gen 1 Flare, so I went to the LBS and they gave me a replacement (gen 2). A few weeks later it was replaced because it would stop working mid-ride even when showing green on the battery status. That replacement, replaced a few weeks ago and I contacted Trek and started working with a guy there about the problem. Right now as I type a new gen 3 is on it's way to me from Trek because this latest one stopped mid-ride last week. I will say they do have great support, getting me a new Flare that isn't released yet because there is speculation about the charging port and cover. I ride through Boca Raton a lot and these posh neighborhoods water the road as much as they water their precious lawns so I'm always spraying water and grit into the bottom of the light and the cover doesn't cover the plug very well. I've told Trek, the gen 1 was the best dang light I've ever used, but there is a problem with gen 2. I won't ride at night anymore with the Flare R until I am confident that it's not going to crap out on me.

GlennR

Both times it just stopped working. We took it apart and found one of the wires that connects tot he switch broke. On the second one, there was no obvious sign of the cause.