Day light?
#2
Bike ≠ Car ≠ Ped.

Joined: Jul 2007
Posts: 13,863
Likes: 6
From: Washington, DC
Bikes: Some bikes. Hell, they're all the same, ain't they?
Yup. Almost always the front, and I'll add the rear if I think there's enough clutter, distractions, and/or shade.
I turn on my car's lights in town, too.
I turn on my car's lights in town, too.
#3
Senior Member
Joined: Aug 2006
Posts: 3,055
Likes: 8
From: Central Louisiana
I have two Planet Bike Superflash tail lights, one on the seat post and one on the left seat stay. More often than not, I use them on daylight rides. The front light is a little Cateye to-be-seen light which has a flash mode. I'll use it on my evening after-work rides.
#4
Senior Member
Joined: Apr 2007
Posts: 130
Likes: 0
Front yes, rear no. From my observations, bikes with bright lights on during the day really stand out and would have less of a chance of being overlooked by a car. Most rear lights are worthless during the day. A high-vis vest/jacket provides better conspicuity.
#6
Senior Member
Joined: Oct 2005
Posts: 764
Likes: 0
From: White Bear Lake Mn
Bikes: 88 Schwin Voyageur, 84 Schwinn World Sport, 85 Univega Alpina Uno, 85 Fuji Espree, 09 Novara Strada, 06 Jamis Durango, 03 Specialized Expediton Sport, 09 Surly LHT, 12 Novara Gotham
Yep, Planet Superflash on helmet and a Blackburn Quadrant on front in blink...My MR16s and Zenon strobe are just when it's dark or raining....
#7
Mad bike riding scientist




Joined: Nov 2004
Posts: 29,212
Likes: 6,287
From: Denver, CO
Bikes: Some silver ones, a red one, a black and orange one, and a few titanium ones
Running lights on an automobile makes some sense since they are larger, have more light output, come in pairs and are set roughly 4.5 feet apart. On bikes? Not so much. I rode home with someone last week who had her flasher going. It too me twenty minutes to notice that she had the light going under the saddle.
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Gold Fever Three days of dirt in Colorado
Pokin' around the Poconos A cold ride around Lake Erie
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Stuart Black
Dreamin' of Bemidji Down the Mississippi (in part)
Plan Epsilon Around Lake Michigan in the era of Covid
Gold Fever Three days of dirt in Colorado
Pokin' around the Poconos A cold ride around Lake Erie
Dinosaurs in Colorado A mountain bike guide to the Purgatory Canyon dinosaur trackway
Solo Without Pie. The search for pie in the Midwest.
Picking the Scablands. Washington and Oregon, 2005. Pie and spiders on the Columbia River!
#8
Senior Member
Joined: Sep 2006
Posts: 141
Likes: 0
From: Snohomish, WA
Bikes: Surly Long Haul Trucker, Rodriguez Classic Tandem
Yes, Dinotte 600L on the front, Dinotte tail light on the back rack, PB SuperFlash on the helmet back -- all in full bright strobe mode. The Dinottes are both very visible in daylight, the SuperFlash not so much.
#9
Senior Member

Joined: Sep 2007
Posts: 718
Likes: 0
From: Machias, WA
Bikes: Rodriguez Toucan tandem, Rodriguez Rainer Lite sport/touring
I have an amber Dinotte 200L that I run in flash mode in the daytime. I also run a Blackburn Mars 2.0 flashing also because it's fairly large and I figure that size matters more than brightness in the daytime.
#10
Year-round cyclist

Joined: Apr 2002
Posts: 3,023
Likes: 3
From: Montréal (Québec)
I tend to use lights when conditions are not so good : black clouds, rising or setting sun, etc. From following other riders, I can tell that the average rear flasher is easily noticed.
As for Cyccommute, I suspect you might have been too close to really notice the light or the batteries were really weak. Typical LED lights have two flaws:
– they are highly directional, yet many people install them pointing anywhere except where they should;
– they gradually dim over time, so after 25-50 hours of riding, one should get new batteries; yet, many people seem to replace batteries every 4-5 years... if they think about it.
As for Cyccommute, I suspect you might have been too close to really notice the light or the batteries were really weak. Typical LED lights have two flaws:
– they are highly directional, yet many people install them pointing anywhere except where they should;
– they gradually dim over time, so after 25-50 hours of riding, one should get new batteries; yet, many people seem to replace batteries every 4-5 years... if they think about it.
#11
Velocommuter Commando
Joined: Nov 2007
Posts: 2,683
Likes: 38
From: Houston, Texas
Bikes: '88 Specialized Sirrus, '89 Alpine Monitor Pass, two '70 Raligh Twenties, '07 Schwinn Town & Country Trike, '07 Specialized Sirrus Hybrid
#12
Bike ≠ Car ≠ Ped.

Joined: Jul 2007
Posts: 13,863
Likes: 6
From: Washington, DC
Bikes: Some bikes. Hell, they're all the same, ain't they?
Actually, if the day is bright, I think that my amber Dinotte can be seen pretty well. Sunlight reflections from parked cars have about the same color as white LED lights, but the amber is different enough that it should stand out fairly well.
#13
Junior Member
Joined: Jul 2006
Posts: 20
Likes: 0
Seconded on the Dinotte amber: people do notice it. Except people who just don't look, of course, but a loud expletive usually sees to that.
I run the Dinotte rear as well. Never used to bother running anything at all, until I noticed other cyclists were more conspicuous with them. Aside from the Dinotte, the Superflash is the best I've seen. That said, I don't spot dark clothes and a typical rear light during the day as quickly as I do a high-vis and no light.
And as Dinottes aren't cheap, it's nice to get your money's worth out of them...
I run the Dinotte rear as well. Never used to bother running anything at all, until I noticed other cyclists were more conspicuous with them. Aside from the Dinotte, the Superflash is the best I've seen. That said, I don't spot dark clothes and a typical rear light during the day as quickly as I do a high-vis and no light.
And as Dinottes aren't cheap, it's nice to get your money's worth out of them...




