Originally Posted by
proileri
Originally Posted by mechBgon
Another problem with reflectors is that at closer ranges, the reflected light from the non-driver's-side headlight isn't coming back towards the driver. It's coming back towards the passenger. So what happens when the driver's-side headlight is burned out...?
This is actually not a problem. A bike reflector has 2-3 facets that are aimed at slightly different angles
You missed his point.
Reflectors reflect the light back approximately to the source --
that's what they're designed to do, and that's what makes them effective. This
source isn't the driver of the car -- it's the light itself. Now, not
all the light goes right back towards the source -- it spreads out somewhat, and this makes it work when the light isn't right next to your eyes. But as you get closer to the retroreflector, the angle between your light and your eyes increases, and so the effectiveness of the reflector decreases -- THAT is what mechBgon was referring to.
Now, reflectors do work best when the light hits them close to straight on, and that's where the 2-3 facets comes into play, but that's a different matter than what mechBgon was referring to. Of course, if the reflector is close to the light, that means the object it's on is probably well illuminated -- so even if you can't really see the reflector, you can probably see the bike it's attached to.