Originally Posted by
seeker333
+1
A low mounted headlight is a bad idea, especially on dirt and gravel roads.
Personally I've tried everything from helmet mounts to fork mounts and combinations thereof. My own conclusion is that effective lighting depends a lot more on the lens configuration than the position of the lights. My other conclusion is that helmet mounted lights are the least traffic friendly location to put a light unless you deliberately look away from oncoming traffic - something thats not a natural (or always safe) reaction. Currently I've got lights mounted below the bars on one and rack mounted on another bike. Both are very effective. Lights with narrow beams for greater reach are actually better mounted low because as bike path traffic approached, they'll be above the beam.
A 15 degree spot puts out a beam that 26feet high at 100 ft but only 2.6 ft high at 10 feet. So actually, from about 35ft away, oncoming traffic would start to be progressively above the beam if the front lights were mounted on the dropouts.
If you had trouble with shadow issues, I'd say it was the light rather than the mounting location. Automotive lights are lower than handlebar mounted lights, and automotive driving lights and fog lights are even lower - deliberately.