Originally Posted by
cyccommute
Nope. Don't own one. But my chops have been busted many, many times about how I'm "spraying light into the trees (or people's eyes or into drivers eyes or into airplane cockpits)". I've been told over and over again how "irresponsible" I am for not using lights that have shaped beams. It's rather surprising that the "wonders of German engineering" need a glare shield to keep the light out of the bike rider's eyes. Seems like a design flaw (and a dirty little secret) to me...one that my irresponsible lights don't seem to have.
Given the flaw, I'm even less likely to own any of them.
I'm not entirely convinced you need the glare shield. I haven't tried it on a dark ride yet, but when I do, I'll post results. The only thing I can think is that since the lens all around has visibility, something with the way the reflectors are set might bring some unwanted light straight up, and it is probably only a minor annoyance to the rider. I wouldn't have spent any extra money on buying one, but mine came with it so I put it on for aesthetic purposes