Originally Posted by mechBgon
Hey, you missed a spot!
I see you have one of those 9-LED blinkies like Performance sells. Is it pretty good? Does it show up somewhat from side angles or is it really directional? Bonus points if you can shoot a slow-shutter no-flash "beam pattern" shot against a wall for us!
i bought a huge bunch of this sheeting and wasted on bunch trying to put it on in single sheets per tube. just won't work on non-round frame tubes. also, if you stretch the scotchlite much at all (it will stretch a good bit) it degrades the reflective properties. so finally ended up cutting it into 3/4" strips and wrapping it with about 50% overlap to provide some protection to frame tubes from impact/abrasion. i must have 2 pounds of sheeting stuck on the bike.
i originally had some sheeting on the rims, just half the circumference to give that "flash" illusion as wheel rotates.
btw i just noticed thats an old pic of a vistalite eclipse and a perf blinky. i hadn't started using the cateye blinky yet (the one everyone wants/thinks is so great/cant remember model)
re performance /serfas /etc 9 led blinky: they are very bright. they are less directional (focused) than the cateye, plus casing is narrower (so your thighs dont hit em), plus lighter (2AAA vs 2AA).
i use the scotchlite tape for side illumination!!
IMO the perf blinky is brighter, and with wider dispersion, easier to catch the eye of rearward motorist.
the perf. blinky does not provide much side illumination at all.
i got my perf blinkies for ~10 bucks playing all the deals.
cons: the perf blinkies have crappy battery holder. easy to come loose and light dies. also easy to break battery contacts loose from their flimsy mounts. the cateye is more rugged and durable in this respect, plus the AA gives you 3X the amphours. i use nimh batterys and recharge often to get max illumination, so this wears em out faster.
even though the perf blinkies are bright, and built cheap (oh, the buttons get sticky too), performance will always take them back. I have completely "recycled" 3 9-led blinkies (yep they all fall apart after a few months of daily use).
i think they're a good light considering the rel. low price and stunning brightness, provided you dont mind "dancing" with perf cust serv on returns.
sorry no pic, too much trouble. plus doesn't really convey the illumination you're going to see accurately. you really just have to try these things out, i think.
btw i hang a perf blinky off the back of my helmet too. and a blinking headlamp.