Originally Posted by noisebeam
What do you recommend? We both have large rear lights - Trek brand - disco I think. My wifes front light is a brand called "NightRider" - it uses a separate battery. My front blinking light (which I can see was inadequate) is called a Planet Bike Dual Spot - I had it in blinky mode which probably made it worse. All had freshly charged batteries
I ask as I hope to commute as winter arrives and want the right lighting system.
Al
IIRC, that Dual Spot allows you to run the steady halogen light and the blinky LED at the same time, right? And since they're behind the same lens, the blinky (in conjunction with the steady) couldn't be misinterpreted as a turn signal (okay, it
could, but anyone capable of such a misinterpretation is, by definition, dangerous for much bigger reasons).
Still, I'd use this only when you have to, or perhaps only in the summer, when your night riding hours are shorter (and you're more likely to be "expected"). If you're going to be doing any significant amount of night riding, get a big, bright light like your wife's NightRider. Go for at
least 6 watts, preferably 10 or more. Get either one with a proprietary NiMH battery, or one that takes standard batteries, and get NiMH cells for it. In either case, make sure you have a "smart" charger, as NiMH batteries can be ruined by overcharging. Don't mess with NiCd (don't hold a charge "on the shelf"; charge memory problems) or SLA/SLB (sealed lead/acid; very heavy for their capacity, and lead isn't very "nice" environmentally). Do a search on this site for the word "bright" and you'll find lots of posts about lighting systems, from mild to wild.