Bought some good reflective tape
 

Sorry no pics yet, but after being unimpressed by the reflective tape I have been using, I bought some of the DOT red/white tape from Wally World. This is the same stuff you see on tractor trailers, and is really bright. Much better then the 3M stuff. It was a little pricey ($8.5 for 4 red/white strips), but this tape can't be beat.

I bet this could beat it:

3M® ScotchliteTM Very High Gain Reflective Sheeting 3000X

or this might too:

SOLAS (Safety Of Life At Sea), this is said to be some crazy-bright stuff from long distances. And not a bad idea if the rescue helicopter is panning its searchlight from two miles away, either :)


Regardless, congrats on the tape upgrade! :) What are you sticking it onto?

Even better
 

Found this recently. Very inexpensive, and it's the real 3M stuff.

I need reflective tape. badly !

Yep, those look good too. I have found that tape that actually has visible prisms on it seems to work the best (like those in you links, and the DOT stuff). I have pastered the rear fender mostly, as well as the front fork. I would love to get a junker bike some time and intricately stick white reflective tape of this kind over 100% of the frame. :D Now that would look crazy.

Identi-tape FTW The black stuff is awesome -- it goes on black parts of my folder so it's hardly noticeable during the day but it lights-up at night.

Anyone tried to cut stencils with this type of tape? Thinking about some reflective flames or pin stirpes... hmmm. Is the tape easy to cut, say with a scaple or x-acto knife?

I could only find the black stuff at this link: http://www.identi-tape.com/hi-intensity.htm

I did this with the card suits(spade/diamond/heart/club) on my Surly. Traced them onto the backing and then just cut them out with the small scissors on my SAK. Should be easy to do with an X-acto.

Thank you again, MechBgon. For the rest of the World take a look at that SOLAS link. They sell a FABRIC tape that can be sewn on your clothing and bags. A fw bits of tape down low on your bike might not even register. A strip of reflective tape high across your back and down both arms implies something a lot bigger. I have had overalls for use underground that had cloth tape all over the arms, legs, and torso. Front and rear. My "skeleton suit" got quite a reaction.

I need to make a top tube protector with that fabric .... just in case.

Also my camelback could profit from it.

Just get that fabric tape and put across the back of your jacket or somthing "Sheriff" or "Police" when that lights up people are not going to mess with you and be much more curtious of close passes, speeding, and other various things.

I bought some of the silver hi-intensity tape. We bought 20 feet of it and put it on three bikes. It should be fairly easy to cut with an xacto knife (I can cut it easily with a scapel and it's about the same thing).

I can't compare it to any other tape since it is the only one I have tried, but it's pretty bright.

i got my 3M tape on ebay from this guyhttp://search.ebay.com/_W0QQfgtpZ1QQfrppZ25QQsassZm5pro
he was really friendly and let you buy what you needed. quick shipment too.

Just make sure you write "I love the" above it in non-reflective marker so you don't get in trouble for impersonating someone when you get pulled over.

white scotchlite 680 reflective sheeting - used for traffic signs, graphics on LE, fire, ambulance vehicles.

cut into strips and wrapped around tubes + fork. used scrap short lengths to stripe the fenders.

digital flash photo in dark back yard.

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.

Thanks for the firsthand report :)

The wider stuff is not very flexible. 1/2" is nice. Wish I found that 1/2" width last year.

Yeah, I bought 1/2" tape from reflectivelyyours.com. More expensive than the link I posted. But it's the perfect width to put on a bike. More than flexible enough to follow the contours of shaped tubes and stays. Think of it as wide pinstriping for your bike! Don't get the 1/4" tape. I returned it because it was cut too thin.