Lights for Riding in the Dark
 

Wanted to get everyones opinion.

Will be starting to commute in the dark to and from work. Looking for a light that has a lot of lumens. I would think the brighter the better. Any suggestions?

Heard some people have a front light and also a helmet light. Opinions?
Heard some people use to blinkies on the back.... opinions?

suggestions, opinons, and ideas along with advise.... all welcome!

My set up is a Planet Bike Superflash for the rear. The brightness seems to be a good bang for the buck, and it has a catchy flash pattern (or steady mode). I'm happy with it. Pretty confident anyone approaching can see me clearly. I've seen other cyclists using this a mile away, literally (it can be a bit bright for those behind you on a group ride, but steady mode seems to make it bearable).

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/...dL._AA280_.jpg
And, recommended to me by scoatw, a Romisen RC-N3 II Cree flashlight for the front with a simple flashlight mount. It's handy because with the extender tube you can just use rechargeable AA's, and you also have a really powerful flashlight, for comparatively cheap (or if you like the smaller form factor, I suppose you could get a rechargeable CR123A, which is like a camera battery). Definitely not just a "be seen" light... it's bright enough to ride by in pitch dark. I'm really happy with it. Can't say enough about it, really. I can post pics of my setup later.

http://www.shiningbeam.com/media/00/...4a70af6f_m.jpg
http://www.shiningbeam.com/media/00/...8c836fcd_m.jpg

Two lights on the back - always. A light can stop working with little warning, certainly no noise.

The above only applies to Lights for Riding in the Dark. Lights for riding in the Bright of Day - it don't matter so much. ; )

Check the Electronics, Lighting & Gadgets subforum for more opinions than you can handle.

Redundancy is good. Most riders I see (myself included) have two lights in the back. I have one on the frame in steady mode and one on my backpack in blinkie mode. More lights can't hurt.

Lots of variables for headlights - lumens and light pattern are both important, and there are power source choices (generator / battery, rechargeable / throw away, internal / external). And again, redundancy is good. My main light (brightest) is on my handlebar. I have a "to be seen" light on my helmet.

I have a spare light in my backpack that will go in either white or red mode that I could strap anywhere I may need it.

DON'T place a red light facing forward.

All my stuff is Supercycle (the ONLY brand available at Canadian Tire) Two LED headlights (slightly smaller than a compact flashlight, but still really bright) mounted to the handle bar and a generator driven one mounted down lower, where the front brake attaches to the frame. For the rear, two LEDs attached to my rack top bag and one attached to my seat post. I also have one attached to my helmet now.

I run two tactical flashlights -- on on my bars and one on my helmet (plus I carry a 'reserve' light in the panniers). I also run a flashing red light on the back of my helmet, a steady red light on the back of my rack, and one more blinky on the back of my panniers (with red reserve in the panniers, as well).

In full daylight, I generally don't bother much with lights, because in my opinion, they really add very little as compared to high vis clothing (I wear a reflective, hi-vis orange vest or hi vis t-shirts in summer, and a hi vis jacket w/ reflective accents in winter). I base this on what I see as a fellow cyclist approaching, as well as my experience as a driver coming up on cyclists.

I do run some or all lights during any periods of diminished light (fog, dawn/dusk, clouds, or when I know I'll be passing through tunnels or underpasses, or even streets that are particularly tree lined).

As a cheap solution for the front that is better than the typical walmart/target offerings, I would advocate for the tactical flashlights available from Costco (if you're a member) -- its a 3 pack of nominal 150 lumen lights for like $15. These are bright enough to 'see' by if you keep your speeds really modest, though you won't get the kind of road detail you really need for traversing unknown or serious dark streets. I use them on some unlighted stretches of MUP with reasonable comfort at speeds near 10MPH. One nice thing about mounting one to the helmet is that you can point the hot spot where you need it. They also have a pretty good flash mode for the 'to be seen' aspect. Not a perfect solution, but better than most offerings near the price. NOTE: These are NOT the tactical flashlights offered on Costco.com for a lot more money. I have not tried those.

I'm in love with my Magicshine setup. The rear light is only $30 (+ battery costs), but can be seen literally a mile away, and lasts about 3 weeks on one charge. The headlight is excellent for my needs and is wicked bright, but drains its battery fairly quickly. I only ride at night 2/3 nights a week.

There are too many options to list, and most of them are good nowadays. LED headlight technology is fully mature. You are only limited by your budget. The tactical flashlights with a TwoFish block are excellent. I've heard good things about the Magicshine lights.

I use a DiNotte 600L up front, a DiNotte 140 on my helmet, a DiNotte taillight on the seatpost, a Planet Bike Superflash on the blinkie strap on the rear of my helmet, and a reflective LED vest.

Dinotte 800L up front and a 140r mounted to the seat rails.

There are lots of great options these days for LED lights. Like Schwinnrider said, your budget is your only limit. I also agree that redundancy is important. I use at least two helmet and bar/frame mount lights, front and rear. If you are trying to keep costs down, some good options for headlights are Magicshine, Nightrider Minewt 600, Dinotte, Light & Motion Stella series, Fenix and other flashlights. PB Superflash is hard to beat for an inexpensive tail-light.

Schmidt hub dynamo, E6 halogen bulb headlight , B&M 4D topmount rear light.
Now, 2 bikes, recently placed the battery operated rear light, on my BikeFriday,
that came off my Koga WTR, Tubus Logo rear rack,..
when I added a wired into the headlight ..one in its place..

Clever kludge: , I made a light mount for the 2 bolt Euro taillight,
that was fitted onto the low, rear of the seatpost water bottle cage,
[used Zefal mudguard struts, for the project]

So as to not cover my lights with my Rain Cape ,

when I ride thru the Downpour.. North Pacific Coastal storms do that ..

Same here. I have the battery on my rack, it powers the front and rear lights. The front light is dimmable so that I can light up the unlit paths I ride on but tone it down for oncoming traffic, the tail light is superb. I got mine from Geomangear and am on my second season with the same setup, use it 4 days a week coming and going.

+1 on the dynohub setup. I relied on battery-powered LEDs for years, which are nice and bright. But creating bag fulls of dead batteries, or the hassle of trying to replace proprietary recharables (I had an old NiteRider setup; the rechargeable finally only provided power for about 15 minutes) depressed me. Over the long haul, you break even (or even save money) by buying a good dynohub and pairing it with a good LED lamp.

I still use battery-powered LEDs, but usually only as backups, as in a helmet mount light during the darkest moments (forest paths, black MUPs), or in the rare case of wanting to stand out even more to traffic (the Sauron-like swiveling 2W LED spotlight). In any event, I'm not generating bags of battery waste any longer.

I sure liked my Light and Motion Stella 400 set up until some scumbag stole the set up off my bike. I think it's now the Stella 600, which I'll get as a replacement.

I hate scumbag thieves.

A bright light is good, but you also want a fairly wide viewing angle so you can see/be seen at positions other than head-on/directly behind. A dynohub with LED lights is virtually a 'fit and forget' solution as with proper voltage regulation LEDs last virtually forever. A head torch or helmet-mounted light (as applicable) gives you a bit of redundancy and extra light, and of course points wherever you're looking.

It largely depends where you're riding. In well-lit streets, lighting is basically there to make you visible rather than to light the way, and smaller, wide-angle lights will suffice. On unlit trails etc, you are mainly lighting the way, so should ideally have a bright, focused headlight in addition to your wide-angle headlight.

Anybody try the Lezyne Super Drive? MSRP is $109.00. Many online stores are selling it for quite a bit more but it is available on the manufacturers online store for $109. Like the look. Hear they generally make good products. And I like that it runs off of an 18650 battery. 450 lumens is certainly enough for my needs (commuting on familiar paths at modest speeds). The battery is the main reason I want this light over comparable lights by other manufacturers. I can buy a spare for 10 bucks. And have 2 high capacity lithium-ion batteries without paying an arm and a leg for a proprietary design.

So...anybody with experience with this light?


(Edit): So just looked at those Romisen lights. They look like an EXCELLENT value. Might pull the trigger on one of those if Costco doesn't get the 3 flashlight pack in the next couple weeks. (thought I could mount two of the Costco ones for decent output).

I used the Magicshine for a while. I liked the output, I wound up having battery issues with it. I also had issues with the light head itself (switch malfunction, wouldn't always work, to the point that I lost confidence in it).

I switched to a sidewall generator set-up (B+M Dymotec and B+M Lumotec IQ Fly+, from Peter White, linked to above), while not as as bright as the Magicshine, it provides an adequate amount of light for a "to see with light" because it is focused better. It always works, no issues at all in over a year of use. I also have a 105 lumen (rated by mfg.) helmet light.

On the back I have a PBSF and 2 generic blinkies, all on steady mode.

I'll play devil's advocate - at night, my reflective stuff will shine even if my rear lights (both of them) fail. At night the contrast is much greater so cyclists REALLY stand out.
During the day, cyclists easily disappear into the rest of the scenery, and blinkies help increase the chances that the cyclists are seen. Hi viz clothing can help, but I find that I notice active lighting moreso than hi viz colors.

OP - the best bang for the buck IMO is a flashlight (with a Cree LED) up front with a really good blinkie (PB superflash turbo) in the rear, with a more basic secondary rear blinkie.

I also run a bright (white) blinkie up front whenever I ride - it has saved my butt numerous times (drivers double taking and hitting brakes when entering from side streets or turning from the opposite direction).

I presently run a double setup - set #1 is a dynamo hub driving a Supernova E3 Pro "asymmetrical lens" headlight and its accompanying steady 3 LED tail light. The lens offers a better light dispersion at the cost of some absolute lumens.
Set #2 is a Planet Bike Blaze 2W up front on blink mode (always) and a Planet Bike (PB) Superflash Turbo on blink in the rear.

I used a magicshine for a year or so, and it was really bright. The light pattern (at the time, things may be better) had a huge hotspot, but the light was awesome for the money.
Despite the fact that the Magicshine is probably 2x brighter than my E3 Pro, I prefer the dispersion of the Supernova much better. No appreciable hotspots, bright enough to see very well, wide beam.
The Supernova "triple" is the high wattage dynamo offering that is recommended only for offroad use, but it would be interesting to compare with the Magicshine and other LED-based 700-1100 "claimed" Lumen lights to see how the beams compare. I've seen Peter White's site, which is nice, but he's only listed the lights he sells.

Yes, that's been my experience, too. They do work best for riding in the dark. The lights with more lumens do tend to be brighter, and I have seen many people with blinkies on the back as well as a few with helmet lights.

The ones I can't figure are the ones with front blinkies. After about 30 sec of that I'd be looking for a stick to put between my teeth so I wouldn't swallow my tongue.

Magicshine rules. I got high beamed by a car the other day when mine was set to high. It's pretty damned bright. I use two planet bike superflash in the back, one on the bike, one on my backpack.

I really don't understand why more cyclists don't use dynohubs. I find the light more than adequate for my purposes and you can now buy lights in the 2-3 watt range that are well suited to even fast riding.

But the real clincher is that you don't have to change a battery or recharge anything. Oftentimes, you don't even have to switch it on.

Very convenient.

Back in the day I used a sidewall bottle dynamo, and I disliked how the lights would turn off when I stopped (which is when I most want them on, many stops are at traffic lights and intersections). People used to rig up large capacitors to power the lights through stops, but I'm not electrically inclined enough to DIY. Are any of the modern dyno solutions equipped with reserve capcity to keep the lights on during stops?

Recently purchased a Niterider Mi-Newt 150 cordless, re-chargable headlight from http://www.nashbar.com for 70.00. It's a phenomenal light for the money. Too bright on high beam. I use it on it's lowest setting. It has a nice, tight light barrell. The strobe mode flashes between off and the highest setting...WAY too intense. Use a dimmer light w/a strobe option for that purpose. Mine's a Sette Glo available from http://www.pricepoint.com for 9.00US. Takes 3 AAA batteries.

For rear lights I use Sette blinkies which are PBSF knockoffs, but just as bright. I've got a couple of SFs and can discern no appreciable difference in the brightness. 3 modes. They're 9.00US as well from PP.com.

Have been using NR Trailrat 2.0 for years and they all gave out around the same time. I found a guy on e-bay who re-built them for a very good price, so I'm still using them even though the Mi-Newt is a vastly superior light...old habits die hard. :p

I don't have a good recommendation for the front light, but for the rear I like the Radbot 500, although I hear the Radbot 1000 is much brighter. It is small, quite visible, different modes, only uses 2 aaa batteries, you can't accidentally turn it on if it is in your bag, not too expensive, and it looks good.

All of the B&M lights with "plus" in their names, and the newer ones like the Lumotec IQ CYO RT, have this feature, as do their taillights.