greg3rd48 

I have a cheaper set that I currently use on my Peugeot U08 commuter bike but I really don't feel comfortable with the amount of light the head lamp provides me nor the warning light that the rear light gives drivers. I think it is time for an upgrade. I ride about 1 mile of my 6 mile commute on heavily trafficked main roads where the light would really make me feel more secure. The rest of the way I take side streets. Sure it is NYC but the side streets are a heck of a lot safer during commuting hours. Any recommendations? I want to get the best bang for my buck.

StephenH

Try the Planet Bike Superflash for the taillight. And preferably more than one of them. They're not perfect, but they're pretty good.
For headlight, can't help much. You don't want "bang for the buck" you want "adequate to see". What that is depends on your vision and your riding conditions. I use a hub-generator setup, which is great for my applications, but that light can get washed out by bright car headlights, so it may not be great for yours.

greg3rd48 

Very true. Most streets are well lit but not all. I do have 20/20 vision so no problems there but sometimes glare is a problem if the roads are a bit wet. Thanks for the tail light suggestion.

jfowler85

I use a MagicShine MJ-872 headlight and Mj-818 tail light. Not exactly inexpensive, but well worth it. Hopefully the battery pack is a bit smaller by now. Not only do you want to see in lowlight conditions, but you want to be seen. A brand spankin new mercedes with ridiculous HIDs once flashed brights at me because I had my headlight pointed a little too high on setting 2 of 4. That tells me it's working! Settings 3 and 4 are so bright I never use them.

noglider 

Considering that bolted-on, dynamo-powered headlights are more trouble free than strap on or clamp on battery powered lights, I think the extra money they cost ends up being a great value.

But if you're on a tight budget, I'd say get a spoke light for your rear wheel. That will satisfy your need for a tail light.

Here is my article on my main setup. Cost was about $160, and I haven't done anything with it for almost two years now. It just works. I leave them on in the day, since the cost is kinetic energy, and I can't perceive the drag.

erig007

I have both superflash and hotshot as taillights and i like the hotshot way better.
I find the hotshot more powerful, more reliable, more water resistant, handle cold better and is easier to deal with (integrated battery).
I bought 3 superflash and they all gave up below 20F (i tried with different batteries). 2 of them don't work anymore.

downwinded

Best bang for your buck, IMHO.
Cygolite Metro 400 and Hotshot USB Rechargeable Headlight and Taillight Set - Modern Bike

bgav

+1 on the Cygolite, you might want to go up to the Metro 500. For a taillight, IMHO nothing beats the PDW Danger Zone.

Video

fietsbob

Reelights .. at their most Basic Model mount at the Wheel Hub , and blinks on every time the spoke mounted Magnet passes By .

SL100 set - Reelight ApS You may add a bunch of Battery lights , as you desire ,

but the one will at least give you a Blinking light that needs no battery ..
a new one I havent tried https://shop.reelight.com/bicycle-lig...reelight-city/



It's crowded market place , these threads always end up, as a popularity Poll w No Consensus ..


Best bang for your buck may be moving out of NYC, cost of living in that place aint cheap ..

downwinded

I have a Metro 500 and like it. Usually only run it on Med setting, which is 350 lumens. My question is, why would a 1w taillight be better than a 2w? The PDW is a bit less expensive but not by much.

dynaryder

Reelights suck;I've seen them on a couple bikes around here. Fine for a set of backup lights,but not near bright enough as your only lights. They disappear amongst urban traffic.

fietsbob

Beats Going Ninja I gave a set to someone who refused to put any Lights on their Bike at all ..

& I havent been to NYC since 69 when the USN ordered Me to.

jskash

I agree completely about the Cygolite lights. I have them on both the front and back and do most of my riding before the sun comes up. Cars have no trouble seeing me with these lights.

Corben

I'm still taken back by how bright these $20.00 LED bike lights are today compared to what I had twenty years ago.
For the same caliber of brightness I'd have to charge a heavy battery every night and run wires from it to the light.
But I must admit now that I think about it, my old light had more character compared to what I have now.
Basically its just a bright flash light mounted on my bars.
Dimmit! Now I want a cooler light.
Should have gone straight to C&V!

tcs

A can of worms! Where's my P38?

Three DX Superflash copies: two on the bike, one in your bag.
DX 3xAA Cree T6 flashlight w/ handlebar mount.
Eneloops + charger.

tcs

Yeah, I turn my $12 Chinese headlamp (w/ $12 Japanese battery!) on and see a stop sign three blocks away shine back at me, and I shudder at all the miles I rode in the dark behind a 2.4W incandescent bulb.

Wanderer

MHO - best bang for the buck is a Magicshine knockoff with an additional focusing lens, and a Superflash tail light.

greg3rd48 

Tom, that is a serious arrangement! It definitely impressive. I do like the Cygolite option also since many people seem to have had good experience with them and they have good reviews. I will definitely need a 2W rear light since I most importantly want the traffic behind me to notice me. The Hotshot looks like a good option. The cheap Planetbike headlight that I have now just doesn't cut it. I can barely see anything in the road.

You aren't kidding! It certainly isn't the cheapest place in the world to reside but it does have a heap of positive aspects living in "The City". As they say in Economics 101 you have to measure the opportunity costs of one option to another and determine the costs and benefits of both. I don't see myself leaving for quite some time.

greg3rd48 

Thanks for all the great advice everyone! I now see myself commuting and night riding with slightly less whitened knuckles.

no motor?

I'd second this, and ad a helmet light for turns and drivers looking like they are going to turn into you.

tarwheel 

Since you didn't define your budget, I'm going to assume you're looking for a taillight under $30 and headlight under $50. You can spend more and get brighter lights, but you can do pretty well at those price points these days. I would recommend more than one taillight for redundancy, in case you forget to charge the batteries or a light falls off its mount (it happens).

For taillights, I've got PB Superflashes and a PD Radbot 1000 that both cost less than $30. The Radbot is brighter with a permanent reflective element and a better on/off switch, but it burns through batteries much quicker. The Superflash is nearly as bright and batteries last forever, but the switch is funky. Fortunately, they both fit the same mounts, so I can use them interchangeably. I hear a lot of great reviews for the Cygolite Hotshot and will probably buy one some day, altho their visibility from the sides apparently is not great.

For headlights, I am most familiar with Light & Motion Urban series. I've got the Urban 500 and 800, and both are very bright with good run times. They are simple to mount and remove as well as recharge, but sell for $100 or more. L&M sells Urban 200 and 300 models for less money, and you might find one on-line for about $50.

Fly2High

I too was set to buy a Hotshot when I was looking at a Solas and then migrated to a Niterider Sentinel which seems to be just like their Solas but with a few improvements.
It is rated to last something like 4 or 5 hours (which is longer than the Hotshot).

It also has better wide angle coverage than the Hotshot. I did not like that when at anything over 45 degrees, not much light came out of the Hotshot.

The Sentinel does indicate battery level when turned off and it also has the lazer lane indicators. Not sure it is a gimic or not but in a test riding with them on last night, it appeared that a neighbor swung nice and wide around me and later commented about the lines so they can be noticed. They are on a separate switch so they can be left off if desired. To me, the extra $4 over the Solas is to cover the battery level indicator. anything else is a free bonus.

From 400+ feet away, directly behind it, the unit looks like a red glowing softball and then some. It is a 2W light, if I recall correctly. Even from the sides, it appears very bright.

I am satisfied with it.

Frank

Corben

What convinced me to go bright was when I rode over a dead black cat one night.

Robert C

I am going to second this except to say that I use a PDW Danger zone (already mentioned here) instead of a super flash. I also have a dyno-hub driven light on my commuter and there is just no comparison between the MS cone with a defuser and the, rather dim, dyno-hub driven light.

roadiejorge 

I commute to NYC from NJ and right now I am using a Serfas TSL500 on my helmet, Cygolite Taz 1200 on the handlebars, and a Cygolite Hotshot as the rear light. I like to ride briskly which is why I prefer the stronger lights that have a wider and longer beam so I can see hazards ahead well enough to not affect my speed. When I had less powerful lights they didn't illuminate enough for my comfort and were washed out on certain sections of the Greenway by the oncoming car headlights. The helmet light comes in really handy to widen the illumination range and signal drivers at intersections to make sure they see me. I used to have a Magic Shine which was very bright but I didn't like having a separate battery pack; I mounted that light on my helmet and kept the battery in my backpack.