Originally Posted by Ziemas (Post 13513266)

. Which light are you speaking of?

Originally Posted by Kingshead (Post 13524725)

These are work related lights used for attic crawling. Later this weekend I'll dig out the light and post some pics, it's pretty beat up from years in the tool box. The manufacturer claimed a 100hr run time with one set of batteries. As I said, it only has one LED and was only a backup if my Maglight went dead. Not bright enough for riding purposes, only an emergency backup for work.

As I stated on the other thread, I purchased some eneloops and a charger that should be here in a few weeks. I'll run some tests to include when new, after a couple of charges, and so on to see the results verses disposables. This will also include energy consumption to charge the batteries.

I'll post my findings on a new thread. I'm looking forward to the rechargeables being good to their word as it would certainly be beneficial if so. I'll run the tests in different types of equipment also, not just lights just to see how much better they are than the rechargeables I purchased yrs ago that weren't worth a .............

Originally Posted by 2manybikes (Post 13525262)

There may be over 100 tests (probably more) just like that with charts and diargams using different flashlights. Most of them compare Eneloops to Alkaline to Lithium. All you need to do is look on Candlepower forums to get an idea how the different batteries perform. None of this stuff is new. The older Nimh rechargeable batteries have a high self discharge rate, as much as 10% the first day. This is normal and tested and proven to death over the years. The eneloops are a new composition, some kind of a hybride between HimH and something else. They can stay above 80% charge for a couple of years. I have plenty of both types, it's old news and well tested. You can read all about this on Candlepower forums. There are pleny of people over there that have sophisticated equipment to produce the time and power loss of batteries in use. Years ago you are correct the Rechargeable batteries available would not stay charged. The still sell batteries like that, one needs to know the difference. The eneloops do exactly what they say they will. I've only been using them for a couple of years, they were not new when I started using them.

Originally Posted by 2manybikes (Post 13525327)

Most of the new higher quality flashlights have regulated output. The brightness stays the same until the battery is too weak and drops out of regulation. This gives more useful time at full power. Many less expensive lights don't have that. Unless you know the difference a comparison test to another light may be no good. However, if you search the name of your old light on the forums, or in your browser you may find one of the excellent sites that test the light and allow you to compare it to others. The link below may be the best one.

This is amazing , you can line up lights in three colums and compare them. The amont of work put into this is incredible. It must have taken years.

http://www.light-reviews.com/compare.html

Originally Posted by Kingshead (Post 13528318)

Purchased new lights for the testing, should arrive about the same time.

Originally Posted by Ziemas (Post 13528356)

Which lights did you get for testing?

Originally Posted by mnaines (Post 13101984)

The other big advantage to a four-D-cell maglite flashlight is in an emergency, the flashlight can be used as a baton to aid in self defense. My cousin is a veterinarian and she says if you're riding a bike and a dog starts chasing you, hitting the dog with a shot of pepper spray is only going to make the dog more aggressive. She says in such situations, your best line of defense is something to distract the dog or at least hit it in the nose or jaw to get it to release its grip on you, and a MagLite Flashlight with four D-Cell batteries has enough weight behind it to cause death by blunt-force trauma, and the MagLite casing is so durable it can withstand being run over by a tank.

Originally Posted by slvoid (Post 1634166)

[Moderator Note: Since lights are so important in the winter, I'm making this a temporary sticky. Please post your bicycle light comments, suggestions, and questions here. For Home-made bike designs and questions, see Total Geekiness.]



Since so many people are starting to get lights for the fall and I was bored, I came up with this.

Edit: Updated 10/2/05 - V4
I realized since most of you commute, charge time is important, I added a column for that too. In most cases, I tried to list the lights with the charge times that come default with the unit. Faster optional chargers may be offered by the manufacturer. Also, I've included this both as an excel and HTML file. With the excel file, you can at least sort by different things. The HTML file is separated by what I think are the most helpful ways of sorting it.

Edit: Updated 10/3/05 - V4a
I added a pivot table to it. If you have office 2001, 2002, or XP, you can use the pivot table, it makes viewing it a bit easier. I also formatted the HTML file for easier viewing.

Edit: Updated 2/7/06 - V5
Changed around my ramblings a little, updated chart.

The numbers are approximate for clean roads, if your roads have a lot of potholes, debris, poor visibility, etc, please take the liberty to knock a few mph off these numbers.

Edit: 10/20/05, 11/9/05, 11/11/05
Added these links for some headlight beam comparisons.
http://eddys.com/site/page.cfm?PageID=493
http://www.lupine.de/en/lighttest/lighttest.html
http://www.mtbr.com/spotlight/lightshootout/
Link courtesy of 2manybikes.
http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/stevea...qhD2DBX0tUQ3MT
This, I think, is the best one yet:
http://terrengsykkel.no/img.php?d=gu...er2005&id=1424
Link courtesy of Ken Wind.
http://www.gearreview.com/2006_led_lights.php

=====================================================

A short primer on different types of lights.

LED's (~20-30 lumens/watt)

LED's are pretty much all solid state. It's basically a computer chip that gives off light. They range from tiny blinkers that run on AA or AAA batteries to full 5+ watt lights running on rechargeable batteries.
The primary use of a blinker is to be seen. Blinkers can operate in constant or flashing modes. The latter mode of operation usually yields the greatest visibility for the cyclist due to the conspicuous nature of the strobe. Another advantage of that mode is the diminutive draw on the batteries. The batteries can usually last days in this mode. Unfortunately, the lights are too weak to be used to see at high speeds in their constant on mode. They are generally good in extremely dark situations when going slowly.
High powered LED lights usually start at 1 watt and go all the way up to 5 watts per LED module. Some lights have multiple modules. Since there's no filament to heat up or break, LED modules can typically be set to either a rapid flashing pattern to attract attention or be run on a solid on mode without risking damage to the bulb.
The color of the LED's are usually white but they can vary from having a slight tint of blue/green to being purplish.
Battery life from most manufacturers range from 2-5 hours for lights running in extremely bright modes to 10+ hours of usable light and 30+ hours of dim light to keep the rider visible.

Advantages:
Virtually indestructable and virtually infinite (50000+ hrs) life.
White light.
Can be powered down significantly to achieve DAYS of run time.

Disadvantages:
Lights are relatively expensive (for now).

Halogen (~10-30 lumens/watt)

Halogen bulbs are basically "space heaters that give off light as a byproduct." (ha ha, laugh!)
They heat up a metal wire to produce a lot of heat and also give off light. Most production lights will either run a MR11 halogen bulb and reflector unit or have a custom reflector and use just a bulb. You can often find a large variety of off the shelf MR11 bulbs to fit your individual needs. The lights can range anywhere from 5 watts to 30+ watts. Some companies have electronic controllers that enable a single light to run a range of wattages from 5 to 15 watts.
The color of the lights can range from a yellowish glow to a bright yellow/white light.
Battery life can range from an hour for lights running in extremely bright modes to over 4 hours in lower power settings.

Advantages:
Lots of different bulbs out there, cheap to replace.
Lights are relatively inexpensive.

Disadvantages:
Relatively short battery life on high brightness.
Filament can break under extreme shock and vibration.

HID's (~50 lumens/watt)

HID lamps basically use a tiny bolt of lightning as the light source. There's no filament, only a spark ionizing a tiny gap between two electrodes. These lights all require a ballast control system that usually comes built into the lamp housing itself. The lights are equivalent to 1.5-3x what a MR11 can put out in terms of light. Since there is no filament to wear out, the lamps usually last many times longer than a halogen lamp if left on. However, the process of starting the spark in the HID bulb wears out the electrode each time and as a result, cuts down on the life of the bulb. Most bulbs are rated for 1000 hours & starts.
Manufacturers usually put their best into these lights and as a result they also get the best battery packs. Run times at full brightness can range anywhere from 3 hours to 12 hours.
The color ranges from white to white with a bluish or purplish tint.

Advantages:
Bright white light.
No filament to break.
Relatively long battery life.

Disadvantages:
Require a 20-30 second warm up before reaching full brightness.
Starting and restarting the lamp cuts down on the life of the bulb.
Require a minute to cool down before turning back on if turned off.
Thin glass bulb still subject to breakage under extreme shock or vibration.
Relatively expensive bulbs.
Relatively expensive lights.

=====================================================

Rearwards Visibility:

Most active rear visibility devices nowadays are the standard battery powered blinkers. They perform adequately in getting the drivers attention from directly behind you but there are also several on the market that give you visibility from the side. These can either be in blinking mode or solid mode. Blinking uses less battery power and also attracts attention better. However, it is more difficult for the driver to pinpoint exactly where you are and where you are going since there isn't anything consistent to reference from. Also, some blinkers blink extremely slowly and a driver may miss you if they are quickly scanning across the road. It's best to run two blinkers, one on solid and one on blink mode.
One of the better ones is the Cateye TL-LD1000. It has 2 rows consisting of a led on each side and 3 LED's facing rearwards. Each row can be independently set on blink or solid.
One of the brightest ones out there is the Niterider tail light. It contains up to 19 LED's in a very small package since it's powered externally. You can either plug it into a splitter powered by a niterider headlamp battery or cut the power cord to rig it up to your own battery. My recommendation is 9+ volts for adequate brightness.
Here's a video of the NR in action courtesy of MechBgon next to the TL-LD1000.
http://www.omnicast.net/~tmcfadden/TL3.wmv
http://www.omnicast.net/~tmcfadden/TL4.wmv
http://www.omnicast.net/~tmcfadden/b...walkaround.wmv

Originally Posted by FatBaldMen (Post 18512952)

https://coastportland.com/product/hl8/

*Reviving a dead horse in hopes of attracting some attention to the post I started in this sub forum.

I use one of these on my helmet & it's great. 4 energizer rechargeable batteries take 15 min to charge & the light lasts 3 nights at 390 lumens. Plus I can aim it at people who are about to do something incredibly stupid, like make the left turn into me as I'm getting across the intersection.

It's always stopped them immediately.

Originally Posted by CompleteStreets (Post 19121211)

How exactly do you mount it to your helmet? Did you have to come up with your own design?

Originally Posted by Angelikadq (Post 16418710)

Because I am looking for a MTB light for a important friend for his new Giant bike, as a surprise.
But I didn't know a good light for MTB is of its high lumen or other standars?
Please give me some advise.
I surf im net und got some review and pictures about sogn, xeccon and lezyne...
Maybe someone can help me find a fitable gift for my friend.

Originally Posted by tbon3r (Post 23371780)

Has much changed in the last 5 years or has progress in led lighting and battery tech kind of plateaued?