is the Dinotte Tail Light 'all that ?'
 

well, here is my review. I picked up a 140 L and did some rides.

I ride at night through Woburn, Ma., and Arlington, Ma. Do the 'NEBC hill loop' a lot.
Anyone who knows this area understands it is mighty congested with cagers
who zip past and leave little room for error. And a lot of streets are narrow.

Anyhow, I had been using a Planet Bike SF for a while, and this did have a better
effect on cagers than my previous blinkies. I knew I was seen better, but didn't
have everyone give me space. Still had plenty of idiots buzz me. Eh, it is part of
riding a bike.

So...I got the Dinotte because I got so sick of seeing all the posts raving about it.

I did my standard 2 1/2 hr ride in total dark, did the loop, and buzzed around
on some streets.

And every single cager gave me a lot of space.

This is unheard of. In fact the very first cars passing me, I realized something
was a lot different. It was fun to ride at night with traffic for the first time.

Even the punk high schoolers who are too cool, they gave me a decent amount of room.

I used it in steady mode, middle setting. And when I got to the very busy intersections I flipped
it to high mode for a while, until I got away and then put it back to middle.

Flashing would be a daytime only thing. At night, flashing is just way too much. It is far easier to judge distance for a cager when the light is steady. I tested this myself by setting the light on a railing and
driving back and forth and checking out all the modes.

Steady is all you need. It looks like a motorcycle or moped taillight but brighter, and
as a cager I felt that something big and heavy was there, and give it some room... something
the PB SuperFlash doesn't project.

Anyhow, I used energizer 2650mah batteries and it lasted 2 1/2 hours at 40 deg F easily and
had room to spare. middle steady mode still projects a serious beam. High is plain offensive, which
is why I just used it on intersections where there were a lot of street lights and coffee shops and
chances to get squished, so I would stand out from the clutter.

damn ! if any of you are on the fence about the Dinotte 140L, just get one already. It is 110%
worth it. I have never been so un-stressed from a high traffic night ride in my entire life.

I recommend middle strength steady mode for night riding with this puppy...switch to high at big intersections or on really narrow streets.

seriously, ALL cagers gave me enough room where I felt at ease and felt like they really were trying
to avoid me instead of buzz me. The only time anyone did come close was coming up to intersections
where there were streetlights and everyone was going slow and it was really safe...you know, normal
stuff.

I also did some minor trail runs (part of my way to get to the loop) with the mount on my seatpost. the light stayed put easily. I don't think I will rampage on trails with this light because you don't need it in the
woods anyway, but the mount does behave well on teh rooty.

...like Jessica Alba!:D

Good to hear how well this light works. I ordered the tail light Sunday so it should be coming in the mail any day now. I can't wait. I also have two planet bike superflashes. I am wondering if the dinotte will be so strong that it will wash out the superflashes rendering them almost useless?

I am pretty sure you will not need the superflashes at all. it won't help. you will see what I mean when you
slap that dinotte in place

shut them off and only use them if your dinotte stops working.

In my first ride with my 140L I noticed the opposite. A few cars seemed to come closer to me than normal with my 140L on compared to my PB SF.

I think it was a case of where they were going to prove a point to me that just because I have a carnival light on my bike, they were not giving me any special considerations :mad:

That aside, it is a Killer light!

That is when a good flashlight with a red filter may come in handy...take the filter off and sunshine...

j/k


Seriously, is there a flash light with a red filter that would be about as bright for less money?

If you have the Dinotte on constant high, yup it will wash out the SFs very easily.

The Fenix line of high powered flashlights have a red filter available for them.

You can try this.
http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.4896
http://www.dealextreme.com/productimages/sku_4896_1.jpg
with this
http://www.staedtler-usa.com/upload/316_2_7649.jpg

A white LED with a red lens won't be near as powerful as an actual red LED of the same power. It might be useful, but it won't be nearly as bright

They had to get close to see if you were the mother ship.







































or me. :D

+1. Also need to get good sidespill. Those high-power LED flashlights are really intense but really focused too.

This light is amazing...the 140L is so bright Chuck Norris installed one as his taillight http://gprime.net/board/images/smilies/mf_dribble.gif

:lol:

Slightly off-topic, I rode behind two PB Superflashes last night, the first ones I've seen in real life. I was seriously unimpressed. Maybe I was expecting too much. I dunno. This was in a group ride of 67 bikes, all except for two or three with blinkies. Every blinkie you've ever seen. Except the DiNotte. Mine is in the mail...

I use a Planet Bike Super flash everyday for my commute. It's no 140L, however it also does the job pretty well for the price.

For price and convenience it's a great light.

I agree -- for sub-$40 lights, it's pretty rockin'. The optic setup they use on that main LED sends a lot of light.

Oh yeah -- I'm way impressed with my new DiNotte taillight, too. Excellent little light. I don't have much seatpost on my road bike, so I've mounted mine upside-down to peek from under the seatbag.

(yes, my "race-ready" CAAD8 is Fred'ed up a bit.. lol :o )

Not at all, IMO. Considering the long battery life of the PB SF I'll keep mine on my bike in case I ever run out of battery with the Dinotte.
And both run at the same time will have car-folks thinking that there is an emergency response team ahead :D

Nowhere near as bright. The Dinotte on medium is brighter and casts a much wider beam than a Fenix L2D on turbo with a red filter. Now anyone have comparison pictures of the XLS Tail light? :D

You could just have your two PBs pointing sideways.

$14 for mine at MEC :D

I also like the Planet Bike Blinky 7 as well.

Right; I said "sub-$40" to include all those other lights that are within double the PB's price range. ;)

Right you are :)

Not a red filter but a red LED for a minimag.