I just bought the Cyglo lighting system for $49.99, and it is great. The beam is like the "blue" on the new sedans, BMW, Acura, etc. It's very bright and has a six volt battery which comes in a protective water bottle that slips into your cage. Less hassle, perhaps.
Urbanmonk

vrkelley, watts = amps x volts, so amps=watts/volts or in this case 20/12=1.67 amps. Is that right electronics whizzes?

vixen, I think I have all my components assembled, EXCEPT, the lights themselves, which must be on the slow UPS truck! Once I get them I will start cobbling together my system. I still have to work out mounting and switches. Initially I will just kind of clamp things on the best I can as I refine the electrical setup, but eventually I would like to figure out a mounting system that is not too difficult to move from one bike to another. And how about some brake lights...and turn signals. The opportunities for geekiness are without limit! I will post some pictures as I have something to show, particularly comparing the light beams of some of the interesting bulbs I have found.

To those of you who have recommended various reasonably priced bike lights your suggestions are appreciated but miss the point of the exercise. First and foremost to me is the fun and challenge of assembling a nice light setup from easily available, inexpensive components that provides a lot of light for the cost. I, personally, want a 12V system rather than a 6V sytem because it will drive more powerful lights at half the amps and there is a plethora of small 12V SLA batteries from which to choose, depending on how much light one wants and for how long. So I guess one person's hassle is another's interesting challenge. The ride is more important than the destination.

Blue? What sort of throw does this light have?

I'm starting to favor the 12V also just for the upgradability and quality parts. My pet peeve is bike accessories. They're usually poorly thought out, and don't hold up under the KELLEY stress test. Most everyone on here probably has their own "stress test". Mine is...

KELLEY stress test = commuting 25m/day*3days a week in rain. Potholes included.

True. I probably didn't ask the right question. Question is If you do the over voltaging...does the formula for determining how many amps change slightly?

Edited: O found the answer back on this page http://bicyclelighting.com (from a previous post). I'm new at this can you tell?

Hey, when it comes to roll-your-own lighting, I guess we are all new! Now you have piqued my curiosity again. I will have to check more into the overvoltaging. I have been wondering if it's possible to hook a couple of D cells in series with a 12 SLA to achieve the 14.4? I would suspect that there might be some issue with hooking different types of batteries in series. I know I could do 12 Ds, but then you have more pieces to deal with, even in holders. Electronics whizzes, please help. Allister are you there?

Your are right, don't do it.

Probably not wise wise to mix the battery types. What sort of conditions made you decide to upgrade???? Although after hitting Home Depot today, I'm either going to go with a 14.4 NIMH (and overV) or keep looking for a smaller SLA. Because of the hills, winds and speed that I travel, I don't have the luxury of getting a full 4lb 12 V battery.

Enjoy!

:)

LittleBigM,
After much searching, a light bulb went off. We have 2 drills sitting around. Why not just buy 'nother battery, and hook up a headlight to that.

The one drill happens to come with a Craftman flashlight. 16.8V battery and a xenon bulb. Looks good and shines into the neighbor's yard (about 120')...problem is there's a strange black spot in the middle of the beam pattern. The light is nearly new. Do you think a MR16 would work without melting the lens cap????

At about 210 lbs a 4 lb SLA battery is the least of my worries!

Being a woman, I weight close to 1/2 what you do so it's an issue.

Dang, Vr,

There's nothing wrong with a flashlight for a headlight, if it puts out a good beam. Plus, xenon bulbs put out a lot of light per watt. If the dern thing shines into the neighbor's yard (:eek: ) maybe you could find a way to attach it to your bike.

The light is D-shaped with the batteries on the bottom. I took the handle off completely. Design looks like Fatty hippy's drawing now.
Battery modules looked really cool! Everything looks "plug 'n pRay. Ok for a newbie!

Maybe a long zip tie can go at the base of the ballast to clamp it to the bike stem. The battery can sit in the seat bag.

But waterproofing seems to be the problem. The ballest looks watertight. But the clamp opening, battery, and switch need to be waterproofed...

Any suggestions?

Based on R'man's forumula, 3amp * 16.8V that xenon bulb must be errr 50W? It ran 2hrs before starting to dim. Then lasted close to 3hrs. OK for a 1lb battery and ... FREE!

Looks like there's room to insert that MR16 ballast inside the original flashlight ballast. For your MR16 or 11 was there a way to separate the bulb from the ballast and cover?

vr, sounds like you may have hit on something! Keep us posted.

Well, my Optronics lights finally arrived. I got the QH-8CC because it has the black plastic housing rather than the chrome metal housing of the QH-7CC. They seem just about perfect for bike lights - light weight and not too large. They look right at home. Naturally, I immediately disassembled them one of them to begin Frankenstein surgery (note my signature). I replaced the 50W MR-16 bulb with the super-white 35W 10 degree spot I had ordered. I shortened the original wires, attached longer leads, tucking the splices back up inside the housing. Hope it doesn't get hot enough in there to melt the tape before I can do something more durable. I also removed the mounting bolt and bolted the housing onto a semi-quick release mount from my old Vistalite set. Tadaaa, ready to roll. I haven't found a switch I like yet so I will be hooking the light directly to the battery for a few days.

The battery will continue to reside in a small handlebar bag. I have supplemented the bag's strap mount with a length of inner tube looped all the way around the bag and bar to support the weight of the battery. This may be unnecessary I just don't like the idea of a 4 lb (or 9 if I use the 7AH) battery bouncing around, banging on the bottom of the bag and stressing the straps. The innter tube works great and is quite inconspicuous, but I will eventually replace it with a nice nylon strap.

Now, I could use the light this way indefinitely though a switch will definitely be more convenient, but I will be working on improvements so I can eventually detail what I have done for the benefit of others here. Toward that end I will probably wind up spending extra money, but I hope to be able to describe an inexpensive and easy-to-rig light setup. I would like to include taillights, too, as I have time to work on mounting and wiring. Tomorrow I will probably report on how the light and new bulb work...and whether anything burned up!
Regards,
Raymond

Wow! My hardware store said that that condensation would eventually wreck the battery. Is your bag vented? He sold me a small sub-panel box and waterproof switch etc. But the box is too bulky Maybe a waterproof bowl will work. You're on the right track. Making your own is better, you may spend extra but get what you want.

-Virginia

vr, the reason I am willing to spend money to experiment is to try to come up with a simple to assemble setup that others may find useful. I am kind of particular about certain things AND I prefer simplicity. So my aim is to put together a light that provides excellent lighting and is so inexpensive and simple to assemble anyone can do it. BTW, I am concerned about water both from within and without so I monitor my bar bag carefully. For now I am removing the battery for charging every day so the open bag does have a chance to dry out. When I eventually put the battery in a waterproof box I will use silica gel and monitor the box for moisture.

Today's report - I REALLY like this Optronics light and especially like it with the 35W 4700K MR-16 lamp. The light is extremely white which makes it seem brighter than typical halogens which provide a warmer, yellower light. The 10 degree spot will throw a nice bright patch of light well ahead of the bike with plenty of peripheral lighting as well. It is not as blinding as a HID light, the light is also less harsh and not blue. Having had the HID recently, I prefer this. Total cost of system so far:
Pair of Optronics driving lights $15
5.0 AH SLA battery $11
Universal Battery 1000MA charger $15
Wire, connectors, etc. <$10
Total cost less than $51
The light could be used as is indefinitely, but of course that would go against my nature. So...
Planned additions -
1. Waterproof switch
2. 12V amber strobe and one or two LED/reflector taillights for rear
3. Semi-quick release mounting for headlights and taillights for easily moving between bikes
4. Waterproof battery box to which switches will be mounted to form a power/control center.

I think that even with the above additions the total system will cost under $100.

More reports as things develop.
Regards,
Raymond

I'm trying a similar setup but don't know how to get more than one light hooked up to the battery.

Nothing worked as planned. But the box doesn't fit anywhere. Maybe the Sub C batteries could run thru 2 rows of PVC pipe. Then attached under the bike rack.

The batteries are not packaged tight like Duracell etc. If anyone reading this tries <B>handling batteries like these, be sure to use a rag </B>. My hand started burning from just holding the pack. A little out of my comfort zone!

Vr, try getting a little advice from someone who knows batteries. Each type of battery has it's special needs and applications. I found helpful, knowledgeable
and friendly advice from a guy at Batteries Plus. You don't have to buy their stuff unless you really want to, but I bet they'll advise you on the best way to encase your batteries, charge them, etc.

Raymond, a good friend of mine told me to make sure my battery case was vented. He said it was because of the potential buildup of gas, even from SLA's. The important thing is to be sure there is a way for any pressure to escape without letting water in.

I've tried my hand at soldering and I still have to learn a few things, but I'll practice on old wires until I get the hang of it. The Liquid Tape works very well for waterproofing connections. Once it's dry, it's a bit like rubber. When it's wet, it's a bit messy and wants to drip, but it dries fairly quickly if it's not applied too thickly. It works best to apply it in layers.

Most 12V accessories that I've used don't seem to care about polarity, that is,
which wire you hook up to the positive and which to negative battery terminal.
But you have to be careful, because some accessories will only work when hooked up exactly right. My xenon strobe is picky like that, but fortunately it is protected from damage if the polarity is wrong. Just be sure to read all the instructions that come with any accessory to prevent damage to any of your equipment.

Also, fuses are essential. They prevent accidental system overloads which could be a fire hazard, even with 12V systems. I use a 10A fuse. Any current higher than 10 amps will burn out the fuse before any problems happen.

Good points, Pete. I plan to introduce a fuse to the system as things progress. I was thinking more like 5A. You are right, light bulbs generally aren't concerned about polarity. For everything else I check with a DMM and maintain polarity. Thanks for the heads up on the strobe. The watertight case I have is a Pelican case which does have a one way pressure vent.
Regards,
Raymond

LittleBig,
We don't many specialized stores, but if I can figure out how to waterproof my JanDD seatbag, the orginial battery casing will work.

I can make a waterproof- vented over like this. http://boat-supply.realemall.com/Car...er--Size-C.asp
But maybe shrink wrap would be better. A marine boat store may just have the correct waterproof switches etc.

What sort of "fuse panel" did you use?

RAinman,
I don't think you can combine LED circuit boards with regular wiring. The boards need a voltage regulator where as regular DC stuff usually matches the volts of the battery.

I was fortunate to have a found a battery-pack with a built-in fuse.

Heck, I might go ahead and carry the extra weight of my back-up battery just for fun. I'd like to see what running 55W is like without interruption. Gee, I could even go as high as 70W for an entire hour! Of course, I'm exaggerating...NOT! :D

I don't know if all that's even necessary, but it's the closest thing to HID I can think of, but at a tiny cost. "What about the extra weight?" Well, I can easily remove the extra battery if I want, but then when I pass those women who walk while carrying weights I'll wonder if I'm missing something.

Rome wasn't built at night.

When I wired my motorcycle for the electric vest I just used a pair of crimp on female spade fittings and an automotive double spade fuse, never sealed it and never had a proablem. could wrap electrical tape round the whole thing, main advantage was it was cheap and light weight and easy to hide.

I am finding (so far) that, since there is very little stress (if any) on my wiring connections, that instead of soldering them, I can 1) twist the wires together; 2) join them further by wrapping electrical tape tightly around the insulated parts for about a half-inch; 3) waterproof the exposed wire and part of the electrical tape with liquid tape (this may take a few coats.) Since the wires are secured to the frame with cable ties, there may not be any need to add further strength with solder. We shall see if it stands the test of time.

Stress won't be a problem but constant vibration from road noise might be. When I look at my el-cheapo lights with a high price tag, I notice that they don't solder or even seall the connections. Hmmm. Time will tell.

vr, these are commercial LED trailer marker lights. They are designed to plug right into a 12V source. For waterproofing short term, just put the battery in a water resistant bag of some kind, freezer baggy, FEDEX tyvek envelope (very tough). Just put battery and connectors down in the bag then fold the top part down alongside the battery. You don't have to seal it. Water only runs down. If possible position exposed wires so that they are coming UP under cover into the outer bag and a leave a little loop of wire down ( think U shape) instead of going straight down into the bag. This will keep water from runniing down the wire into your bag and connections.

Pete, I tell you what, buddy, this 35W high color temp Solux MR-16 lamp is very close to the HID I had. They only cost about $6. I just received the Phillips MR-16 lamp that is supposed to provide 35W equivalent light with only 20W draw. I am getting about 1:20 of good light with the 35W bulb on my 5AH battery.

Here is a side by side shot of the 35W Solux 10 degree spot, left, and the 20W Phillips 8 degree spot beams on a wall at close distance. It is difficult to draw conclusions about the relative brightness at such close distance, but you can definitely see the difference in color temperature, the Solux is 4700K and the Phillips 3100K. Now you can see what I have been talking about with regard to color temperature and "whiteness".

Very nice, Raymond!

:beer:

You know, this idea is good. You can start a 12V system for as little as $35 for a 20W halogen light, then you can add on upgrades piecemeal to improve the system later. There is a great deal of flexibility for designing exactly the system you want for the amount of money you want, or for starting out cheaply and improving as money is available.

O So cool! WOW! That is some light!

I did not find waterproof switch that is small enough to install today. The marine store had a toggle that could work. Otherwise maybe just a simple trailer plug, unplug each time is all that is needed. Ideally this is what I had in mind for the front with everything on one switch plate


ALt - L - ARt

ALt = Amber left turn signal
ARt = Amber right turn signal
L = center spot

Could not find the LED blinkers or 3-pole waterproof switch.

Also as batteries improve, you'll be able to swap out a lighter battery when the old one gets worn out!