MR16 LED reviews
 

I have added an additional MR16 LED headlight to my Geek light system. I have been running with a single 3 watt Luxeon MR16 spot headlight for the past year. The beam was ok in a mixed urban light environment, and good in the few dark sections, but I felt the need for more 'forward' light during these winter months. I ordered 2 different bulbs:

1. A 3x 1 Watt Luxeon MR16 (both bulbs from http://autolumination.com/mr16.htm )
2. A 3W Luxeon MR 16

Both are taller than standard halogen MR16 bulbs, so I had to modify the Optronics QH-7CC housing by hammering the inside metal bracket that holds the bulb socket. It took a bit of adjusting to get the 2nd housing mounted to my handlebars, since my cockpit is crowded.

Both lights throw a wider, shorter beam than my first LED MR16. However, when used in conjunction with the existing headlight, I can get a good, bright beam, wide nearest the bike and narrower in the distance. The 3x 1 watt bulb seems to fluctuate in brightness; I am thinking that either the integral power puck isn't as good as the other bulbs or is having difficultly providing good steady power to 3x 1 watt Luxeons. Currently I am using the 3 watt luxeon.

I added an inline switch on the new headlight, so I can just use one if I think the battery is getting low. The built-in power pucks seem to keep the luxeons going even if the battery is getting low; the only way I can tell (by looking) that the battery is getting low is the rear beehive leds really fade below 12v. The pictures below show the rest of the system. The first 2 pix show the headlights, along with my car horn and bell. The 3rd pix is the 3x 1watt MR26. 4th pix: I store my SLA 5Ah battery in a cheap underseat bag--soon to be replaced with a homemade leather bag. The rear beehive leds are joined with a yellow strobe from allelectronics.com. I replaced the battery powered bar-end leds with one connected to the mains power--these flash all the time. The final picture are my yellow led front fork maker leds--these will be replaced with yellow beehive similar to the rear lights.

All in all, I am satisfied with my system. It has worked for more than 2 years, with various changes and upgrades along the way.

Just noticed another source of batteiers...Northern Tool and Supply sells a 12 v 7 A-H SLA battery for $25- used to power gate-openers; also solar chargers for them.

Just finished my new Hub driven LED light.

Using a shimano 3n71 hub dyno wheel for power.
Martin has published a bunch of dynamo circuits for extracting a good amount of power from a dyno.
Cutter Electronics supplied the triple cree R2 and narrow optic which seemed perfect for the road.

http://idisk.mac.com/timonz/Public//cutt1.jpg

From this I should get the same output as my old dual Q5 setup (around 400 lumens, 20w halogen equivalent), the dyno outputs only 500mA.

The light head was built from the same aluminium section as my MTB light but a lot shorter. Its about 5x4.5x2cm.
http://idisk.mac.com/timonz/Public//HUB1.jpg

The disk in there is a 8x25 filter from ledsupply. It will spread things out to give a little peripheral light, good for some of the fast downhills around here, I hope. Also should make me very visible to the cagers.
See what it does to the beamshot:
http://idisk.mac.com/timonz/Public//HUB2.jpg

The light end were sealed with yellow epoxy(just add some food colouring into the mix) to give bright sidelighting. Combined with my white bar tape this gives the cockpit a warm glow.
For mounting I'm a big fan of keeping the bars free, so mounting over the brake calliper seemed like a good idea. Made a swoopy bracket for this.
http://idisk.mac.com/timonz/Public//dyn0.jpg

From last years riding experience I knew I wanted around 200lumens for normal riding and as much as possible for downhills. The 3 R2s at 500mA should deliver around 400 lumens. Martin has a combination voltage doubler/rectifier circuit which halves the power when required. I went with his circuit 10, crammed into a small box that hides under the handlebar stem. Bottom switch selects high/low and I added a on/off switch at the side. Liberal amounts of silicon slathered everywhere for waterproofing. The electronics are pretty simple, 3 capacitors, two switches, 4 diodes and a resistor. I will always run with a backup light so a standlight wasn't needed.

http://idisk.mac.com/timonz/Public//dyn1.jpg

The end result is quite tidy. Note beamshots are hard using the dyno, this photo is upside down on the table, note one led has a wide spread.
http://idisk.mac.com/timonz/Public//dyn2.jpg

http://idisk.mac.com/timonz/Public//dyn3.jpg

Total weight of the light head, wires and control box is 175gms. The shimano 3n71 hub is 700gms. My old 12AA battery pack alone was over 400gms so I think the weight isn't significant.
The hub drag is 2w with the light off and should be around 6/10w low/high. An extra 10w has got to help the training! The power requirements go up with more LEDs, the triple seemed like a good balance of light and power.
I got a bloke to mill the head unit but it could have been done with hand tools, just not quite as tidy.
Total cost probably a bit over 100NZ$ (this is similar to 12AA NiMH and charger!) plus the wheel.

I like what you've done with your light housing. How did you cut the aluminum?

The light head was originally cut with an electric hacksaw. I was going to dremel out the hole but got a bloke at work to do it instead on the mill. He was kind enough to tidy the ends too. You could do this easily enough with a hand saw, will be a bit of work with a dremel making the hole (thinner al would help, this stuff is quite sturdy).
The bracket was cut with a band saw and cleaned up with a file.

Just been out for a pedal, ride report and photos here.

Good morning all - just thought I'd share a neat little find of mine. Our local woolworths was having a tool clearout and I snagged a 40LED floodlight/worklight. I stripped off the big carry handle/frame and charged it up. The unit has 3*1500mAh NiCd AA's built in - when these start to fail I'll crack the unit open and drop in 2200mAh NiMH replacements. The weight without the handle is 300g, the charge time is 3 hours with these batteries and it gives good light for 5 1/2 hours (the box claims 3 1/2!) The
lamp is rated at 3watt and gives a nice even squareish beamshot. I think I'll mount it with some drop-in brackets when I pick my bike up next week.

http://img227.imageshack.us/img227/8...0418de9.th.jpghttp://img99.imageshack.us/img99/552...0419xr0.th.jpg

Best thing? It was reduced to £19, but rang up the till at £4. Wish they'd had more...

Whelen TIR3 tail lights
 

Finally got around to taking some pics of my dual whelen TIR3 setup. I've hooked them up in alternating flashing mode as you can see in the video. They're mounted on aluminum stock, and I used some power pole connectors. I use four power options, during winter commuting it's connected to the 12V sla that powers the headlights. I added a small resistor (the orange connectors on the rack) to cut down on brightness. Drivers were complaining that they were being blinded. I normally use a small 7 cell nicad, but if I forget to charge it I use an 8 cell AA pack. This is somewhat problematic as it doesn't hold the cells real good. Finally, during the summer I carry a regular 9 volt battery just in case I fine myself in rain or dusk conditions and I want the visibility.

The video shows them running in bright sunlight. They are extremely bright, and the lenses make them visible over a fairly wide angle.

The two whelen units were bought a year apart and they changed the bezel. The new one is on the left. They use very little current for such a bright light. The 9 volt battery will run a single unit for about 15 hours.

The space between them is for a reflector, but I've been waiting for a round tuit.

http://www.tekisp.com/~gene/whelen1.jpg Overview
http://www.tekisp.com/~gene/whelen2.jpgBattery options
http://www.tekisp.com/~gene/whelen3.jpgSimple construction
http://www.tekisp.com/~gene/whelen4.jpg
http://www.tekisp.com/~gene/whelen.aviVery blinky

I bought them from http://www.strobesnmore.com/

Well, I've been using my lighting system for about 8 or 9 months now.

I've got a 10watt/12volt lo-beam and a 20watt/12volt (energy efficient) hi-beam. I have a 1watt LED rear tail-light. I'm using a 5ah SLA.

By my calculations (please correct me if I'm wrong), my lo-beam can be used for 5.45 hours maximum and just under 3 hours without harming the battery. I can use my hi-beam for 2.85 hours maximum and 1.5 hours without harming the battery.

The entire light assembly attached by one zip tie (for the rear tail-light), removing velcro fasteners, a quick release buckle (for the battery), and one allen bolt (attaching the headlights to the bike). I can remove everything off the bike in just a couple of minutes and reattaching it is just as easy & fast.

I also use a red & white guppy headlight on my helmet and red/white/blue Tireflies on my valvestems.

I have been told that drivers have mistaken me for a police motorcycle in the mornings and that I'm easily visible from distance. Biking at night has been a total pleasure. Riding a recumbent, I can get a good look at the stars as I cruise around.

I will hopefully post some pics soon.

intrepidbiker, looking forward to the pictures, especially how the battery is mounted.

Hi,

there is ton of data here. Can any one give or point to a simple....build a light how to?
I can read a schematic, but couldn't design one.
I am competent with soldering, drilling, filing, wood, plastic, and inmprovising with standard tools

I am thinking MR16 based, but am open
Design goals:
Cheap, under $50 if possible
Weight/size: get battery pack in water bottle or smaller would be great
Batttery: rechagable in some way
runtime: any thing 2 hours or above is great

thanks

Stick with the wal mart fog light add two toggle switches and a Sealed lead battery and you have a golden setup for roughly $50 provided you have the tools.
I use 20 w x2 with two switches to control high and low beams.
My battery is a 5 amp hour that ways a ton i swear
If I am right I can run these lights both beams for 2 hours. I am not a math wiz so feel free to correct me on my run time. I love this set up. I want to upgrade battery to something smaller that will give me the same run time. But I am one cheap broke kind of guy. I will post pics of my setup when I can.

Hey squirtdad, I was just at my local wallyworld and they had the optronics QH-87CD which looked very familiar to the (recommended) QH-7CC's. All it said on the outside of the box was Platinum Burner Series, 2-1/2" round, 50 watt halogen. They were in the automotive section and less than $15

Good luck

I'm leaning more towards the Pond Scum Light

Looking forward to seeing your setup clydesdale

Hi Guys,

Great read! I have a question regarding batteries. I couldn't find the equasion to figure out how much amps a certain light will draw.
I'm trying to figure out if I can use a 14.8V 2300 mAh (4S1P A123 - from a Dewalt power pack) rated to 15C with a 12V 20W Halogen light MR16.

If that doesn't work, I might try my hand at one of the DIY LED lights.

Appreciate it!

Here is the setup. Sorry I took forever to post them let me know what you think. I know the electrical taped switches are kind of lame. I could not think of a better way to mount the switches in the cockpit. I had them in the trunk bag until i reached back to flip one and about wrecked. They are waterproof that I am sure of. Rode in a down pour and freezing drizzle.

WOW ! it has been a long time since I was in this thread , I was was last here about 1200 Posts ago !!

any way I still have been playing and here is my Latest creation

I have been watchingthe eveolution of the Highintensity LED's over the last couple years, I have done some experimenting , and I came up with one that has been working quite well .

First I got a Cree LED P4 a ( http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.4877 ) ( Next I'm Getting a Q5 emitter even brighter ( http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.2394 ) )


2nd I got a Current regulator ( http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.3256 )

and a Lens http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.4626 , other parts that I needed , but had a 4 AA batter y Holder ( www.bgmicro.com ) some speaker witer , an old Pentium 90 with Heat sink , the slot cover from a PC a SPST switch , 2 old Coke Caps ( with the points redeamed ) and some velcro.

http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b2...ghts/lght1.jpg

First I attached the wires from the out put ofthe current regulator to the LED star and Connected some speaker wire to the Regulators input

http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b2...ghts/lght2.jpg


then I took the Pentium with heat sink , ad removed the Fan and the Pentium . I took the heat Sink and marked the 4 holes for the lens to attach to. and 2 holes for the mounting bracket .

http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b2...ghts/lght3.jpg

Next I put the LED star on the heat sink, and then the lens, the Lens has 4 post to screw into , so I screwed the 4 screws in holding the lens and LED in place.

http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b2...ghts/lght4.jpg

Next I attached the PC slot cover bracket to teh Heat sink. Then Using a Hot Melt glue I attached one of the Coke caps

http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b2...ghts/lght5.jpg

I cut a Small Notch in the coke cap on the top ( should have put it on the side or bottom ) then I put the current regulator and wire into the cap,

http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b2...ghts/lght6.jpg

The I took the other Coke cap amd sealed them together with the hot melt making it ( hopefully ) water proof.

http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b2...ghts/lght7.jpg

Now I took the other end of the Speaker wire ( about 4 feet ) and SOldered it to the leads of the 4 AA battery pack. this particulat pack has a wire running across the back, so I Cut it and soldered the switch in place there , then Used the hot met to attach it.

http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b2...ghts/lght8.jpg

Next IPut velcro on Both my Helmet and the Bottom ofthe PC bracket , and I also Bent the PC bracket to give it a curve to match my Helmet

http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b2...ghts/lght9.jpg

Mounted ,

http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b2...ghts/lghtA.jpg


and I have been using this to commute , and I have also used it as my Sole light in the woods , It is no Match for an HID , but this cost me a total of Less than $25.

Still to Come

a) a Handle bar mounted one
b) a 2 -3 -4 Emmiter light

Some simple

electrical laws Are needed here

Watt's law

Watt =Current * Voltage

so Amps ( current ) = Watts/Voltage

I = 20/12 = 1.7 amps

yes you can use that batterey you will get about 1 hour 15 minutes of run time

I am impressed. I followed the advice given here and built my own light system. It is blinding. I used a 12 volt lead sealed acid battery 5Ah, a 12 volt 50 watt outdoor spot light (the lawn and garden type), made a case out of pvc pipe fittings, used the wiring and the switch that is recommended for the power source I am using and lots of electrical tape.

When my wife saw me coming home, she mistook my bike for a motorcycle. It is much better than the led light that I bought at walmart. Only problem is the heat that the bulb generates. Do you think I can get the same brightness or improve the concentration of light into a narrower beam with a smaller watt bulb?

Try a 12v 20 watt MR16 bulb--found at Home Depot/Lowe's. You will get less heat and longer run-time. If you want to really increase your run-time, get a 12v 3watt LED MR16 bulb ( http://autolumination.com/mr16.htm ). I find I like the ones with 3 1-watt rather than 1 3-watt light source. The light is not as bright as a halogen, but I find it enough for seeing the road and to be seen by motorists.

Thanks for the tip. I switched to a 35 watt mr16 halogen bulb due to the melting of the pvc pipe from the 55 watt bulb. The run time is no problem with my commute being only 30 minutes.

spice light
 

I retired my light when I found a cheap HID lamp on ebay but I was pretty proud of my home built one. I used a small plastic spice jar and a 20W mr16 spot bulb. The bulb fits perfectly in the top of the jar. I trimmed about 1/8 inch from the top of the jar and cut a round hole in the lid. I cut a piece of glass the size of the inside of the cap. The cap screws on over all this, making it weather resistant and easy to change the light bulb. It was light enough that I mounted it on my helmet. I used it for mountain biking in the dark. I definately prefer the helmet mount. The light is always pointed where you're looking and it is great when you have to make a repair in the dark. I also added a dimmer in a separate control on top of my helmet so that I could save power when I didn't need as much light. I also added flashing LEDs pointing to the rear from my helmet top control. The LEDs were ripped from an old rear light. It was all just barely heavier than my current HID light. The battery was a standard SLA battery. I would share pictures, but alas, I gave the light away.

Are any of these systems built around using a front wheel dynamo to recharge the battery?

I have asked the same type of questions; the answer seems to be that it is difficult to generate enough electricity to recharge a battery and power a light. If you have interested in dynamo-powered lights, I would recommend looking around this site: http://www.pilom.com/BicycleElectron...lectronics.htm

I am currently building a small Cree 5-powered LED headlight for my son's bike (it came with a front hub generator and light, but the OEM light is not good enough). After that is finished, I will build a similar light for my commuter, using a AXA HR bottle dynamo I got from SJS in the UK.

Thanks, that site looks very interesting. I do not own a Dynamo yet but the Sram Dynamo at around 70 might be an acceptable option. I have not found reviews comparing it to the Schmidt version which is touted as being the best one for efficiency. My front wheel being a 20 may play into the possibility of getting 10 Watts out put which would put it in the area that seems like it should be able to supplement a battery nicely and charge it back up during the day if necessary with that one HID working nicely at 10W. Although if the tech on the LEDs keeps going maybe by the time i decide whether or not to get a dynamo and which one there will be a real nice match?

My thoughts are that if i can whip myself into shape this spring i may wish to go on a week long ride either here in Colorado or someone was suggesting joining them on a trip across Wisconsin. Last fall i did take a ride of 27 miles from Akron to Yuma on a 20" wheeled Sun easy rider. I found the small wheel to be a limiting factor at times but i somehow survived... So when the weather starts to get warmer again I hope to start making a pilgrimmage to build up endurance on the weekends. But the thought has crossed my mind that i do not wish to depend on being able to plug in to charge batteries if i decide to try one of the longer rides. As a commuter a battery powered headlamp on my head works well so far...

I would really like to see what you come up with using the Cree 5 set up.

Low Tech Super Cheap Lights
 

2 each cushioned 3/4" pipe brackets from Ace Hardware @ $1.29 ea and 1 AA flashlight from local Dollar Store for $1 (included batteries) = $3.58

Swipe some of your girlfriend's fingernail polish - it's a taillight; x2 = $7.16

http://iamgumby.smugmug.com/photos/4...03_PEpnt-S.jpg

http://iamgumby.smugmug.com/photos/4...34_sGaLA-S.jpg

I'm ready to build a second system now that I've got a few thousand miles on the first one. I liked Frankenbiker's use of a circuit breaker instead of a fuse . . . can anyone recommend a weatherproof 10 amp mini-breaker?

I replaced my fuse with an ATC blade type circuit breaker (10 amp in my case, part number 46610) from Waytekwire.com. Unfortunately, the circuit breaker wouldn't fit in the fuse holder so I used female blade terminals with heatshrink insulation to connect it into the circuit. It has worked perfectly ever since.

The circuit breaker may not be sufficiently weatherproof to survive without some form of enclosure. Mine is housed inside a box under the deck of my Xtracycle which keeps it out of the rain. If you want one to hang outside you may need to dip it in a plastic coating to keep it dry.

Weatherpak connectors - are these they?

weatherpak connectors won't fit on the the terminals. I'm talking about 1/4 inch blade terminals available from automotive parts stores that push onto the circuit breaker terminals. Then use heatshrink to cover the terminals. If the circuit breaker will be exposed to the elements, it could be dipped into rubber/plastic coating like the type used to coat tool handles. This would seal the breaker from rain, salt spray, etcetera.

Hi CC...

I think he is referring to what we know as spade connectors.

Maybe in this case it's best to call a spade a spade ?