Is strobe obnoxious on SSC P7 models? (daylight use)
 

I apologize if this was covered elsewhere, however:

I'm considering getting a P7 torch on my handlebars, something like this MTE:
http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.12060

I want to see better at night, and I want to be seen in the day. If you own this light or another DX P7, can you tell me:

1) Do you feel that you need strobe mode in order to be seen during the day? (Have you actually looked at or filmed your bike from 100 ft?)

2) Do you feel the strobe risks annoying motorists in daylight, for example if you are stopped at a light and you pull up behind a car with your light in their mirror? (For some reason no one mentions how fast the strobe repeats, 3 Hz is probably attention grabbing whereas 20 Hz might be painfully obnoxious.)

Thanks for your help.

I have that light. I don't think it's any more obnoxious than it needs to be. Let's face it, you don't use strobe mode if you're not willing to be at least a little obnoxious. It's not ultra fast like some. If you think it's too bright, you can aim it down a bit.

I don't use strobe mode in the daylight, but I have very little exposure to oncoming traffic hazards either (left crosses) - almost all of my traffic hazard comes from behind. My taillight DOES run in the daytime, on strobe.

I use a pair of that model, mounted on my forks. The only time I've ever used the strobe was at the end of a brevet last month. At the finish (at the south end of the Golden Gate Bridge) there was a bunch of food for the riders and shortly after I finished a raccoon came out of the bushes and was headed towards the food. One of the volunteers tried to shoo it away, but it wasn't scared by a mere human. I grabbed one of my lights and put it on strobe and shined it at him (the raccoon, not the volunteer) and it headed back towards the bushes. Animals don't tend to like bright strobe lights.

Mine is a fairly quick strobe. I find it fairly obnoxious, but I'm sure it would be visible. At least it's more useful than that stupid "SOS" pattern that is really SOSOSOSO...

Keith

Thanks for the help. In the end I went with BP Blaze on my helmet, and that pushed me away from strobe or flash on my bars, so I went with Romisen RC-N3 II on my handlebars, although the 2-mode DX Aurora's were also looking pretty good... I guess the long ship and my uncertainty about Chinese quality were deciding factors, and I'm guessing the Romisen ought to be bright enough for the half-lit streets of SLC. We'll see how that goes when they get here...

Mine actually is 3 fast, 4 slow, 3 fast, 4 slow, so I guess it's SMMSMMSMMS...

it depends on what you are wearing. sometimes I believe that my super bright day glo hi vis lime green jacket plus the magicshine strobe is just too much and this is based on driver reactions.

I don't use a P7, but a lowly L2D. In dim light (overcast, poor weather, late dawn, early dusk) I use in flash mode.

I am careful when stopped behind other vehicles that I don't aim it in mirrors or in a way it will get in eyes of someone ahead of or to the side of me. Usually when fully stopped the handlebar will turn left/right and light ends up angling down to left/right on the ground where I can see the flash.

That's what I did when I had a 200 lumen light. Now I use it in steady mode, and like you, I aim the light down if I wind up behind someone. Unless, of course, the person just passed me with 50 feet to go before a red light and cut me off. Then I pull up fast behind them and make sure it's pointing right into their mirror.