I have decided to continue running my Reelight 770'sm but would like a "back-up", or additional headlight to my Reelight headlight until I am able (and even after) run another three magnetic set-up/generator for my front headlight, as currently both the front and rear are running on one set of magnets/generator.

Currently, I have the Knog Blinder 4 Standard, but would like something with more oomph. My one LBS mechanic said that he commutes on the Knog Blinder 1 Standard, and it works very well. Not sure what I will do with the Knog Blinder if I end up with another headlight, I'll probably exchange it for the rear version.

I would like to get something that is hi-powered, but does NOT have a battery pack. As, some of you may remember, I ran the Cygolite Turbo 800, but gave it up due to the fact that it ran WAY too hot for my liking, and I did not like the way the the light/battery pack mounted. I truly loved this light, but in the end it was just too much hassle to take on/off with the battery pack in tow.

I really like the Knog Bllinder Road 3, but it does have a high price tag with 300 lumens.

Any suggestions for something that is hi-powered that I can simply pull out of my bag, and "clip" on to my handlebars when needed?

Thanks again!

Lezyne Mega Drive or deca drive:

https://www.lezyne.com/products/led-l...ce#!mega-drive
https://www.amazon.com/Lezyne-Drive-L...yne+mega+drive

I have the mega-drive for not very long now. I have rode home in complete dark, which includes unlit trails, through woods, and street 3 times now and am really liking it. It can do 1200 lumen but the 600 setting is more than enough. It is also very well designed and crafted and looks to be solid waterproof (the USB charging port is inside the sealed case -really nice seals - you open the sealed back to access the port), and you can use spare batteries.

Here is a review:

https://reviews.mtbr.com/lezyne-mega-...ights-shootout

I bought a Belkin 2.1A USB charger for $10 off of Amazon and it charges in about 5 hours. And unlike other brands, it really does deliver the lumens it says it will.

The Knogs are two things, first it's not a headlight, second their poorly made. I read reviews of issues but I saw one that wasn't in any review and I needed a flasher so I got one, it broke after 2 uses, I took it back and got another it broke after about 6 uses, took it back and got another, again 6 uses, took it back and got my money back!

I also like the Cygolite ExpiliOn series of lights, I have a 350 and it has worked fine for about 2 years and doesn't run hot but it's not a 800 either, you may want to try a lower level one like a ExpiliOn 600 these are only $85 on Amazon. The other good light is the Niterider Lumina 700 they run about $100 range also on Amazon. And the final light which I own and like it a lot is the Philips Saferide, this light uses aimed optics like cars and motorcycles do so it puts all the light onto the road instead of tree tops and road wasting a large part of the lumens, thus it has the appearance of a 1000 lumen light with an output of only 240 on high, on low it's similar to my Cygolite Miitycross 480 on high! It will last exactly 2 hours on high then automatically go to low for another hour, or it will run for 8 hours on low. It uses 4 AA rechargeable Li-Ion NOT the NiMh's as Amazon states, and since they are AA bats you can get replacements anywhere. The light is ruggedly made and has not leaked in several rainstorms I was in, plus the lens has a glowing ring effect to it when seen from the side. The only weak spot on this light is that it doesn't have a flash mode because it was made for Europe where flashing bike lights is illegal. The Philips in black is on Amazon for under $100. See this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7fXA1wdm-bQ The beam appears much brighter in real life then it does in the You Tube video, he does talk about the glowing ring might be too bright for some, all you would have to do if you find that bothers you is just take some black electrical tape and tape off the top that you see but not the sides or bottom. And due to the size of the lens which is substantially larger then other bike light lenses, it's immediately noticeable even from a long distance it won't look like a pin prick of light.

have a Planet Bike .. it uses a slip in bar mount QR. it's adequate.. 2 AA.
I have it high on the Brompton M bar, in the left center, the Dynohub light is sitting Low,
current one is minus a standlight, capacitor, so the battery light stays on
when the dyno- headlight goes off at stops..


Curiosity has me getting a B&M Ixon IQ.. looks well designed .

and a new Dyno-hub Eyc for the mount right over the Mudguard,
of equal beam design and output.

Ixon's IQ premium said to be brighter , in high load mode..

more Light , more heat to dissipate .. https://www.peterwhitecycles.com/supernovabat.asp
note the Airstream's heat sink fins.

I know that the Knog lights aren't true headlights, and more or
less for "be seen" purposes, but I am a Knog fan, so I went with it, but I'll probably exchange the front version for the rear to attach to my seat post for extra piece of mind.

So, now to decide on a headlight.

I've been using a Light & Motion Urban 500 (now called 550) for the past 2 years with great results. Very easy to install and remove. Light is so bright that I usually run it on medium to extend the battery time. Easy to charge from a computer or electrical outlet, and holds a charge well. L&M makes Urban 200, 300, 550 and 700 models with varying levels of brightness and battery run times.

I also like the Lezyne self-contained lights. They are probably a better option than the L&M series if you need long run times because they use standard 18650 batteries, so you can carry spares.

How do you find the run time on the L&M Urban 500?

How do you find the run time with the Phillips Saferide? I found it on Amazon for $80, and am mulling over whether or not to jump on it, since the original price is $219.

The Philips Saferide uses standard AA batteries so you can carry spares with that light too. Even the Cygolite ExpiliOn you can buy a dedicated battery from Cygolite and simply swap batteries whenever the need arises

Run time for the Saferide 80 model (their brightest) on high is 2 hours at which point it will switch to low for about another hour. Run time on low is 8 hours. I haven't run the light on low till dead so not sure if the 8 hours is realistic, but the 2 hours is exactly correct (give or take 5 minutes!)

The Amazon ad says too that the batteries are NiMh's, they are not, they are Li-Ion's. The box my light came it said Li-Ions, the batteries that were in my box said Li-Ion, and the instructions said they were Li-Ion, thus I would have to assume that either Amazon has the info wrong or did Phillips substituted cheaper batteries to get the price down? Prices on LED lights has fallen but I do have a question about the batteries mentioned in the Amazon description. What's weird is the black is way cheaper than the silver version!?

I'm getting that they are both listed at $79.99? Hmmm ... odd. Another poster suggested this, but I just don't know, it looks shady and I hate external packs (as mentioned).

My Day Bike with Two T6's on front, single Dinotte on back
You can put the battery in a small bar bag.

Thanks for the pic! Very nice! However, I do not have a handlebar bag. Other suggestions are welcome!

You can pick up small camera bags at thrift stores for about $3. Connect them with zip ties.

This large one was $3.00

Thanks! It's a consideration.

I bought a head lamp on eBay that uses a small battery pack. Haven't used it yet but I tried the mount and I can put the battery pack partially in an empty water bottle with wide opening, and put the bottle in the bottle cage while riding. I prefer not to use the velcro as it will wear out eventually.

The Knog Roads are real headlights, with a claimed 200 and 300 lumen output for the 2 & 3 respectively. You can argue all you want about whether it's enough for your needs, but when you're on a dark road and turn one of those on, you can see where you're rolling.

I have the Road 2, and it's sweet. I prefer it to my Cygolite Expilion 700 for any number of reasons, but mostly because it's dead nuts easy to take on and off, and to charge; no cables, no f*n' around with crappy USB port covers (yeah, I'm looking at you Expilion). The switches are just a tad to small on the Road2, but that's seriously my only gripe. It rocks. A Road3 is definitely in my near future.

Finally, as a counterpoint to Rekmeyata's complaints about some unknown model above, I can say that my Knog light experience, which includes *multiples* of each of Beetles, Boomer Fronts, Boomer Rears, and Boomer USB Rears has been very good over the years. My Beetles must be, what, 3 years old now? I do have one Boomer front that switches from steady to flash when hitting hard bumps, but that's the only trouble any of them have given me. I also have two Knog NERD computers that perform perfectly.

The short of it is that I would not hesitate to recommend to someone, or buy for myself again, a Knog light product.

*Knog, please PM me for my mailing address should you wish to send me a thank you gift of a Road3 for the kind (and true) comments I've made here.

The Urban 500 (now 550) has decent run time, but my commute is too long to run it on high unless I charge it at work and at home. My round trip commute is about 2:15 hours including stops for traffic lights, etc., and it's run time on high is rated at 1:30 hours. Generally I run it on medium and then switch it to low when it gets bright enough outside that I don't need the light to see. That way, I am certain to have enough charge to make it to work and back on one charge. It is supposed to run 3:00 hours on medium but I kind of doubt mine will last that long on a charge as it's 2 years old.

I apparently have good night vision because the Urban 500 puts out all the light I need on medium, which is rated at 250 lumens. I also use a Light & Motion Vis 360, running it on low, which provides another 60 lumens but seems brighter. I use it mainly to zap drivers who try to pull out or turn in front of me.

At Performance, they sell the Cygolite 750 Pace. Its the Expillion and rebranded as Pace. That would be close to your 800 and still self contained. The battery stick has a bit more capacity than the lower lumen Expillion models.

If you are a Performance member, and from time to time, the Cygolites go on sale, it would go for a very good price.

The Sweet Home recently reviewed bike lights (both front and rear). They only reviewed all-in-one solutions (no external battery pack). Their recommended pick is the Cygolite Metro 360; it currently retails for $45 on Amazon.

I'm trying to decide between that or one of the numerous options with external battery which go for the same price.

If a person had a strict low side budget that Cygolite Metro 360 is a good choice, however instead of the Turbo Flash the Cygolite Hotshot is a 2 watt LED instead of a 1 watt and I think would be the better choice and they cost darn near the same.

I once thought those cheap Cree lights weren't half bad but after researching the internet I've found reason for concern, biggest reason: battery packs exploding while charging...similar situation Magic Shine had early on but these Cree's are worse!

Cree is the LED manufacturer, not the flashlight maker. It is the battery that has had the problems, but even there you are talking about the packaging of the battery and charging station. Li-Ion batteries are pretty generic, with either the Panasonic (good) or the *Fire (not so good sometimes) batteries being most common. These are the same 18650 batteries used in the Tesla and Boeing 787. Yes, they have been known to catch fire.

Back to the OP's question, I have a Keygos head light (with a head mount!) that also came with a charger and bike mount. It puts out about 600 lumens (maybe) and is completely self contained and cost ~$35-40. When I use it on my bike I get a lot of comments. I also use it around the house.

You missed the point, the point is that if someone buys one of those cheap chinese made cree lights on e-bay and they have a house fire due to the battery exploding they will have no financial recourse other than their homeowners insurance.

How many have you had to exploded?

I have 5 of them...No Problems.