Is there anybody in the SoCal Area who could help me get a functional dyno-powered lighting system going on my vintage Lady's Raleigh Suberbe? It is fitted with the original Sturmey Archer Dynohub, and original lights, which emit only a very weak glow. The mechanics I was working with said they barely got the light system to work, and thought it wouldn't be much of an improvement to use LED bulbs. They also told me the Dynohub would not work with modern lights, which my research suggests may not even be true. Having read past BF threads touching on the subject, it seems like folks have had various degrees of success either retrofitting their original Raleigh lights with LEDs or hooking up modern LED Headlights and Tailights to their Dynohub. Unfortunately, I know little to nothing about electronics, and would love a helping hand in putting this all together! Does anyone know of any LBS where they could help me with this? Surely there must be a way to salvage these lights or at least use the Dynohub with modern lighting.

Thanks! C

measure the voltage with a multimeter--should be able to use a modern led light if it's around 6v

If you could post the exact model or pictures of the Dynohub perhaps someone here will be able to provide more information about it.

Either way, if it is a 6 volt/3 watt dynamo it should be compatible with modern lights.

edit: according to Sheldon's site, an old SA dynohub might be 1.8 watts. Probably depends on the exact model.

Shimano currently has a modern dynamo hub, the DH-1N70 which is a 1.5 watt model so there are ostensibly modern lights that will work with this lower wattage. I don't know how much light one could get out of this lower output though.

Those older steel Dynohubs are only good for 1.8W max. I would use a PlanetBike Blaze Dyno, it should work on the lower power hub:
Blaze Dynamo

For the rear light, I'd punt and go with a battery power blinkie.

Ebay is your friend and you can find there LED bulbs that you can use in place of incandescent bulbs in lamps, with quite a bit of flexibility in the characteristics of the power source:

Nicelite LED Bulbs Dynamo Hub Generator Dynohub Bicycle Cycle Lights Regulator | eBay

You can find many more on German Ebay, but you presumably need to negotiate a shipment abroad:

fahrrad birne led | eBay

You are likely to get more improvement in the rear than in the front.

the way the newer headlights put out so much light is the heat sinks in them to draw off the extra heat. just a screw in LED substitute
I wouldnt expect it to compete in the max lumen competitions ..

taillights the big advances are optical .. the fresnel lenses spread the light out .. and capacitors keep them on a bit when you stop.