onyourbike

thanks.

stapfam

I have held off getting a Magicshine and will hold off for longer while I get to hear of the long term reports.

I hate to say it but in my opinion- you do get what you pay for. 5 years ago I spent a fortune on a "Use" Exposure lamp. Two reasons- They are a local company to where I live and I saw them used on an 80 mile night ride. It is only a twin 5w Luxion LED but the power and usefull beam that it has- makes for a powerfull lamp that works. Battery life is not exceptional- only 2 hours on the high setting and 7 1/2 on the low setting. Won't go on about this lamp in particular but I have had this lamp for 5 years. It has never let me down. The battery life has dropped a bit down to 1 3/4 and 7 hours but the batteries are only supposed to last a few years before they have to be replaced. The beam is still as good as it was when new and is just as powerfull.

This lamp has been out in all weathers- been dropped quite a few times- and the only concession I can say it has is that as it is used all the time (It doubles as a house torch when not out on rides) The battery does frequently get discharged and recharged.

Still interested in a Magicshine but untill I start hearing of less problems with the lamp and the battery- I will hold off.

electrik

The only problem is people think it's a $600 light for $80 and that is why you hear all these "quality" issues... it is very bright though and so far reliable enough for my uses.

whitecat

Exactly because of those problems I will be switching to Fenix flashlights in the future, I heard they are much better quality then general run-of-the-mill P7 powered lights. We'll see...

ed 

I'm gonna have to jump in here and counter the cynisism before this thread turns too negative

I really can't see how some $600 light could work any better than this thing. I could see the need for an off switch between the lamp and the cells. Would be an easy $5 DIY project AAMOF. Mine has been water tight. I guess the cells could be a little better "moisture" protected, but a little $5 epoxy has proven that an easy fix.


As far as reliability (for myself)...how can you get any more reliable than zero issues? As far as I'm concerned...this is a $600 light for $92 shipped. I totally understand though when some dude chooses to buy an Ellsworth over a Specialized, or a MontBlanc over Retro51, Rolex over Timex...whatever...does one work better than the other? Will it fail you when you need it? Probably not. Maybe in some facet, is it worth the cost? Not to me. Maybe if you have no sense of technical skills or ability to care for things. I could see the need to buy a $600 light that's bombproof or something. To my knowledge that doesn't exist though.


My MTE is still flicker-free, but I trust the MS much more b/c I've never had any issues from it from the get-go. I took them both apart and compared the build quality and the MS is actually much better. I definitely wouldn't choose a 250lm Fenix flashlight over an extimated 700-800lm 3hr 45min runtime on high from the MS.


So anyhoo...hope the value driven public out there will not be afraid of this light especially since GeoMan will stand behind it if there are any questions or issues. It's nothing to be afraid of.


But this is coming from a guy who had to build his own Jamis Komodo that will take a beating b/c I can't afford a $3000+ rig to tear up. So I basically spend as little as I need to so I can ride as hard as I want to. IMO the MS fits that description.

electrik

Well i'm not trying to be negative about the light, it is great. However there are other things regarding these lights which are not great, the battery setup is weak and the connectors are a bit of a hassle. All in all for $80 it is great light, don't get me wrong, but my point is that you can't expect it to be as good as a $600 light or rub your quads down for you.

Obviously the manufacturer can only do so much with $80 and they chose to focus on the basics. The MS light has glaring shortcomings... but it will get you out there and maybe that is what counts for most people.

rumrunn6

ride on in darkness, or not

born2bahick

i'm still waiting.....................

electrik

:d

gbg

I have been using my MS P7 for 2+ months now. My usual ride is 2+ hours 3-4 times a week in -10 to -20C (14 to -5F) and have even ridin in closer to -30.
No issues, no problems and I get 2 rides per charge. I think the connectors are great, tight and weather proof, I don't see any shortcomings.
I ride with the battery in an outside coat pocket to keep it out of the wind chill which can easily get to -30C and below.

I do keep the light on for 5-10 minutes after I come in to warm it up and get rid of the condensation that forms on it after coming in from the COLD.

I have the 5 mode one and usually only use the medium power level, every time I pass someone on the trail they comment on how bright the light is.
One guy said he thought a train was coming
I have the helmet mount but I am thinking of getting another for the bar.

I would never buy anything else it is great.

electrik

I just toss the light into a ziploc bag before heading inside, no condensate issues, you should do this with all your electronics. I find the connectors stiff and very difficult to disconnect without removing my gloves, they are probably quite water resistant though..

onyourbike

I had another look at the dx review I mentioned earlier. The reviewer seems to think it's actually the underside of the lamp that's not water resistant.

link here

Chris_F

I've been "out of it" for a few months now and haven't been following the great Magicshine debate. For those using the light, do you use it as a helmet mount or bar mount? I have a Niterider MiNewt that I use helmet mount but want a second light (so that I don't have a single point of failure system when out at night). Torn on whether to keep the MiNewt as a helmet mount or try the MS as helmet mount and MiNewt as a bar mount. The MiNewt seems to make a great helmet mount light since it's small and light and the extension cord for the battery pack is just exactly the right length for the application. Also, the MiNewt has a nice tight beam pattern which works well on the helmet and makes the most out of its roughly 200 lumens.

So I'm thinking of using the MS as a bar mount. One of the things I want in a bar mount is a big beam pattern. Or better yet, something I can adjust.

electrik

The magic shine comes with the ability to mount on oversized and regular mtb bars(two rubber o-rings)... you'll have to buy a helmet mount separately. I know geomangear.com sells one.

GeoMan

Thank you for the mention. We appreciate it!

Geo

ed 

Think about the shape of the beam when deciding which one to use as a helmet / bar mount.

I always try to keep my helmet light slightly more spotty and the bar mount more floody. I also want the "brightest" light as a helmet mount. I'd say the MS would be a better helmet light than the MiNewt b/c of the light output...you could prob. get optics or a diffuser to make the MiNewt more floody than spotty.

gbg

NOT WATER PROOF!!!
Watch this (the 3:00 minute mArk, or a bit before for a funny warning).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3w_IFvXSICI

Found another
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GQJmC3AGVE8
It seems they did treat the battery pack.

RIC0

Thanks for the great review and write up on the Magicshine Chelboed, I'm now a magicshine owner.

ed 

Did ya get it yet, or is it on the way?

ed 

I saw the coolest thing today...a 2x XP-G R5 setup that was about the size of a 9v battery with a remote driver / 18650 battery. Figure 600-700 lumens and 1hr runtime...sooooo tiny & portable! I wanna build one!

RIC0

I gots it........

Fired it up last night in the dark and yes it's bright. Due to the monsoon we just had no dirt night riding anytime soon.......

ed 

Glad you like it. If you're coming off a 35watt Night Sun...it probably isn't terribly impressive, but coming from a 10w NiteHawk...it totally blew my mind.

The thing that really impresses me these days is the size of the battery packs. It's only getting better too with the inception of the new Cree XP-G R5. 139lm at 350mA. You can run it up to 1.5amps giving it basically Hella output and efficiency in a super small package.

There's a dude that's developing (almost done) a triple R5 integrated driver / emitters / optics that all fit on a 20mm diameter heatsink. Basically have an 1100-1300lm light in a package that's about 1"x2" assuming you drill a 20mm hole in the end of a 1x2 slug and dremel fins in it for good air flow.

Connect that to a 2x 18650 battery pack and you'll have a light that's as powerful as the MagicShine in a package that's probably 1/2 the size. (as if the MS wasn't impressivley compact enough, eh?)