What tail light do you use for long, long rides?
#76
don't try this at home.
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Maybe Zecto Drive Pro Rear... though seem very hard to find with red LEDs online..
On a related topic, if it seems much easier to get more lumens with white lights, and since we aren't really cars, why do rear lights have to be red? Ie. if someone wants 50 lumens, why does it matter if it's red or white?
On a related topic, if it seems much easier to get more lumens with white lights, and since we aren't really cars, why do rear lights have to be red? Ie. if someone wants 50 lumens, why does it matter if it's red or white?
There's one big difference between headlights and taillights:
The headlight has to light up the road ahead and have enough light to reflect back to the rider. That takes way more lumens! A tail light just has to look bright.
If we didn't need to see the road surface, headlights wouldn't need to be nearly as bright.
Most bike tail lights use red LEDs, which don't have any white light to filter out. The red casing is mostly "marketing". The Cygolite taillights have a clear lens for the red LED, for example.
Tail lights last for a lot more hours than a head light, even with a very small battery. And a really bright tail light is extremely annoying to any following riders.
I plan to get a Cygolite 150 lumen tail light to replace my Cyglolite Hotshot, mainly to have a tail light that better catches driver's attention in bright mid-day sunlight. (And my headlight is 2000 lumens, which would be ridiculous for a tail light.)
White tail lights
This is a really bad idea. I don't want a driver making bad decisions if they think I'm headed toward them. The red tail light says "I'm moving in your same direction", as does the pool of bright white light on the road ahead of me from my headlight.
Last edited by rm -rf; 03-01-17 at 04:30 PM.
#77
Advocatus Diaboli
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No.
Tail lights last for a lot more hours than a head light, even with a very small battery. And a really bright tail light is extremely annoying to any following riders.
White tail lights
This is a really bad idea. I don't want a driver making bad decisions if they think I'm headed toward them. The red tail light says "I'm moving in your same direction", as does the pool of bright white light on the road ahead of me from my headlight.
Tail lights last for a lot more hours than a head light, even with a very small battery. And a really bright tail light is extremely annoying to any following riders.
White tail lights
This is a really bad idea. I don't want a driver making bad decisions if they think I'm headed toward them. The red tail light says "I'm moving in your same direction", as does the pool of bright white light on the road ahead of me from my headlight.
Re: 2nd point.. No idea if most drivers would really be confused by the notion of a white led and/or it would present a hazard.. that's kinda my question. That, and whether it's actually illegal?
#78
Senior Member
Second the Dinotte Quad Red. Plenty of run time and longer than I am ever likely to be riding! Very easy to charge and I hate throwing away batteries.
#79
Boosted Mr2
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Dinotte is the best bang for the buck i have a set of them from the first gen an its still running well
#80
Senior Member
Any idea where I can get extra mounting clips for Cygolites?
#81
Senior Member
39:4-10 Lights on Bicycles.
When in use at nighttime every bicycle shall be equipped with: 1) A front headlamp emitting a white light visible from a distance of at least 500 feet to the front; 2) A rear lamp emitting a red light visible from a distance of at least 500 feet to the rear; 3) In addition to the red lamp a red reflector may be mounted on the rear.
Biking in New Jersey, Regulations, Commuter Information
#82
bill nyecycles
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i ordered straight from the cygolite site, they have a spare parts section: To Locate Spare Parts by Cygolite Model - Cygolite Online Spare Parts
Just find your light, and click it. the tail lights are at the bottom.
Just find your light, and click it. the tail lights are at the bottom.
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