I just got back from my first ride using my new Fenix light (the L2D premium Q5), and I want to thank those of you here that steered me in that direction. I used one of them with the Cateye el530 I already had and the difference is what I had hoped for. Plenty of light for my needs in most circumstances (I know it's not in the retinal burner category, but retinal warmer works for me now), with enough light to fill in the areas washed out by oncoming cars and plenty to see with in the dark. The strobe works great too, the traffic signs really light up with that in the twilight. I also liked the way the strobe got the attention of the otherwise oblivious dogwalkers - they could ignore the constant light but not the strobe. I went down the MUP I usually ride home on, and the lights were on at a ballfield as I approached. They went out when I was riding in their light, and my lights put out enough light so that didn't make any difference in my ability to see where I was going. I'm impressed!

The light seems to be be well made too - no loose ends, bad threads or anything. Thanks again for the recommendations.

order your second one yet?

That's great, no motor. Glad you're pleased with the L2D. You'll find it makes a heck of a flashlight, too, when you need one.

If you're a helmet wearer (and if you start to get into much extended night riding), you might also try it out on the helmet and check out the level of directional lighting control that gives you. If you ever get a second L2D down the line, one one handlebar and one on helmet is a good way to go for keeping one light in front of you and one that you can easily direct into your turns and/or look at stuff off to the side as you're passing by. Just more stuff for future reference.

No, but I'd like to!

I always wear a helmet, and was thinking of how that would look last night while I was out on my test ride. I do make a lot of turns on my rides, and being able to see what's around the corner before I get to it would be nice.

Yeah, you ought to experiment with the light only on your helmet just to see how it affects your night ride experience. I have gone a bit farther than most -- in terms of the Fenix flashlights, that is -- with two handlebar lights and one helmet light. But my feeling is that the most useful light is the one that's attached to the helmet. I do a lot of riding down very winding paths and the like, and looking ahead into the turns with the helmet light makes all the difference in the world. And even with street riding, having one light on a "swivel" so to speak (my neck and head being the swivel) helps me to light up the things I need lit up, even around relatively easy corners. I think most folks that ride with a helmet light share pretty much the same sentiment. Not trying to talk you into spending more money, of course...

Sure you're not just looking for a fatter commission check form Fenix?

I've got plans to try out the helmet mount over the weekend, and 2 empty lockblocks to fill up. I see even more light in my future.

I didn't know anyone was actually aware of my . . . "arrangement" . . .



Actually, the only acknowledgment I've ever gotten is "Thank You for Your Latest Purchase." And I've received quite a few of those.

varuscelli = Fenix shill



Thanks for your web page on the topic, BTW. I went cheap and ordered the Ultrafire's from dealextreme.com but now have ordered a pair of Fenix's to do a comparison. I'll do a review in the lighting forum when I get a chance to compare them.

Ok, now I'm a bit miffed.

Who hacked my User Control Panel, defaced my user title, and locked me out of profile updates?



"Fenix Shillboy" indeed...(I'm indignant).

I'd like to see that when it's ready. The Ultrafire's would have to be really good to be better than the Fenix.

I have three of the Fenix L2D lights, two on the bike and one for the helmet. Saturday night I was out late, and I didn't stop to put on the helmet light. I sure did miss it.

You are welcome.

What brand and capacity batteries are using? What setting are you using and run time are you experiencing with these batteries?

The standard recommendation that I have read states that if you only have one light then you should put it on the bars. I wholeheartedly disagree. After following this advice and then putting my only light on my helmet, I prefer it on the helmet. I want to see where I am looking, not where my handlebars are pointed. The light does no good shining in front of my bike when I am looking into a turn. I want to see what is in the turn like I can in the daylight.

I'm using Duracell 2650's charged and conditioned in a LaCrosse BC900 charger. In the two times I've used the light, I used mainly the turbo settings for both rides with about 10 minutes of strobe on the first ride. First ride was about an hour, second maybe 35 minutes and the Fenix was still shining brightly when I got home both times. I haven't tried to see if I could get a longer run time, but know there's more use left when I got home.

This looks like a good place to share my first Fenix ride too.

I received my Fenix L2DQ5 and lockblocks yesterday and mounted the Fenix on my bike today. I left the light off during my ride to meet up with the group because the sun was still up (~5:30pm) and I wanted to save the batteries in case the ride lasted longer than I anticipated.

Less than 5 miles into the ride, a car turned right in front of me at a point where I had just glanced down. I looked up to see something large and brown right in front of me and slammed on the brakes. But it was too late to stop and I glanced off the side of the car scraping down the right rear door with my handlebars and getting a nice big mouse on my right forearm, but I kept the bike upright. No apparent damage to the bike that I could find, but it sorta shook me up. Shook up the driver too. They called later after my ride to check up on me. I think I'll run the bike by the LBS and let them take a look for any hidden damage that may have occurred. Whew... that was a close one.

From that point on I rode with the Fenix in stobe mode and ran the PBSF as well. I mean, how ironic can that be?! I shoulda had the Fenix strobe going. That's what I bought it for. And I had the light turned off on my very first ride with it. What irony!

Be careful out there. They're out to get you.

Regarding the Fenix itself, I was pleased to see how far ahead I could see the strobe reflecting off road signs, even while there was plenty of daylight left. I never needed the light to see as I completed the ride by 8:30pm with lots of daylight left. And the Fenix stayed nice and cool while running in strobe mode for 2+ hours.

I have to wonder if it would have made a difference if I'd had the strobe running earlier in the ride when that car turned in front of me. I believe it would.

That is pretty cool, isn't it? I went down a street with a bunch of older trees in the parkway. The branches formed a canopy over the roadway, and they lit up with the strobe too. I'm impressed by the effect of one of these, and wonder what would happen if you get a couple of them to flash in synch.

Whew, I'm just glad you're mostly OK after the incident (hoping that you're mostly OK except for the big mouse). But I bet you're right in that if the Fenix had been going in strobe mode they most likely would have noticed you coming. You can never guarantee it, but still...

I had a family of racoons run out in front of me today, and they noticed the strobe too. They were crossing the street, and the last baby hesitated before running across the street to catch up the rest of the family.

He was thinking, "Gotta get me one of those..."

Or maybe two!

Edit: update on the bike. The LBS says my fork is broken and I will need a new frame, fork and wheelset. Yowza.

Look on the bright side. Sounds like you can still use your pedals and cranks. Might just be cheaper to get a whole new bike and sell your used, salvageable parts on ebay.

I'm guessing the car driver (or their insurance) will be taking care of that expense.

Let's just say I am in negotiations with the ins co now. Repairs are $2000.. and will take a month or so. The ins co doesn't understand why I'm not satisfied with that solution. Go figure.