lights
 

so what do you all run for lights, if you even do, im curious. i think its about time i play it safe and invest in one. but theres no way i can justify spending that much on one, for i will just tape a damn flashlight onto my bars. links help!

pb superflash on the rear ~ 25 bucks
pb spot on the front ~ 12 bucks
im looking into a flashlight for the front - see electronics forum.

thanks for the info. i will look into that.
any complaints with the ones you are using Geordi?
the price sounds nice

input and suggestions from others are welcome .

Superflash on the rear.
Fenix LD20 on the front of one bike.
Dinotte 200L on the front of my other bike.

Both the Fenix and Dinotte are awesome lights. I think most in this forum will vouch for the Superflash.

I use a PB superflash on the rear and a flashlight attached to my bars with an old inner tube tied into a loop...

http://i36.tinypic.com/6f5vmq.jpg

The light is a MTE "P7-D" that I bought from DealExtreme. The light is pretty good, but if I were to do it again, I'd get a Fenix l2d premium q5 light. The Fenix is just as bright to my eyes and has a more useful light pattern. Also, it runs on 2 regular AA batteries (instead of the single 18650 cell of the MTE), so you could pick up batteries at a convenience store in an emergency...and the Fenix lasts a little bit longer on the highest power setting compared to the MTE. Additionally, the Fenix is significantly smaller; small enough to use as a helmet mounted light if you chose to do so. Don't get me wrong, the MTE is a fine flashlight, I just think the Fenix is a better light.

no complaints, only praise, for the superflash.
I'm looking to upgrade my headlight to something more powerful
but if you're going for an inexpensive be-seen light, the spot on blinking mode is ok.

http://media.rei.com/media/oo/9298a6...8b32eaa05b.jpg
does the job for me.

yeah i just want to be seen, i dont really have a concern for seeing my path because i dont have much of a problem with that. superflash is sounding real good to me from what you guys are saying. doesnt take much to convince me so i think its going to be my choice.

twoflats, im liking that front set up haha, very creative. sounds like something i would do but less ghetto then what i come up with.

knog frogs durr

btw can you buy spare superflash mounts? it's a pita to move the mounts between bikes all the time...

When you're ready not to go ghetto get a pair of Knog Bullfrogs. These things are ridiculously easy to get on & off. No ugly-pain-in-the-arse-fiddly-bloody-plastic mounts messing up my frame during the day. Light as hell to chuck in the bag if you think you'll be out late. One on the head tube up front & on the seat post at rear. Whip 'em off when you park quicker than you can lock up.

heh. I originally did it out of immediate need because the mount I'd bought from DealExtreme didn't work worth a crap. I read that people were using the livestrong wrist bands, but I don't have one (shame on me, I know) so I improvised, and it works well enough that I'm no longer shopping for a proper light mount :-). One huge plus to this hackery is that it's super simple to move the light between bikes. It's also easy to adjust the angle of the light beam and it stays in place once you set it. ...and I can pretend like I'm all "green" and stuff for recycling a tube :-D

One thing that isn't obvious from my original pic is that I've put a rectangular piece of rubber beneath another section of tube to keep the light from scratching my bars...the rectangular piece of rubber might be overkill as a piece of heavy duty tube would probably be sufficient to protect my bars.

http://i43.tinypic.com/erdg77.jpg

Blackburn flea.

http://www.blackburndesign.com/lights.html

Mounts with a velcro strap. Easy on and off, super duper lightweight. Can be switched between bikes in about 10 seconds. Rechargeable with ANY 1.5V battery. Waterproof. Lifetime warranty. Very bright. Can be found for about $20 a piece. Highly recommended.

PB superflash is good too.

i run these in semi well lit areas i.e. on campus at night:
http://www1.dealextreme.com/producti...33_5_small.jpg
http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.19033 $4.99 for both~

I run a home built 1w? LED front light and a B&M Seculite Plus wired to a Shimano Dynohub. Plenty of light to see by, even in unlit areas and I never have to worry about flat batteries.

Up front, Blackburn Voyager 3.0, was about $35 at the lbs

http://www.amazon.com/Blackburn-Voya.../dp/B000OV641Y

Rear, Blackburn Mars 2.0, received as a gift, not sure on $$

http://www.amazon.com/Blackburn-Mars.../dp/B000BNS2TC

I think both are "last years model" so, the current ones my be different/more $$/etc. In any case, they are high quality lights.

planetbike website. $5, free shipping.

When you're ready to use a real light, ditch the Bullfrogs.

I use "The people's cree" (a claimed 150 lumens from 3 aaa)--it does a good job of lighting up the road--and handlebar mount on the front and 9-led safety strobe on the back, all from dealextreme.

I've got 2 Super Flash lights, one on my helmet one on my seat post. I just have the front light the super flash comes with. The front light isnt so great for seeing the ground but it's still real bright and drivers will see it.

amazon has the superflash for $16 right now http://www.amazon.com/Planet-Bike-Bl.../dp/B000KBEH1W

i got a deal with a mars 2.0 rear and a black burn quadrant for the front for 20$, i bought two sets. The mars lights are great, the quadrant, while nice and bright (to BE seen) are huge, use 4 AA batteries and the mounts suck, so dont buy these, I wish I had bought the blackburn flea for the front, it is super small and bright, plus it is rechargeable, buy 2!

Well if I was riding mountain trails on a cloudy night I might think of something else. No street lights around you? 4 LEDS are plenty.

no, they're not actually.

if you ride in the city with streetlights galore, you'll need a more powerful light to be seen by cars.

guess what? drivers cannot see you.

I just got one and its blindingly bright! The size is key too. Its the smallest I've found. All the blackburn rear lights are pretty nice actually. The flea comes by itself or in a combo front/rear set.

i have the rear as well. brightness is awesome. very light, 17g. rechargeable as well, it uses another battery source and saps the life out of it.

i might try out the front.

They can see me plenty. I wouldn't waste my time with anything less, nor is anything more necessary. With streetlights galore they can already see me. The point is to stand out from, say by flashing, rather than compete with the streetlights. I hazard a guess that a streelight is probably more powerful than anything you can strap onto a bike.

i have two frogs for the sole purpose of not getting stopped by cops

I often drive a delivery truck for work through hipsterville at night. I cannot see people with weak lights (or none at all) until I am right on them which means if I wasnt paying attention (or if the rider was an idiot), I'd run them over on accident. injury, death, medical bills, lawsuit, insurance wraggling, police reports, etc etc all because dumbass cyclists decide not to throw down $40 on a quality front/rear light...or spend that money on knogs because they prefer design over power.

And a bicycle light should stand out from the streetlights and building lights and car lights. They need to be bright because they will not be noticed otherwise.

If you're concerned with your safety, a decent light should be utilized. knogs simply do not fit the bill.

Nothing but surefire

Reelights. Always on, always there, never worry about batteries.