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Old March 31st 21, 06:30 PM posted to rec.bicycles.tech
Frank Krygowski[_4_]
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Posts: 10,538
Default Eyc headlight problem

On 3/31/2021 1:38 AM, Sir Ridesalot wrote:
On Wednesday, March 31, 2021 at 12:17:44 a.m. UTC-4, jbeattie wrote:
On Tuesday, March 30, 2021 at 7:29:29 PM UTC-7, Frank Krygowski wrote:
On 3/30/2021 2:59 PM, sms wrote:
On 3/29/2021 5:02 PM, Sepp Ruf wrote:

snip

Hold on, Jeff, I'm sorry for the little misunderstanding. I only
linked to
Ulli Horlacher's latest work there, presented at de.rec.fahrrad on
Fri, 26
Mar 2021 08:06:31 +0000 (UTC). Actually, I do not even agree with the
concept of basing one's entire front lighting on one, single beam lamp,
however expensive and reliable it may be.

Most people in the U.S. with dynamo lights (and there aren't a lot of
them!) also have some sort of battery powered light, even just an
inexpensive USB-rechargeable light.
I very much doubt that statement arose from anywhere but your
imagination. You can't possibly have data to back it up.

It's true there aren't a lot of U.S. cyclists with dyno lights. That's
mainly because there aren't a lot of U.S. cyclists who use their bikes
as anything but toys and exercise machines. There isn't the critical
mass to form a target market for a light that's always available at the
flick of a switch plus gives far better illumination than almost all
battery lights.

That's total nonsense. Pre-pandemic, I rode with dozens or hundreds of commuters every day, probably one out of thirty had a dyno -- if even that. People prefer brighter, battery powered lights. Every time I hear your story of cohorts admiring your bright light, I think WTF? I've got SP PD8 dyno hub driving a Luxos B, and its inadequate for night riding anywhere other than lighted streets. Its nice having the dyno when all else fails, but it is not a serious primary light on the roads and in the weather I ride. And yes, I ride with a battery "flasher" -- an L&M that pulses. It differentiates my solid beam from other solid beams, vis., cars and other bikes in two way facilities.

-- Jay Beattie.


I like a flashing mode when starting through an intersection on a main road at night when it's dark. Once through the intersection I'll put the light back on steady mode. I find the flashing (NOT strobing) light gets the attention of most drivers who are facing me. It seems to really cut down on t he number of attempted left-hooks from oncoming drivers. YMMV

I tried a dynamo light at a bike shop one dark night. At slow speeds it was totally inadequate for lighting up the road surface. I bought a good external battery pack battery powered light instead.


I started using a dyno light in about 1977, an all-in-one Soubitez I
described here, with a vacuum bulb. As I've said, it was inadequate for
dark roads at anything over low speed. But it was fine for being seen on
city streets - and I emphasize, I know that not only by motorist
behavior, but because I had my family drive by to observe and take notes.

My upgrade was the Sanyo roller dyno that James used until recently. Its
"Krypton" headlight bulb seemed better, but its optics were only
slightly better. It was fine for being seen, OK for lighting the road at
moderate speed, but dim at very low speeds - for example, making my way
in a campground's gravel parking lot.

But a halogen headlamp with better optics (a Union) made that set fine
for my uses, which included city and suburb commuting, country roads,
dark MUPs and neighborhood streets. At that stage and earlier I played
around with battery lights others recommended - hopping up small lights
with hotter bulbs, building MR based lights with external rechargeable
batteries, and even trying one of Scharf's LED flashlights. But while
some of those solutions certainly pumped out more lumens, for me they
were not worth the hassle of looking after batteries, remembering to
bring lights along, keeping them secure etc. And honestly, the LED
flashlight was terrible. If focused tightly ts hot spot ruined night
vision, but if focused wider it was too dim.

When I could buy a B&M LED headlight powered by a dyno, all that
experimenting became irrelevant. I considered the problem solved. I
think any B&M dyno light above the (discontinued?) Lyt gives a luxurious
amount of light. I've had no more problems in any riding condition than
I've had with my car's headlights.

I mention this because if Sir Ridesalot tried my 1980 dyno system, he'd
surely say it was inadequate at low speeds for lighting up the road
surface. But the systems I use today are excellent at anything over a
walking pace.

--
- Frank Krygowski
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