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Commuting Lights
Who makes the best lights for commuting? Niterider?? Those of you who
Cyclecommute what do you use?? |
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Commuting Lights
"John L. Lucci" wrote in message
... Who makes the best lights for commuting? Niterider?? Those of you who Cyclecommute what do you use?? Well it sort of depends on where and how you ride, and what you consider adequate for your purposes. As it becomes twilight and in the more lighted urban city streets, I use a 7 LED multifunction light for general purposes, in blinking mode. Then when I get into the darker less well lit city streets I switch to one of two Cygolite Nightrovers on my commuter bike. On a couple of stretches, I turn on both Nightrovers, as it helps to keep the motorists from pulling out in front of me as I ride by on the street. The motorists aren't used to seeing all that light on something so it gives them pause to figure out what it is first before they decide to cut you off. Then on a couple of unlit dark roads I can run extra light if needed, handy for seeing broken beer bottles and such up ahead when you are going along at a good clip. Having extra lights is handy as if one runs out of battery power you have a spare, not counting light bulbs burining out, etc. I do the same for LED tailights, as I run four LED tailights, two ultrabright lights, and two not so bright LED lights I glued onto the back of my panniers. If one of the LED lights batteries run down, it doesn't slow you down any as you can change the batteries later. |
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Commuting Lights
John L. Lucci wrote:
Who makes the best lights for commuting? Niterider?? Those of you who Cyclecommute what do you use?? That's a bit too general of a question. A lot depends on the specifics of your commute, the distance, the traffic, the types of drivers, etc. Nitrider does have some good products, but they tend to be pricey. I suggest that you Google "Bicycle Lighting Facts" and read the first two search results (okay, okay, they happen to both be my site). If I was buying a commercial lighting system for commuting, it would consist of the following: Headlight (one of the following) -Nite Hawk Dual Pro Lighting System -Cygo Lite Night-Explorer 25 watt 6 volt NiMH Lightset -NiteRider Classic Plus H-bar mount 12/20/32w -Sigma Evo X Pro 5/10 w/ NiMH Flat Pack Tail Light (one of the following) -Cat Eye LD1000 -Blackburn Mars 3.0 -Trek Disco Inferno Steve "http://bicyclelighting.com" |
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Commuting Lights
John L. Lucci wrote:
Who makes the best lights for commuting? Niterider?? Those of you who Cyclecommute what do you use?? We have a broad experience, listening to riders for many years. In some situations, a small inexpensive flashing white LED [Cateye, $20) may be appropriate. In our neighborhood for example, there is limited auto volume and lots of ambient light. In other areas all that will vary. I once had a job from which I left at 11:00pm riding a 2-mile path through an unlit park. That trip just needs more light.[such as Cygo 12W recharge $60 or 12W NiMH $70] Rural riders who throw high speed car traffic into a mix of no street lights and small shoulders may want to look at the newer 40-W HID lamps[Cygo $295,Planet $350]. Our Audax customers don't need extreme light [3W is sketchy but 10W is fine] but they need either dynamos [$25 to $250] or battery systems with huge run times for unassisted events [25hour Cygo $129]. A typical 15~30 minute commute makes run time almost irrelevant where you can plug in at your office. Other riders will forgo a bit more light for the dependability and one-time-expense of a dynamo. And among them, some riders insist on the silence of a hub dynamo [$89 up] while others extol the light weight of a side mount [$25 up] or under-frame models[$70 up]. So for your specific needs, think about how much light is needed ( more is always good!), your limits of attention [will you want to time your charges?] and money and your taste in hardware. There has never been so much choice because riders have different needs, taste and criteria. 0-- Andrew Muzi www.yellowjersey.org Open every day since 1 April, 1971 |
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Commuting Lights
On Sat, 11 Feb 2006 07:33:54 GMT, "John L. Lucci" wrote:
Who makes the best lights for commuting? Niterider?? Those of you who Cyclecommute what do you use?? I've been commuting for almost thirty years on various bikes and have been through a small fortune in hideously overpriced, horribly underbuilt, pathetically designed crappy lights. Manufacturers like to take off the shelf items, slap them into plastic housings that are designed to look cool (and expensive), then charge a fortune for them. I've disassembled all the ones I've bought (after they break or die) over the years and am constantly disgusted at the junk they peddle. I have a 'top quality-designed for years of trouble free use-guaranteed forever-blah-blah-blah' bottle battery that cost over $100 and died in less than a year, open on my workbench. It contained nothing but a sealed lead-acid battery stuck in some foam. I bought a new battery of similar capacity for $23 at a local battery shop. The bike battery was some off brand (made in China), while the one I bought locally was made in North America by a reputable named company. Here is what I recently built.... http://www.dansworkshop.com/Monster%...%20Light.shtml I like this guys approach, simple, rugged, cheap. Now THIS will survive many years of bouncing along rutted woodland trails when it's -14 Celsius. It seems that lots of people have had it with the garbage being offered by the mainstream manufacturers and are making their own lighting systems. Bob. |
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Commuting Lights
John L. Lucci wrote: Who makes the best lights for commuting? Niterider?? Those of you who Cyclecommute what do you use?? Worldwide, it's very likely that the majority of cyclecommuters use generator lights. In America, where "expensive" is always better and bikes are high price toys, other systems are more popular. I've tried small, inexpensive self-contained lights that mount on the handlebar and found them insufficient. I tried much more expensive halogen lights powered by separate rechargeable batteries, and found that the rechargeable batteries typically didn't live up to the claimed ride times, or recharge cycles, and cost a surprising amount to replace. I built my own 12 volt light based on hardware store bulbs and a separate rechargeable battery, and while I was pretty proud of my design, I found the optics of hardware store bulbs (MR-11 or MR-16) were not well suited for road riding. While toying with those alternatives, I also used generator lights. After a couple of bad ones (back in the 1970s), I found a good combination - a generator with quite low drag, and a headlight with very nice optics. Despite my collection of other headlights (with batteries I still tend, in case someone wants to borrow one) I now use the generator light exclusively. The other lights simply aren't worth the trouble for me. The generators on my bikes are now over ten years old, and functioning perfectly. These work well for me up to at least 25 mph, on very dark roads, on heavily trafficked roads, and everywhere in between. It's always ready - no battery worries at all. It works whatever the temperature, unlike many battery lights. It has infinite run time. It's just like the lights on my car: always there, no worries. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bicycle_lighting has a good discussion on bike lights. It has much less bias and less misinformation than the "world's greatest expert" site. - Frank Krygowski |
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Commuting Lights
On Sat, 11 Feb 2006 17:48:22 -0800, frkrygow wrote:
John L. Lucci wrote: Who makes the best lights for commuting? Niterider?? Those of you who Cyclecommute what do you use?? Worldwide, it's very likely that the majority of cyclecommuters use generator lights. In America, where "expensive" is always better and bikes are high price toys, other systems are more popular. Oh, come on, Frank. Generators are not necessarily the only way to go, and using a battery light does not make you a dilletante. Generator lights are cumbersome, and either require a bracket/housing for the bottle generator, or an expensive generator hub. They do not have the light of the best (or even medium-quality) battery lights, and are impossible to switch from bike to bike. Generators also have a marginal amount of power available, and for one that gives adequate (only adequate) light to ride by, you spend a fair chunk of money. I've tried small, inexpensive self-contained lights that mount on the handlebar and found them insufficient. I tried much more expensive halogen lights powered by separate rechargeable batteries, and found that the rechargeable batteries typically didn't live up to the claimed ride times, or recharge cycles, and cost a surprising amount to replace. This is generally true, but becoming less of a problem. Batteries are getting better, and more are using standard battery packs. I switch, in seconds, my DiNotte light from bike to bike. In fact, I will do that tomorrow morning, since I have to use my snow bike tomorrow. It has plenty of light for my commute, and uses batteries costing a few bucks to replace. No, it won't last all night, but I don't have plans to ride all night, either. If I did, I could carry enough spare batteries to get me through, and still be way under the weight of a generator, without the drag. -- David L. Johnson __o | If all economists were laid end to end, they would not reach a _`\(,_ | conclusion. -- George Bernard Shaw (_)/ (_) | |
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Commuting Lights
Quoting David L. Johnson :
and using a battery light does not make you a dilletante. Generator lights are cumbersome, This I don't get. I much prefer a headlight out of the way on the fork crown to cluttering up the handlebars. and are impossible to switch from bike to bike. That's not really so. A minute to swap a front wheel over; and if I really didn't want to shell for one headlight per bike, I'd splice a join into the cable and swap that over, too - maybe another couple of minutes to unscrew it from the bracket and bolt it on somewhere else. Not ideal - and I'll end up with one tail light per bike anyway - but certainly not impossible. [The tandem is now sharing a front wheel with another bike. I don't swap the headlights, though, because the tandem has a Lumotec Plus and an E6Z secondary. So this isn't purely hypothetical.] -- David Damerell Kill the tomato! Today is First Sunday, February - a weekend. |
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