Bright Lights II: into the woods

So I've had the really bright lights I mentioned buying here...

http://groups.google.com/group/rec.b...read/thread/9e
13b610feb1d231/bc36f99809881bcf?lnk=gst&q=bright+lights

....for a while.

[summary: "900 lumen" flashlight using a Cree SSC P7 emitter and a 3.6V
18650 Li-ion rechargeable battery. Fits in a pocket, so bright that
shining it at people counts as assault]

I've used them on the road. They're great! I keep them pointed down so
as not to blind car drivers in most cases. It turns out having a light
aimed about 50' in front of your bike's front wheel is quite practical.

But their real purpose was to ride off-road in the dark.

Unfortunately, shortly after I bought them, climactic hell broke loose
and most of my local trails are now nearly unrideable thanks to a layer
of wet messy snow.

Nonetheless, I tried tonight.

Conditions: half-moon, but a trail with a fair bit of evergreen forest
cover. Parts of it were definitely dark enough that there were no useful
light sources except what I carried.

Unfortunately, the trail conditions were still nearly unrideable, but I
tried! The key problem is I never got going very fast, maybe 10-15 km/h
for a second or two. Then I'd slow down or fall down.

Result? I can't compare these lights to other off-road lights. But I can
say that a pair of them (one on bars, one on helmet) capably illuminated
the trail with ease. At those speeds, I never came close to outriding my
lights. I don't know yet if they're good enough to ride at full speed on
most trails at night, and I didn't think to check them on half-power
(whose run-time is measured in hours), but they're really potent lights.
They're more than good enough to use as I want.

Further testing to be done, I promise.

--
Ryan Cousineau http://www.wiredcola.com/
"In other newsgroups, they killfile trolls."
"In rec.bicycles.racing, we coach them."

On Feb 3, 4:24*am, Ryan Cousineau wrote:
So I've had the really bright lights I mentioned buying here...

http://groups.google.com/group/rec.b...read/thread/9e
13b610feb1d231/bc36f99809881bcf?lnk=gst&q=bright+lights

...for a while.

[summary: "900 lumen" flashlight using a Cree SSC P7 emitter and a 3.6V
18650 Li-ion rechargeable battery. Fits in a pocket, so bright that
shining it at people counts as assault]

I've used them on the road. They're great! I keep them pointed down so
as not to blind car drivers in most cases. It turns out having a light
aimed about 50' in front of your bike's front wheel is quite practical.

But their real purpose was to ride off-road in the dark.

Unfortunately, shortly after I bought them, climactic hell broke loose
and most of my local trails are now nearly unrideable thanks to a layer
of wet messy snow.

Nonetheless, I tried tonight.

Conditions: half-moon, but a trail with a fair bit of evergreen forest
cover. Parts of it were definitely dark enough that there were no useful
light sources except what I carried.

Unfortunately, the trail conditions were still nearly unrideable, but I
tried! The key problem is I never got going very fast, maybe 10-15 km/h
for a second or two. Then I'd slow down or fall down.

Result? I can't compare these lights to other off-road lights. But I can
say that a pair of them (one on bars, one on helmet) capably illuminated
the trail with ease. At those speeds, I never came close to outriding my
lights. I don't know yet if they're good enough to ride at full speed on
most trails at night, and I didn't think to check them on half-power
(whose run-time is measured in hours), but they're really potent lights.
They're more than good enough to use as I want.

Further testing to be done, I promise.

Could we get a little more info about the lights and battery?
Homebrew or something you bought? Battery in the light or separate
battery pack? Spotty beam, floody beam? Have you used the oft-
discussed LFT Cree and if so can you compare?

Thanks,

Dan

wrote:
On Feb 3, 4:24 am, Ryan Cousineau wrote:
So I've had the really bright lights I mentioned buying here...

http://groups.google.com/group/rec.b...read/thread/9e
13b610feb1d231/bc36f99809881bcf?lnk=gst&q=bright+lights

...for a while.

[summary: "900 lumen" flashlight using a Cree SSC P7 emitter and a 3.6V
18650 Li-ion rechargeable battery. Fits in a pocket, so bright that
shining it at people counts as assault]

I've used them on the road. They're great! I keep them pointed down so
as not to blind car drivers in most cases. It turns out having a light
aimed about 50' in front of your bike's front wheel is quite practical.

But their real purpose was to ride off-road in the dark.

Unfortunately, shortly after I bought them, climactic hell broke loose
and most of my local trails are now nearly unrideable thanks to a layer
of wet messy snow.

Nonetheless, I tried tonight.

Conditions: half-moon, but a trail with a fair bit of evergreen forest
cover. Parts of it were definitely dark enough that there were no useful
light sources except what I carried.

Unfortunately, the trail conditions were still nearly unrideable, but I
tried! The key problem is I never got going very fast, maybe 10-15 km/h
for a second or two. Then I'd slow down or fall down.

Result? I can't compare these lights to other off-road lights. But I can
say that a pair of them (one on bars, one on helmet) capably illuminated
the trail with ease. At those speeds, I never came close to outriding my
lights. I don't know yet if they're good enough to ride at full speed on
most trails at night, and I didn't think to check them on half-power
(whose run-time is measured in hours), but they're really potent lights.
They're more than good enough to use as I want.

Further testing to be done, I promise.

Could we get a little more info about the lights and battery?
Homebrew or something you bought? Battery in the light or separate
battery pack? Spotty beam, floody beam? Have you used the oft-
discussed LFT Cree and if so can you compare?

Thanks,

Dan

The best forum for bike lighting is here

http://forums.mtbr.com/forumdisplay.php?f=124

In article
,
" wrote:

On Feb 3, 4:24*am, Ryan Cousineau wrote:
So I've had the really bright lights I mentioned buying here...

http://groups.google.com/group/rec.b...read/thread/9e
13b610feb1d231/bc36f99809881bcf?lnk=gst&q=bright+lights

...for a while.

[summary: "900 lumen" flashlight using a Cree SSC P7 emitter and a 3.6V
18650 Li-ion rechargeable battery. Fits in a pocket, so bright that
shining it at people counts as assault]

I've used them on the road. They're great! I keep them pointed down so
as not to blind car drivers in most cases. It turns out having a light
aimed about 50' in front of your bike's front wheel is quite practical.

But their real purpose was to ride off-road in the dark.

Unfortunately, shortly after I bought them, climactic hell broke loose
and most of my local trails are now nearly unrideable thanks to a layer
of wet messy snow.

Nonetheless, I tried tonight.

Conditions: half-moon, but a trail with a fair bit of evergreen forest
cover. Parts of it were definitely dark enough that there were no useful
light sources except what I carried.

Unfortunately, the trail conditions were still nearly unrideable, but I
tried! The key problem is I never got going very fast, maybe 10-15 km/h
for a second or two. Then I'd slow down or fall down.

Result? I can't compare these lights to other off-road lights. But I can
say that a pair of them (one on bars, one on helmet) capably illuminated
the trail with ease. At those speeds, I never came close to outriding my
lights. I don't know yet if they're good enough to ride at full speed on
most trails at night, and I didn't think to check them on half-power
(whose run-time is measured in hours), but they're really potent lights.
They're more than good enough to use as I want.

Further testing to be done, I promise.

Could we get a little more info about the lights and battery?
Homebrew or something you bought? Battery in the light or separate
battery pack? Spotty beam, floody beam? Have you used the oft-
discussed LFT Cree and if so can you compare?

Thanks,

Dan

The linked google groups post has the details of what I'm using,
including correcting my foolish error of calling this a "Cree" emitter.
It's a Seoul SSC P7.

The flashlight is "Aurora" branded:

http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.15691

It takes a single 18650 battery in the body of the flashlight. A 18650
is a standard 3.7V Li-ion battery, between an AA and a C cell in size.
It's a standard cell used in many laptop battery packs.

I'm not sure what the LFT Cree is (XR-E?) but the SSC P7 is four really
serious LED emitters on one die. The result is a claimed 900 lumens from
a 4V power supply (the battery in this light probably allows something
more like 700 lumens at best).

http://www.seoulsemicon.com/en/product/prd/zpowerLEDp7.asp

The beam has a distinct centre spot and a smooth outer cone of light. I
don't know how the beam width compares to other lights, but it seems
quite effective for riding.

The electronics in this particular light are supposed to be a bit crude,
but it is just about the cheapest SSC P7-equipped lamp around.

It's an LED flashlight you don't want to have shined in your face. When
using it for close-up work, as if it was an ordinary flashlight, I often
find myself switching to the low-beam because otherwise the centre spot
is too bright: I lose all ability to see what I'm working on and the
reflected light blinds me.

--
Ryan Cousineau http://www.wiredcola.com/
"In other newsgroups, they killfile trolls."
"In rec.bicycles.racing, we coach them."

In article ,
Davo wrote:

wrote:
On Feb 3, 4:24 am, Ryan Cousineau wrote:
So I've had the really bright lights I mentioned buying here...

http://groups.google.com/group/rec.b...read/thread/9e
13b610feb1d231/bc36f99809881bcf?lnk=gst&q=bright+lights

...for a while.

[summary: "900 lumen" flashlight using a Cree SSC P7 emitter and a 3.6V
18650 Li-ion rechargeable battery. Fits in a pocket, so bright that
shining it at people counts as assault]

I've used them on the road. They're great! I keep them pointed down so
as not to blind car drivers in most cases. It turns out having a light
aimed about 50' in front of your bike's front wheel is quite practical.

But their real purpose was to ride off-road in the dark.

Unfortunately, shortly after I bought them, climactic hell broke loose
and most of my local trails are now nearly unrideable thanks to a layer
of wet messy snow.

Nonetheless, I tried tonight.

Conditions: half-moon, but a trail with a fair bit of evergreen forest
cover. Parts of it were definitely dark enough that there were no useful
light sources except what I carried.

Unfortunately, the trail conditions were still nearly unrideable, but I
tried! The key problem is I never got going very fast, maybe 10-15 km/h
for a second or two. Then I'd slow down or fall down.

Result? I can't compare these lights to other off-road lights. But I can
say that a pair of them (one on bars, one on helmet) capably illuminated
the trail with ease. At those speeds, I never came close to outriding my
lights. I don't know yet if they're good enough to ride at full speed on
most trails at night, and I didn't think to check them on half-power
(whose run-time is measured in hours), but they're really potent lights.
They're more than good enough to use as I want.

Further testing to be done, I promise.

Could we get a little more info about the lights and battery?
Homebrew or something you bought? Battery in the light or separate
battery pack? Spotty beam, floody beam? Have you used the oft-
discussed LFT Cree and if so can you compare?

Thanks,

Dan

The best forum for bike lighting is here

http://forums.mtbr.com/forumdisplay.php?f=124

There's some good advice there. You'll notice also a lot of "P7"
threads, discussing the same emitter as my light has, but in a variety
of bodies.

--
Ryan Cousineau http://www.wiredcola.com/
"In other newsgroups, they killfile trolls."
"In rec.bicycles.racing, we coach them."

On Feb 4, 1:43*am, Ryan Cousineau wrote:
In article
,

" wrote:
On Feb 3, 4:24*am, Ryan Cousineau wrote:
So I've had the really bright lights I mentioned buying here...

http://groups.google.com/group/rec.b...read/thread/9e

13b610feb1d231/bc36f99809881bcf?lnk=gst&q=bright+lights







...for a while.

[summary: "900 lumen" flashlight using a Cree SSC P7 emitter and a 3.6V
18650 Li-ion rechargeable battery. Fits in a pocket, so bright that
shining it at people counts as assault]

I've used them on the road. They're great! I keep them pointed down so
as not to blind car drivers in most cases. It turns out having a light
aimed about 50' in front of your bike's front wheel is quite practical.

But their real purpose was to ride off-road in the dark.

Unfortunately, shortly after I bought them, climactic hell broke loose
and most of my local trails are now nearly unrideable thanks to a layer
of wet messy snow.

Nonetheless, I tried tonight.

Conditions: half-moon, but a trail with a fair bit of evergreen forest
cover. Parts of it were definitely dark enough that there were no useful
light sources except what I carried.

Unfortunately, the trail conditions were still nearly unrideable, but I
tried! The key problem is I never got going very fast, maybe 10-15 km/h
for a second or two. Then I'd slow down or fall down.

Result? I can't compare these lights to other off-road lights. But I can
say that a pair of them (one on bars, one on helmet) capably illuminated
the trail with ease. At those speeds, I never came close to outriding my
lights. I don't know yet if they're good enough to ride at full speed on
most trails at night, and I didn't think to check them on half-power
(whose run-time is measured in hours), but they're really potent lights.
They're more than good enough to use as I want.

Further testing to be done, I promise.

Could we get a little more info about the lights and battery?
Homebrew or something you bought? *Battery in the light or separate
battery pack? *Spotty beam, floody beam? *Have you used the oft-
discussed LFT Cree and if so can you compare?

Thanks,

Dan

The linked google groups post has the details of what I'm using,
including correcting my foolish error of calling this a "Cree" emitter.
It's a Seoul SSC P7.

The flashlight is "Aurora" branded:

http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.15691

It takes a single 18650 battery in the body of the flashlight. A 18650
is a standard 3.7V Li-ion battery, between an AA and a C cell in size.
It's a standard cell used in many laptop battery packs.

I'm not sure what the LFT Cree is (XR-E?) but the SSC P7 is four really
serious LED emitters on one die. The result is a claimed 900 lumens from
a 4V power supply (the battery in this light probably allows something
more like 700 lumens at best).

http://www.seoulsemicon.com/en/product/prd/zpowerLEDp7.asp

The beam has a distinct centre spot and a smooth outer cone of light. I
don't know how the beam width compares to other lights, but it seems
quite effective for riding.

The electronics in this particular light are supposed to be a bit crude,
but it is just about the cheapest SSC P7-equipped lamp around.

It's an LED flashlight you don't want to have shined in your face. When
using it for close-up work, as if it was an ordinary flashlight, I often
find myself switching to the low-beam because otherwise the centre spot
is too bright: I lose all ability to see what I'm working on and the
reflected light blinds me.

--
Ryan Cousineau /
"In other newsgroups, they killfile trolls."
"In rec.bicycles.racing, we coach them."- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

Cool, thanks. My bad on missing that link the first time around.
Looks like a pretty cool light. The run time is the deal breaker for
me, otherwise it's a pretty sweet setup.

Leep us posted how it works when you get the chance to do some faster
riding with it.

In article
,
" wrote:

On Feb 4, 1:43*am, Ryan Cousineau wrote:
In article
,

" wrote:
On Feb 3, 4:24*am, Ryan Cousineau wrote:
So I've had the really bright lights I mentioned buying here...

http://groups.google.com/group/rec.b...hread/thread/9
e

13b610feb1d231/bc36f99809881bcf?lnk=gst&q=bright+lights







...for a while.

[summary: "900 lumen" flashlight using a Cree SSC P7 emitter and a 3.6V
18650 Li-ion rechargeable battery. Fits in a pocket, so bright that
shining it at people counts as assault]

I've used them on the road. They're great! I keep them pointed down so
as not to blind car drivers in most cases. It turns out having a light
aimed about 50' in front of your bike's front wheel is quite practical.

But their real purpose was to ride off-road in the dark.

Unfortunately, shortly after I bought them, climactic hell broke loose
and most of my local trails are now nearly unrideable thanks to a layer
of wet messy snow.

Nonetheless, I tried tonight.

Conditions: half-moon, but a trail with a fair bit of evergreen forest
cover. Parts of it were definitely dark enough that there were no
useful
light sources except what I carried.

Unfortunately, the trail conditions were still nearly unrideable, but I
tried! The key problem is I never got going very fast, maybe 10-15 km/h
for a second or two. Then I'd slow down or fall down.

Result? I can't compare these lights to other off-road lights. But I
can
say that a pair of them (one on bars, one on helmet) capably
illuminated
the trail with ease. At those speeds, I never came close to outriding
my
lights. I don't know yet if they're good enough to ride at full speed
on
most trails at night, and I didn't think to check them on half-power
(whose run-time is measured in hours), but they're really potent
lights.
They're more than good enough to use as I want.

Further testing to be done, I promise.

Could we get a little more info about the lights and battery?
Homebrew or something you bought? *Battery in the light or separate
battery pack? *Spotty beam, floody beam? *Have you used the oft-
discussed LFT Cree and if so can you compare?

Thanks,

Dan

The linked google groups post has the details of what I'm using,
including correcting my foolish error of calling this a "Cree" emitter.
It's a Seoul SSC P7.

The flashlight is "Aurora" branded:

http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.15691

It takes a single 18650 battery in the body of the flashlight. A 18650
is a standard 3.7V Li-ion battery, between an AA and a C cell in size.
It's a standard cell used in many laptop battery packs.

I'm not sure what the LFT Cree is (XR-E?) but the SSC P7 is four really
serious LED emitters on one die. The result is a claimed 900 lumens from
a 4V power supply (the battery in this light probably allows something
more like 700 lumens at best).

http://www.seoulsemicon.com/en/product/prd/zpowerLEDp7.asp

The beam has a distinct centre spot and a smooth outer cone of light. I
don't know how the beam width compares to other lights, but it seems
quite effective for riding.

The electronics in this particular light are supposed to be a bit crude,
but it is just about the cheapest SSC P7-equipped lamp around.

It's an LED flashlight you don't want to have shined in your face. When
using it for close-up work, as if it was an ordinary flashlight, I often
find myself switching to the low-beam because otherwise the centre spot
is too bright: I lose all ability to see what I'm working on and the
reflected light blinds me.

--
Ryan Cousineau /
"In other newsgroups, they killfile trolls."
"In rec.bicycles.racing, we coach them."- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

Cool, thanks. My bad on missing that link the first time around.
Looks like a pretty cool light. The run time is the deal breaker for
me, otherwise it's a pretty sweet setup.

The run time is conservative: having used the light for 70+ minutes on
high after a charge, I can tell you at that point, the high beam
lighting is still brighter than the low beam of a freshly charged light.

If the run-time really is a downer, there's a different flashlight that
takes 2 18650s and runs about twice as long. The only downsides are it
costs more and it is bigger (longer body).

Leep us posted how it works when you get the chance to do some faster
riding with it.

--
Ryan Cousineau http://www.wiredcola.com/
"In other newsgroups, they killfile trolls."
"In rec.bicycles.racing, we coach them."