Is there any good non-rechargeable headlights anymore?

On Wed, 10 May 2017 19:44:56 -0500, DougC
wrote:

On 5/10/2017 7:12 PM, Frank Krygowski wrote:
...
I've done custom mounts for several different headlights, mostly because
I almost always have handlebar bags mounted. Those interfere with most
handlebar mounted lights . But I'm pretty content when fabricating a
mechanical solution to such a problem.

Welp, I ordered a couple of tactikewl flashlights and some mounts off
Amazon for about $50 (for two of each). The flashlights are 18650 or
3xAA and come with the rechargeable stuff, but also have the 3xAA insert
too. They are claimed as waterproof and have no USB charging ports, so
they /should/ (might?) keep working in the rain.

There is not a great amount of choice it seems.

Apparently roughly 95% of all the flashlights listed on Amazon is one of
maybe 6 different China models, just sold under different names and
prices. And if you disregard the "all-rubber-band-mounts" and the
"fake-Two-Fish-mounts" that don't hold, then there's only about four
different kinds of handlebar-flashlight mounts--a couple of which were
only big enough for the 3xAAA lights, and so were clearly too small for
the flashlights I got.

I can make mounts too but don't really wanna.


I use those Chinese made 3.7 volt LED flashlights and I've been using
a sort of rubber mount that on the bottom clamps to the handlebar with
a nut and bolt and the top clamp has two "ears" that hold the light.
See http://tinyurl.com/l2fgo3e

The flashlights are made with a number of body diameters and the
larger sizes seem to stay in the mount well and for the "thinner" ones
I just use a plastic wire tie around the light and the mount.

By the way, the three AAA cell gizmos are not very reliable. A single
3.7 volt Li-Ion battery works much better. Another gotcha is that
since the barrel diameters are not all the same diameter sometimes
batteries fit too loose and if you hit a bump the light goes out. A
plastic sleeve around the battery will cure that.

--
Cheers,

John B.

On Wednesday, May 10, 2017 at 11:05:06 AM UTC-5, Doug Cimperman wrote:
A couple of my old headlights died due to batteries accidentally being
left in them long enough to leak. The old lights were Cateye HL-EL530s,
that took 4 x AA batteries.
http://www.cateye.com/en/products/detail/HL-EL530/
tho mine wasn't that one, mine was the previous-generation that had a
rectangular beam due to a second focusing cone inside the main
reflector. I cleaned them up a bit with some vinegar and water, but
they're probably toast. The reflector surfaces look pretty gray.

So I'm shopping around for ANY kind of headlights that take 4 x AA
batteries, and there is none. The best I can find is one that takes 3 x
AAA, but that doesn't put out anywhere near what the previous lights did.

The best that Cateye offers now is the EL135, which is 3 LEDS and only 2
AA batteries.
http://www.cateye.com/en/products/detail/HL-EL135/

I don't need a whole lot of light, I had two headlights just in case one
failed. And I don't want anything with an external battery pack, even
for free.

Years back the rechargeables cost too much ($100+ just for the smallest
systems). Now they're cheap enough, but they suck compared to the
disposable-battery ones.

At Nashbar, the Nashbar-brand Wedge headlight is 100 lumens, costs $20
and uses 3 AAA batteries. The run time is given as 15 hrs on high, 30
hours on low and 60 hours on flashing.

Nashbar also sells the Cateye Volt 100, the lowest-end Volt model. It is
USB rechargable and the output is given as 100 lumens... But the runtime
is given as "2 to 30 hours depending on mode". Uhhh... no sale.

I'm trying to spend money here and just not seeing a lot that's
interesting.

Plus--on the LWB recumbent, the lights have to be mounted upside-down.
And the old Cateye lights were "waterproof", while almost all of these
new ones are just "water resistant", and I'd bet, not nearly so if
mounted upside down in the rain...

So far the best candidate is the little 3-AAA flashlights with handlebar
mounts. They're round beams but have a spot-flood focusing lens at
least. Plus they all have high/low/flash modes now.

You might want to ignore bicycle lights per se and be creative. :-)

There are many flashlights that meet you light needs.

One produces 1000 lumens.

And they are way cheaper.

All it takes to mount them are 2 adjustable clamps.

Use NiMh batteries.

I made a light system using a SLA battery that was as bright as a car headlight.

Andy

On Wed, 10 May 2017 20:21:11 -0700 (PDT), Andy
wrote:

You might want to ignore bicycle lights per se and be creative. :-)
There are many flashlights that meet you light needs.
One produces 1000 lumens.

Please pardon my scepticism. The typical white LED belches about 75
lumens/watt when warm. Therefore, this flashlight will requi
1000lumens / 75lumens/watt = 13.3 watts
to operate. A 10 watt LED looks like these:
https://www.google.com/search?q=10+watt+led&tbm=isch
and usually requires a rather large heat sink like these:
https://www.google.com/search?q=10+watt+led&tbm=isch
Seen any flashlights with such an LED or heat sink (or fan)?

Of course, one can use smaller LED's to produce a 13.3 watt array. The
typical 2watt LED would requires 7 LED's to produce the 1000 lumens.
Seen any flashlights that have 7 LED's?

10 watts also requires quite a bit of battery current. Assuming a
single 18650 cell, that's about:
10 watts / 3.7 volts = 2.7 amps
At 2 amps (the best data I could find), an 18650 cell will deliver
about 7 watt-hrs:
http://www.lygte-info.dk/pic/Batteries2011/All18650/Energy-2A.png
Extrapolating to 2.7A, I would guess(tm) about 5.5 watt-hours.
Therefore, a single 18650 cell will last:
5.5 watt-hrs / 2.7A = 2 hrs
which is actually quite good. The cheap junk 18650 cells that I like
to use (because they're cheap), measure about 700 ma-hrs at 2.7A. That
would give me:
3.7v * 0.7Amp-hrs / 2.7A = 1 hr (approx).

And they are way cheaper.

Cheap is good. Cheaper is better than good.

All it takes to mount them are 2 adjustable clamps.

Most easily removable adjustable handlebar clamps that I've tried are
horrible. They all slip or vibrate badly. As long as headlight
manufacturers insist that the rider must be able to install and remove
the clamp without tools, they're going to continue to slip.

Use NiMh batteries.

Use Eneloop or LSD (low self discharge) NiMH batteries, or you will
find yourself with dead batteries in the middle of the ride from self
discharge.

I made a light system using a SLA battery that was as bright as a car headlight.

Sigh. Megalumens again. Do you really need something as bright as a
car headlight (700 lumens low, 1200 lumens high)? Do you enjoy
blinding oncoming traffic and other cyclists?


--
Jeff Liebermann
150 Felker St #D http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
Santa Cruz CA 95060 http://802.11junk.com
Skype: JeffLiebermann AE6KS 831-336-2558

On Wed, 10 May 2017 19:51:55 -0700, Jeff Liebermann
wrote:
(blah-blah-blah...)

Will this work for you?
http://www.11junk.com/jeffl/pics/bicycles/misc/slides/k1009%20light.html
https://internetkaufhaus24.de/Produkte/frontscheinwerfer-led-30-lux/6168332
https://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=de&tl=en&u=https%3A%2F%2Fintern etkaufhaus24.de%2FProdukte%2Ffrontscheinwerfer-led-30-lux%2F6168332&sandbox=1
It's a 3w single LED StVZO light from Germany. It uses 4ea alkaline
or NiMH AA cells. The StVZO beam pattern is somewhat rectangular, and
in my opinion looks quite good. I've only gone for one short ride so
far and it worked quite well.

Just one problem.... I have no idea where you can actually buy one in
the USA. There's the name "Star" and a number "K1009" on the top. The
bottom has some other info stamped into the plastic that will require
a microscope to read. I'll photo that tomorrow when I get to my
office.

--
Jeff Liebermann
150 Felker St #D http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
Santa Cruz CA 95060 http://802.11junk.com
Skype: JeffLiebermann AE6KS 831-336-2558

On Wed, 10 May 2017 22:55:24 -0700, Jeff Liebermann
wrote:

Will this work for you?
http://www.11junk.com/jeffl/pics/bicycles/misc/slides/k1009%20light.html
https://internetkaufhaus24.de/Produkte/frontscheinwerfer-led-30-lux/6168332
https://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=de&tl=en&u=https%3A%2F%2Fintern etkaufhaus24.de%2FProdukte%2Ffrontscheinwerfer-led-30-lux%2F6168332&sandbox=1

One mo
https://www.amazon.de/Frontscheinwerfer-LED-LUX-FRONTSCHEINWERFER-40208/dp/B01J9NWJHU

--
Jeff Liebermann
150 Felker St #D http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
Santa Cruz CA 95060 http://802.11junk.com
Skype: JeffLiebermann AE6KS 831-336-2558

What happens if the LED are given max voltage with an over supply of current ?

If the supply is 3 AAA, is current supply from 4-5-6 OK ?

have a 'locked into a proprietary slave-master' relationship ship anxiety ?

have a car loan ?

There are no problem cost benefit analysis for batt comparison ... sounds serious as if not serious then AA-AAA but serious asks for HD Li-on

Problem is buying from off the wall stuff like SMS the Politician ...the updated S
5 spell checker changed like to lie ...
finds...who wud know ?

On Wed, 10 May 2017 23:02:09 -0700, Jeff Liebermann
wrote:

On Wed, 10 May 2017 22:55:24 -0700, Jeff Liebermann
wrote:

Will this work for you?
http://www.11junk.com/jeffl/pics/bicycles/misc/slides/k1009%20light.html
https://internetkaufhaus24.de/Produkte/frontscheinwerfer-led-30-lux/6168332
https://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=de&tl=en&u=https%3A%2F%2Fintern etkaufhaus24.de%2FProdukte%2Ffrontscheinwerfer-led-30-lux%2F6168332&sandbox=1

One mo
https://www.amazon.de/Frontscheinwerfer-LED-LUX-FRONTSCHEINWERFER-40208/dp/B01J9NWJHU

Really awful "enhanced" photo of the maker and model number text:
http://www.11junk.com/jeffl/pics/bicycles/misc/slides/K1009%20light%20text.html
I'll make a better photo tomorrow.

I found the manufactory:
http://www.monz-international.de/index.php/en/
Here's the light:
http://www.monz-international.de/images/sortimente/fahrrad/technik/monz-technik-04.jpg
the manual on the light set:
http://www.monz-international.de/index.php/en/customer-support/downloads/category/22-bikes-and-parts?download=327:93146-22203-po30000081-fahrrad-lampenset-bikemate-de
Now, all you need to do is find a distributor or dealer.

--
Jeff Liebermann
150 Felker St #D http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
Santa Cruz CA 95060 http://802.11junk.com
Skype: JeffLiebermann AE6KS 831-336-2558

On Wed, 10 May 2017 23:07:18 -0700 (PDT), wrote:

What happens if the LED are given max voltage with
an over supply of current ?

https://www.google.com/search?q=nuclear+explosion&tbm=isch

If the supply is 3 AAA, is current supply from 4-5-6 OK ?

Maybe. The increased voltage from adding more cells will cause an
increase in current draw until something overheats. However, if the
light has a regulator designed to handle such high voltages, the
current to the LED will be constant and there will be no explosion.

have a 'locked into a proprietary slave-master' relationship
ship anxiety ?

Nope. I pick locks for a hobby.

have a car loan ?

Nope. I paid cash.

There are no problem cost benefit analysis for batt comparison
... sounds serious as if not serious then AA-AAA but serious
asks for HD Li-on

I can probably work that out, but I'm too lazy. Since 3 AAA cells
have the same energy (watt-hrs) as 2 AA cells, but cost more, I would
think that 2 AA cells are cheaper to operate. While rechargeables
have less energy density (by both weight and volume) as a
corresponding alkaline cell, but can be recharged repeatedly, the cost
of operating a rechargeable system is cheaper. Since LiIon cells have
a higher energy density than both alkaline and NiMH, they would be
even cheaper, especially since I can buy 18650 LiIon (Belch-Fire
brand) junk cells for about $1/ea.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Energy_density

Problem is buying from off the wall stuff like SMS the Politician

It's called "off the rack" at the LBS.

...the updated S
5 spell checker changed like to lie ...
finds...who wud know ?

Replace y'er spellin chequer with a sanity chequer.

--
Jeff Liebermann
150 Felker St #D http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
Santa Cruz CA 95060 http://802.11junk.com
Skype: JeffLiebermann AE6KS 831-336-2558

If the OP uses 4 1.5V Lion in a parallel batt carrier wired in series to a second same carrier the V is 3.0

3 in series is 4.5V

Correct ?

So in potential possibility repairing a failed proprietary integral batt device is possible.

While urahere...

I have 2 devices, a Pioneer 2DIN receiver and a new Amprobe 510 multimeter asking connect to ground first. I had operated under the auto batt standard of grounD last.

Is this a current sea change ?

AA multimeter ground first is a PITA with insulation penetration. The 2DIN is deadly. Why is there not a safety relay turning off power if no ground ?

Kranich ...kranich...where have read this kranich ?