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Flashlight as Bicycle Light = not so good



 
 
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  #11  
Old October 5th 14, 06:32 PM posted to rec.bicycles.tech
ian field
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Default Flashlight as Bicycle Light = not so good



"Sir Ridesalot" wrote in message
...
During my night ride last night I saw a dude at the side of the road. He
had one of those really bright flashlights hooked up to his handlebar.

The light had really bright narrow beam that was great for reflecting
light back from reflective signs even at quite a distance. The problem was
that the amount of light patch actually on the road was quite small and
this poor guy never noticed the pothole he hit. So there he was with a
snake bite flat and a flat rim. I gave him a spare tube and he was able to
limp back to town.


Actually, my first (half) decent LED got strapped to my handlebars for a
while, I must've been fortunate as the main intense beam was surrounded by a
cone of paler light that was easily good enough to spot debris in the road.

The reason I say it was only half decent is; its a 3D LED light that relies
on the cells internal resistance to limit the LED current - fresh cells
don't do the LED any good, and end of life is pretty much "sudden death"!

There was one wire in the flashlight from the LED star to the stud that
contacts the stud on the top cell, the vibration caused this wire to fatigue
and break. When I repaired it I put a loop of link wire in that sat snug in
the machined aluminium mounting - so it couldn't flop about and so it
introduced a tiny bit of resistance to help the LED.

Since then I got a made for it LED front light and the 3D LED flashlight has
been relegated to the shed.

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  #12  
Old October 5th 14, 06:32 PM posted to rec.bicycles.tech
Andre Jute[_2_]
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Default Flashlight as Bicycle Light = not so good

On Sunday, October 5, 2014 5:42:27 PM UTC+1, Lou Holtman wrote:
AMuzi wrote:

I was out today at 28F (in wool and leather) and didn't see one other


cyclist in an hour of riding. As they say in North Dakota, yeah it's cold


but it keeps out the riffraff.




Same here. After a week of nice warm weather the temperature dropped

considerably and it was rainy. I love it when the roads get quiet because

of bad weather. The corn and the beets are harvested so lots of roads are

covered with a thin layer of wet mud. As a bonus I had to clean my bike for

half an hour 😛.

--

Lou


Here it rained and the wind blew so nastily that I did woodwork instead of cycling, working on my large pochade box (16x12 inches paintings accommodated). I sawed and planed and sanded a block of wood to brace the box where the ARCA Swiss quick release plate will fit to use it with a photographic tripod, and cut an aluminium slide plate to protect the vintage box's fine veneers and lacquer against the inevitable careless handling near metal parts.. The pochade box, a 055 Manfrotto tripod and an optional shooting stick to sit on are the entire, self-contained painting kit; there is literally nothing else. It all fits in one of the Basil Cardiff pannier baskets I like to keep on the bike to chuck stuff in; a utility bike without somewhere to chuck stuff in is not a utility bike but a poser's bike.

Yestercday I went for a longish ride, accompanied by my physician, and met a nurse out on her Trek Madone, which I lifted up with one hand and found very light. Apparently one doesn't goe out on it when the wind blows. We got wet in a light shower in the middle of the ride but by the time I got home I was fully dried out. Par for the course in Ireland.

Andre Jute
  #13  
Old October 6th 14, 12:35 AM posted to rec.bicycles.tech
Frank Krygowski[_4_]
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Default Flashlight as Bicycle Light = not so good

On 10/5/2014 11:51 AM, jbeattie wrote:
On Sunday, October 5, 2014 8:26:41 AM UTC-7, AMuzi wrote:


I was out today at 28F (in wool and leather) and didn't see
one other cyclist in an hour of riding. As they say in North
Dakota, yeah it's cold but it keeps out the riffraff.


It's another nice day here -- the leaves have barely started to turn. I saw

hundreds of cyclists on the MUP yesterday -- but its 21 miles long, so it's
easy to see a lot of cyclists on a sunny day.

About 40F here at 10 AM. Part of our ride was through the big
metropark. I recall no cyclists there except the ones on our club ride,
so I guess 40 is cold enough to chase most cyclists indoors.

But the park had runners everywhere. As I dimly recall, 40 is nice for
running. If you like running.

--
- Frank Krygowski
  #14  
Old October 6th 14, 01:52 AM posted to rec.bicycles.tech
[email protected]
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Posts: 6,374
Default Flashlight as Bicycle Light = not so good

66 this morning express from Madison, 87 this afternoon. Super Weather.

This is ongoing for 3 months. I leave next week for a trip up to Heber Springs to Oklahoma seismic to the Scenic Colorado Highways and Tetons -Green River maybe the Yampa.

Added a front Hellwig sway bar to the rear. Full set of Hella lamps.

The grackle is rare. Managed a short video. Arrived at the end...of the seismic bird research and during a predicted time in the Continental seismic sequence or flow.

https://picasaweb.google.com/1022344...IslandsAlaska#

Microwbus 2014


  #15  
Old October 6th 14, 06:40 PM posted to rec.bicycles.tech
SMS
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Default Flashlight as Bicycle Light = not so good

On 10/5/2014 10:32 AM, Ian Field wrote:

Actually, my first (half) decent LED got strapped to my handlebars for a
while, I must've been fortunate as the main intense beam was surrounded
by a cone of paler light that was easily good enough to spot debris in
the road.


snip

What actually matters is the beam shape, the level of illumination, and
the modes, not whether a light is sold as a bicycle light or as
something else. There are awful "purpose built bicycle lights" and good
"flashlights" and vice-versa.

It's a battery, LEDs, and optics--what matters is how well it works not
what you call it. The higher-power purpose-built bicycle lamps usually
have the batteries in a different location than the light. This is fine
though it's somewhat of a pain when removing the lights when parking the
bicycle. Flashlights of course have the batteries together with the lamp
in one package with the downside being that you don't want too much
battery weight and volume on the handlebars. Some purpose-built bicycle
lights, like ones from Lezyne, look very much like a flashlight. This
doesn't automatically make them bad. Lezyne uses a single 18650 Li-Ion
cell much like most Li-Ion flashlights. The beam pattern is an optimal,
almost symmetrical, pattern.

Many flashlights are not good bicycle lights because they have too
narrow of a beam. That's why it's important to choose a light with spot
to flood adjustment. The spot beam has it's uses, but usually you want a
bit wider beam.

I always liked the Cygolite Rover because it used MR11 lamps with a good
beam pattern and the dual lamps one wide, one narrow. which is a lot
easier to do with incandescent lamps than with LEDs. The Rover II is LED
based but it looks like they retained the good beam pattern, at least
with the diffuser option for a wider beam. It's kind of a kludge to need
the diffuser stuck onto the front but doing LED optics is very difficult.

Cost is a big issue to a lot of people. They are not going to use lights
at all if they cost even $100. Try to convince them to buy a dynamo hub
wheel and a decent dynamo light and explain to them that it's going to
cost them $400 or more and you're not going to get very far. Show them a
$30-40 solution and they're likely to go for it.

Spot to flood optics address a complaint (which has some limited
validity) of blinding oncoming traffic with a daytime flasher or even
with an always-on light. If you're on a narrow path where on-coming
traffic might be annoyed by the glare from a wide beam lamp you can
switch to a narrow beam (as well as reducing brightness at night). Some
people don't understand the necessity of being able to illuminate
slightly up in order to see overhead obstacles and they can narrow the
beam to the point where there is little upward spill, at least until
they get smacked in the face by a branch.

What to look for in a battery powered light:

1. Removable for both security and for use as a repair light
2. Spot to Flood Zoom
3. Flash mode
4. Multiple power levels
5. Beam shape that illuminates to the front, off to the sides, and
slightly up (for road signs and overhead obstacles.
6. Secure mount to the bicycle, no rubber O rings, no plastic clamps
7. Swivel mount so light can be mounted straight even on non-straight
handlebars.

What I would also like, to use with my dynamos is:

8. Hybrid power, dynamo charges a Li-Ion battery but light can operate
solely on dynamo power, at least at low power.
9. Battery also can be charged, inside the light, from an external source.


  #16  
Old October 6th 14, 06:49 PM posted to rec.bicycles.tech
ian field
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Default Flashlight as Bicycle Light = not so good



"sms" wrote in message
...
On 10/5/2014 10:32 AM, Ian Field wrote:

Actually, my first (half) decent LED got strapped to my handlebars for a
while, I must've been fortunate as the main intense beam was surrounded
by a cone of paler light that was easily good enough to spot debris in
the road.


snip

What actually matters is the beam shape, the level of illumination, and
the modes, not whether a light is sold as a bicycle light or as something
else. There are awful "purpose built bicycle lights" and good
"flashlights" and vice-versa.

It's a battery, LEDs, and optics--what matters is how well it works not
what you call it.


One of the LED flashlights I bought has an adjuster ring round the lens end
for wide or narrow beam.

It didn't seem big enough, so I never tried it on the bike.

 




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