dynamo lights?

[Rohloff_Brompton_Rider]

hi all,

i have been using my brompton for commuting for a few months now. it's great. but, my problem is lights. my hope vision 4 light is brilliant but taking it off and on is a pain, it takes longer than folding the bike and my bag is getting quite full so could do without carrying it everywhere. i have to leave the brommie outside locked up most times at uni.
i'm thinking of going the dynamo route, has anybody had problems with thieves trying to knick these? it would be quite difficult to get the bits when the brommie is folded and kryptonite locked. i just don't want to tempt the nasty buggers.

has anybody got any recommendations for a dynamo set up?

 

[Bristol Dave]

I did look at getting a dynamo light but I thought they were too expensive.

I work at Bristol Uni and theft of/from bikes is rife. It may be worth asking the security/porters on the door (if you have them) if you can leave your lights with them whilst in lectures. It's a pain but the thieving chav scum will nick anything that is removable!

BD

 

[hackbike 666]

I have a hub dynamo but I think these slow you down a bit.May be ok for you but not so good for me.

It's not like the 1980's now as if you splash a bit of cash you can buy a decent set of battery lights although I don't really have a problem with these being nicked.Seems like im lucky.

 

[arallsopp]

I totally rate my SON hub. Its done thousands of trouble free miles without any issues at all (including riding across a beach, and some underwater sections), has minimal drag, and with the cyo throws out plenty of light. Fit and forget. Always there when you need it. Ideal. Mine is on a 20" front wheel, so should give you much the same.

Never thought about people nicking the lights. Guess you'd need the hub to make it worth bothering. You can get a reasonably good wall dynamo for a lot less, and they have NO drag (when off). Not as neat though, and they can slip / wear at the tyre.

 

[Windward]

I just put a hub dynamo on my bike, and I really really can't notice a difference in speed, but it isn't the sort of bike that goes that fast I think that for commuting you really wont feel the difference in drag, and if you time trial on your brompton then... good luck to you!

I got the B&M IQ Cyo which is a bit pricey and flashy, but the http://www.dotbike.com/productsP4015.aspx Fly IQ is cheaper and also looks alot more old fashioned -aka, less stealable! (I think thieves would avoid a bike with this on ) but which puts out as much light as my Cyo, (mine is the lower power model with a reflector), and that is more than enough. I see lots of bikes with dynamo lights left on locked up around london, so they mustn't be getting stolen that much! Just make sure that you put the lock through the dynamo wheel, not something that will be hard on a brommie

And I also have a SON hub, but good things are said about the shimano ones too

 

[hackbike 666]

That's true,why should I worry about being fast on a commute?

The hub dynamo is reliable and the lights always work.

Oh yeah forgot I have two horns wired into the circuit.Looks like I cant remove it.

 

[RedBike]

I tried the bottle dynamo route recently. They were TERRIBLE!!
http://redbikes.blogspot.com/2009/10/dynamo-lights-review.html
The lights and dynamo are yours for the cost of the postage (if you want them!)

I'm pretty sure most lights aren't like this. They can't be, nobody would use them if they were!. Its certainly put me off trying anything except a hub powered dynamo and one of the mega expensive LED dynamo lights.

If I was spending that sort of money and didn't need mega long run times I would probably just go for something like the Exposure joystick instead. Easy to clip on/off and takes up virtually no room in your bag. (The joystick gives you 3,10 or 24hr runtime!)

 

[palinurus]

Why do you have to leave your Brompton outside?

 

[Tharg2007]

bromptons are prize pickings for theives, I wouldn't leave one outside. Which uni you at?

 

[palinurus]

Bromptons fetch good money secondhand, so thieves like to steal them. Even an old tatty one can sell for £250 plus.

 

[Rhythm Thief]

I tried the bottle dynamo route recently. They were TERRIBLE!!
http://redbikes.blogspot.com/2009/10/dynamo-lights-review.html
The lights and dynamo are yours for the cost of the postage (if you want them!)

I'm pretty sure most lights aren't like this.

They aren't ... I'm afraid that's what you get for next to no money. I've got a Lightspin bottle dynamo on my tourer, driving a B&M 4D rear light and a halogen headlight, and it's a fantastic setup. Full brightness down to 2mph and no noticeable drag. The only bad thing is they don't make the Lightspin any more. Oh, and it cost me over £100.

 

[MajorMantra]

If it's not a dumb question why are you using the Hope setup for commuting? Isn't it kind of overkill? A more conventional commuting setup with QR front and rear lights should take no more than 10 seconds to remove. I use a Tesco torch on the front with a bodged mount and even that is very quick.

Matthew

 

[RedBike]

I don't know if this is the right size but it looks like a chap wheel to have a go a dynamo lights with.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Raleigh-Twent...K_SportGoods_CyclAcces_RL?hash=item4837e26a74

 

[Yellow Fang]

I got a Schmidt SON XS dynamo hub for my Brompton. It was pretty expensive, especially after having it built into a wheel and then buying some decent lamps for it. I also had difficulty finding a bracket to hold the front lamp over the brakes while not interfering with the pannier. I wasted a bit more money buying the wrong Busch & Muller lamps. The oval lumotecs won't fit under the pannier; you need the round ones. I wanted one with a standlight, but gave up on the front lamp because the standlight was so dim, it could hardly be seen under the pannier. I also tried out several versions of back lamps, eventually settling for a Busch & Muller D Toplight with three way switch for always on, on when moving, and stay on a little while after stopping when it's dark. If you do go for the Busch & Muller Lumotecs, at least you can dispense with the switch on the handlebars, because the switch on the lamp itself is sufficient. I also issues with the back lamp not always coming on, but that turned out to it not being grounded properly. I went for a hub dynamo because I've always had problems with bottle dynamos in the past, although half the problems were actually to do with the lights. I don't notice any drag. To be honest it's overkill, but at least it less likely that the lamps will be nicked. I've gone back to uni, and the theft around here is pretty bad too. Someone tried to nick the disc brakes of my mountain bike, and someone tried to saw through a massive heavy bike chain. I think they must have had battery powered tools to get as far through as they did, because a hack saw blade didn't even scratch it. I now leave my mountain bike at home and take my Brompton into the office.

 

[StirlingCrispin]

The latest AtoB states that Brompton are going to start selling special Shimano dynamo-hubs for their bikes, and will be doing away with bottle dynamos. They will still do the SON dynamo-hub.

Everything should be available in the next month or so.