Front lights

[mrmacmusic]

Having read the other post on rear lights, it seems people are happy to recommend 'Smarts' (which I'd never heard of until I joined these boards), and that Planet X seem to be selling them at a very nice price right now.

My question is that having recently started commuting, I'll need to sort out decent lights. My 14-mile route is part road but mostly cycle route, either on unlit back-roads or multi-use cycle path through trees so is going to get really dark, and quite soon! (see my actual route here).

Whilst I'm technically minded, with different suppliers quoting lumens, lux and candles it's all getting just a bit confusing!! I already have a BikeHut front light, but I don't think it's much cop and to be honest was bought that long ago and the packaging thrown away that I have no idea what its power output is (I've attached a pic, and can confirm it takes 4xAA batteries and would appear to have one LED).

The Smart Lunar 35 would appear on the face of it to be bright and perhaps can't be beaten at £16.... but I'd quite like to know if it's going to be better than my existing BH effort before splashing the cash. Are they a good, reliable brand? Is there a better, brighter solution under £50..?

I'm planning 2 front lights, so it might be worth just buying one to use in addition to my existing light (which has static and flash modes), but at £16 for 35 Lux I could be better off buying two new lights....

Help and advice greatly appreciated

 

[Hacienda71]

You can get 5 Watt torches from Deal Extreme for not a huge amount certainly under a tenner each with bike mounts. They are fine for slower speeds i.e. upto 20 mph but over that and you would really need something at a higher price point. You can get an MJ 808 for $72 us dolllars from DE and they are seriously bright. I can get upto 30 mph on my homeward commute on pitch black country roads and feel confident I will see potholes etc in time. Down side to the MJ808 and similair is they have a Lion battery pack you strap to the frame. They certainly give best bang for you buck though.

 

[Wobblers]

I got the Smart Lunar 35 from Planet X a couple of weeks ago. I doubt you'll find a better bike light for £16! Though I've not yet tried it on its own on a dark lane, its just as bright as my RSP Asteri 3, which is more than adequate for pitch black roads. The Smart Lunar ought to cope just as well. The Asteri 3 actually is another good choice if you can find it for under £40: it's rechargeable, and a single charge will last over 7 hours on high.

As hacienda71 says, the Magicshine delivers the best bang for the buck - but beware that it's built down to a price and has something of a reputation for unreliability (there are no shortage of threads about that on Classic Mountain Bike Forums). They do seem to have improved on the quality front, though, recently.

If you do decide on a Magicshine, I'd advise you get a second light as a backup - in fact, it's a good idea to have a second front light in any case, especially if your route takes you through unlit areas. The Smart would make an ideal backup light. Or you could run two Smart Lunar 35's! Come to think of it, perhaps I'll order in another one myself...

 

[Red Light]

I've been using Smart lights for years now and they've been very good and reliable with good illumination. For their price I think they are difficult to beat.

 

[Peter88]

I run with 2 magicshines at the front a 808 and a 838.
I use the 838 in its lowest power setting on road and the 808 on full power for off road and unlit places.
Had both for over a year with no problems. I use a charger that i have for my r/c race car batteries instead off the supplied mains charger.

 

[gaz]

If you need a light to see where you are going, then you are going to need to spend some money to get a suitable light.
The best deal at the moment are the magic shine lights from deal extreme. They are bright, decent quality and cheap for what they are.

 

[Nebulous]

I don't know about the 35, but I have the Smart 25 set and really like it for what I use it for. It's very definitely not enough to see potholes, road surface in the dark though. The beam is also quite focused, so in unlit roads in the dark you spend your time trying to concentrate on the small lit patch in front of you. I doubt if the 35 is much better. The rear kight is great, but I have suffered from the water ingress issue in very wet weather without mudguards.

 

[mrmacmusic]

You see, this is why I'm glad I joined these boards – thanks for the input folks!

I can't afford Ayups but I'll need to seriously think about these MagicShine 808's.... my only concern is that there does seem to be varying opinion on build quality and reliability. How secure is the mounting too – they only seem to come with rubber bands to fit them (unless I'm missing something?).

I'm very tempted just to get the Smart Lunar 35 – if not two of them at that price and another 4-pack of 2500mAh Ni-MH re-chargeable batteries. Total cost would be less than £40, which I reckon is a bargain.

 

[Beaker39]

Just been on the Planet X site and the Smart Lunar 35 has gone up to £22.99, DOH

 

[mrmacmusic]

Just been on the Planet X site and the Smart Lunar 35 has gone up to £22.99, DOH

Went for a look and just saw that myself.... probably still a good buy though? (Noticed that there's free delivery over £20 though)

 

[gaz]

You see, this is why I'm glad I joined these boards – thanks for the input folks!

I can't afford Ayups but I'll need to seriously think about these MagicShine 808's.... my only concern is that there does seem to be varying opinion on build quality and reliability. How secure is the mounting too – they only seem to come with rubber bands to fit them (unless I'm missing something?).

I'm very tempted just to get the Smart Lunar 35 – if not two of them at that price and another 4-pack of 2500mAh Ni-MH re-chargeable batteries. Total cost would be less than £40, which I reckon is a bargain.

2x smart lunar 35's won't light the road up for you.

I've found the magic shine built quality fine, it's not as good as say a hope or ayup but it's fine for the price.
The bracket is fine, hang the light from the underside of the handle bar and it stays in a perfect position

 

[Peter88]

hang the light from the underside of the handle bar and it stays in a perfect position

Will have to try that thanks Gaz.

A little Video of my magicshines on the winter commuter.

 

[cyberknight]

+1 for the magicshine and you can get an electron terra micro light bracket mount for a couple of pounds that make the light very secure .

I use a magicshine paired with a 100 lumen torch with a handle bar mount both from DX

 

[Norry1]

Do you have a link for the mount you use for the Magischine? I assume it connects to it with the O Band?

My Magicshine fits securely, but I'd like something I can turn towards the kerb a bit.

Cheers

Martin

 

[HLaB]

Mrmac, going by the route you've posted it'll be very dark as you are quite far away from civilisation in some places. I've cycled nearby roads in the pitch black and whilst I normally carry a Smart bespoke and Polaris (forerunners to lunars) I have to get home very quickly before ambient light fades, I wouldn't recommend using them regularly especially with the state of our roads just now. When I do know I'm going out in the dark in that area, I've fitted a tesco cree with a two fish lock block; you don't get the tesco cree anymore but you do get other cree's and they offer a decent level of lighting for not much money. I also like to run a helmet torch so I can see the verges.

OT I was passing on Friday and they've finally reopened the ped/cycle bridge over the A876 (Kincardine Br), if you don't fancy dealing with the motorway bound traffic ;-)