Front lights

[Bay Runner]

Hi Guys,

With darkness starting to close in I have been looking at front lights again, at the moment I use http://www.cateye.co...etail/HL-EL530/ however its not bright enough for an unlit cycle path (Clyne Valley)

I have been looking at the http://www.cateye.co...600RC/moreinfo/ its some times difficult to tell how good lights are, just looking at the specs.

I don’t want to shell out for the EL600RC and find out there is no improvement. Can anybody throw some practical light on their differences, or recommend an alternative. I would like to continue to use the unlit cycle path throughout the winter months keeping road use to a minimum



Cheers

 

[lukesdad]

I ride the clyne valley path at night and my P7 torches are fine. Theyre the ultrafire 1100 lumen ones I get 2 hours run time on each. They are dependent on which make of battery you use and charger. But are certainly a good cheap option. Having also used them mtbing at night I wouldnt use anything else now.

I also carry a cheapo smart light that can be used in the same mounts ample for the lit streets around Swansea.

 

[Fly]

nobody mentioned the hope yet?

 

[dellzeqq]

nobody mentioned the hope yet?

the jury is out on the Hope. Susie's failed in the wet.

 

[Moodyman]

Cateye do the Single Shot Plus - EL610. I've got one and it's pretty good for unlit paths. It's fine for about 25mph. You could probably go faster with it, but I'm the cautious type.

Having said that, for that sort of price, there are alternatives - the Magicshine's get good reviews on here though I've never used them.

 

[TimO]

I used to have a single shot plus, but managed to destroy the mount on it, having modified it slightly, and adjusting the clamp with the lamp in place.

Aside from my clutzness, it wasn't a bad light as I recall, and I've been tempted to buy a Single Shot in the past, when they've been on special (I apply n+1 to bike lights and GPS as well as bikes!) I quite like the Cateye clamps, they seem pretty solid for a plastic mounting, and the light was moderately bright (very good for this price range). The illumination was also about what you'd expect for a light probably aimed more at commuters than people who need to see their way. It's a bit patterned (reflecting the detail in the lens) rather than a nice uniform beam, which is what you want for long periods of night riding.

I guess it depends on how long you're cycling on the unlit path for. I'd happily use it on my commute, but that's only got less than ten minutes on badly lit path (across Clapham and Tooting Bec commons). If I wanted good illumination for longer, I'd use something more expensive, but for it's price the Cateye is pretty good.

As delzeqq said, the Hope Vision 1 is very well respected, not least because it takes AAs, so it's easy to replace the batteries. I can't comment on it personally, because I've never used one, but a lot of people I've cycled with have them. That is a slight issue with the Single Shot, it's an internal battery, which is not easily swapable, so you have to make sure you've got enough charge, or carry a second spare lamp as a backup (I'll often carry an Exposure Race Maxx as my main light, and an Exposure Joystick, which uses an identical mount, as a backup. Both of those cost significantly more than the Single Shot though, so I doubt you'd be looking at them).

 

[biggs682]

i use a tescos 3 led cree torch runs on 2 x aa and works fine i also have a bigger bodied brother that takes 2 x lr20 i think , these do ok for my commute .

 

[Jezston]

Doesn't seem to be any info out there as to how much light that torch actually puts out.

I've used my Hope Vision 1 in pouring rain many a time and never had any problems. Haven't heard anyone else either other than del's quote there. It's a decent light.

Beam is quite focused, though. Unlit towpaths on my commute it's adequate - can certainly see anything dodgy coming up on the surface from a decent distance, but I can't see anything else!

Considering adding a Magicshine for next winter, if anyone can tell me if it has like a 'wide' mode or something to fill out the space the hope misses?

 

[gaz]

Doesn't seem to be any info out there as to how much light that torch actually puts out.

I've used my Hope Vision 1 in pouring rain many a time and never had any problems. Haven't heard anyone else either other than del's quote there. It's a decent light.

Beam is quite focused, though. Unlit towpaths on my commute it's adequate - can certainly see anything dodgy coming up on the surface from a decent distance, but I can't see anything else!

Considering adding a Magicshine for next winter, if anyone can tell me if it has like a 'wide' mode or something to fill out the space the hope misses?

It will just fill out the space the hope misses.
Magicshine MJ-808

Hope Vision 1

 

[ianrauk]

the jury is out on the Hope. Susie's failed in the wet.

Really? Wow. My Hopes have been absolutely drowned in wet weather, Brighton fnrttc for a start and never had any problems.
The guys & customer service at Hope are are second to none. I am sure they would want to hear about that and would be very helpful.

 

[Jezston]

From a link in the 'found a bargain' thread:

http://www.cycle-clo...ycle-light.aspx

800 lumens for £10?

Seriously?


EDIT: Candle power != Lumens.

It is simple to compare units of illuminance and irradiance. Assume a light is producing one candela (the candela is the base unit in light measurement, and is defined as follows: a 1 candela light source emits 1 lumen per steradian in all directions isotropically. A steradian is defined as the solid angle which, having its vertex at the center of the sphere, cuts off an area equal to the square of its radius.
This means that the one candela light produces one lumen/square foot at a distance of one foot. This is the same as a foot candle. The same light produces one lumen per square meter at a distance of one meter (as the light spreads out as it goes farther from the source). Go here for a full review: http://www.intl-light.com/handbook/ch07.html

However, these data do not contradict the above posts warning you of the pitfalls comparing levels of irradiance or illuminance. The problem is that the above data, as stated, depend upon ISOTROPIC radiation; that is, the radiation is equal in all directions. Obviously, this is not the case in a lamp with a reflector which produces a focused beam, or an LED which radiates in a given direction. Thus, comparison between different units, as measured by different methodology is difficult if not impossible.

 

[Brahan]

This is an excellent piece of kit. I have the MKI which was more expensive and not as powerful as this one, but I still love it.

It's light enough to have helmet mounted and has a power saving mode where the light is constantly on while at the same it time pulses very brightly. I have had my mates comment on how bright the pulses were in their rear view mirror whilst passing the stationary, homeward bound traffic.

Deserves a

http://www.exposurelights.com/product/000078/diablo-mk.3/

 

[Adasta]

From a link in the 'found a bargain' thread:

http://www.cycle-clo...ycle-light.aspx

800 lumens for £10?

Seriously?


EDIT: Candle power != Lumens.

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For a tenner, it's worth a punt. I'm considering it...

 

[cyberknight]

Magicshine MJ-808

+1 on the MS

I think we could do with a what light sticky atm

 

[ianrauk]

Have just purchased a dynoHub and light
The hub is a SonDelux, and the light is a B&M Cyo (60lux).

Ok it's a bit pricey, having to have the wheel built around the dynohub but anyone who has seen Arallsopp's light on a FNRttC will know how bright the light is.

No more batteries for me.