Helmet LED - great for visibility

[dieselengine]

Just a tip I thought I'd share. Last year bought small white LED light for h/bars for weeknight training rides. Won't help you see, but make you more visible. Found an older small LED in garage, that still worked. Seemed wasteful leaving it there.

Got some self-adhesive Velcro. Put small amount on helmet, and small amount on underside of LED. The light sits neatly on the helmet. On the unlit roads I ride on, sure makes the oncoming cars take notice, as it's in such an unusual position. You look a bit like a miner with it on before it gets dark, but once it does, it's a great aid to visibility, and dirt cheap too. Self adhesive Velcro is about £0.65 for a qtr metre.

It also helps you see your HRM/computer.

Try it - it works a treat

 

[yenrod]

Oh, yes...diesel - I am truly looking forward getting set up like this...

For years I've been trying to think how i can be seen better in a really smart and cool way and this is like a bolt from the blue...

About 3yrs back i even tried a DIY version but this didn't work as the light was too heavy for the from of a spare (Bell) helmet I had knocking round...but I'll prob. get on e of those already manufacturered versions that velcro to the top of your helmet.

Just a tip I thought I'd share. Last year bought small white LED light for h/bars for weeknight training rides. Won't help you see, but make you more visible. Found an older small LED in garage, that still worked. Seemed wasteful leaving it there.

Got some self-adhesive Velcro. Put small amount on helmet, and small amount on underside of LED. The light sits neatly on the helmet. On the unlit roads I ride on, sure makes the oncoming cars take notice, as it's in such an unusual position. You look a bit like a miner with it on before it gets dark, but once it does, it's a great aid to visibility, and dirt cheap too. Self adhesive Velcro is about £0.65 for a qtr metre.

It also helps you see your HRM/computer.

Try it - it works a treat

 

[dieselengine]

Venrod, I am glad I won't be only dork riding round with one of these - but keep it in your pocket until it is properly dark - it might save your skin, but you can kiss goodbye to your street-cred! As I tell my cringeing wife, I'd rather look a prat and be alive, than be dead cool. Safe riding.

 

[mickle]

Good idea dieselengine. But. I used to run a 15w halogen helmet lamp in conjuction with 35w bar mounted. The bastards still cut me up. The point is, no matter how brightly you are lit up they cant see you if they arent looking.

 

[Dormouse]

I find I rarely get cut up by motorists at night now I use a Lumicycle HID front lamp. It is so bright I have to aim it well down to avoid dazzling oncoming traffic.

 

[pjm]

Hi, I used to do exactly the same, mostly for being seen in town, where my handlebar light would be obscured by parked cars.
However one caveat; I'm no expert on bike helmets, but my undersatnding is that they work by dissipating an impact across the full area of the helmet. They tend to work best if you hit something smooth and large, e.g the road, and the impact is already across a large area of the helmet, and can be dissipated across the rest easily. Where they are less efficient is if you hit something small and sharp, e.g the edge of a kerb, where the impact is much more concentrated.
By attaching something to your helmet, if the impact is in that place, you guarantee a small sharp intrusion into the helmet, the thing it is worst at handling.
Perhaps the velcro system the OP has used means the light is likely to come off at the first sign of impact, but at any rate its something worth thinking about.

 

[romans]

I bought a helmet twin mode LED from Aldi last year £3, nice and bright and it has an elastic strap.