To flash or not to flash

[jbw57]

Flash front and tail during the day and flash tail at night with front on steady.....mixed opinions on whether to flash or not. When ever I see a red flashing light it seems to catch my attention.

 

[sleuthey]

It's nearly bedtime now so here is rule 60 of the highway code for anyone suffering insomnia (not that I'm entirely compliant):

"At night your cycle MUST have white front and red rear lights lit. It MUST also be fitted with a red rear reflector (and amber pedal reflectors, if manufactured after 1/10/85). White front reflectors and spoke reflectors will also help you to be seen. Flashing lights are permitted but it is recommended that cyclists who are riding in areas without street lighting use a steady front lamp."

 

[Will Spin]

If I'm cycling on my own in daytime, flashing back light is on all the time. If it's a bit gloomy or raining I also put a flashing front on.

 

[mjr]

What is the most visible mode on my rear light?....flashing or just steady on?

It's all visible but I feel the best light is a steady one with a large surface area. Some of the B+M, Axa and Hermans lights do clever things with lenses to have one LED light up a larger area. It also has the benefit that it makes you look like a larger vehicle that might dent a car so drivers pay more attention.

I like at least one flasher on the back as they single you out as a cyclist.

You say that like it's a good thing and not an invitation to think you're a stationary object that can be close-passed.

I disagree. I find them [pedal reflectors] very useful when driving in identifying cyclists from a distance.

So do I, but mainly the ones without lights

They're also a legal requirement and although I generally don't give a toss what the law says, in this case I think it's sensible.

I mainly give a toss what the law says because if it all goes wrong and you're in a collision, there's potential for you to be blamed due to completely irrelevant defects, just like being blamed because you had defective brakes even when you'd decided to swerve not stop anyway

My pedals/feet are out in front of me, not visible from the rear.

Are you riding a recumbent or have you fallen over and can't get up?

 

[davidphilips]

Sorry guys but i like flashing lights on the back, one flashing at the back during day cycling and for cycling at night one flashing and one steady at the front with 2 flashing (different modes) and one steady at the back.

 

[winjim]

Sorry guys but i like flashing lights on the back, one flashing at the back during day cycling and for cycling at night one flashing and one steady at the front with 2 flashing (different modes) and one steady at the back.

I'm sure there will be many opportunities over the coming months for us to disagree.

 

[KnackeredBike]

In town/where there are other cyclists around flashing front and rear.

However most of my commute home is along a particularly nasty road and along there I have front steady but angled so it dazzles oncoming traffic a little, and rear on strobe. Quite simply with that combination I get almost no close passes perhaps because drivers have to slow down to judge an overtake.

If it annoys people but I don't get run over from behind at 60mph then I think it is job done.

 

[T4tomo]

If you ride a lot at night with SPD or similar then a bit of reflective tape on the back of the crank gives a similar effect. Those illuminated valve cap thinks are also good, gives side on vision which is useful in towns. Moving or flashing lights are much better seen in the general fug of a town, whereas steady is much better in the countryside.

 

[the_mikey]

I'm going with flashing because I'm not made of money and my current lights are poop.. Remind me to get some new lights when I get paid.

 

[Ming the Merciless]

Flashing during daylight hours, steady at night. I find flashing lights an irritation after dark and they make it hard to judge distance.

I prefer flashing with indirect LEDs. Those strady but ultrabright direct LEDs most cheapskates use are the devils work.

 

[DaveReading]

On steady for drivers to judge distance and one flashing.

I opt for the mode that's most likely to be seen (flashing).

If that has the side-effect that drivers need to work harder to judge how far away they are from me, so much the better.

 

[Shut Up Legs]

I use solid lights front and rear, but have the rear one flashing during the day (not at night). That's because during the day I'm surrounded by more traffic, so the rear flashing light makes me a bit more obvious to motorists. The brand I use is Ay Up, an Australian brand of lights that are very reliable and with excellent battery life.

 

[Banjo]

My reason for wanting following cars etc to identify me from my flasher as a bike is so they realise sooner rather than later that I am usually going much slower than them.

A single red could be a motorcycle or car with one dead bulb.

Unless your riding in a chain gang if your rear light is annoying to other riders they have 2 choices .pass or drop back.

I guess in London or other big cycling cities different etiquette applies to the blacked out rural roads I ride on.

 

[Tim Hall]

In town/where there are other cyclists around flashing front and rear.

However most of my commute home is along a particularly nasty road and along there I have front steady but angled so it dazzles oncoming traffic a little, and rear on strobe. Quite simply with that combination I get almost no close passes perhaps because drivers have to slow down to judge an overtake.
.

Having your front light set to dazzle on coming road users strikes me as a non sensible idea.

 

[davidphilips]

I'm sure there will be many opportunities over the coming months for us to disagree.

LOL, Thats some thing to agree on,Have a nice weekend.