To flash or not

[scouserinlondon]

As a ped yesterday I noticed that about 80% of london cyclists have their main front light on flash. Do you guys think this makes you more visible to other road users.

I have a hope 1 on steady and a little cateye on flash and often wonder whether the Hope would be better used in flash mode. It's odd the things one ponders to avoid doing work!

 

[moralcrusader]

In town, you don't need front lights to see where the road is going - the're mainly needed to alert people coming out of side roads etc that you're there - as such I'd say that flashing lights would attract more attention. That said, I also have two lights at each end - one flashing, one steady.

 

[PK99]

As a ped yesterday I noticed that about 80% of london cyclists have their main front light on flash. Do you guys think this makes you more visible to other road users.

I have a hope 1 on steady and a little cateye on flash and often wonder whether the Hope would be better used in flash mode. It's odd the things one ponders to avoid doing work!

having recently driven through the centre of oxford and been confronted with literally dozens of flashing lights facing me at a junction. i would definitely say 1 flashing 1 steady - I found it impossible to track if one of the flashing lights was heading my way.

 

[ianrauk]

On the front of my commuter I have 2 Hopes on steady and a 5-led on flash
For the rear I have 1 steady and 1 flashing.

 

[John the Monkey]

Flashing lights work because the brain can habituate to a steady light, and filter it out - but they're hell to judge speed and distance by. One flasher and one steady is the best, I reckon.

 

[HLaB]

When I bought my last set of lights (Smart BsPoke) the packaging said to be UK legal the front should be used on flashing and the rear on solid but does it really matter! You'll find lots of threads on it IMO its better to have flashing to be seen but solid for seeing, so it all depends where you ride. In the winter I like to run the combo of both (2 sets of lights). I might be wrong but I believe its also easier for the driver to judge distances when there are two lights.

PS its odd the things I do to avoid typing up my dissertation

 

[BSRU]

When I bought my last set of lights (Smart BsPoke) the packaging said to be UK legal the front should be used on flashing and the rear on solid but does it really matter! You'll find lots of threads on it IMO its better to have flashing to be seen but solid for seeing, so it all depends where you ride. In the winter I like to run the combo of both (2 sets of lights). I might be wrong but I believe its also easier for the driver to judge distances when there are two lights.

PS its odd the things I do to avoid typing up my dissertation

While learning to ride a motorbike, our instructor, an ex-Police biker, said that it was personal choice about riding with lights on. Although riding with lights on was more likely to get you noticed, car drivers had more trouble judging your speed.

 

[BenM]

I wonder about why people have the Magicshine/clones thereof on flash... they are massively bright to light up unlit paths (or to confuse drivers I guess). Surely flashing these search lights kind of defeats the object?

I generally have a Cateye LED flasher on front and a steady rear for my commute.

When heading for the local unlit cycling superhighway, after evening twilight, I have the Magicshine clone on steady. As far as I can see, from empirical experiments, there is no point at all in having a front flasher alongside the steady searchlight - you can't see it because of the steady light.

Sometimes I light up the electric string on the rack in flash mode as a supplement to the steady rear if I suspect cars may be being particularly stupid.

B.

 

[E11a]

Agree about having one flasher and one steady.

I passed a cyclist yesterday morning who had 2 flashing rear lights, a flashing rear light attached to the right hand side of his handlebars (a good idea in theory) and a flashing front light. It was difficult to see his speed and position, especially when he was overtaking parked cars.

 

[XmisterIS]

I have a rear flasher, but the front one I keep on constant - I've tried riding with it flashing, but it is a constant distraction.

 

[phantasmagoriana]

Agree about having one flasher and one steady.

I passed a cyclist yesterday morning who had 2 flashing rear lights, a flashing rear light attached to the right hand side of his handlebars (a good idea in theory) and a flashing front light. It was difficult to see his speed and position, especially when he was overtaking parked cars.

Agree - I see lots of people with only a flashing front light, and I also find it difficult to judge speed - particularly on unlit cycle paths. I go for one constant, one flashing (both front and rear). My Smart 1W has a fairly obnoxious strobing flash mode, so that one stays on constant!

 

[Norm]

I have my least powerful lights at each end on flash, although they are Exposure lights which go dim rather than off between flashes.

I also have a pair of Knog Frogs on my helmet, both set to flash but they are pretty dim lights.

 

[Deleted member 1258]

I have one flashing and one steady on the front, Cateye EL300 steady and s-sun 130w on flashing,
and the same on the back, smart half watt on flash and a steady light on the rear of the rack.

 

[Wobblers]

I use one on steady and a second on flash both front and rear. In theory at least that should get the best of both worlds - the flash will get motorists' attention and the steady light help others judge my speed.

On dull days I often switch the RSP Asteri 3 on flash - you can actually see the flash light up signs 100 metres down the road so I should be noticable, but that's far too obnoxious to be used when it begins to get dark.

 

[buggi]

When I bought my last set of lights (Smart BsPoke) the packaging said to be UK legal the front should be used on flashing and the rear on solid but does it really matter! You'll find lots of threads on it IMO its better to have flashing to be seen but solid for seeing, so it all depends where you ride. In the winter I like to run the combo of both (2 sets of lights). I might be wrong but I believe its also easier for the driver to judge distances when there are two lights.

PS its odd the things I do to avoid typing up my dissertation

you no longer have to have the rear on solid, they've changed the law. however, i always have two lights on the back (one i leave on steady, the other flashing) just from the point of view that one may fail/batteries run low and i wouldn't notice i didn't have a back light. This once happened to me the day i changed batteries so i learned from that mistake.

i have a flashing front one because i find it attracts drivers attention in their rear view and then they often pull over slightly to let me filter through. i also have a steady one as well