Need to find headlight
 

I really need to find a headlight that is battery powered as it gets dark sometimes on my way to work and I could use some help trying to find one.

Do you ride in the city or on unlit roads? Also, where are you located?

I like these guys! https://www.niterider.com/

Got to Amazon or EBay. Type in “Cree bicycle headlight”. Pick the one that is cheapest and buy 2 (minimum) or 3 (best). Put two on the bars and one on your helmet. All three should cost you $60 or less. If they stop working, get some more.

Thanks for the reminder that autumn is coming. I was going to move my 300 lm spot light to my helmet, and put a brighter floodlight on my handlebars.

Cygolite is my favorite light brand. I have used them for years on a variety of bikes, and they are really good IME.

i use Cygolite as well. I have a Expilion 850 and metro 550.. I also run an Orphos Pro front light in the fall- winter

Yes, it's time to start thinking more about lights.

I have on old Piko 3 from Lupine. It has been working for eight years now with no problems. I am still using the original battery. It wasn't cheap, but it works great. I have it mounted to the fork using the light mount from Paul Components, and Lupine's quick release handlebar mount. If it breaks, I will buy another one from Lupine. It is seriously a great light. The light is compact, bright, and more importantly, the beam is properly focussed to be useful.

The updated model from the one I have is the Piko 4, I highly recommend it. Yes, it isn't cheap, but over the years, it has cost me all of $35 a year so far, and it shows no sign of stopping. I paid $275 for mine, and the new one is $350, but I am sure you could get it for less. For night riding it is great. I generally only use low or medium. I rarely have to run it on high. It may not be cheap, but it will last a very long time.

https://www.lupinenorthamerica.com/i...?cID=0&PID=611

I have Nightrider and Cygolite. Both are high quality.

Just need to decide how much light you want.

I like a little strap on light with a strobe for daytime commuting

For dark riding I strap it to my helmet (Both above have little $25, 450 lumen lights that strap onto just about anything).

When it is dark - a 900lumen Light in Motion is my goto for the handlebars, in addition to the helmet light.

If I need a lot of light I put second 900 lumen on my helmet but that is automotive level lighting. I get a lot of glare from a 900 lumen helmet mounted light, so that is mostly for single track or gravel grinding.

All 3 companies make great lights - I like ones that have a solid and versatile mounting system.

Last winter as I was commuting on MTB trails in the dark, and really unhappy with my 6yo Cygolite handlebar light seldom shining where it was needed, I asked on MTBR for recommendations. I also wondered how much longer I could expect it to last.

Their tastes tended to the fancy, like wireless handlebar remote for the helmet light. But generally they advised a spotlight on the helmet and flood light on the bars, preferably in matching color (bluish or yellowish). The guy who posts the most had some favorite lights, the one he liked best for the handlebars (Revtronic BT40S) was sold batteries-not-included, or charger, since it takes a pack of higher voltage than USB. It also has no beam cutoff, it's going to give anyone approaching some glare. I also learned that my model of Cygolite has a perfectly standard lithium cell that can be replaced for peanuts if it dies... can't say that for the Hotshot tail light, though.

At the time I bought my Cygolite the Chinese lights had not yet taken over Amazon. They get massive positive feedback because they solicit it; if you look at the 5 star reviews they say things like, "It worked when I took it out of the box, 5 stars!" And if you look at the 1-2 star reviews you see some tales of woe. Average user is surely somewhere in between.

After that was my heart surgery and I stopped thinking about bike lights until just now. Time to shop...

Here's a review thread from that forum
https://forums.mtbr.com/lights-night...z-1105995.html

$18...tonight only.

https://www.rei.com/rei-garage/produ...71120415&ev11=

Seriously. Sale ends tonight.

Might not be the best light ever but for $18 I couldn't pass up the lure to try it out. Mine gets here Friday.

UPDATE: Don't get this one. It sucked. Got it for 80% off and still returned it for being generally useless.

Huh. I got a compact Nightrider from REI outlet ($25) a few days ago, and its sold out now. Go figure...

Those Cree lights on Amazon are knock-offs of either Gemini or Magicshine bike lights. Few know that the $75 (with battery) MagicShines are themselves knock-off's of a European (German) light called a Lupine Tesla ($450 USD). After years of satisfaction with Magicshines, I said WTH and dropped $25 on an Amazon knock-off. It boasted an 8800mah battery pack (Magicshine has 4400mah). I will not be doing that again! Light had no useful beamwidth, and the blue light signalling 1/2 battery came on after just 10 minutes! Accept no substitutes. Genuine Magicshine for the win.

I used a Magicshine for about 10 years, and liked the light but not the batteries. I bought a couple of aftermarket battery packs, and never got the run times out of them that they advertised - or even close to them.

I use Gemini battery packs with my Magicshine lights on the recommendation of the guy who runs 'Action LED'. I don't really pay attention to advertised runtimes. Most likely the runtime is not being calculated on the highest intensity of the light, which is likely the one used most often.

Busch and Muller
 

This guy has some thoughts on what makes a good headlight. Check Peter White Cycles too. While Mr. White specializes in dynamo lighting, he also has a selection of battery powered LED lamps, and probably able to work with your LBS to get a Busch and Muller lamp. I opted for a Ixon IQ premium to use rechargeable AA's. Fork crown mounts are great for keeping your handlebars clear.

+1

More specifics. I have a light that looks just like this one, except when I bought it it was more like $15 and was a kit including a charger and an 18650 battery. At this price point, expect the lumens to be way overstated. Look for a combo with a charger, but plan on whatever battery they might provide to be crap, and spend another $10-20 on a pair of high quality batteries from a reputable website. I got a pair of these, but that is by no means the only option.

Attach the light to your handlebars with interlocked hose clamps. Tighten them down with a wrench or big screwdriver, and that sucker will not move or vibrate at all, and will probably never get stolen. (at least not opportunistically. of course a thief with tools could take it)

By the time I buy a head unit, battery pack and charger I'm up to the price of a 2 beam self contained USB light anyhow. So that's what I'm going to do. Just trying to decide which.

I bought one of my Magicshines from him. I never trusted the advertised runtimes, and the aftermarket battery packs weren't even close to delivering the advertised times.

I bought one of those ebay Magicshine clones. Some people here say they work well. But those people seem to tolerate failures and plan for them. My unit came with a dead charger.

That article that @Unca_Sam cited (by John S Allen) is good! Very comprehensive.

I’ve only seen one 2 beam self contained USB light and it was $130. That’s a fair amount of scratch for a light that only has a 1000 lumen output. There is also the problem of something happening to the light at which point you have no light.

I’ve bought several lights...some to test and some as “upgrades”...and I’ve not had any problems with batteries or chargers or even the lamp. I’ve purchased larger batteries for more run time but I still use the batteries that came with the other units.

I also have a couple of USB 1100 lumen (per light) Nightriders and I can’t say that I’m all the pleased with them. They are bright but the light is so floody as to be mostly useless. I prefer a tighter spot...which is why I “test” lights occasionally.

I'll still have the original 300 light, now moved to my helmet.

This is the 2-element light I was looking at, from that MTBR thread.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...LF9Y1DF1&psc=1

The reviewer also liked these two, which have a feature to keep the brightness constant
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...KIKX0DER&psc=1
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...GHL8F7T8&psc=1 (obligatory Cygolite)

All about the same $60-ish

I found some footage...
 

Isn't this you getting to work in the morning, @cyccommute?
https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...732e1269e3.gif

??
$12.99 + 2*$7.95 + S/H << $60

USB charging is a nice feature, but if it dies out on the road you're stuck. For my front I have a spare 18650 battery to swap in. My rear blinkie is a cygolite hotshot, that's USB chargeable but it needs charging less than monthly, and it lets me know when it wants charging when I turn it off, and I have a couple days grace to get it done.