Biker395 

I think I have a headlight fetish.

I've been at this long enough to have used designs that run the gamut from glorified D-cell flashlights, headlights with a halogen bulbs and heavy SLA batteries with all sorts of funky charging problems. Then an HID and improved batteries. Then I moved on to a Exposure Enduro a great light that has served me well for over 5 years and continues to do so.

But I went out and bought one of these for some upcoming long night rides.



Yea, there is an element of retail therapy going on here. But a good light is your best friend on a lonely dark road.

Hermes

Here is an idea for the next one. Light and Motion is a club sponsor and we get a great deal on the lights. We own the helmet mounted front and rear light which we use in the evenings as it is starts to get dark and on foggy low visibility days.

Dudelsack 

Both Freude and Jung would have a field day with this.

Rowan

Long distance riding makes a rider think hard and seriously about having excellent lights with long run times. It takes a lot of experimenting to get something that works. So I understand entirely.

Dynohubs solved a lot of the issues for me. I have three Shimano ones arriving from the UK early next week, and that will take the household total to eight -- four SONs and four Shimanos. The tandem effectively remains the only bike I would use for LD, touring or commuting that hasn't got a dynohub yet, and I am saving the pennies for another SON for it.

We've settled on B&M Flys and Cyos as our lights for the moment; I really like the light-sensitive automatic switch. Rears are still battery-powered Planet Bike or similar high-intensity flashers.

Rowan

It's interesting to me that there is no comparison between the B&M lights and the others. The intensity and spread would be similar.

The huge heat sink needed for that light is also notable. The barrier to increasing the strength of LEDs has been the amount of heat they generate, but it seems to me the expense of this light is tied up mostly in the casting for the heat sink than for the light itself.

The B&M lights rely on excellent optics to produce their beam. They're also cheaper, don't have the heat problems, and if you are clever enough, can run them off a battery pack (ie, just a few connectors and knowing to have the right voltage).

I am also becoming very leery of any high-intensity light that the manufacturer encourages to be worn on a helmet on MUPs and roads (viz a viz the promo picture on L&M's site). The discomfort and danger caused for other users becomes significant.

cccorlew

So, what about this light called your name? Details, man!

I use a MagicShine. Even though it's cheaply made, and I've had a couple of battery issues in the past, and the mount isn't elegant at all, it get's me through my very dark commute, and held up for a few double centuries. It's about time for a new battery, if not an upgrade unit.

So, should I look into your solution instead?

skilsaw

Hey! I don't have a good light yet!
Autumn just around the corner.
I could get a wheel with a dynamo hub built,
or buy a high end rechargable...

I hear a little retail therapy coming.

Bikey Mikey

An actual MagicShine or the knock off for less than $40?




For the rear, I use the Cygolite Hotshot 2 which is very bright and USB rechargeable--it also lasts a long time on a charge.

cccorlew

Actual. About $100.

Bikey Mikey

Same as mine, but when did you get your MagicShine? I got the 808e about 1½ years ago.

To the OP, sorry if I'm hijacking the thread.

Biker395 

One Biker395 rule of thumb: It's always OK to hijack a thread of mine. Pot calling the kettle black, you know. Besides, I kinda like how conversations meander about.

Speaking of Magicshines, I had one to ... one of the originals. Great commuting light. Put out lots of light, and the battery pack was small. And unlike a lot of others, I never had trouble with the batteries. I got a voucher to go through the process to get a new battery pack, but frankly, it wasn't worth the trouble to me.

I am a huge fan of the Exposure lights, and Sunday's long ride reaffirmed that. The lights are completely bulletproof, work exactly as advertised, and are well designed to make the most of what they have.

I've got aerobars on my bike (gotta get used to those for the 508), and my handlebar mounted EnduroMaxx2 was a little problematic:

https://www.activekidsgear.co.uk/imag...uro-MaXx-2.jpg

The mount is a strong all-aluminum cleat design, and can be mounted upside down, so I think I'll figure out a way to solve the problem. Great light, BTW. I got it 5 years ago, and has never failed me or given me the least reason to worry that I'd run out of power. It will literally go all night and then some, even after 5 years of daily use in the winter.

So anyway, I've always wanted a helmet mounted light, and some of my friends bought an Exposure Diablo (pictured above), largely because they saw how well my light worked.

I used it on a 260 mile ride on Sunday, and it was great! Again, flawless in function, with a beam that was just the right width and reach to maximize it's usefulness. The mount is plastic, but superb (we'll see in the long term), and it fits in a seat bag during the day.

It says that on the low setting, it would go 24 hours, and I was skeptical. I only used it about 9 hours on Saturday, and the little LED on the back showed that it still had 50+% of it's charge.

I think I'll keep it.