BashChelik

Hello folks.
I am planing to do some long range cycling when the wheather gets better.
I have ordered myself a headlight with a cutoff but i need some good taillight.
Was researching on the web and found designshine ds-500 as a perfect candidate. Unfortunetly its not in production anymore and i cant find it anywhere.
If anybody is selling it perhaps, knows someone who is,or can point me to somewhere i can get it, i would be most gratefull.
Or if you know a good alternative, pls do tell.
I want to be safe on the road, not any cheap light will do.

angerdan

Which specifications should a good taillight offer for your requirements?

High luminous flux (400lm) and running time (USB powered) is offered by the OrfosPro:
orfos.us
bikeforums.net/electronics-lighting-gadgets/1106047-orfos-flarepro-bike-light-good-bad.html
bikeforums.net/electronics-lighting-gadgets/1012752-orfos-flare-throw-distance.html
bikeforums.net/electronics-lighting-gadgets/1046604-new-orfos-tail-light-wow.html
bikeforums.net/electronics-lighting-gadgets/1006578-orfos-light-any-users-forum.html

BashChelik

Orfos Flare pro is a interesting light. I have read about it and actualy like the fact that it powers from USB battery. Batteries die much sooner than LEDs do. Like the mount also, perfect for the seatstays. Just think it needs maybe another tail with more focused beam for distance viewing.
Anyway they dont have any lights for sale atm except some blemished versions. They have some trouble with silicon overmolding tools i believe.
DS-500 would still be my first choice coz of programability and real optics but this could be a good alternative.
To bad ds500 is out of production.
I did ordered seesense Ace from kickstarter as a brake light,looking forward to try it when it arives, but thats still far away.
Thx for the links btw, apreciate you took the time to reply.

angerdan

Well, then thre's the Niteflux Red Zone 8:
niteflux.com/buy/red-zone-8/

Mode output Runtime
Solid 2.4W 120 lm 3hrs
Solid 1.2W 60 lm 6hrs
Solid 0.6W 30 lm 12hrs

BashChelik

Hmm, the light is bright but has integrated batery, not a lot of run time and comes with no mount. I mean you pay so much money for a light and i have to buy the mount separately, which also is inpractical and limited and i dont like it. Tbh orfos pro has a much lower footprint.

angerdan

12h runtime are not enough for a day?

There's also the Lupine Rotlicht with 8h at 40lm:
lupine.de/products/tail-lights
lupine-shop.com/en/led-lightsets/taillights/

BashChelik

Its 12 hours but at the lowest setting and then there is also the battery and mount which i dont like. I am considering those blemished Orfos lights they said they still have.
Still i want that ds500 badly. Why dont they make anymore such a great light...

angerdan

At the lowest level the Lupine Rotlicht delivers 40h @8lm. What about the battery you dont like?
Mounting options are good, nothing's really missing.

Dinotte Quad RED offers 15h at 50lm:
2018 Quad RED Taillight with built in battery ? DiNotte Lighting USA Online Store
Handlebar and Helmet Mounts ? DiNotte Lighting USA Online Store

BashChelik

Redzone has integrated batery which honestly i dont like on such a expensive light.
For the similar concept, i like orfos much more just for the external battery. USBs are so cheap these days with big capacity.
I never had LEDs die on me but had plenty of bateries that did.
And orfos also costs less than the red zone.

seeker333

I've owned the DS500 for 3+ years now, it was not cheap but I would buy it again now that I know it. DS500 is still unsurpassed, the only taillight that came close was the Dinotte Daytime Red, also discontinued. Dinotte's current Quad Red looks interesting, and on sale too:

2018 Quad RED Taillight with built in battery ? DiNotte Lighting USA Online Store

This taillight uses a proprietary rechargeable cell, so at some point it will become useless; however, Dinotte's product description suggests this cell will be long-lived. I've owned Dinotte taillight and can attest that their CS is pretty good. If you get this light consider talking Dinotte into selling you a spare Li cell - then you could probably solder-in replacement cell years later after original fails.

Falchoon

Cateye Rapid X3 Rechargeable Rear Light 150lm


https://www.merlincycles.com/cateye-...ght-94749.html

angerdan

The X3 is one of the best current mass produced taillights.
But for the TO the runtime isn't long enough.

Sci-Fi

Odd...seems designshine still has it on their webstore:

https://store.designshinelighting.com/mobile/Product.aspx?id=37506

Falchoon

Lezyne Zecto Drive Max rear light




Review: Lezyne Zecto Drive Max rear light | road.cc

Falchoon

Gemini Iris 180L Rear Light




Gemini Iris 180L Rear Light | Chain Reaction Cycles

angerdan

I'd post it earlier, but it seems the TO is looking for something that doesn't exist.

BashChelik

DS 500 is listed in their website but its not in stock.
Thx to everyone for your sugestions.
Btw, its not i am looking something that never existed, they just discontinued it
I didnt said it before but would like for the tailllight to be waterproof.
Il look into your recommendations.
I contacted Orfos about their red flare pro but they arent responding.

angerdan

The Orfos FlarePro is the only waterproof one, all the other models on the market usually are only water resistant.

Just curious, for which use do you need a waterproof taillight?

BashChelik

My bad, thats what i meant, water-resistant. I am stil not trying to cycle underwater 😊
Before i backed seesense ace i wanted to get bontrager flare r tailight but many people reported of water ingress. Same fault was reported for some other good lights i was considering. I just want it to work even if rain surprises me on my ride.

angerdan

There are more options:
Lights - rear | road.cc

Also a review of the Lupine Rotlicht:
Review: Lupine Rotlicht rear light | road.cc

ItsJustMe

I had a DS500 and sold it. It's just ridiculous overkill IMO, you can't even use the brightest mode except in direct sunlight or you'll blind people. Also a separate battery is just irritating and more stuff to break and connectors to rattle loose.

I'd get a Dinotte Quad Red or a Red Zone.

Also, my philosophy is that if you need one taillight, you need two. You never know if your taillight is working so in case one fails you should be running two.

metalheart44

99% of my rides are in daylight or overcast conditions. I use a taillight to be more visible to vehicle traffic coming from behind. I started with a Portland Design Works light then switched to a Dinotte 300 daylight tail light. I sold that last year and bought the Quad Red, which is very nice but it does not seem to have the run time on the brightest setting that I had with the 300. Anyway, on longer rides 4-5 hours I feel the need to have another bright tail light: is the Red Zone 8 as bright as the Dinotte?

BashChelik

I read one post about bycycle lights and it made sense to me.
The points were that you should have one steady light so drivers can estimate your distance, one flash light for getting their atention and 2 lights on seatstays to give you width and also help drivers to estimate your position.
Thats what i want to do, seesense ace for smart flashing with its sensors,
DS-500(orfos flare pro) as a steady flood light for added side visibility and 2 lights for seatstays. I would only like more if i could find a light to mount it on my drop handlebars as that would give me max width presence on the road.

seeker333

The main selling point of DS500 was the fact that it seemed capable of delivering adequate output to make one more conspicuous during sunny days. I find that even at 800 lumens it doesn't necessarily attract the attention of motorists distracted by audio, conversation, phone or sleep deprivation. As you know, with virtually infinite output capability you can reduce DS500 to 100 lumens or less for responsible nightime use. This was another big selling point that DS500's nearest competitor at the time, Dinotte Daytime Red, wholly lacked. It was not possible to reduce Dinotte output level - Dinotte insisted on Daytime Use Only for this reason, also why it was named Daytime.

I consider an economical, widely available separate battery an advantage. It is not hard to find a Magicshine-capable battery, and since I use the same batteries for Magicshine, Gemini, etc headlamps it is relatively simple and economical (compared to cost of replacing entire devices when built-in battery inevitably fails).

I agree that you always need to equip more than one taillight. In addition to DS500 I keep a PDW Danger Zone on a rear-facing customized helmet strap, which perhaps helps get some light over roofline of shorter motor vehicles. PDW DZ requires 2 AAA cells, which I fill with rechargable Panasonic (Sanyo) Eneloops. I also use the PDW DZ as a taillight for summer night walks around the neighborhood, fitted to a Black Diamond Spot headlamp strap.

gsa103

There isn't a tail light bright enough to do what you want. If someone is looking down at their phone, the ONLY way to get their attention is have a light bright enough to illuminate the inside of the car in daylight. That's definitely going to blind everyone.

What you really need is a light capable of being noticed at a distance of ~0.5mi. Being visible farther away than that is almost irrelevant because 99% of the time, you will be obscured behind traffic, corners, elevation and other obstacles.
That means that basically any ~200-300 lumen rear light is equivalent. Beyond that you're just needlessly blinding people.