mechBgon

If you get a chance, could you shoot the Whelen at a wall from 10-15 feet and post a photo, so we can see how its lens distributes the light on the wall?

Also, (yikes, power just went out, all hail my SmartUPS Pro 1000VA), what is the max current that they list? I couldn't find the info at Whelen's site.

Mr_H

Not sure if this is the right place for this, but a while back, someone posted a link to the Cateye site that listed their different sized mounting brackets. I found that, clicked it, and it went to some other page.

I need to find a new mounting bracket so I can put my TL1000 on my rack. The default mounts that were sent with the taillight are much too big (I need something like a 10mm sized).

Anyone know where I can find those? Thanks

2manybikes

Do you already know that the Cateye will mount onto standard two hole reflector brackets? Most racks have a hole in the rack and a two hole bracket that will go on it. Most bikes shops have these brackets just lying around. You can shim a slightly oversized clamp with inner tube strips to clamp a smaller bar.

Or..........just look around for less than two minutes....go here..

https://www.cateye.com/smallparts/pa...roducts_id=158

and buy the universal size clamp that works like a zip tie. It's at the bottom of the page. It's a dollar.



 Universal Taillight Clamp $ 1.00 (USD)
Adjustable clamp Add to Cart
544-0892

genel

I'm at work now, will try to get some photos tonight. Looks like it's about 6 ft wide at 15 ft.

genel

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Here are some photos of the Whelen TIR3. The unit contains 3 very bright LEDS. It has 5 flash patterns and steady. The first picture kinda shows how I mounted it on the back of my rack. The second is taken from about 20 feet behind the bike, with an LD1000 for comparison. The third is the beam spread, I positioned the bike 15 ft from my garage door with a garbage can, with a yard stick in front for a size comparison.

For these pictures I used 8 AA batteries for the TIR3, and 2 fresh AA in the LD1000.

I've actually been using a 9v to drive the Whelen, it's not quite as bright but I'm curious how long it would last. So far 12 hrs.

mechBgon

SWEET!

kill.cactus

Cateye says that their HL EL510 LED light produces 1200 candlepower with one LED. According to slovid's lumen/watt calculations that means that the LED is at anywhere from 36 to 60 watts. Is this possible? I don't know anything about wattage for LEDs.

Speaking of cateye lights, which light do they produce (non rechargable) is the best. I mean like I've heard that the HL500II is great and stuff, but I mean what is the BEST. I don't care about weight but rather just the amount of light that it puts out (to see and be seen).

I was thinking perhaps the best would be the HL EL520. Is this true?

Thanks

2manybikes

No it's not possible. Roughly 1 or 2 watts.

kill.cactus

Then how is it 1200 candlepower? Well... yes lumens and candlepower are different but they should be very similar number-wise, shouldn't they?

So which light looks the most powerful?

superslomo

I have this light that I use for camping, which puts out a pretty hefty dose of light, it's a headlamp and I've had nothing but good experiences with it.

Four LEDs, with three brightness levels (plus flasher), and an alternate Xenon bulb with three brightness levels possible. You can also swap between three different xenon bulbs, and it has a flashing colored indicator to tell you roughly how much battery life is left.

https://www.rei.com/online/store/Prod..._SHOP_BY_BRAND

So here's what I don't understand: why in the hell does it only cost $65 when bike lights are comparatively ridiculously expensive for fewer features?

Has anyone hacked a hiking headlamp to use on a bike? Good results/bad results?

It seems like it would be a good solution, I'm just trying to get advice and see what might be a problem with retrofitting it to use on a stem or handlebar mount (maybe with a bento box to hold the battery, with the headstraps removed).

2manybikes

You can get rechargeable halogen bike lights for $85. You save a bundle on batteries if you ride in the dark a lot.

You can buy small bike lights around the same power as that light for around that price, or maybe less.

The more expensive bike lights are much more powerfull than that light.

BigMacFU

I just picked up the Alias HB mount from PlanetBike on nashbar for the discount price of 99. It's no HID, but for the price, and rechargeable, I figured it was a good deal, anybody have any experience with these?

mechBgon

I got the similar Insight 15W for my little sister. It has a sort of semi-flood beam pattern and the light has a sort of aqua tint, I'm not sure I like it as well as normal "halogen yellow." That could be a good beam pattern for riding off-road trails. For fast road riding, a spot beam might've been better. In her case, I just want a rechargeable light with a smartcharger for general-purpose use.

blsecres

Do any of you switch dyno powered head and tail lights between multiple bikes? I was running battery powered lights but an accident ruined my battery. I liked the quick release mounting that seems to be standard on battery systems and could easily move the light amongst my three bikes or let my fiancé use it on hers. I disliked having to carry and remember to plug in a charger that wouldn't quite get a full charge while I was at work or sleeping potentially leaving me with a dim light Friday evening. I've been reading Peter White's pages and all his mounting systems seem to be permanent. I have no racks or fenders on any of my bikes.

balto charlie

So I started testing my batteries with a optronics H3 50W light. The battery is a 12V, 7 Amh SLA. They are free and hope to put them to good use. I can get 1 hr(or a little more) bright burn time with this set up. It was still burning at 1.5 hrs but was a less bright yellow light. If I switch to 2(flood and spot) 20 W MR 16 lights, what can I expect as to burn time.
What happens to SLA if they stay out overnight during winter? I have to leave a bike at the train station everyday.
Thanks all. Charlie
edit: Maybe this should be on the geek page??

BigMacFU

I ride in NYC, so trail or fast night road riding are not a concern. My big concern was that my Cateye Opticube 1W wouldn't be enough once we "fall back" an hour and I'm riding home at twilight. With the extra 15W I feel much better, at least cars will have no excuse for not seeing that in their rearview mirrors.

robtown

The Optronics lights (at JCWhitney) are mislabled H3 - they are actually mr16 halogen). The ones I got were 50w tinted yellow. You should change to high efficiiency 20w or 35w and get much better performance.

inja

I posted this in another thread, but think it also needs to be here...

"We are all spending too much money!
I too drool and ogle over the latest gear and "newest" technology introduced to the bike market.
But alas, can't/won't spend $2-300+ for the latest "greatest" light.
I just went over to Costco and bought a 12$ 4-pack of AAA LEDs.
I put rechargeable NiMh batteries in them , attached 2 to my helmet, and 2 to my bike.
(attaching them was the tricky part.It involved velcro straps and old mounts from various equipment.)
My digital Head trip is starting to "trip" out on me after 5 years of solid use.
My ride starts at 6AM, well before the sun rises. I ride at an average speed of (+/-)15 mph, through typical suburban/urban streets that are both brightly lit to dark, where traffic speeds range from 25-50 mph.
Along with a couple of blinkies in the back, I have no problem seeing or being seen.
The MaHa charger is the most expensive part in the configuration.

After checking out other lighting review and rating sites, I've come to one conclusion...
Cyclists are being hosed by the industry!!!

LED's are the way to go for battery weight and efficiency.

Check out THIS helmet mountable spelunking light.

StenLight S7
Case Material ........................... Stainless Steel / Aluminum
Case Features .......................... Tilt adjustable, blade for helmet attachment
Switch Type ............................. Rotating switch, 5 positions
Lens Type ................................ Two collimator lenses protected by lens window
Bulb Type ................................. Two Luxeon III LEDs
Beam Type ............................... Narrow/medium spot combination
Beam Characteristics ............... Smooth, bright center, slight ring in corona
Throw (Lux) at 1m and Overall............. Output see link above
Battery / Power Type................ Rechargeable Li-Ion (access. kit allows 6AA or 9V)
Battery Life (advertised) ........... 7 to 8 hours on high
Battery Life (test results) ........... 8 hr 15 minutes on high with Lithium Ion battery pack (For really LONG commutes!)
Environmental Protection ......... 20 foot water depth rated (for when it rains a LOT)
Weight (oz.) with batteries ....... 8.6
Warranty .................................. 1 year
Retail Cost ................................ 310.00 US$

Check out the headlamp and lighting sections here. Although the specs aren't as generous.
They also carry a large variety of modular mounting accessories and battery packs in the lighting and helmet sections .

There are some Bad-Ass possibilities out there!


Check out this carbide/LED headlight combo.



I'm intrigued by the carbide option...



...although???

2manybikes

That light is not bright or inexpensive compared to HID bike lights you can now buy. A head mounted
13 w HID much more powerfull than that for $185. That light is good for walking or spelunking. You need to see beam comparison shots. Or actually see the lights.

Ngchen

Well, what's going on is that lumens and candlepower really are different. Lumens is the total amount of visible light put out. Candlepower is the amount of light put out per solid angle. I'm no expert on solid geometry; however, an extreme example would be as follows: a laser pointer has LOTS of candlepower straight in its beam (maybe millions or more), but has very few lumens, b/c the light is almost 100% concentrated in the beam. The cateye LEDs tend to produce highly concentrated beams, with very little light scatter. So they have few lumens and lots of peak candlepower.

As to which is more important, well, it's highly subjective. I prefer having overall more light, with a good beam spread. Some people prefer having a powerful spot that they can move to where they want to see clearly. Good light manufacturers try to come up with a compromise b/t a spot and flood, and this IMO is the biggest difference b/t a bike headlight, and a flashlight mounted on the handlebars, namely the superior beam pattern.

IanJ

I have a half-assed LED headlight review up, based on a quick hands-on I had at REI this evening. I was getting sick of reading about these things without being able to see how they actually worked and felt and such.

Review/comparo of NiteRider MiNewt and Cygolite Dualcross

Enjoy! Hopefully that's useful information to more people than just me.

arcticbiker

I've been commuting in the pitch black for 6 years now. It gets dark in Alaska. I've been using the Performance dual for most of that time. Since I'm riding on studded tires, my speeds are normally under 20 mph except for some downhills. Speed doesn't seem to be an issue at lower speeds.

That said, I've recently switched to a NR Flight HID w/ the Lithium Ion battery. The battery is really small and I use the highest light level on my 20 mile (one way) commute. The light level remains the same even though the battery is weakening. I have no idea how long the battery lasts between charges yet. The ride is just under 2 hrs one way. The HID light is so much brighter with better coloration that I feel much safer riding between the moose on the trails now.

Also, I have 3 mounts for the light. Handlebars, helmet, and then a headmount strap for skiing on unlit trails. I haven't tried that yet but it's been snowing for a few days now and I'll let you know how it works.

I have several LED headlamps also (as I said it's dark in Alaska) that are reliable but definetly much less light output.

Although HID's are still relatively expensive, my vote is HID. (so far the NR seems to be a good product). I got mine on ebay for around 60% of retail including shipping.

chocula

For more than a year I've been using a Cateye EL200 in the strobe mode and that seems to catch motorists' eyes. However, in the last week I've had two motorists pull out in front of me as if they couldn't see me. Both had cellphones attached to the sides of their noggins, but I'm thinking it couldn't hurt to put a little more light upfront. Most of my commute follows streets lit with "cobra head" sodium vapor lamps, so the primary purpose of my light is to command attention, not light the way.

My first idea was simply to buy a second EL200, in the interest in handlebar symmetry and all. But I thought I'd turn to the council of elders for advice. What light, costing $50 or less, is a good solution for me. Thanks in advance.

40x14

First, make sure your lights are pointed even with the driver's field-of-view, not down at the ground or up at the sky.

For commuting, I use a cateye EL320 and this sucker is bright. It is around $40, new for 2006/2007. I think I might prefer it over my $250 niterider digital for city riding.
https://www.cateye.com/en/product_detail/325

I also have a nashbar tiny light set inconspicuosly mounted on the helmet. When I really feel like I need to be seen I'll turn on the front helmet light in blink mode as well as whatever else I have set up on the handlebar. Since this light shines in the direction that I'm looking, I have better control of it.
https://www.nashbar.com/profile_moreimages.cfm?sku=18354

caloso

After nearly getting T-boned in traffic last week, I was determined to get a new light set up. The crafty side of me would love to do one of those Total Geekiness projects, but to be honest I just don't have the skills. Nor do I have soldering iron.

I'm thinking very seriously of getting the Jet Lites Starfire Single Beam. A bit spendy but they get super high reviews on the MTBReview.com light page and they're my NorCal homies. Anybody have these?