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Reflective Tape for Rims: A Symmetrical Solution?

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Reflective Tape for Rims: A Symmetrical Solution?

Old 02-07-23, 11:33 PM
  #26  
michaelm101
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Originally Posted by Fredo76
Maybe try reflective paint?
I was examining using reflective paint on my frames, but when i examined the research and stats, it was discovered that it's the two circles (tires) that scream "BIKE" in the drivers mind...

Not many drivers will recognize an illuminated bike frame as ------ Oh sh--t it's a "BIKE!!!"
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Old 02-07-23, 11:42 PM
  #27  
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Originally Posted by michaelm101
I was examining using reflective paint on my frames, but when i examined the research and stats, it was discovered that it's the two circles (tires) that scream "BIKE" in the drivers mind...

Not many drivers will recognize an illuminated bike frame as ------ Oh sh--t it's a "BIKE!!!"
I meant to paint the wheels or tires. I believe you about two circles being recognizable.
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Old 02-07-23, 11:46 PM
  #28  
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Originally Posted by GhostRider62
I used to use the Contin GP4000 reflective sidewalls, too.

Now on my overnight riding wheels, I put black reflective tape on the rim. At riding speed the gaps fill in and the reflected light appears continuous. This only works if you are using aero rims. On box rims, it won't. (also use reflective ankle straps, reflective tape elsewhere at various angles, reflective gillet, etc).
When Bicycling! magazine did a test of front and rear lights and reflectors of various types a couple of decades ago, they found that for front, rear, and side views, nothing else came near being as effective as reflective ankle bands to rivet the attention of drivers and to identify you as a cyclist (as well as enable them to gauge closing distance).

That was before the advent of blindingly bright LED lights, but the principle remains the same. By all means, use all the stationary lights you like, but use reflective ankle bands, too.
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Old 02-08-23, 02:28 PM
  #29  
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There are reflectors that attach to the spokes of bikes and they will be far more effective than having reflective sidewalls or rims. Pedal reflectors are installed on lower end bikes but these with their movement are great for making motorists aware that a bicycle is ahead. I live in an area with no street lights and came up on a stupid guy with black pants and a black hooding riding in the dark. But for my seeing the pedal reflectors I would have driven into him. The light and the motion are what catches the eye of a motorist, unless they are busy checking out their phone in which case all bets are off (and why bike and pedestrian injuries and deaths have increased greatly in recent years).

https://www.amazon.com/Labewin-Bicyc...s%2C207&sr=8-3
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Old 02-09-23, 07:26 AM
  #30  
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Originally Posted by michaelm101
Good solution as I've had close calls in parking lots where I'm barely moving, sometimes even stopped.

Drivers need to see TWO CIRCLES to tell them it's a BIKE!!! So those stripes need to go all the way around.
Stopped or barely moving in a parking lot is kind of an extreme case; the driver is probably equally likely to hit a pedestrian. At any kind of normal speed, though, the standard spoke reflectors (like in my profile picture) form a pretty good complete circle. If the gaps worry you you could just keep adding more reflectors to fill the circle.
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Old 02-09-23, 07:54 AM
  #31  
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Maybe we need to wear electrified, lighted, cubical jerseys with illuminated flashing massages on each face---"Bike Here!!!"
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Old 02-09-23, 08:21 AM
  #32  
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Originally Posted by veganbikes
Cager? That is such a silly term, I wish we wouldn't use it. It sounds like a rabid fan of mediocre actor Nicholas Cage.
Seriously dude...why you offended by everything people type lately?

Cager is someone driving a car that doesn't like to share the road with cyclists.
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Old 02-09-23, 08:26 AM
  #33  
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Originally Posted by Trakhak
When Bicycling! magazine did a test of front and rear lights and reflectors of various types a couple of decades ago, they found that for front, rear, and side views, nothing else came near being as effective as reflective ankle bands to rivet the attention of drivers and to identify you as a cyclist (as well as enable them to gauge closing distance).

That was before the advent of blindingly bright LED lights, but the principle remains the same. By all means, use all the stationary lights you like, but use reflective ankle bands, too.
If you have white cycling shoes (who doesn't), silver 3M reflective tape blends in almost perfectly. I figure more is always better when it comes to conspicuity.
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Old 02-09-23, 08:36 AM
  #34  
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Originally Posted by prj71
Seriously dude...why you offended by everything people type lately?

Cager is someone driving a car that doesn't like to share the road with cyclists.
I don't like when people tell others what words they can't use, it detracts and disrupts from the thread. Some motorists deserve to be called cagers although I can think of some vulgar words that fit better. If someone uses foul and offensive language, just push the moderator button.
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Old 02-09-23, 11:25 AM
  #35  
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Originally Posted by GhostRider62
I don't like when people tell others what words they can't use, it detracts and disrupts from the thread. Some motorists deserve to be called cagers although I can think of some vulgar words that fit better. If someone uses foul and offensive language, just push the moderator button.
Often times, it takes an experience to change attitude. I'm a lifelong cyclist and considered a safe and respectful rider who knows the rules of the road. I have been hit, (and/or almost hit) by car drivers many times. More so in the age of cell-phones.

I have a friend, now deceased, who liked to tailgate on the freeway, even at high speeds. In 2015, there was an obstacle in the road 5 or 6 cars ahead. He rear-ended the vehicle in front of him and was in a coma for 3 months. When he recovered a year later, his attitude and habit had changed.

FACT: NON CYCLIST DRIVERS DO NOT TEND TO SEE CYCLISTS. THIS IS A NATURAL PHENOMENON and there's nothing we cyclists can do to change these people (except change our behavior).

HOWEVER, THERE ARE DRIVERS OUT THERE WHO HAVE DISDAIN TOWARD CYCLISTS. THIS PHENOMENON REQUIRES FURTHER INVESTIGATION...
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Old 02-09-23, 02:19 PM
  #36  
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I just ride around with one of these strapped to my back. Even if I still manage to go unseen, it makes for some good body armor (or a skidplate) if I do eventually get hit.

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Old 02-09-23, 09:26 PM
  #37  
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Originally Posted by prj71
Seriously dude...why you offended by everything people type lately?

Cager is someone driving a car that doesn't like to share the road with cyclists.
I didn't say I was offended (and I am not), I said I don't like the term, I know what the term is I just think it sounds goofy. Someone can find a term goofy and not be offended by it. Sorry if I "triggered" you (another goofy word) have a good night!
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Old 02-09-23, 10:15 PM
  #38  
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Originally Posted by michaelm101
And, yes, according to scientific research, it's the ENTIRE circular strip that is needed to activate the proper neurons of the avg non-cylclist, automobile operator to get the message that says, HELLO...... IT'S A BIKE!!!!!
Since the rims are spinning most of the time, would putting squares of reflective vinyl every 6 inches or so along the rim achieve the same result?
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Old 02-09-23, 10:48 PM
  #39  
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Originally Posted by urbanknight
Since the rims are spinning most of the time, would putting squares of reflective vinyl every 6 inches or so along the rim achieve the same result?
I actually favor this approach. A complete reflective circle does say "wheel", but it doesn't tell anyone if the wheel is moving or not or in which direction. Having only a small number of individual reflective patches on the rim not only indicates that it's a wheel, it also tells the onlooker where that wheel is going and how fast, and I think this is information that would help a driver to avoid a possible collision.
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Old 02-10-23, 07:01 AM
  #40  
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There's a reflective tape that's made for motorcycle wheels; you could apply it to your bicycle. I've been meaning to do it myself.
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Old 02-10-23, 07:44 AM
  #41  
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I don't even think you need to indicate direction of motion or motion or anything .... i mean drivers have eyes and cars have headlights. he idea is to catch a driver's attention so that s/he will know to pay attention. That is why flashers are so good---the brain latches on the changing situations where a seemingly steady light is more easily ignored. I'd say spots around a wheel are just as good as a whole wheel because if the driver is coming at you from a side street and can see the wheels--i.e. you are passing in front at a 90-degree angle .... then the driver is either stationary of milliseconds from hitting you.

I have ridden up on vehicles in driveways---full lights, Bright lights---and twice had them pull out, almost hitting me. One was an extremely close call .... I imagine the guy was checking his phone for directions, decided where he wanted to go, and just headed out, coming within literally four inches of crushing me. The other I sort of expected it and slowed .... which was a pain because it was a long hill and a fully-loaded bike, but as I expected, the idiot driver looked right at me and pulled right out.

Fully lighted rims would never have been visible in the time when the driver ---and I--were making the decisions which would have sent mass into motion, and once the masses are in motion, their vectors cannot be modified that quickly ....

So, what is needed is probably two headlights .... one normal, and one at a 45-degree or greater side angle so cars on side streets can see you coming, plus an air horn, to shake them out of their phone-induced dazes.

No specific lighting system is going to help if they don't notice you, or put the car into motion before they see you.

Real safety comes form using all the tools to tilt the odds in your favor ... and then riding like you expect people to pull out into you. That is what has helped me avoid death and destruction, and when I failed to assume the drivers were idiots, I have nearly died for my own idiocy.
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