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Seeking compact helmet mounted headlight with 2+ hr battery life

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Seeking compact helmet mounted headlight with 2+ hr battery life

Old 10-13-16, 11:43 AM
  #1  
CompleteStreets
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Seeking compact helmet mounted headlight with 2+ hr battery life

Can anyone recommend a compact helmet mounted headlight that is bright enough for seeing the road at speeds up to 15mph? I'm thinking 200 lumens or greater should do the trick.

Other features I'm seeking:

-In the $50 range
-USB rechargeable
-Light weight
-Decent battery life (at least 2 hours, preferably more)
-Doesn't stick out too much when mounted on the helmet

Thanks.
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Old 10-14-16, 12:21 AM
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I've been using the Vivo Bike Illuminati as a helmet light for just over a year, including several night rides every month. It works exactly as described. (You can find it a bit cheaper from other vendors, under other brand names. But I'm satisfied with this one and Troy has dropped the price five bucks since last year.)

It's about the size of a Bic lighter and weighs less. The rubber band strap is very flexible and no thicker or stiffer than absolutely necessary. No signs of tearing or wear after a year, including at least weekly detaching/reattaching for USB charging or repositioning to accommodate my video camera, etc.

It weighs almost nothing. Maybe 20 grams. You won't even notice it's there. Wish I could say the same of my video camera.

The rear USB port is easily accessible without detaching the light from most helmets or bike. However I usually detach it when recharging all my USB bike stuff because my cords are too short to reach from the desktop PC to the helmet on the shelf. I could solve that by getting a longer cord.

It straps on and off easily through the vents on a typical road helmet. (Not sure about commuter/skater type helmets, don't have one. Velcro would probably do as an alternative to the attached rubber band strap.)

It's very directional, with a roughly trapezoidal pattern. The pattern coverage varies depending on the height and angle of mounting, whether on the bike fork, handlebar, or helmet. On the helmet it's a handy supplement to my bike mounted headlight for the narrow, unlighted MUP at night. It lights up wherever I look.

It has very good side visibility, better than any more powerful headlight I've seen costing under $100.

It's adequate as a to-see light, but 15 mph is pushing it. When I used the Illuminati as my main headlight I felt more comfortable at around 10 mph. Now I use it mainly as a to-be-seen light in flashing mode, and supplemental light for nighttime rural and MUP rides.

For 15 mph at night I'd consider the Light and Motion Urban 350, which is right at $50, very highly rated and just about the largest and heaviest light I'd consider for helmet mounting.

While I'm partial to the Serfas mounts for bike riding, it's overkill for helmet mounting and would probably crush or damage a helmet. But Serfas mounts are the best I've seen for mounting pretty much anywhere on a bike, from the handlebar to the forks, head tube, pretty much anywhere. It includes a rubber shim which can be removed for larger diameter tubes, or supplemented with another shim for mounting to a front rack leg. But the Serfas beam pattern probably isn't as good as the Light and Motion.

For a rear helmet light I use a Blackburn 2'Fer. It may be the best value around in a helmet mounted USB light for to-be-seen safety. It works exactly as Blackburn describes. If I needed only a to-be-seen helmet mounted front light, I'd be using a pair of Blackburn 2'Fers. It won't illuminate much around you because it's a diffuse light. But it's remarkably bright for the size, with good side visibility and, as far as I'm concerned, a must for enhanced traffic safety. I mostly use it in red flashing mode, turning it off only during casual group rides unless I'm in the very rear so I'm not distracting fellow cyclists. While it's easy to ignore flashing taillights, even I find bright flashing rear helmet lights at eye level difficult to ignore -- they tend to spoil dark adapted eyes and make it difficult to concentrate on the road ahead and fellow riders.
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Old 10-14-16, 09:13 AM
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I'd just go for a flashlight and figure out a mount; elastic band or velcro, whatever you like.

Banggood has many USB rechargable flashlights for $50 or less. Most should have a 2 hour life or more depending on mode.

Here's one

XM-L2 LED 1198lm Tactical USB Rechargeable LED Flashlight - US$19.99
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Old 10-14-16, 03:42 PM
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Originally Posted by canklecat
I've been using the Vivo Bike Illuminati as a helmet light for just over a year, including several night rides every month.
Canklecat, thank you very much for your detailed response. The Vivo Bike Illuminati looks like a great option. I like how the integrated strap is well-suited for strapping onto a helmet. By any chance, do you know how many hours the light runs for on it's brightest steady beam setting? Thanks.

The Light and Motion Urban 350 also looks like a good option, but it's a bit bulky, and the battery life is a bit lacking at only 1.5 hours on high.
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Old 10-14-16, 03:59 PM
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The requirements youve given, the run time on high will be the issue. USB rechargeable bike lights can be bought all day long in the 300 - 350 lumen range for $50, and are relatively compact, but to get more than 1.5 - 1.75 hours of stated run time, it will have to be on medium. Maybe flashlights like were mentioned before, that run off a rechargeable 18650 battery.
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Old 10-14-16, 04:54 PM
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When new the Illuminati was good for up to 2 hours on steady high. I used it that way a few times last fall when it was my only headlight while riding home from downtown. I wasn't in good shape back then and it usually took me nearly 2 hours to get home.

I haven't used it on steady high for long at a time since then and after frequent use and recharging I'm not sure whether rechargeable lithium batteries will deliver the same run time as when new.

Here's what appears to be the same light sold by another vendor, for only $12. At that price I'd say give it a shot and see if it suits your needs. If not, it's still a great little to-be-seen supplemental light. That ad claims 3 hours on steady high and up to 12 hours flashing -- that's probably a bit too optimistic, but might go that long in an ideal temperature range.

Heck, at that price I'll probably buy another myself since I'm planning to buy another helmet. It'll be easier to have one for each helmet, or as a supplemental to-be-seen light for both bikes.

Regarding flashlights, I've seen many and none of them was as well suited to bicycling as a purpose-designed bike headlight. The flashlights cast circular beam patterns that are too narrow. They tend to be heavier than necessary for helmet mounting. And I've seen more flashlights pop off bikes during group rides than almost any other bike mounted light -- usually when riding across railroad tracks, potholes or rutted pavement. The mounts are usually pretty poor.

The next worst mounts are the clip-on red taillights that some folks slip onto straps on their backpacks or seat bags. I've picked up a few of those on large group rides, and occasionally managed to return them to the owners. The Blackburn 2'Fer that I like so well also has a plastic clip that I don't trust completely unless it's on the original Blackburn rubber strap, which has a clever latch to secure the clip. When I used it with a homebrewed Velcro strap I always worried it would slip out, so I went back to the original rubber strap.
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Old 10-14-16, 05:08 PM
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BTW, I also like the Serfas SL-255. I've used one for several months and am very satisfied with it. Great value at around $30.

The beam is a bit better than a flashlight. While it has a concentrated circular beam, the reflector/hood casts a squarish peripheral beam that's about 30% less bright, so it offers pretty good coverage. I've compared it with many different headlights used by other cyclists on local nighttime group rides and the only light I've seen with a better pattern is the Busch & Muller Ixon IQ, which uses 4 AA's. Most other bike USB lights of any maker -- Cygolite, NiteRider, pretty much every familiar brand -- are all about the same. Only the Light & Motion lights offer a somewhat more evenly distributed beam pattern, almost comparable to the Busch & Muller.

It uses a pair of AA batteries -- alkaline or rechargeable. I normally use a set of four NiMH rechargeables, but also keep a pair of alkalines in the bag. But I can buy batteries anywhere if I forget to bring spares.

It is a bit heavier than a comparable USB light, but runs 5 hours on steady high with fresh batteries, and much longer on medium, low or flashing.

As I mentioned in yesterday's post, the Serfas mount is very strong and flexible, but not ideal for helmet mounting. For a helmet I'd rig up my own using heavy duty Velcro and a small safety lanyard (which I have done for my Ion Speed Pro video camera, which is larger and heavier than the Serfas).

Mostly I use the Serfas mounted on the handlebar, head tube or fork, depending on the bike and whether I'm using a handlebar bag.
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Old 10-18-16, 04:05 PM
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Originally Posted by canklecat
I've been using the Vivo Bike Illuminati as a helmet light for just over a year.
By any chance, do you know what make and model your helmet is? I'm planning to purchase a new helmet soon, and I'd like it to be compatible with the Illuminati light. Will I need to purchase an accessory strap? Thanks.
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Old 10-18-16, 06:01 PM
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Bell Solar, bought on sale at Nashbar for around $20 or so. Nashbar, REI and a couple other discounters have great sales on helmets every week. Any road helmet with plenty of vents will do for strapping on lights with rubber band type straps.

If you prefer the commuter or skater type helmets, the '80s look helmets with fewer vents, you might need a separate accessories holder.

I usually keep it centered unless I've mounted the video camera on the helmet -- then the light gets mounted slightly to one side. Or you can use moderate strength or heavy duty Velcro instead of the rubber band strap. My Ion Speed Pro video camera is mounted with heavy duty Velcro, the all plastic type used for mounting truck dash accessories like radio equipment. I use a zip tie and a thin, strong lanyard as backup in case I snag a branch while riding.

Zip ties and Velcro are handy for helmet mounting. That's what I use for my Take-A-Look mirror too. I cut an old plastic card into a shape that roughly corresponds with a large eyeglass or sunglass earpiece, that fits into a niche already molded into the helmet interior. Mounted the mirror bracket over that card. Zip tied the card with mirror bracket to the helmet. Still leaves just enough room for minor adjustments without wobbling around.
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Old 10-20-16, 07:36 PM
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Great thread. Thanks for the great recommendations (especially from canklecat).
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