Lights with re-chargeable batteries that cannot be swapped suck IMO

[mjr]

I see most people, me included, tend to prefer a good strong light when the speed goes up.
200 lumens is not great when in complete darkness and you go above 15-20mph, you don't have enough light to see and prevent what's happening 100mt in front of you (200 lumens won't do enough light at distance). I'm talking about road, the black tarmac isn't the best situation

Lumens are almost meaningless. It depends on the lens.

[reohn2]

As it is I'd be carting one about for 95%+ of the time unused.

Sounds a better proportion than my toolkit and that's still worth its weight!

I didn't say I didn't have any lights just that I didn't have hub/gen lights because of the hub weight when not using it.
I also have 4 bikes I/we ride regularly(with three different wheel sizes),so the cost would be prohibitive for little return.
The tool kit is for emergency use only.
So I have a Cateye HL530(about 8 years old now)to be seen by that runs on disposable AA's,and can be swapped to each bike as I have brackets on all four bikes,and the seriously bright rechargeable one I mentioned up thread which can be swapped around from bike to bike if I think I'll need it.
On the rear I have either smart 1 watt(seriously bright) or very old Vistalite five LED ones which are still going strong and must be 20 years old and very bright,a great rear light and sadly missed when they stopped making them.
I also carry another rear light that I attach to a 11/2" wide knicker elastic band just above my right elbow from dusk on,it makes me look wider to goonie motorists and by far is the best aid against close passes.

[Brucey]

...I also carry another rear light that I attach to a 11/2" wide knicker elastic band just above my right elbow from dusk on,it makes me look wider to goonie motorists and by far is the best aid against close passes.

did you by any chance leave the elastic attached to the knickers? That might explain a change in motorist behaviour....

It does sound like a good idea though

cheers

[reohn2]

...I also carry another rear light that I attach to a 11/2" wide knicker elastic band just above my right elbow from dusk on,it makes me look wider to goonie motorists and by far is the best aid against close passes.

did you by any chance leave the elastic attached to the knickers? That might explain a change in motorist behaviour....

No but I could ask to borrow some,though may get funny looks or even a slap

It does sound like a good idea though

cheers

Give it a try,I've found in the dark it works a treat.I think it confuses to the positive,ie; if the drive can't make his/her mind up immediately they tend to err to giving a wide berth.It's not a panacea but the difference is very noticeable IME.

[freiston]

That reminds me of the fold-out reflector:



FWIW, I use dynamo hub with bolted on German lights on my main bike and battery lights on my folding bike. I have considered upgrading the folding bike to a dynamo but currently the usage does not justify the cost. I didn't go into detail earlier for fear of derailing the topic (but things seem to have evolved since then) - I am looking for a battery rear light back-up for the main bike; my rack-mounted rear dynamo light is recessed and not visible from the sides when I have panniers on. To compensate for this and for aesthetic reasons, I am looking at mudguard-mounted battery rear lights. Otherwise, I have enough confidence with my dynamo rear light to forsake a back-up (but I have felt the pressure of online peer opinion and advice on this matter too).

[reohn2]

I though people may wish to know this,I've been running the battery down on one of the lights I bought off Ebay,which hasn't been charged for a few months.
This is a similar one from the same company but the headlight unit is slliigghhttllyy different:- http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/CREE-XM-L-T6- ... SwiLdWAATd
It's been on full beam,brightest setting and is in it's fifth hour now and is still going strong

[mjr]

I have wondered why no-one seems to have produced a lollipop light, but I guess you could put one of those lights that clip onto loops on bags on the far end of the arm before the circle.

[reohn2]

I though people may wish to know this,I've been running the battery down on one of the lights I bought off Ebay,which hasn't been charged for a few months.
This is a similar one from the same company but the headlight unit is slliigghhttllyy different:- http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/CREE-XM-L-T6- ... SwiLdWAATd
It's been on full beam,brightest setting and is in it's fifth hour now and is still going strong

It went flat at over seven hours .
I'm impressed!

[SA_SA_SA]

-----I am looking for a battery rear light back-up for the main bike; my rack-mounted rear dynamo light is recessed and not visible from the sides when I have panniers on. To compensate for this and for aesthetic reasons, I am looking at mudguard-mounted battery rear lights. .

If your current rear is frugal with current (eg spanninga lamps often use only 25mA out of the available 100mA), then you could just fit an extra mudguard dynamo lamp.

Note the B&M Secula is meant to be a bit thirstier but I think a CTC-forum-ite fitted one alongside another lamp?

[freiston]

-----I am looking for a battery rear light back-up for the main bike; my rack-mounted rear dynamo light is recessed and not visible from the sides when I have panniers on. To compensate for this and for aesthetic reasons, I am looking at mudguard-mounted battery rear lights. .

If your current rear is frugal with current (eg spanninga lamps often use only 25mA out of the available 100mA), then you could just fit an extra mudguard dynamo lamp.

Note the B&M Secula is meant to be a bit thirstier but I think a CTC-forum-ite fitted one alongside another lamp?

Thanks SA_SA_SA but to make it a true back-up (which I think is the best way to go if fitting a second lamp), I want to keep the power source separate and so want to go the battery route. My current (excuse the pun) rear light is the Busch & Muller Toplight View Brake Plus which I suspect draws pretty much the full 100mA. I am looking at the battery version of the Secula.

[Mick F]

I though people may wish to know this,I've been running the battery down on one of the lights I bought off Ebay,which hasn't been charged for a few months.
This is a similar one from the same company but the headlight unit is slliigghhttllyy different:- http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/CREE-XM-L-T6- ... SwiLdWAATd
It's been on full beam,brightest setting and is in it's fifth hour now and is still going strong

It went flat at over seven hours .
I'm impressed!

Thank you R2.
Excellent recommendation.

I was thinking this morning about a new front light as I fancy some rides in the dark (for a change), and I'm aware that my old Cateye EL320 just doesn't cut it.

[tykeboy2003]

All lights which don't take standard (AA/AAA etc) batteries (rechargeable or otherwise) suck as far as I'm concerned.

It's about time phone manufacturers decided on some standards for replaceable batteries. I had a Samsung S3-Mini with a couple of spare batteries, upgraded to the S4-Mini and of course the batteries were incompatible.......

[pwa]

Perhaps the nicest of my lights, at present, is my Exposure Sirius (MK3 400 lumens max), so not as bright on full power as the latest version. But it lights up dark lanes a treat, from one verge to the other and with a nice bit of spill to the hedges. And that is without using full power, which I never feel a need for. It is one of Exposures smaller lights, designed for commuting. The lens is a resin thing that sticks out like a flattened dome, giving light to the side as well as the front. The top of the lens is painted black to keep light out of your eyes. The settings are easily programmable. I'm a technophobe luddite and I can re-set the available light strengths on a street corner in thirty seconds if I want to. So, for example, I might choose to have available run times of 3 hours, 10 hours and 24 hours available. Or I could go for run times of 2 hours and 4 hours. There are seven groupings to choose from.

Like other Exposure lights this one has an rechargeable battery that cannot be changed. But you can buy plug-in batteries from Exposure, so I am guessing that when the battery finally loses capacity I can keep the light going with an external battery on a cable. Anyone know if it will work that way? I know where to buy the external batteries and I know they work as back-ups for lights with functioning internal batteries. Would the death of the internal battery prevent the external one working? If not, this light could go on and on. I hope so.

[roubaixtuesday]

Perhaps the nicest of my lights, at present, is my Exposure Sirius (MK3 400 lumens max), so not as bright on full power as the latest version. But it lights up dark lanes a treat, from one verge to the other and with a nice bit of spill to the hedges. And that is without using full power, which I never feel a need for. It is one of Exposures smaller lights, designed for commuting. The lens is a resin thing that sticks out like a flattened dome, giving light to the side as well as the front. The top of the lens is painted black to keep light out of your eyes. The settings are easily programmable. I'm a technophobe luddite and I can re-set the available light strengths on a street corner in thirty seconds if I want to. So, for example, I might choose to have available run times of 3 hours, 10 hours and 24 hours available. Or I could go for run times of 2 hours and 4 hours. There are seven groupings to choose from.

Like other Exposure lights this one has an rechargeable battery that cannot be changed. But you can buy plug-in batteries from Exposure, so I am guessing that when the battery finally loses capacity I can keep the light going with an external battery on a cable. Anyone know if it will work that way? I know where to buy the external batteries and I know they work as back-ups for lights with functioning internal batteries. Would the death of the internal battery prevent the external one working? If not, this light could go on and on. I hope so.

See the link up thread to a company that will replace them for you. I'm going to try them with a joystick light, will report back. I've found several years life in exposure lights even with daily use; presumably good batteries and the right switching electronics.

[pwa]

Perhaps the nicest of my lights, at present, is my Exposure Sirius (MK3 400 lumens max), so not as bright on full power as the latest version. But it lights up dark lanes a treat, from one verge to the other and with a nice bit of spill to the hedges. And that is without using full power, which I never feel a need for. It is one of Exposures smaller lights, designed for commuting. The lens is a resin thing that sticks out like a flattened dome, giving light to the side as well as the front. The top of the lens is painted black to keep light out of your eyes. The settings are easily programmable. I'm a technophobe luddite and I can re-set the available light strengths on a street corner in thirty seconds if I want to. So, for example, I might choose to have available run times of 3 hours, 10 hours and 24 hours available. Or I could go for run times of 2 hours and 4 hours. There are seven groupings to choose from.

Like other Exposure lights this one has an rechargeable battery that cannot be changed. But you can buy plug-in batteries from Exposure, so I am guessing that when the battery finally loses capacity I can keep the light going with an external battery on a cable. Anyone know if it will work that way? I know where to buy the external batteries and I know they work as back-ups for lights with functioning internal batteries. Would the death of the internal battery prevent the external one working? If not, this light could go on and on. I hope so.

See the link up thread to a company that will replace them for you. I'm going to try them with a joystick light, will report back. I've found several years life in exposure lights even with daily use; presumably good batteries and the right switching electronics.

Thanks. They are lovely well engineered things and I'd hate to have to bin one just because of the battery.