Cycling UK Forum

gentlegreen wrote:I've got one of those, can't see a thing in it

I think they work well for flat bars when you set it up perfect and your position doesn't move around (e.g. Not Going down to drops etc).
Zefal one looks ok, saw it first hand today, mirror isn't as clear as the cateye though.

No worries brucey.

Replace silent with not audible over the other noise, my bike isn't silent either

My mirror is this one http://www.wiggle.co.uk/cateye-bm-500g-mirror/.
John has a zefal one that looks good, but I can only vouch for this mirror.
Two mirrors makes the bike too wide and I never feel I need a left hand side one anyway.
I've tried helmet or eyewear mounted mirrors and they just don't work for me, they're too small and moving my head to look around doesn't feel safe.

Funny thing for me is if I ever push a push chair I look to where the mirror would be in advance of looking over my shoulder before crossing, my ears are of no use on a busy road. I wish more pedestrians would stop and look rather than just using their ears. I nearly hit one probably on a monthly basis if not more frequent.
As others have mentioned, I only wish I had one whilst walking.

I ride well out in the road, lots of lighting even on a fine day, I normally ride over obstacles rather than swerving because my bike is suitable for that and it seems safer than chancing it based on what I think might be behind me or not, only go on sight, anything else is too dangerous. But normally I have enough room to swerve closer to the kerb, hence why I ride further out and not in the grids as I call it.

The other one I forgot to mention is in winter my ears are covered, so being used to relying on hearing rather than sight probably isn't a good thing.

I agree on the legal aspect, maybe promote rather than mandate a mirror.

On the other hand I feel lights should be mandatory for day time use too, the weather or tree coverage can really affect visibility of cyclists. Slightly more off topic though, sorry.

Brucey, I'm sure you meant well by your post, but please refrain from implying I'm doing something that increases my chances of being hurt or killed. For one it isn't nice and two you have no facts that even hint at any dangerous behaviour on my behalf.

I expect I look more carefully than most because I'm not relying on hearing a potentially silent danger.
It's worth noting that every cyclist I know that has been hit by a car (including myself) has been hit by a car they knew was there, nothing to do with hearing, but the driver not looking or stopping. Not even idiot drivers, but good drivers who failed to check properly at the one time they really needed to.

The biggest danger to me that isn't in my field of vision is from cars overtaking, hearing doesn't help me with that.

When I'm in the countryside I listen out for nature and cars in the distance, but not all cars or road users are noisy, so it's not something I put much faith into.

I find the inear bud type ones block more noise and mean you can have the volume lower. Sennheizer cx 300-ii from dixons online were my last decent pair. Avoid non trusted sources as tey'll be fakes.

I commute in busy traffic, I find car noise both distracting and brain numbing. Needless to say that car horn noise and idiots shouting out their window is too.

I listen to my car stereo whilst driving and I listen to my mp3 player whilst cycling. I see no difference. Both make the journey more pleasant.

I think bike mirrors are more important than most people realise, I have used one for years and now hate riding without one.

I disagree about safety concerns, but then, unless you can prove otherwise, I am correct

[XAP]Bob wrote:The ability to send a car home to pick up the wife and kids would be nice as well...

Ah, yes, brilliant. Dad's will no longer be the free taxi service.

kwackers wrote:I guess I'm just paying the price for the occasional jaywalker then...

Very valid point, but I'm sure those drivers aren't nice people who've been previously held up by someone crossing the road. I'm sure they are not very nice people who stand little chance of enlightenment. The only hope is intelligent cars, because we can't see to get intelligent drivers. Google's car is looking hopeful and I can't wait for mainstream versions.

I'm convinced that anything spouted by those drivers who do is just jealousy. They pay a lot in the cost of fuel and have to queue in traffic where I don't, tough, they can always get their bike out of their shed or garage.

I recall 5 years ago when I didn't cycle, you'd not hear me ever spout about cyclists, other drivers yes, never cyclists. Though there are a lot of idiots around, some of them own bikes too, we can't vet who owns a bike though.

mahestephane wrote:cyclists who break the rules deserve to be punished.

That's a pipe dream. We always break rules, breaking laws could be punished but would require more policing and technology than the country can afford.
So my advice is live with it, or choose one to focus your attentions on.
I choose cars speeding and dangerous driving because that is more commonplace and a danger to me whichever mode of transportation I am using.

I have walked and driven many miles in my life without a single incident involving a cyclist... Maybe I am tolerant of bad behaviour, but I can't recall one.
Incidents with cars are too frequent for my liking and rush hour is a battle I'd rather not endure. I've already mentioned pedestrians, so I won't repeat myself.

Ivoryarborough wrote:No - of course not. Cyclists are no different from motorists. There are a great number of considerate, careful cyclists and there are (sadly too many) of the selfish kind who insist on riding two or three abreast chatting idly away to each other and swopping drinks bottles ignoring the queues of motorists behind them, and others who pretend they are on the Tour De France whilst racing each other along winding country lanes or delight in weaving in and out of traffic at speed, often crossing lanes, in the process. It is these selfish and dangerous cyclists who do nothing but harm to the promotion of cycling generally giving rise to often misleading and antagonistic reporting / publicity.

Laws broken? None.
Bad behaviour? Some.
I have no issue walking or cycling through queued cars, nor does it bother me when I am in the car and others do.
Cycles are free to use country lanes, again, no problem with that, motorbikes and boy racers are the problem there.

Note also I didn't say I was a good driver, there are very few of them, but ask anyone and they think they are a good driver. If only they were more careful and less cocky.

Who bought the paper? Shame on you!

I won't defend any action others take and I'm not going to discuss this case, but I would like to comment all the same.

I'm also not someone who thinks they are a faultless person, my driving is ok, my cycling pretty good, following the rules doing either, no comment I try my best though
however, I'm yet to meet a car driver who doesn't break the speed limit. Every day drivers risk my life by speeding. They need to focus on that for everyone's sake, speed kills.

Flip side for me is that pedestrians seem to leap out into the road without looking, I'm surprised more don't get hit. Cyclists in general must be good at avoiding them that's all I can say!

[XAP]Bob wrote:peter white has a good page looking at beam patterns from various lights.
Personally I do most of my riding under streetlights, so I have a relatively cheap B&M front light, and a B&M rear light powered from a dynamo hub on my left wheel.
I can also grab power for USB devices, but that does make a difference to the total front brightness (not see the effect at the rear)

Thanks Bob, I took a look, either look OK, but I'll only know for sure when I buy one I guess.


Thus far I'm considering the following:

Shimano-Mavic MTB Front Wheel Deore XT DH-T780 - XM 317 hub dynamo black (http://www.bike24.com/1.php?content=8;n ... duct=30185) ~120 euro
Busch + Müller Lumotec IQ Fly RT Senso Plus LED Front Light with DRL 174QRTSNDI (http://www.bike24.com/1.php?content=8;n ... duct=17528) ~50 euro
+delivery from bike24.net (Germany)

Any advice or information anyone can give about either of these?

For 110 euro more they have Supernova Infinity S dynamo hub wheel (http://supernova-lights.com/en/products/infinity_s.html), it seems a lot more cash (nearly double), does anyone have a view on whether it's worth the extra?

Thank you.

meic wrote:I frequently leave my brand new expensive bike unlocked in the street for however long I am doing my shopping etc.

Which street is that by chance?

Vladimir wrote:At first I was puzzled at these seemingly arbitrary time limits and locks to be used.

Statistics are of course of little comfort to those who pop in a shop and exit within five minutes to find their bike has been stolen.

I don't apply a limit on time, more on value of the bike, if your bike is valuable then lock it with two very high security locks, preferrably different locks so two different methods for breaking them is required.

A cheap bike is not worth the bother, but still, it is a trade off, buy and use decent locks or risk walking home.

I do worry about component theft, but then some people steal parts from cars and I don't have any special protection against that other than parking sensibly and that applies to where I park my bike too.

meic wrote:...replacing with any IQ may leave you very disappointed, or delighted!

If you like daytime lights then consider the new range of IQ dynamo lights, the ones with a T (Tageslicht) in the (endless) list of letters. These have subsidiary LEDs for daytime use which are designed to catch other peoples eye rather than illuminate the road.
The price of these lights is getting closer to that of the older models and it may only be 5 Euros in it now.
...
PS: If you decide to buy any B&M light, check and re-check every single letter and word of its name as it is too easy to accidentally buy the wrong one. Worst and easiest mistake would be to buy one which hasnt got IQ in the name.

I'm not fussy, the Airbike is good, but I'm sure the B&M lights will be too.

I've been a bit put off by the B&M range, I have no idea what light is what and why one is any better than another, so many models. Can someone give a low down or is there a decent English site that covers it?

Ayesha wrote:I bought one of these as a 'see by' lamp. Fantastic.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2012-CREE-XML ... 3cc6ecc36f

The SSC P7 looks like a beefed up version of my current light, I will look further, thanks.
Did you get it delivered from Aus?
Though I'd happily pay a little more than the ebay price to get it from a UK distributor or shop.

Brucey wrote:bolt like this, if of the correct length would (say) mount to the fork crown

Yes, I follow now, will have a look if I have a spare one and see if I can figure it out.
I was thinking about this sort of thing too http://www.sjscycles.co.uk/b-and-m-light-bracket-for-fork-crown-254mm-mount-493ghpb-prod22455/ or maybe just some DIY setup a bit like I have now... http://timscyclingblog.wordpress.com/2009/08/07/bicycle-accessory-diy/

MacBludgeon wrote:A quick scan shows the wheel price has risen, I was thinking of a complete 'Alfine dynamo wheel' type that into your search engine and you'll get lots of hits around the £110-120 mark. But I think this wheel is 700c, it's worth looking on a few of the German websites as well....Bike24, Bikecomponents.DE and Roseversand.

OK, thanks, I will check them out.

johnb wrote:I bought into the whole dynamo concept...
I have recently bought two Smart 35 lux lights which can be fork crown, fork blade and handlebar mounted and find with one mounted on the fork blade and one on the handlebars the lighting is far superior to that of the single dynamo light. I already have an excellent battery charger and batteries so no added costs for them.

Hi John, thanks for your post, these are my fears, would a battery light (or two smaller lights) be better? I charge my rear lights anyway, no hassle charging another.

Graham O wrote:Why do you want a flashing mode? This was originally provided to extend battery life and although many people will say otherwise, I don't think flashing is good on the road as it gets lost in all the other lights around towns. On the open road, constant is just as visible.
Again, why a quick release? The purpose of dynamo lighting is (almost) fit and forget. If it's a case of moving the lamp from one bike to another that is contradicted by your comment about getting a Hope vision 1 etc.

I like a flashing mode in daylight, something to catch the eye of motorists is my thinking, I use full beam at night.
I just prefer quick release, fixing punctures and swapping winter tyres on and off is far quicker. Swapping on and off isn't a requirement at this very moment in time as the other bike has different wheel size so I will need a battery light (at some point) if I go dynamo anyway.

Graham O wrote:And finally don't get bogged down in the number of lumens. This is the total light output and takes no account of how the lamp distributes them. So a 700 lumen lamp with 50% going above the "road horizon" is no brighter on the road than a 350 lumen one.

Really good point, I hadn't thought about it that way. Most of my light is pointing at the road, so only 25% of the beam is wasted but it is also the part illuminating road signs and cars so they can see me, however I totally agree that a better lens reflector thingy would give better illumination and is something I would like if I can get it.

Graham O wrote:Don't be nasty to the cat. Cats are nice

She is nice sometimes, notably around feeding time!

meic wrote:Personally I cant stand flashing mode at the front of my bike when it is fully dark. When it gets dark enough for me to get irritated by flashing lights, I reset them to constant.

Agreed, will look up the B&M Ixon IQ too, thanks.

meic wrote:Most of the people do most of their miles in daylight and battery lights just stay on the shelf at home.

I do use my lights in daylight, but standard battery life on battery lights is enough for my needs, I'm not an Audax rider and I don't really plan on touring and not being able to charge the batteries.

johnb wrote:Which throws up a serious issue with Shimano Dyno hubs, they can't be maintained. As I said previously you cannot service a Shimano Dyno hub but you can service a Son dynohub.

stewartpratt wrote:Fair point. Though I'm as happy with unserviceable stuff that doesn't fail as I am with serviceable stuff ...and if we're talking "at what cost?" then the SON is £130 more than the XT. For that price I could junk the entire wheel, buy a like-for-like replacement....

Both really good points, I agree with both sides and I'm stuck in the middle.
I like to pay for good things, my Rohloff is worth the money and I am glad I bought it
On the other hand my old flat cage pedals that cost practically nothing are still serving me well and I wear old trainers to cycle in.
I don't know where that puts me in the cheapskate to spendthrift spectrum