Cycling UK Forum

SA_SA_SA wrote:

edocaster wrote:
....On my commute I have a choice of a main road, or through a completely unlit park.
....

I doubt you would like car drivers to be driving towards you with their main beam on all the time?
If a proper dipped beam limits your speed, then surely you just have to put up with it until the oncoming traffic ceases rather than just blind oncoming traffic with your bikes "main beam"?

Er, no I wouldn't want drivers to be on main beam all the time. But then again neither would I want them to have no lights in the dark. As I said, it's the lesser of two evils.

To be clear, I'm not even using a MTB light currently. On the speed front, the main road isn't limited by light. There, lights are largely to be seen, or to spot a particularly bad pothole between streetlamps.

In an unlit park... there is no traffic until you see it. And neither party are going to see each other unless they have a decent amount of light. Of course, a good German-compliant light is the best option, but in the UK that's basically enthusiast territory with a tiny market share. Around 5% of people at my workplace cycle to work - if I started talking to them about German-compliant cut-off beams they'd all fall asleep! Unless everyone wants regulation, that's pretty much how the market is going to be. In that situation, being annoyed at bright MTB lights in the dark is better than no or inadequate lights.

andrew_s wrote:

edocaster wrote:if someone is lighting their way they will angle it down anyway.

That's where you are wrong.
Most people won't even think about anyone else being dazzled by their light. They will just aim where they get the best lighting for a reasonable speed, and with circular beam lights that is almost always a dazzling aim, for high power LEDs anyway.

On my commute I have a choice of a main road, or through a completely unlit park.

On the main road, bright lights certainly help one stand out rather than light the way. Having said that, I wouldn't aim a Magicshine-style light horizontally, that's just anti-social. Night vision isn't an issue on the main road - indeed, as an earlier poster pointed out, cars have their lights on early anyway. Partly that's due to the fact that since 2011 all cars sold have mandatory daylight running lights (and for the rest, car dashboard design is such that drivers turn on their lights when their dashboard looks dim anyway). It's unfortunate, but blinkies from just a few years ago are now drowned out by car lights at all times of the day.

Through the park in pitch black darkness, I think bright MTB lights are the lesser of two evils compared to poor or no lights. I wish my (cut-off beam) dynamo light was just a little wider, or gave more warning than knee height illumination appearing from about 20 metres ahead. On several occasions other cyclists just appeared out of nowhere - it could be that they just came around a small grass bank, but I can't even see the topography without a wider, higher beam. It was a doddle last year with a Magicshine-style light. It's at times like this that I'm thankful for other riders having lights bright enough to create a spill in front of them well in advance. Obviously a high-end 'German' light can do this, but as very few people are going to buy those I'm not fussed if it's an MTB light.

[XAP]Bob wrote:Buy german, not chinese.

Then you'll get a road light, not a scatter gun.

While I largely agree with the analysis, I just don't think it's totally feasible for Joe Public to hunt for either rare or expensive German lights just so they can light their way. For 99% out there the concern really is finding a bright enough light. Most of the market is about circular beams, and if someone is lighting their way they will angle it down anyway.

That's separate from the legality issue.

stork wrote:

edocaster wrote:

stork wrote:The latest front light runs on 4xAA (I use rechargeable ones) and it also has a socket for an external 6V DC supply.

Interesting. Do you know if the light will run off external dc without batteries installed? If it would work off a rectified dyno input it could be a great setup to swap between one dyno and one non-dyno bike.

Looking at the instruction book, it seems that the socket is intended as a charging socket, so that you don't have to remove the batteries or carry a full charger. Not that removing the batteries is difficult as they all sit in a removable cage which then gives easy access. I remember certain other lights where getting the batteries out was a really difficult job, involving levering them out with a screwdriver.

I have a Cree XR-E torch with a DC socket. It came with a 4.5v 400mA charger which eventually failed. I tried putting 5v to the socket (without the 18650 battery in place! Didn't want to fry it...) and the light came on without problems, sucking 550mA. Obviously slightly overvolted so the driver would waste a bit of energy as heat, but even brighter than usual! I will try it with regulated 5v from a dynamo - which should work, but I doubt I'd get as high a current.

If the Lidl light could do the same it would be a great way to a traffic-friendly beam (albeit 'only' 30 lux).

Check it extremely carefully, with a bright light and from all angles.

I had a similar thing on a Dahon Jack. Turned out it was the closing latch handle (which is just one of many aluminium parts) which had fatigued to the point that a fracture had developed. It was only visible in a certain light. Naturally, it would have gotten much worse very quickly, potentially leading to a major accident. My advice would be certainly not to ride it until you work out what is wrong.

The design is such that the cam puts part of the mechanism under compression, and the handle you see below under tension. The shape of the handle means a stress riser developed at the sharp angle.

Dahon fixed the handle with one with more of a curve. I think they are well aware of the flaw.

Hackfall wrote:my dyno hub is this cheap deal I got earlier in the year:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Complete-fron ... 198wt_1285

It's heavier due to the hub being heavier, the rims maybe a bit heaver, and due to the width of the rim I had to fit a 28mm tyre. So hard to say how much extra resistance I get from the Shimano hub given my wheel is 700g heavier than what I had on before. I bought the wheel more as a "proof of concept" it was cheap and now I am a convert even with the extra weight. I am sure if I had spent more money on a lighter hub, narrower rim/tyre, I might have only added a minimal amount of weight, so I would say its worth doing your homework on that and finding out relative weights of things and compare with your existing wheelset.

I too got my wheel on eBay. Just shy of £40 - T665 disc hub (which I believe is 3D72 equivalent), DT spokes and Rhyno-lite rim. Needed a bit of work as detailed on my various posts, but a great journey getting here, and a bargain too.

I've also mentioned before the DIY USB charging option. As yet, it's unproven for me, but appears to work. But if failure isn't an option, obviously one of the off the shelf products is probably worth the extra money.

stork wrote:The latest front light runs on 4xAA (I use rechargeable ones) and it also has a socket for an external 6V DC supply.

Interesting. Do you know if the light will run off external dc without batteries installed? If it would work off a rectified dyno input it could be a great setup to swap between one dyno and one non-dyno bike.

The de facto standard for 'dumb' chargers is to connect the two data lines together (or across a low value resistor). Most devices take that to mean no negotiation required, and so they take maximum current.

Note this should only be done if the connected device is NOT acting as a host - I.e. you should not solder together the connections on the host side.

Belatedly, thanks. I've got a tail light, but connect that straight to the front light as I want to keep the whole USB thing separate.

What I'm working on now is taking two red LEDs in serial with a resistor (had a 47 ohm one lying around), and will solder those permanently in parallel to the USB output. I'll mount them at the end of the tube, so they'll light up when the regulator is working. Quick test indicates that at 5v they use 14mA, which is a little on the low side compared to a proper tail lamp, but should bring the voltage figures (judging by that German link upthread) much closer to the simulated tail light load than the open circuit load. This is all conjecture, but if I'm never going above, say, 60 km/h hopefully the components will survive.

I'm even tempted to make another one of the regulator circuits to try on a light, as I've used 3aaa Cree LEDs which do seem to output better than my Axa Pico (30 lux). Would it be possible to replace the 3aaa batteries with a wired in 5v DC input without frying anything?

Not for a bike really, and doesn't have auto start on power, but if you google 808 HD #16 cam you should get one within budget. The internal battery is pants (40 mins, falling to 20 after many months of usage), but if you're powering it from USB that's a moot point.

tatanab wrote:

mjr wrote:I was looking at the bike after today's ride. Any tips on how/where to fix the wires that go to the back light?

I think I could zip-tie them to the cable covers most places (taking care not to crush it and hinder the braking or shifting) but the cables run without covers along most of both the front-back tubes, which I think is commonplace. Once it reaches the pannier rack, I'll tie it to the rack.

I run mine underneath the top tube held in place with a continuous run of helicopter tape/freezer bag tape/"magic tape" (as used in a drawing office). Nice thing is that the cable cannot rattle on the tube. If you find it necessary you could use a cable tie at the ends of the tape to stop any flaring.

Years ago I ran the wire along the top tube mounted rear brake cable, even the exposed part. There is only something like half an inch movement in the cable so it is not difficult to allow just enough slack. I found this too scruffy so took to using the tape method.

I coiled the slack into a sort of 'telephone cord' near the head tube by wrapping it around a pen for a moment. Not sure that's the tidiest solution, but it has a nice retro effect.

I have a Pico and B&M Flat S Plus and, as posted elsewhere, can't disable the standlight on either. It astounds me that what seems like such a basic feature is not included in many lamps. I've tried shorting out the only terminals visible, but to no avail.

As per mjr, I've taken to switching the light off a couple of minutes before arriving at my destination. Interestingly, my Pico standlight lasts quite long (i.e. if you stand in front of it in pitch dark it's still visible an hour later), but the Flat S Plus cuts out after about 5 mins (and is a rather weak standlight overall).

I hate to say it, but things like the above make me regret not saving for a Cyo and Line Plus (although they'd still probably attract thieves).

I once stumbled across a vanload of PCSOs ticketing pavement cyclists, until I (politely) pointed out it was a shared use path. No idea how much money they made that day.

I also had problems with a Dahon. I had a Jack, and after 18 months the folding handle suffered a fatigue crack. No drama, but it was impossible to close safely. Winstanley's fixed it under warranty, but Dahon were going through their problems at the time, so the delays meant I basically had to buy another bike.

Redvee wrote:Have a look in TK Maxx if you have one localish, they have had Craft cycling jerseys and jackets. I purchased a Performance light vest recently for £15 which folds into the rear pocket, size options are limited though.

Another vote for TK Maxx. Got a K-Swiss wind vest for £11. Packs tiny.