mjr wrote:GranvilleThomas wrote:[...] when the ambient light level is high, then in the battle to be seen, I want all my available light to be heading for all other people in the vicinity’s retinas and that includes people driving vehicles as well as pedestrians on the pavement or crossing the road.
By directing all your available light at the ground in those circumstances is surely just asking for a SMIDSY event to take place?
It's not usually all the available light. Few cut offs are so harsh to be invisible above their horizon. There is still intentional spill over to illuminate reflective road signs and help other road users to see you. It's just not dazzling.
Dazzling other road users doesn't help you to be seen (dazzled drivers don't see much), it's illegal and it endangers other cyclists, so it's a really antisocial thing to do.
Just to reiterate I am talking about low to medium power lights here, the power of which is open for debate obviously but just lets say for the sake of argument all lights below 500 lumen are classed as low to medium power.
Lumens are bunk. You can have a million lumens and if you focus it into a tight beam straight up then no road users will care (air traffic might!). Lux and equivalent matter, both on road and in the face.
My experience of cycling at night in recent years is that many modern car lights are far too bright and dazzling and i’m sure they can’t all be out of alignment or have illegal light unit upgrades installed?
Of course they can. Ask ten random drivers who aren't car mechanics (or close relatives) and don't drive the car they learned in how to check and adjust the permanent alignment of their headlights and I'd be surprised if two could answer correctly. The proportion of cars driving around with missing lights is almost a pandemic. Add the malfunctioning ones and it'll be well over half around here.
Sorry I value my life too much!
And I value everyone's lives too much to dazzle motorists who can kill me or any nearby cyclist or walker with impunity if they don't slow/stop correctly when dazzle. Please don't argue against beam standards. That Aldi light seems dross.
Sorry but I think your being a little pedantic
After following many lighting discussions on cycling forums the phrases ‘beam cut off’ and 'beam standards' have become a mantra, as if repeating it whenever lights are discussed will somehow be some kind of panacea for all ill’s.
If you are using lights that are approaching the same power as a modern car on your bike, then yes some way of not dazzling other road users is appropriate, but for very many bike lights, it is simply not necessary and in fact counter productive because nobody will easily see you.
The Aldi front light is not the best it's true, but to try and claim it is some kind of dazzling super light is simply incorrect, it's just a cheap LED torch and trying to claim it will put peoples lives at risk is just a gross exaggeration, it is simply not bright enough, especially when mixed in amongst the myriad of light sources in the average urban environment.
If you press any light up against your eye and switch it on then you will most likely 'dazzle' yourself, but that does not necessarily mean that the light will dazzle anyone else when roaming wild in the jungle of lights out there, where it is imperative that you are visible.
I am not arguing against beam standards, I am just arguing for common sense. I have no intention of dazzling anyone and I test all my lights by walking up the road and looking at them, it's not rocket science.
I understand about candelas, lumens and lux, I used the term 'lumens' because it is the trendy way of describing the light intensity and most people understand the general meaning of it, but you correct it is largely meaningless in the way it is generally used.
I'm afraid we will just have to disagree as I do not think (as you seem to) that 'dim', 'weak', 'puny', 'low power', hard too see but legal (4 candelas or similar for example) lights need their potential visibility to other road users restricted because of a 'beam standard' requirement.
To suggest that such lights (and similar low output cycle lights) have the potential to dazzle other road users is just sensationalism and potentially putting peoples lives in danger when on the road, by encouraging them to restrict their visibility to others who are consistently using far brighter lighting day and night.
I understand that you do not agree with me and you are obviously passionate about your 'beam standard' cause but sorry I think differently