Author Topic: Bike lights from The Indy  (Read 3811 times)

in4

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mickeg

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Re: Bike lights from The Indy
« Reply #1 on: November 13, 2015, 06:11:35 PM »
Not mine, I saw it and had to take a photo.


in4

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Re: Bike lights from The Indy
« Reply #2 on: November 13, 2015, 06:49:29 PM »
Santa would like that cluster I reckon!

Musing for a mo: I'm not sure we've go this lighting lark right. Passing observations suggest to me that despite some fabulous lighting systems being available the actual rider remains quite invisible. I've had ideas about a sort of throw over/ wrap around lightweb using leds that would go a long way to highlighting the rider's torso. All a bit heath robinson right now but from small acorns etc.

jags

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Re: Bike lights from The Indy
« Reply #3 on: November 13, 2015, 07:00:32 PM »
that must have cost him a feckin fortune what an idiot .
someone needs to come up with a stylish  waterproof led light jacket that shows the profile of a person actually  on a bike. not nerdy  ;).

in4 keep working on that idea its a winner if you get it looking good.

mickeg

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Re: Bike lights from The Indy
« Reply #4 on: November 13, 2015, 08:56:48 PM »
... Passing observations suggest to me that despite some fabulous lighting systems being available the actual rider remains quite invisible. ...

I used to commute through a large University, I saw thousands of stupid students that thought any flashing red light would save them. They would clip them to a backpack so that they were aimed towards the sky.  Or they would have very close to dead batteries in them.  Or they would not bother to turn them on.  Or they would be attached to their helmet, which would dangle from their handlebars.

If you want to be seen, you need to mount your rear light on the bike and you need to check the aim so that a car straight back can see it.  I use flashing mode in daytime, constant on at night because that mode is better if you want the driver behind you to have good depth perception.  Sometimes I have run one flashing and one constant on. 

I live in a country were flashing taillights on bicycles are legal.

I have two taillights on my errand bike, that is the bike I am most likely to use this time of year after dark, one to flash and one to be constantly on.

I admit my bikes lack reflectors, but on all my touring bikes I have red reflective tape on my left crank arm, left side because in my home country we drive on the right side, traffic will pass me on my left side.  A pedal reflector is probably better, but the tape is better than nothing.

« Last Edit: November 13, 2015, 08:59:23 PM by mickeg »

Danneaux

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Re: Bike lights from The Indy
« Reply #5 on: November 14, 2015, 01:29:50 AM »
Quote
Passing observations suggest to me that despite some fabulous lighting systems being available the actual rider remains quite invisible.
Hi Ian!

For awhile, I rode with a setup like you are suggesting. I simply affixed an LED flashlight with 8-LED array to the reflector bracket on my rear rack...and aimed it to illuminate my neon high-viz yellow-green wind jacket. The flashlight only lit my back, not my profile or front.

I looked like a huge, yellow-green blob atop the bike, but feedback I got from car drivers at traffic lights told me I did *not* "look" like a cyclist to them and they didn't like it. Because I did not fit their expectations of what a visible cyclist should look like at night -- blinky and/or solid red rear lighting, pedal reflectors and/or reflective trouser clips -- they weren't really sure what to do. I always ride with an eyeglass-mounted rear, and a number of closing drivers seemed to develop a sort of target fixation as they drifted to and then over the white-painted line marking the bike path on the road shoulder.

After a few more experiments and reactions of this sort, I returned to a more conventional setup.

My own taillight scheme varies depending on where I am riding. I dense urban commute traffic, I keep my LEDs set to blink night or day and do the same on twisty rural roads with limited sightlines. In all other circumstances except bright daylight, I se the LEDs to solid-on.

My favorite setup for long day rides is shown on one of my randonneur bikes below. I use a B&M Toplight Line Plus taillight powered by a SON28 dynohub mounted to the center of my Tubus Logo Evo rear rack. On each side of the rear wheel, there are Portland Design Works (PDW) Radbot 1000 1-watt LED blinkys. They can be set to solid-on, a rapid sort of stutter-flash, and my favorite, which they call Zzz-POP! The light sort of swells to a large discharge, then builds again in a series before discharging. In denser traffic I use both at once, and they go in and out of sync which is very visible. On longer 300-400kn rides, I generally use one and then the other so I don't have to change batteries midway. Though they are rated for 30 hours on solid and 15 hours blinking, they do not operate at full brightness thoughout, so I generally figure on 24 and 10 hours tio operate at full brightness. I use Eneloop rechargeables and find they work well.

I chose the Rabot 1000s because they were 1-watt point-source LEDs with a distinctive pattern *and* user-replaceable batteries. There's a lot of very nice LED tailight on the market now (I'm mightily tempted by one Serfaf model), but they are USB rechargeable and have embedded batteries. If you use them much, many have an effective service life of about a year before the battery will no longer take a full charge and recharge times lengthen. This would not be such a problem in commuting, but for long-distance touring or randonneuring/Audax rides, it is a decided drawback. If I expect to be out for a long time, I just toss in a couple more pre-charged Eneloops and change as needed. If I'm on an extended tour, then I just use my dyno-charging setup and/or solar panel to recharge my AA and AAA batteries as needed.

The line pattern of the Toplight Line Plus does make it easier to judge closing distance for me as a car driver. Point-source lighting is good for grabbing attention, but that alone doesn't give much reference for distance.

I'm old-fashioned and value *good* reflectors as a backup to my lighting. The Radbots and Toplight Line Plus taillights have nice reflectors and so do my Shimano Click'R T-400 clipless pedals. Add a lot of reflective elements on my clothing and a special reflective vest for rano work, and I feel pretty visible.

Best,

Dan.

mickeg

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Re: Bike lights from The Indy
« Reply #6 on: November 14, 2015, 02:58:13 AM »
Dan, I like your tail light setup.

I thought I was the only one that had a pair of tail lights like your 1 watt ones.  I have a pair that I mount on my Logo EVO, one on each side.


Danneaux

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Re: Bike lights from The Indy
« Reply #7 on: November 14, 2015, 03:58:52 AM »
Quote
I have a pair that I mount on my Logo EVO, one on each side.
Very nice setup, mickeg, and for similar reasons to my own.

Yours have the advantage of much better side visibility when the rear panniers are mounted.

Mine have better protection because they ride inside the perimeter of the rack tubes. Six of one, half a dozen of the other.

I made bracket like a trapezoid with a missing base to mount to the two lights. It uses the two holes by the Toplight Line Plus' 50mm bolt spacing on my Logo Evo's light plate. Both lights clear the rear fender (mudguard) equally, though it looks like one is touching in the photo.

All the best,

Dan.
« Last Edit: November 14, 2015, 04:16:38 AM by Danneaux »