Busch + Müller Lumotec IQ-X Front Light - Alternative for fatbike

[Aushiker]

I have repurposed the Busch + Müller Lumotec IQ-X Front Light (164RTSNDI-01) on to my road bike so I need a replacement front light for my fatbike. I am now debating with myself as to whether the IQ-X is overkill for this bike. I use it pretty much as a bikepacking bike so it does not as a rule get ridden at night. The light is used for daytime riding and it is there as a just in case night light. The dynamo is used mainly during the day to recharge batteries so if I am not on a main road or the like the light is switched off. It is also paired up to a Busch + Muller rear light.

Keeping in mind that should I need to ride at night it will likely to be off-road or on outback unlit roads (slow speeds < 20km/h) any suggestion on an alternative light?

My initial shortlist is (all lower-priced options):

Busch + Müller IQ-XS T Senso Plus Front Light - 167RTSNDI - First choice unless the Hermans is much better
Hermans H-Pro Black - Assuming compatible with a Busch + Muller bar mount and rear light
Busch + Müller Lumotec IQ Cyo Premium T Senso Plus Front Light - 1752QTSNDI - On sale at Bike24 so around 20 Euro saving. Must admit not that keen on the IQ Cyo based on past experience.

Thoughts?

[PH]

I have repurposed the Busch + Müller Lumotec IQ-X Front Light (164RTSNDI-01) on to my road bike so I need a replacement front light for my fatbike. I am now debating with myself as to whether the IQ-X is overkill for this bike.

Yes the IQ-X is overkill, but as you probably know it's a fair step up from the others.  It's on offer at Rose for just a few euro more than those you've listed, it'd give you a spare for your road bike should you ever need that.
https://www.rosebikes.co.uk/b-m-iq-x-led-headlight-837399

An alternative is to shop around for an original Edelux, they're not the best light compared to the current generation, but if you don't need that, they have the build quality to last a lifetime.

[John Saxby]

Do you need a dyna-hub-powered light?

I rarely ride at night, so have used a Cygolite USB-powered battery headlight for the past 7-8 years.  Its main job is providing daytime conspicuity -- I use the flashing mode, and I've been told (approvingly!) that it's visible from a quarter-mile away. Occasionally, I've used the "high" or "low" modes for 20-minute night rides on unlit bike paths, and they've served the purpose.

My light is no longer part of Cygolite's range -- the closest seems to be a Streak 450.

My dyna-hub powers my Anker 5200 battery, and on tour, that lets me recharge my Cygolite every few days, in less than an hour.

[Aushiker]

at Rose for just a few euro more than those you've listed, it'd give you a spare for your road bike should you ever need that.
https://www.rosebikes.co.uk/b-m-iq-x-led-headlight-837399

An alternative is to shop around for an original Edelux, they're not the best light compared to the current generation, but if you don't need that, they have the build quality to last a lifetime.

Thanks for sharing your thoughts. I hadn't thought of it as a spare. I do like the light and having a good light on hand just in case does provide some peace of mind.

[Aushiker]

Do you need a dyna-hub-powered light?

I rarely ride at night, so have used a Cygolite USB-powered battery headlight for the past 7-8 years.  Its main job is providing daytime conspicuity -- I use the flashing mode, and I've been told (approvingly!) that it's visible from a quarter-mile away. Occasionally, I've used the "high" or "low" modes for 20-minute night rides on unlit bike paths, and they've served the purpose.

My light is no longer part of Cygolite's range -- the closest seems to be a Streak 450.

My dyna-hub powers my Anker 5200 battery, and on tour, that lets me recharge my Cygolite every few days, in less than an hour.

You are probably right about not needing one. I honestly hadn't considered the approach you have taken, so will have to give it some thought now.

I am curious but how you find the water resistance of the Streak 450. I note that the rate Ranger series at IP67 but not the Streak.

[John Saxby]

Thanks, Aus, hope my comment is helpful.

Some more info:

Have just checked my Cygolite, and it's an Expillion 410.  It's rather bigger than a Streak, being about 95 mm long, and about 35 mm wide at its widest point. It weighs about 4 oz, sez my antique scale from a Mennonite hardware store.

I bought it at Mountain Equipment Coop in the summer of 2012, just before my first tour in Europe in Sept/Oct of that year.  Cost was around Cdn $100. That seemed a bit steep 8 years ago, but the light has been a great bargain.

Its performance has been outstanding, and the light has been troublefree in all conditions--rain, heat, cold, dust--so much so that I never think about it. (My criterion of excellence for just about everything mechanical.)

One handy feature is that there is about 25° of float in the mounting, so that I can easily push the beam off to my right or left when I'm approaching another cyclist or a pedestrian on a bike path, and then immediately restore it.  There's more "space" to the right than to the left -- handy for illuminating the edge of the path if you ride on the right as we do.

The one small defect I found was the small rubber plug for the recharging port at the upper rear of the metal body of the light: the spindly little rubber strand linking the plug to its rubber loop-around-the-body gave out after a couple of years. I just replaced the plug with a 2 cm tab of plastic electrical tape, which in turn I replace every 2 or 3 years.

One related note of (in)convenience: The charging port on my light accepts a male tab on the USB cable which has a peculiar profile, unlike a common cellphone charging cord, for example -- the tab is thicker (taller), in the shape of a truncated triangle.  A few years ago, I happened to find out that my Cygolite shares that with a Garmin eTrex 20, when the cable for the latter gave out. 

If you should get a Cygolite, and if it has that oddly-shaped male tab on its charging cord, I'd suggest getting a spare -- in my limited experience with consumer electronics, I've seen only two devices with that profile.

Cheers,  John

[Aushiker]

Thanks, John. Lots of helpful information: Particularly pleased with your experience with the light in adverse weather. That is reassuring. Frustrating to hear of the odd USB connection. I do wonder why do they do that. My Nitecore F2 also has a USB connection which is not that common. Luckily I had spare cable for that at least.

Looking at the Cygolite it appears that the Ranger uses a mini USB whereas the Streak sounds like it has a USB cable, probably the same as your Expillion 450. The smallest Expliion they list now is the Expillion 750. It does sound appealing with a day flash run time of 22 hours.

[John Saxby]

Thanks, Andrew, glad that's helpful.

The 410 lumens rating I have on my old light seems quite OK for my usage.  One issue with the very powerful lights is that they can create a problem for oncoming cyclists.

I've also found that when I use the daytime flashing mode, I recharge the light only every 3-4 days.

There's an additional handy feature with most handlebar/battery lights:  they're a useful torch off the bike, if you need one.  (Tho' I use a Petzl strap-on headlight most of the time in camp.)

Good luck with all this,

Cheers,  John

[PH]

One issue with the very powerful lights is that they can create a problem for oncoming cyclists.

Without wishing to fall out with anyone, I absolutely hate the use of unfocused lights when there's anyone else around. LED's don't have to be very powerful to be blinding, they are a tiny light source and many bike lights do no more than direct them as a conical beam.  100 lumens of focused light with a direct cut off will be less of a problem for other road users than 10 lumens that aren't well directed.  Of course you can mitigate this be pointing it down, but the reality is if you've done so enough to stop it being an issue it's no longer much use to the rider.
I do have a super bright battery LED, a Niterider Lumina 750, yes that's 750 lumens , it's a lot of fun on the trails and empty country lanes, turns night into day, I use it alongside a dynamo light and knock it off at the first sign I'm sharing the road.
There are a growing number of STVZO battery lights available, I think we have the electric bike market to thank for it, IMO there really is no excuse to be unsociable enough to use anything else.

[Aushiker]

A quick update. Narrowed down the choice to either a Cygolite Expilion 850 USB or a Niterider Lumina Micro 850 and will go with the Niterider as it seems getting a Cygolite is near impossible at the moment, whereas the Niterider is available locally (Australia) at a reasonable price - AU$99 delivered.

This is for a bikepacking fatbike which gets used on singletrack, 4WD tracks, dirt roads in the country and sometimes on highways and the like. The light will be mainly used as a daytime light when safety is important and as a night riding light when circumstances call for it.

Now to get a rear rack mounting USB rechargeable light to go with it


Surveying the Future - {Day 06-07} by Andrew Priest, on Flickr

[John Saxby]

That all makes sense, Andrew.  Good luck!

Where are you in 'Straya, btw?  And that photo?

On the USB-rechargeable rear light:  I've used Planetbike and Portland Design Works products, both common in N America.  They work reasonably well, but both have to be recharged more frequently than my Cygolite headlight.

Cheers,  John

[Andre Jute]

Now to get a rear rack mounting USB rechargeable light to go with it

Super photograph, Andrew.

For the versatile sort of rear lamp that you apparently need, I think it would be hard to beat the CatEye TL-LD1100, which for many years was the GOAT, and probably still is for what you need. It operates happily for weeks on end on a single set of batteries (200 hours or more on the flashing modes), doesn't complain when one uses rechargeable batteries, has several flashing modes and a steady mode that can be seen from a very long way off, has dedicated side LEDs to cover all situations.

Does it have a downside? Sure, assuming that cost is less important than doing the job right, two downsides. First, you need to be aware that it is vulnerable to losing the cap over the batteries, which is also one of the side-lenses and includes the connecting plate so that the loss ruins the lamp altogether. Even though a variety of fittings (mainly for fitting to road bikes) come with the lamp, and others are available in the aftermarket, I tied mine to various racks (I had three of these efficient lamps) with tiewraps and just added one across the cap as well; the lamp is so economical of batteries that it caused no nuisance at all. Here you can see how I did it*:

The second downside could be more serious: It appears CatEye stopped making it, so you'll have to find one NOS. Before the -1100 I had the -1000 version, and the two lamps appeared to be the same. It looks like the Koreans -- who probably made the lamp for CatEye -- still have some in stock:
https://www.ebay.com.au/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_trksid=m570.l1313&_nkw=cateye+TL-LD1100&_sacat=0

*The other lamp on the rear of my bike is a BUMM Line Plus, in some respects a superior lamp, but no good to you: it requires a dynamo or a humongous battery, and, worse still, it has no flashing mode to preserve the battery, so isn't much chop for an adventure bike. That's why the Cateye -1100 is on the bike with the BUMM, to serve these other needs.

[martinf]

For the versatile sort of rear lamp that you apparently need, I think it would be hard to beat the CatEye TL-LD1100.

Does it have a downside? Sure, assuming that cost is less important than doing the job right, two downsides.

I'd add another downside, it is quite heavy with the two long-lasting AA batteries. So it can break lamp brackets if you prefer to mount it on a bracket from which it can be quickly unclipped rather than using tie wraps. As I use several different bikes, tie-wraps aren't a good option.

I have four TL-LD1100s, which are very occasionally used all at the same time (one on wife's bike, one on my bike and two on the trailer). Like Andre, they are used as backup for B&M dynamo lamps, except on the trailer where they are the only lamps.

[Andre Jute]

I'd add another downside, it is quite heavy with the two long-lasting AA batteries.

Still, the CatEye makes up for the weight by being so much better looking, and better-feeling in the hand, than BUMM'a lightweight but cheap-feeling and -appearing Line Plus.

[Aushiker]

Where are you in 'Straya, btw?  And that photo?

Western Australia and the photo was taken out of Hopetoun. I was riding between Esperance and Albany over seven days trying to avoid the bitumen as much as possible.



Hassell Beach - Looking West - {Day 10-11} by Andrew Priest, on Flickr

I rode about 10 kilometres of this beach having dropped on to it at Bluff Creek. It was really good riding, nice firm sand. In fact, I only hit one beach over the week where it was a hard kilometre or three of pushing.

On the USB-rechargeable rear light:  I've used Planetbike and Portland Design Works products, both common in N America.  They work reasonably well, but both have to be recharged more frequently than my Cygolite headlight.

I have a PDW Radbot 1000 which I have mounted for now. May just stick with that if it works out okay.