Handlebar switch for lights

[ourclarioncall]

Mickeg

Ah gotcha . I’m guessing some stand lights last longer than others? Do any brands have a significantly longer length ?

[ourclarioncall]

The reason for the handlebar switch

Coz it’s cool ? Coz I have lots of interesting gadgets in the cockpit ? Coz I like having instant control at my fingertips? 🤔

Well…. I was just thinking about having a setup with a front and rear dynamo light aswell as battery powered blinking lights powered from the dynamo

I’m thinking there are times I would like to have no lights on while I’m leaving my village, then once I start riding I’d like to turn on the front and rear dynamo lamps , as an on day and night soloution, but I’d rather be able to keep the flashing battery powered lights off as not to annoy people or draw too much attention to myself .

Then if I’m on the road instead of pavement I could turn on the battery powered lights (well they would be powered by dynamo)

Hope I’m making sense

I guess I’m looking at 2 switches mounted on the handlebars, one switch for the pair of normal front and back dynamo lights and another switch for the pair of battery(wired to dynamo)  blinking lights

So I can turn everything on and off instantly for the various situations i find myself in

It seems like my idea (which i may never actually do) could be quite complex to pull off, but it would be pretty cool and sometimes that usurps being sensible lol 😆

[PH]

Not sure if I’m right but on some dynamo lamps , is there a third setting other than on or off? Like it’s on but it only comes on when it gets dark enough?

Yes, on many, usually called Senso or something similar.  I never bother, I can make my own mind up if I want the lights on or off.

[mickeg]

Mickeg

Ah gotcha . I’m guessing some stand lights last longer than others? Do any brands have a significantly longer length ?

Ask someone at your local bike shop.

[JohnR]

I’m guessing some stand lights last longer than others? Do any brands have a significantly longer length ?

You can rummage through the specifications. My Birdy Rohloff has the Supernova E3 Pure 3 headlight ( https://supernova-lights.com/en/products/dynamo-lights/e3-pure-3/ and associated tail light. The specs claim a 5 minute standlight which might be true but what I've noticed is that within a few seconds of stopping the lights become very dim.

[Prince of Darkness]

My main question is could you turn on both front and rear lights from a switch attached to the handlebars? Somehow

Modern front lamps that are used with a hub dynamo generally have a switch that controls both front and rear lamps.

Not sure if I’m right but on some dynamo lamps , is there a third setting other than on or off? Like it’s on but it only comes on when it gets dark enough? A bit like how a streetlight/lamp post works

Yes, some do have a sensor setting. I tend to just use mine in the on or off positions. 

[ourclarioncall]

I’m guessing some stand lights last longer than others? Do any brands have a significantly longer length ?

You can rummage through the specifications. My Birdy Rohloff has the Supernova E3 Pure 3 headlight ( https://supernova-lights.com/en/products/dynamo-lights/e3-pure-3/ and associated tail light. The specs claim a 5 minute standlight which might be true but what I've noticed is that within a few seconds of stopping the lights become very dim.

I like the the look of them , was just browsing dynamo lights recently

Would you buy it again or would you try something different?

[JohnR]

I like the the look of them , was just browsing dynamo lights recently

Would you buy it again or would you try something different?

The dynamo lighting is a standard feature of the German-designed bike. It's not something I would pay for. There's a wide selection of LED bike lights (I've got several Lezyne products which provide the user choice between brightness, flash options and duration on battery) which better meet my needs of being visible in the day time or, only in emergency, at night.

[PH]

My dynamo light of choice would be the Edelux II, I had an early Supernova, an original Edelux, currently Edelux II and B&M IQ-X, the B&M probably has a slightly better beam than the Edelux, but has a finicky switch and lacks the build quality.  I wouldn't consider any light, dynamo or battery, that wasn't STVZO compliant, unless it was a secondary light to be used with consideration to others.
I've probably posted this before - the Peter White website is probably the best resource for all things dynamo
https://www.peterwhitecycles.com/plight.php

[ourclarioncall]

My dynamo light of choice would be the Edelux II, I had an early Supernova, an original Edelux, currently Edelux II and B&M IQ-X, the B&M probably has a slightly better beam than the Edelux, but has a finicky switch and lacks the build quality.  I wouldn't consider any light, dynamo or battery, that wasn't STVZO compliant, unless it was a secondary light to be used with consideration to others.
I've probably posted this before - the Peter White website is probably the best resource for all things dynamo
https://www.peterwhitecycles.com/plight.php

Funnily enough, I just a burst of research on front dynamo lighting and I concluded the Edelux II was the best current option to go for

I’m not sure what  STVZO is , il google it

I like the look of the klite qube flashers and usb charger . But on sjs it says they are not road legal but then it says something about in conjunction with other lights

I think what they are saying is you CAN use them but you must also have a steady rear light too?

I did try to brush up on I’m lighting law but I’m not sure if it’s a little vague or dated or open to interpretation

[ourclarioncall]

On the topic of handlebar controlled lights , klite has a neat solution

What I wanted was to have a front and rear steady dynamo lights

And either a front and rear flashing light or just a rear.

I also wanted the ability to turn the dynamo light off or on with a switch and also be able to turn the flashers off or on with a switch

I think I could now achieve this with the klite system and also adding an extra DIY switch

The klite flashers look great and they are usb powered from the usb charger .

There is also a second USB port for charging battery packs and devices or devices through a battery pack pass through

Some or all?  front dynamo lights can be powered via a battery pack in the unlikely event your dynamo hub fails.

I read a guy modified a usb cable to connect a battery pack to a front dynamo light

So the klite system is quite expensive but it ticks a lot of boxes

[nikolar]

Thanks for this interesting information!

[ourclarioncall]

Thanks for this interesting information!

How’s it going mate? Are you thinking about getting  a lighting system ?