Fixing a Cateye TL-LD1100 to a Thorn rear rack

[dbrown]

Hi all

I have recently purchased a Thorn Nomad Mk II, and am looking to attach my Cateye TL-LD1100 rear light to the rear carrier. Only thing is, I am a bit stumped regarding the mounting options, although this is perhaps due more to my naivete than anything else...

My light came with the seat post mount and a belt clip mount. The supplied bracket on the rack is this one:
http://www.sjscycles.co.uk/back-plate-light-bracket-for-thorn-ex-rear-rack-prod26997/

The only option here would be to clip the belt clip mount onto the bracket, which seems about as secure as sticking it on with blue-tack. I am aware that cateye produce a rack mount: http://www.sjscycles.co.uk/cateye-rear-carrier-mounting-bracket-prod15303/ but the product descriptions I have read state that holes are required at a space of 50mm to attach it with the bolts. The other, less satisfactory option would be to attach it with cable ties. I feel I must be missing something here, as Thorn seem to recommend this light both in their brochures and online for this particular bracket, and I find it hard to believe that with all the different holes it provides, it doesn't provide those for fixing their recommended light. It is also recommended for use with this bracket: http://www.sjscycles.co.uk/thorn-stainless-steel-ultra-lightweight-rear-rack-light-fitting-plate-prod13127/ which does not appear that it would even work with the cable tie option.

Hopefully someone can shed some light on this for me, as I feel there must be something very simple I am missing!

Many thanks
Danny

[jags]

just went through the same thing myself.
the fittings that come with the light are pretty useless and the cateye bracket wont accept the light unless you cut away the bottom part of it ,the light will then slide down enough for it to click into place.
you might also have to counter sink the  bolts that hole the  bracket to the rack.
bit messy for such an expensive light  only thing is the light itself is brilliant.
oh yeah make sure the battery lid is well secure i cut a strip 6insx1.8 and neatly wrapped around the lid so as it cant come off.

[Andre Jute]

Too much bother messing around with Cateye clips and stuff when you'll need a tiewrap or something anyhow to keep the cap on the light, without which it is ruined. So I just zapped it on with tiewraps and left it at that. Works a charm and makes an interesting effect when the lamp is switched on, depending on the colour of your tiewraps. -- Andre Jute

[Danneaux]

Hi Danny, and welcome to the Forum from another Dan!

I recently tried mounting my B&M Toplight Line Plus dynohub taillight to the Thorn EXP rear rack on my Nomad...and found there were holes spaced for the older-standard 80mm light mounts, but none for the more current 50mm. I solved the problem on my taillight by offsetting it to the right (American roads), and drilling a single additional hole. The left side of the bracket had holes ideal for mounting my PDW Radbot 1000 LED blinky. Pics and story here: http://www.thorncycles.co.uk/forums/index.php?topic=4523.msg22085#msg22085

The good news is the bracket is easily-drilled aluminum. The bad news is...there's no pre-existing pair of holes with 50mm spacing.

For awhile (before adding the Radbot 1000), I was able to mount the Toplight Line Plus dead center (as you would the CatEye) by using a Busch & Müller Single Hole Adapter Bracket: USD$7.00 from Peter White and other B&M sources: http://www.peterwhitecycles.com/light-mounts.asp  No drilling required!

Best,

Dan.

[dbrown]

Thanks for the replies, guys.

You are right, jags, the light itself really is brilliant. I had been using it on my MTB and connected to the seat post of my Nomad, but on my first proper tour a couple of weeks ago realised I needed to mount it to the rack so that a load does not interfere with it. So far I have not had a problem with the cap, but will make sure it is well secured now given your warnings.

Your solution looks pretty effective, Andre, but I would really like to have some flexibility so that I can easily remove the light, both for security and for attaching it to my other bike. I therefore think I will have to go with the cateye mounting bracket, even if it isn't completely up to scratch.

Thanks for the welcome, Dan, I can see this forum and its members being a fantastic resource, and hopefully as my knowledge and experience grows I will be able to contribute some myself. I resisted signing off as 'Dan' by the way to avoid any confusion, seeing as you seem to be very active on here!

It is good to hear that you had success drilling the bracket, this was going to be my fall-back solution if there was not a simpler one that I was failing to see. Your link to the Busch & Müller bracket didn't seem to work for me, and I failed to find a UK supplier after a quick google search. As an aside, I am also failing to view your photos in your posts, whereas I can see those of other members. This is perhaps due to the setup on my browser, but I was wondering if you knew of any other reason why this may be? I am having to picture your setup from your descriptions which, while detailed, are no match for actually seeing the bike!

So it seems there is no factory-standard way of fitting this light to the bracket. It still seems very strange to me that this is the case for Thorn's recommended tail light, given the attention to detail that seems to be present on every other aspect of my Nomad. I would be intrigued to know if anyone had received a bike from Thorn with this light pre-fitted, and if so how it was attached?

Thanks again
Danny

[in4]

Mine is screwed to the rack plate with a simple washer and philips screw. That is how it arrived from SJS. Works fine thus far. See pic

[Danneaux]

As an aside, I am also failing to view your photos in your posts, whereas I can see those of other members. This is perhaps due to the setup on my browser, but I was wondering if you knew of any other reason why this may be? I am having to picture your setup from your descriptions which, while detailed, are no match for actually seeing the bike!

Hi Danny!

I PM'd you with some suggestions earlier, but the penny dropped for me just now -- I see you registered for an account just yesterday and were not a member until then. I think the links for my attached photos will show up now you're a regular member. Here's why...

Most people on the Forum post their photos as inline image links, with the photos stored elsewhere. This works nicely most of the time, because the photo appears in the text, and everyone (members and non-members) can see it. The trouble is, if the poster ever changes image hosts (deletes his or her Flickr account, for example), the link goes dead and -- oops! -- no mo' photo.

I almost always attach my photos below my posts. This way, they're co-located on the Forum server and can be viewed directly with a click or viewed/downloaded locally on the user's computer. The downside is, they cannot be viewed by non-members -- you have to join to see them. There's limits on file size and uploads doing it this way, but it solves the future broken-link problem, and is the fastest means to post my photos, which are often in the form of collages. It also encourages people to register, adding to our member base. 

So, go back now and give it another try, Danny. I think you'll be able to see my photos with no problem. I checked your account, and you've got full regular-member permissions, so the only other reason I can think of for being unable to see them would relate to your browser settings. I've not had any problems with a number of browsers and operating systems, but there's always the possibility of a problem with a browser add-on that alters the way a page is rendered (GreaseMonkey in Firefox can sometimes cause problems on other sites).

Please let me know if you still have problems.

Best,

Dan.

[dbrown]

Thanks for that, in4. So the screw is screwed into the plastic at the back I presume, as there is no thread on the back of mine. Nonetheless, I stand corrected, the bracket has been drilled to accept the light, but sadly not in a way that is satisfactory for me. I'd still like to have that flexibility to remove the light when I wish.

Dan - I have PM'd you re: viewing the images, all is in order now. It appears that it was because I was not registered and logged in, if it helps anyone else.

Danny

[jags]

dbrown take another at the bracket from sjs ,
see where the light fits in well it wont go all the way but if you cut away the bottom
part of it ,it will slide all the way in. leave the tab the bit thats sticking out.
it will work perfect thats exactly what i done.

[Danneaux]

Danny,

I think I may have a solution for you to place your CatEye LD-1100 on your Thorn EXP rear rack mounting plate that gets around the hole-drilling issue -- zip-tie thr bracket to the rack mounting plate. This approach is part of CatEye's design and endornes by them. It isn't the most elegant solution, but I think it might be worth considering...

It seems CatEye has slightly redesigned the mounting bracket for the LD-1100 so it is more secure. This bracket is available separately. I tried SJS Cycles, and came up short this time, a rare occurrence. Wiggle offer it here for £3.99: http://www.wiggle.co.uk/cateye-rear-carrier-mounting/

The bracket you have may or may not be the same, but this one has two mounting holes spaced at 50mm (the new, compact taillight-mount standard). But -- and here's the key! -- there is a little groove on the outside of each bracket hole, intended to take a zip-tie. CatEye tell me (and Wiggle concur) this is what you use to attach the bracket to mounts with 80mm spacing -- zip-ties!

Here, take a look-see at the bracket...



I don't have a bracket at hand to see, but I believe this illustration might even show the little well jags mentioned.

The thorn EXP rear rack *does* have a pair of holes 80mm apart (the old standard). Perhaps the CatEye bracket could be zip-tied to those; it would mean a reach of only 15mm on each side, not too long for a cable-tie to traverse.

Looking at my own rack's mounting plate, here's how the holes are spaced (from top to bottom):
90mm
87mm <-- I think you might have the best support for the bracket if you zip-tied the bracket to these holes
80mm
87mm

Hoping something in the above might help.

Best,

Dan.

[jags]

looks like the one i have dan, i just cut away the bottom of it,just where the bottom of the light meets the bottom of bracket it then allows the new light to slide all the way down and clip into place.

[Danneaux]

Brilliant, jags!  Good thinking!

All the best,

Dan.

[dbrown]

Thanks jags, Dan. That was the bracket I was referring to that had the 50mm spacing, I was just hoping there was some other way than cable ties to attach it. I guess I felt that it would not be so secure...

Either way, I am going to go ahead and order it (can't really go too wrong at £3.99), and if I don't like the cable tie approach I can drill the holes and bolt it on. Between jags' mod, cable ties and possibly some drilling, it looks like I should have a solution! Thanks, guys.

Oh, and the bracket is on SJS, or at least this looks like the same one: http://www.sjscycles.co.uk/cateye-rear-carrier-mounting-bracket-prod15303/

Danny

[dbrown]

I thought I would post an update on this, in case it is of interest to anyone, and take the opportunity to ask for suggestions for an additional single LED light to accompany my Cateye.

I purchased the Cateye rear rack mounting bracket, and attempted to have a go attaching it with cable ties. Dan, your suggestion of using the 87mm-spaced holes on the Thorn bracket would certainly have given the most central position, however due to the cut-out sections at the bottom of the bracket it did not offer sufficient support behind the Cateye bracket to hold it steady. Moreover, due to the asymetical shape of the Thorn bracket, more support was given on one side than the other, and the Cateye bracket ended up being lopsided. The only holes which also provided full support behind the bracket were the 90mm ones at the top. Sadly, this resulted in the light itself protruding higher than the rack, which was not to my liking.
I ended up off-setting the cateye bracket to the left, using only the left hand 87mm hole, and the hole on the right side some quarter of the way in. I have attached pics in case none of this makes sense.

As the bracket had a tendency to sag forwards and downwards, I also used the top right hole to attach the right side of the bracket, which pulled it upwards somewhat. With the light attached, it still sags a little, as can be seen in the attached picture, so I think I am going to go down the route of drilling permanent holes for it.

The thing is, after having some foggy weather here the past few days, I am thinking of getting an additional bright single LED rear light to accompany my Cateye, and possibly seeing if I can attach it alongside this as Dan has done on his rack. I figure this will give it a better position than the bottom of my mudguard, which was my initial idea.

So Dan, would you be able to let me know the dimensions of your Radbot, and whereabouts on your rack you drilled the additional hole? Your B&M Toplight looks a similar size to my Cateye, so hopefully I will be able to produce a similar arrangement. Also does anyone have any other suggestions for a small rear light like this that they have experience and are satisfied with?

Thanks,
Danny

[Danneaux]

Hi, Danny!

My, a picture really is worth a thousand words, and <nods> I can see the problem you face in mounting your CatEye. Nice photos; they help a lot.

Danny, my first suggestion if you wish to keep the CatEye and mount it solidly in the center of the bracket would be to take a piece of sheetmetal and simply bridge some of the holes, drilling a fresh set to mount the CatEye as you wish. It would only require a simple rectangular plate of aluminum sheet (often available by the piece inexpensively at hobby shops, where they are used on R/C cars and such), and some black paint. In other words, all you would need to do is overlay the existing plate and you'd be all set. If you have the tools (hand tools would do), it is easy to make an entire, custom replacement bracket to replace the original.

I've attached some detailed shots of my current setup with measurements in the hope they will help. You'll note the Radbot 1000 is a clip-on light that slots into a bracket mounted on the Thorn EXP rear plate. I needed to remove the side "wings" on the bracket for it to clear, an easy task on the sander, but a good, sharp knife or a small saw would also do the trick. The designer of the PDW Radbot used to be in the employ of PlanetBike, where he designed their SuperFlash series of lights. Both lights use the same brackets and are interchangeable; the bracket is available separately here: http://ecom1.planetbike.com/3108.html I think you can see the portion I removed to get everything to fit.

As you've realized, the effectiveness of any LED taillight is greatly dependent on having the light mounted in a vertical plane. If it tips down, the effective brightness is greatly compromised, so yes, it is important to get that CatEye solidly mounted.

any other suggestions for a small rear light like this that they have experience and are satisfied with?

I have been enormously pleased with my Blackburn Mars 4.0 taillight, which provides a 1W output like the PDW Radbot 1000. The reason I went with the Radbot as my primary/mounted LED blinky is because it includes a red reflector which the Blackburn does not. I always clip the Blackburn Mars 4.0 on my rackpack, so I have it in addition to the PDW Radbot 1000 and the dyno-powered B&M Toplight Line Plus, which has a generous reflector of its own.. I will take the spare bracket for the Mars 4.0 and mount it on my ExtraWheel trailer to match another Toplight Line Plus powered by the trailer's own SON28 Klassik dynohub. 

In comparison to the Radbot 1000 the Blackburn Mars 4.0 requires only a coin to open and has side-firing amber LEDs for side visibility (the Radbot provides side visibility via a clever prism system and spillover from the main beam). Battery life on the Blackburn is actually a bit better than the Radbot in practice, and I believe the Blackburn is a bit brighter. I'm still seeing green spots from taking the photo with both lights in operation, but I think you can see a slight difference between them. The Blackburn comes with a clip that docks with the mount, like the Radbot. The Blackburn includes a seatpost mount with toolless endless band, and parts can be juggled and cobbled to make a workable rack mount, though not as ideally as the Radbot, which is ready to go. The Blackburn and Radbot lights do not fit each others' mounts, unfortunately. Though I've had no problem with either, I think the Blackburn may ultimately prove the more water-resistant in extended wet-weather use. Either may be easily unclipped and stolen while the bike is parked, so remove them yourself before leaving the bike in sketchy areas.

Here are links to each light...
Portland Design Works (PDW) Radbot 1000: http://www.sjscycles.co.uk/pdw-radbot-1000-1w-led-tail-light-prod24081/
http://www.ridepdw.com/goods/lights/radbot%E2%84%A2-1000
Blackburn Mars 4.0:
http://www.sjscycles.co.uk/blackburn-blackburn-mars-40-rear-led-light-prod17935/
http://www.blackburndesign.com/lights/mars-4-0-rear.html#.UIc-TSBw6OE

Hope this helps. If you have more questions, give a shout.

All the best,

Dan.