Bright Headlight for Winter - Recommendations?

[guerney]

My 1800LM headlights are about 18W each. If looking for a light to connect to the ebike battery or external battery pack, this 16 cm wide 16 LED 12V-80V work light claims to be 24W. Probably casts a wide beam. Doesn't look like a handlebar clamp is supplied. I'm considering putting this on the fork. Might be even cheaper soon. Oodles of 12V-80V lights to choose from...

Motorcycle Headlight Auxiliary Headlight Waterproof Car Electric Scooter Work Lamp Fog Light 8/12/16 LED Driving Light Spotlight - AliExpress 18

Smarter Shopping, Better Living! Aliexpress.com

vi.aliexpress.com

 

[AndyBike]

I'd love to have the Exposure Fuse Ebike light i got fitted, but the lbs is quoting more than the cost of the damn thing and putting hurdles in the way like they'd need to remove the motor and other bullshit notions.
1000 lumens, be nice to get it wired in but with quotes and nonsense like the above, what can i do
They cost 190 and i got it new on the ebay crc clearing house for 38 quid, so its a great deal but not if its going to charge a fortune to fit the fing thing.

 

[guerney]

You could ask the Bosch dealer to enable the light function only, and attempt to install it yourself? Bosch, so of course something horrible could happen.

EXPOSURE LIGHTS FUSE USER MANUAL Pdf Download

View and Download Exposure Lights FUSE user manual online. FUSE flashlight pdf manual download. Also for: Expug22.

www.manualslib.com

 

[AndyBike]

You could ask the Bosch dealer to enable the light function only, and attempt to install it yourself? Bosch, so of course something horrible could happen.

EXPOSURE LIGHTS FUSE USER MANUAL Pdf Download

View and Download Exposure Lights FUSE user manual online. FUSE flashlight pdf manual download. Also for: Expug22.

www.manualslib.com

Yeah I read that, its pretty much why I dont want to do it myself. Plus you need intrinsic knowledge of electrical systems as many on here do. Its this lack of knowing the ins and outs of what can happen if i make a mistake.
Its like house renovation. jobs i wont even consider touching is gas(though illegal to do) or electrics.

Maybe one day

 

[guerney]

Looking at page 5, if your lighting circuit is 6V...

6V X 2.5A = 15W, uses less power than one of my two "1800LM" headlights. Could be brighter or dimmer, depending on how efficient the Exposure's LED(s) is are other innards are.

And at 12V...

12V X 2A = 24W, which uses more power than any one of my three headlights.

I like that he locks the camera's exposure.

 

[AndyBike]

depending on how efficient the Exposure's LED(s) is are other innards are.

They're Cree XPL2(W3)

Im sure my bike system for lighting is 12v

In that vid the magicshine clearly wins that contest, its throw is better, its a bit brighter and its a good 100 quid cheaper
But throw etc is only half the picture, they need a good customer service and magicshine dont have the reputation Exposure does. Not by q long chalk

Exposure will repair 10 yr old lights for a fraction of the cost of a new one. Magicshine will try to sell you another.

Same reason i use Hope tech. 10+ years down the line you'll still be able to get the parts to service their kit with, or they'll do a full service, replacing every part, seal,pistons in caliper and lever for £60 fully bled, and they'll throw in a set of new pads

 

[guerney]

The advantage of using a number of cheap lights is of course, they're cheap to replace, and you can double triple quadruple etc. them up. It's difficult to tell because I don't know what camera and manual settings he's using, but if you look at his view riding from 7m 31s, that's roughly what one of my "1800LM" headlights looks in terms of brightness, plus a bit, but he hasn't got the beam pointed down at the road surface like I have. Multiply that by three, for two distinct "1800LM" spots and one "2400LM" more diffuse, then add 70LUX of fork light illuminating the immediate foreground, and you have my view of the road ahead. They light up enough ground at low speeds and high, I've angled them for a spread to illuminate potholes. They can be tilted while riding if needed. My three headlights cost £49 in total, plus another £17 for the red "1800LM" rear "1800LM" flasher, plus switches, wire, solder, heat resistant red acetate sheet, 4:1 marine heat shrink, self-amalgamating rubber tape, and fuse. The bright floodlight types will dazzle drivers (something I don't want to be accused of doing by the fuzz) and would be more effective with a beam shape designed more for road riding.

You could connect a bunch of cheapo lights like mine to a cheapo bottle battery. Not bright enough? Replace lights or connect more. Better powered by your ebike battery tho.


(cued at 7m 31s)

 

[AndyBike]

You could connect a bunch of cheapo lights like mine to a cheapo bottle battery. Not bright enough? Replace lights or connect more

And before you know it you've spent the same as a magicshine or even exposure.
But even then it hasnt the throw, and you cant make it project further or wider by adding any number, all you do is brighten up the immediate area

So its really just a false economy though these cheap lights, they dont last and 1 replacement means its 2x the price youve spent. My Exposure ive been running for 4 years and i know of people running exposure for 8 and 9 years. They are dependable and can be fixed. Cheap goes wrong and it can only be binned(for 90% of users)
i dont need to add an unspecified number because the single ive bought is good enough.

Multiple cheap lamps, multiple offerings to the God of dustbins.
Now thats not good for the environment is it ?

 

[chris_n]

I still have a Hope 4 that I bought at least 10 maybe 15 years ago, I did pay a lot of money for it but this was early days of LED lamps. The original battery is still working quite well giving over an hour on the next to highest setting. This light gives a reasonably broad spread of light with a reasonable throw, enough to ride off road bridleways etc.
Coupling this with a lightweight high power spot lamp on your helmet is a game changer as it allows you to look further down the trail when riding quickly or if it is more technical you can pick close details out really well. The beauty of this is that having it on your head it follows where you are looking anyway once you get it set up correctly.
I was with a mate with a similar set up riding at about 30mph down an old out of town inclined railway in the dark, when we got close to the bottom there was a guy walking a dog so we slowed down. He shouted as we went past 'f**king hell I thought the Martians were coming'.
As @guerney says having light sources at different heights enables you to pick out potholes etc much better than 2 lights at the same height.
Being reminded about the old ever ready lights was quite amusing, wouldn't like to do some of the dark rides I have done with them!

 

[guerney]

And before you know it you've spent the same as a magicshine or even exposure.
But even then it hasnt the throw, and you cant make it project further or wider by adding any number, all you do is brighten up the immediate area

So its really just a false economy though these cheap lights, they dont last and 1 replacement means its 2x the price youve spent. My Exposure ive been running for 4 years and i know of people running exposure for 8 and 9 years. They are dependable and can be fixed. Cheap goes wrong and it can only be binned(for 90% of users)
i dont need to add an unspecified number because the single ive bought is good enough.

Multiple cheap lamps, multiple offerings to the God of dustbins.
Now thats not good for the environment is it ?

Why would I want headlights which light up the road hundreds of feet ahead? I'm trying to avoid impending pothole doom, not aiming to replace the function of lamp posts for all road users. I'd have to charge a tax. Floodlights aren't suitable for road cycling. None of my soldered on headlghts have yet failed despite being on day and night, but if any do and if I can't repair it, a replacement will be available for the same price or less. They won't all die a death at once. I don't have all four headlights illuminating exactly the same part of the road. It'd be wonderful if I could find headlights with adjustable beam focus, like there is for some torches. I considered replacing one of the glass lens covers with a heavy 2 inch thick glass headlight lens which hit my front door, having been thrown about 150ft by the crashed car it had formerly been attached to. Although it fits, I think it's too heavy for the aluminium surround to hold for long, and would make the beam far too wide.

 

[portals]

Here's a question for the experts, I have no space left on handlebars so want to reduce the footprint the two gear levers take up. This is busy handlebar, you can see the two nasty looking thumb levers for gears taking up a ridiculous amount of space (already dremeled the 3 speed lever so it's shorter):


Planning on replacing with these:

Loading…

www.amazon.co.uk

My question is will they work OK with this Shimano derailleur, is the tension per click the same as I read that you should match them re index?

 

[guerney]

I was with a mate with a similar set up riding at about 30mph down an old out of town inclined railway in the dark, when we got close to the bottom there was a guy walking a dog so we slowed down. He shouted as we went past 'f**king hell I thought the Martians were coming'.

The idea of having one headlight pointing back at my hi-viz, was to make my upper body more visible, not just look like a bunch of lights. I don't know what it all looked like to my neighbour the other night, while he was standing outside my front door as I was landing. He was a bit shocked, said "I didn't know what it was".

 

[portals]

This is what is currently in my Ali basket, nuts how they encourage you to 'wait' for days for the 'Upcoming price', I'm assuming that's next Friday.

So, what other bike related tat could I add to my basket that of course I don't really need, plan on doing one big order so will probably add some more spares for my CR5-SE 3D printer and also have a cpl of other things I think I might just take a punt on...

 

[portals]

I already have a Chibson (this little beauty), finish is phenomenal and you would not believe what it was bought for from a UK site..

So has anyone actually bought a guitar from AliExpress? Or pedals or amps?

It's my birthday tomorrow and I'm tempted to treat myself (not had a new guitar in a year!), how bad can they be for the money? Have read very mixed reviews online, some got dogs and others couldn't believe their luck...

Might also go to town and buy som FX pedals and an amp for my son jamming in flat.

 

[guerney]

AliExpress is so irritating. If you click around on the scrolling listings which appear at the bottom part of the page, this current price is lower than Black Friday's! I can't link it, because it's in an overlay. It can added to the other shopping AliExpress shopping cart - they have two, with different rules. Sometimes all delivery charges are waived on the second cart, if you buy three items, no matter how low the total is. Yet if you checkout using both carts separately, they send it all in one large box or bag. Fiendishly designed to sell you more cheap tat.

 

[guerney]

So has anyone actually bought a guitar from AliExpress? Or pedals or amps?

Nope, but this reverb sounds nice for the money. I haven't listened closely for noise yet - I bet that will happen via the power supply, if one is supplied.

M-VAVE MINI-UNIVERSE Electric Guitar Reverb Effects Pedal 9 Reverb Effects Room/Shimmer/Lofi/Spring Reveb Guitar Pedal - AliExpress 18

Smarter Shopping, Better Living! Aliexpress.com

vi.aliexpress.com

 

[portals]

AliExpress is so irritating. If you click around on the scrolling listings which appear at the bottom part of the page, this current price is lower than Black Friday's! I can't link it, because it's in an overlay. It can added to the other shopping AliExpress shopping cart - they have two, with different rules. Sometimes all delivery charges are waived on the second cart, if you buy three items, no matter how low the total is. Yet if you checkout using both carts separately, they send it all in one large box or bag. Fiendishly designed to sell you more cheap tat.


View attachment 60959

I don't get any 'overlays' on the site, maybe because of ad blocker? You could post s screen capture of what you mean by 'overlays'?

 

[guerney]

I don't get any 'overlays' on the site, maybe because of ad blocker? You could post s screen capture of what you mean by 'overlays'?

As you know websites like AliExpress are driven by databases. Sometimes results are delivered within a page, instead of it's own page, with the underlying page greyed out, like this:





To find that light at that price, search for "12 led bike light"". It'll be in the results somewhere...





...when you click on the low priced 12 LED light, you'll be taken to a page which features that light...





...and you have to click the thing again to see the overlay, which allows you to add it to your second shopping cart, with free shipping.





Could turn out to be rubbish for pothole hunting, even with two. I'll try to get around to doing a proper comparison with fixed exposure camera settings when the snow melts. Last year, post- Black Friday prices didn't seem much lower than pre-Black Friday prices. I'm not going to fall for that again. Mind you, that could be what they want me to think, the evil fiends.

 

[portals]

They don't seem to sell amps apart from real cheapo crap so giving that a miss.

Found a couple of quite nice looking Slash amber Chibson Les Pauls for under and over £200 but I don't think I'll bite as none of them show the headstock properly... If I could get a good solid one with a nice neck, headstock and paint job I'd pay that then replace all parts and electronics but delivery in mid Jan....so no.

That leaves FX pedals ;-)

Interestingly there appear to be no rip-off BOSS pedal clones. Have become a fan of some of these these mini pedals though, they are all OEM but rebranded such as Rowin, Landlord, Mooer etc. and all over the internet and quite a few of them are bloody good! I used the Rowin noise gate already have (£30 in UK), from guitar jack in to digital interface when recording the track I pasted here ages ago).

Equalizer is kept flat and notched up to use as volume boost for guitar solos etc, already have a Rowin noise gate this one is slightly different design can never have enough noise gates, compressor for my son, two flangers just to see if I can get near the BOSS BF-3 sound and a spare power bank (rude not to at that price...). They seem to fall down a little on the reverbs and delays but will do some more research and probably buy some too!

I can buy everything below in this post for the price of a new BOSS BF-3 flanger ;-)




This is a good deal, £35-40 in UK, most guitarists would be very happy to receive this from Santa even if you already have loads of gear. I have the Lekato branded version and love it as up in running in 5secs...
!

 

[portals]

As you know websites like AliExpress are driven by databases. Sometimes results are delivered within a page, instead of it's own page, with the underlying page greyed out, like this:


View attachment 60973


To find that light at that price, search for "12 led bike light"". It'll be in the results somewhere...


View attachment 60974


...when you click on the low priced 12 LED light, you'll be taken to a page which features that light...


View attachment 60975


...and you have to click the thing again to see the overlay, which allows you to add it to your second shopping cart, with free shipping.


View attachment 60976


Could turn out to be rubbish for pothole hunting, even with two. I'll try to get around to doing a proper comparison with fixed exposure camera settings when the snow melts. Last year, post- Black Friday prices didn't seem much lower than pre-Black Friday prices. I'm not going to fall for that again. Mind you, that could be what they want me to think, the evil fiends.

OK so their website can fck off, I cannot get the price you get and have given up, then I tried on gaming PC next to me and I get £4.78 welcome deal...like I said they can fck off.... The reason I've only ever previously ordered 3d printer spares, after this I won't be back until need more printer spares...

Thanks for the help anyway!