What a blinking good idea!
- Thread starter GloveMakingMan
- Start date
I find they work well. They flash at the same rate as a motor vehicle so there is no mistaking what they are. They have got to be the brightest LEDs on the market today. They would have been better if they were made without the mirror, just a light.
NOTE: These are actually designed to fit into the ends of the handlebars but by doing so it made my bike far too wide!
NOTE: These are actually designed to fit into the ends of the handlebars but by doing so it made my bike far too wide!
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Hope these are better than very similar ones produced a few years ago which looked very similar and were called Winkku. They were heavy on the ends of the handlebar, and the jogging about meant the contacts inside with batteries etc. was poor and they didn't work well. They were just gimmicky. I also think that during the day they were not particularly visible, and car drivers are not looking out for indicators on bikes. Both my wife and I had them, one of hers broke as she went over a pothole in the forest and ended up under the wheels of a horse box. We didn't persevere with them, but they convinced us of the benefits of rear view mirrors and now always have normal bar end mirrors on our bikes.
Edit: there has been some discussion on pedelecs in the past about the Winkku which I have to say we're almost the same as the above. I did a longer review a few years ago here
http://pedelecs.co.uk/forum/threads/indicators-winkku.7332/
Also there are reviews on Amazon
Edit: there has been some discussion on pedelecs in the past about the Winkku which I have to say we're almost the same as the above. I did a longer review a few years ago here
http://pedelecs.co.uk/forum/threads/indicators-winkku.7332/
Also there are reviews on Amazon
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So many questions!!!
Can you give us a link to where you purchased them from please?
How do they get their power?
If they are designed for end of handlebar, how have you connected them to the bike please?
I guess they use a little button per side to turn on the indicators?
Have they got front lights also?
Really interested in these, but need loads more info please Glove making man?
Thanks, Dave
Can you give us a link to where you purchased them from please?
How do they get their power?
If they are designed for end of handlebar, how have you connected them to the bike please?
I guess they use a little button per side to turn on the indicators?
Have they got front lights also?
Really interested in these, but need loads more info please Glove making man?
Thanks, Dave
If I remember rightly each Winkku had 4 AA batteries in them which made them heavy and the weak point where they broke off was at the bar end as this lot bumped along the roads. The best indicator that a car driver sees and expects is a clear outstretched arm pointing ones intention.
Very true. These mirror indicators only appear to indicate at the front, surely it's the overtaking cars that need to see the turn intention?
.
Thought I'd repost my review from 2009. They do look like resurrected Winkku. Flecc, I think the indicators did show rearward s as well, but in daylight not very clearly.
Repost....
My personal thoughts and musings. I've not had a good experience with these indicators, but what they did do was to convince me that rear view mirrors were a great idea and I then went out and bought some for both my bikes and my wife's - just simple rear view mirrors without the 'gimmicks' and wouldn't be without these. We had Winku's on our Kalkoffs before (bought in April 2009 and gave up in August 2009) but they were beset by endless problems, the main one being that the shear weight of the unit with its batteries hanging off the end of the bar-end caused so much strain on the handlebar joint that I had a number of failures - the barend fittings were replaced at least twice, including redesigned ones but still they broke. Finally, one Winku broke off whilst my wife was cycling downhill near Beaulieu and the unit ended up being flattened under a horse box following behind. Overall, with replacements and or purchases I had 3 units and 5 bar-end fittings after which I just gave up.
Interesting in the summer of 2009 met another pedelec with a Powerbyke on the Bristol to Bath Cycleway (old railway line), and he'd had a similar experience to us when he saw we had one at that time on my wife's bike. After being given one as a Xmas present in 2008 and having 'problems' , he'd also been in discussion, as I had, with Dan Wright (the designer/supplier) and he didn't then still have one on his bike. In summary, I bought 2 units, had one replaced, one flattened under horse box and one collecting dust somewhere deep in my shed with one intact bar end.
If you can keep them secured to the handlebar end are they then any good? Well, in bright daylight it's difficult for drivers to see the winking indicator and would they be looking for it anyway? At night they obviously show up as do the front/rear facing lights but... the units I had would suddenly switch off as batteries lost contact - due to vibration or circuitry problems (one unit was replaced but we still found intermittent continuity problems? In the end I just gave up. Interestingly I bought direct from original designer/source at a time when 50cycles were carrying the item amongst their accessories. I note they have stopped supplying now?
Edit 1. - Removed bit about price from original post since it's £50 for a pair
Edit 2. Final thought especially in daylight - If you get knocked off making a turn with the Winkku flashing, does that count as the same as a clear hand signal?
Repost....
My personal thoughts and musings. I've not had a good experience with these indicators, but what they did do was to convince me that rear view mirrors were a great idea and I then went out and bought some for both my bikes and my wife's - just simple rear view mirrors without the 'gimmicks' and wouldn't be without these. We had Winku's on our Kalkoffs before (bought in April 2009 and gave up in August 2009) but they were beset by endless problems, the main one being that the shear weight of the unit with its batteries hanging off the end of the bar-end caused so much strain on the handlebar joint that I had a number of failures - the barend fittings were replaced at least twice, including redesigned ones but still they broke. Finally, one Winku broke off whilst my wife was cycling downhill near Beaulieu and the unit ended up being flattened under a horse box following behind. Overall, with replacements and or purchases I had 3 units and 5 bar-end fittings after which I just gave up.
Interesting in the summer of 2009 met another pedelec with a Powerbyke on the Bristol to Bath Cycleway (old railway line), and he'd had a similar experience to us when he saw we had one at that time on my wife's bike. After being given one as a Xmas present in 2008 and having 'problems' , he'd also been in discussion, as I had, with Dan Wright (the designer/supplier) and he didn't then still have one on his bike. In summary, I bought 2 units, had one replaced, one flattened under horse box and one collecting dust somewhere deep in my shed with one intact bar end.
If you can keep them secured to the handlebar end are they then any good? Well, in bright daylight it's difficult for drivers to see the winking indicator and would they be looking for it anyway? At night they obviously show up as do the front/rear facing lights but... the units I had would suddenly switch off as batteries lost contact - due to vibration or circuitry problems (one unit was replaced but we still found intermittent continuity problems? In the end I just gave up. Interestingly I bought direct from original designer/source at a time when 50cycles were carrying the item amongst their accessories. I note they have stopped supplying now?
Edit 1. - Removed bit about price from original post since it's £50 for a pair
Edit 2. Final thought especially in daylight - If you get knocked off making a turn with the Winkku flashing, does that count as the same as a clear hand signal?
The best idea would be a flashing indicator on the back of each glove, operated by a "level" switch when the arm is horizontal.
Yes, these are Winkku's. They are available on Ebay and Amazon. They are self contained units using 3 AA batteries. The right is black whereas the left is grey, strange, i don't like that! I think they are probably the best on the market at mo but i would have designed them differently, making them smaller and without a mirror. They also have the option of using them as normal lights. They shine red at the back, white at the front. When indicator switch is touched they auto change to turn signals. The only weak part i've found is the 'strap-on' fitting, i don't use that part of it. Of course they are used in conjunction with arm signals, naturally, but there is only so long one can keep their hand off the handlebars when turning a corner!!!!! Another useful part of the Winkku is the audible bleeping which can be heard by pedestrians at junctions. For design, i would prefer Blinkergrips from Germany but i am not too sure on the brightness of them and they are expensive. Winkku's use several LEDs front and back of unit and are very visible at night when they are really needed. The only indicators that would be seen clearly by day would be the type fitted to motorcycles.
I would rather have deleted my post but i cannot find that option. Does anyone know how to delete posts that may have been done in error?
Best bet is a large Dayglo message on the back of a jacket:
. . ..HARD UP
. . . . .NEED
COMPENSATION
. . . .PLEASE
..RUN INTO ME
Motorists would collide with everything else while reading the message, but you'd never get touched.
.
. . ..HARD UP
. . . . .NEED
COMPENSATION
. . . .PLEASE
..RUN INTO ME
Motorists would collide with everything else while reading the message, but you'd never get touched.
.
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I remember the old motorcycle ones from the 60s, touch your thumb and forefinger together and a light flashed on the back of the glove.
Best bet is a large Dayglo message on the back of a jacket:
. . ..HARD UP
. . . . .NEED
COMPENSATION
. . . .PLEASE
. .RUN INTO ME
Motorists would collide with everything else while reading the message, but you'd never get touched.
.
And the best thing to stick in the bar end is a mirror, that's the message I got from attempting to use Winkku in 2009. Haven't been without a conventional bar end mirror since, and it feels odd when cycling without one. Even these can break off occasionally, once by the end of a builder's trailer knocking it as he cut in on me after getting his van last!
For design, i much prefer these Blinkergrips. They are easily operated with a thumb switch. They just need to be a little bigger and brighter i think. My own view only though!
http://blinkergrips.com/
http://blinkergrips.com/
Definitely. I first got a mirror years ago when I found with a hood when it rained didn't allow looking over the shoulder successfully. I found it so invaluable I won't ride a bike without one now, a mirror if it's properly used is the best protection a bike rider can ever have.
.
I've also found that the older I get the less I can turn my neck/body round
and that the floor seems to get further away when I have to bend down. Either I'm getting taller or my arms are getting shorter
They indicate at the front, the back and also on the side with many LED lights
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