N
Nate Nagel
Guest
Ecnerwal wrote:
> In article <[email protected]>,
> Nate Nagel <[email protected]> wrote:
>
>
>>Telling everyone that wants to ride at night that they need to spend
>>$180 on a headlight is fine, I guess, if you want to encourage people
>>not to ride...
>
>
> Well, you know, there those who encourage riding, and those who
> encourage spending lots of money at the LBS, with riding being quite
> optional, so long as the money gets spent - and not at any of your
> hardware stores or evil on-line places.
>
> Put on a tail-light and some side markers as well, preferably. You can
> get the standard 3 red LED tail unit for $2.95 + shipping from
> www.sciplus.com (just a happy customer). They also have a bigger one
> (with 6 times the LEDs) for $8.50. At least you'll know how much your
> LBS is extorting (above the commodity price) for this sort of thing if
> you shop there.
>
> If you're handy with a soldering iron, you can cobble tail and marker
> lights up yourself, though you would have a difficult time breaking even
> for the above price on a tail light with a nice lens and mount.
Already picked up a seriously bright blinky; one of those 9 LED deals.
It's brighter than the taillights on my car, I think. But thanks for
the pointers...
> Don't bother with their 9 white LED "bike & head lamp", other than as a
> possible side marker light, with a little yellow on the lens. Beats no
> light at all (I got one for the headlamp function), but is shamed by the
> low-end single emitter light mentioned below (which I got later on).
>
> If you'll be riding a lot, a NiMH rapid charger and a pile of NiMH AA's
> will cost a lot less than disposables. If you don't use them much,
> disposables are cheaper. Best price I those I found last year was for a
> 20-pack at Adorama camera (also just a happy customer, and a very price
> sensitive one for "commodity" items like this). Some other place may
> well have them cheaper this week. Avoid coin-cell lights for regular use
> - coin cells are expensive unless you buy thousands at a time.
That's what I'm thinking... I've already got the charger and batteries
for the digicam that I keep in my car for work, so buying a couple more
batteries would make sense. Also if I felt like a long ride I could
easily just throw some extra batteries in my seat bag.
> I've got one of the less exciting super-duper LED lights (Terrralux
> lower-end conversion for a 2AA minimag I already owned) and it's very
> effective for being seen (by oncoming cars - I use it when walking along
> the road at night - there's no sidewalk here), and pretty darn good for
> seeing, though I'd suggest getting one of the better/brighter units (as
> others have suggested) for that purpose on a bike. Goes a very long time
> on a set of AA rechargables (I have yet to run it all the way out before
> I decide to recharge for the sake of the batteries). Changed a dim
> battery-eater into a useful light.
>
> Be careful about aiming the bright LED lights - they are painfully
> bright to look at and can blind/dazzle the same as a car high-beam if
> aimed too high. That can help get you IN an accident.
Believe me I'm well aware of that... I'm running E-code halogens on my
car as well, just my way of trying to set a good example...
> Riding at night can be a hairy proposition - but that's regardless of
> how much or how little you've spent on lights, and daytime does not
> remove the hairiness in many places. Every route out of town here
> involves long stretches of too many cars and not enough space for bikes
> (one even has a goodly stretch of concrete retaining wall on the inside
> of a corner - no place to go AND no visibility) - I'm surprised there
> are not more accidents. Once out of town the bike-lane program on the
> highway bills has had a noticeable positive effect on room for bikes -
> getting there is not half the fun, however. At present, I try to stick
> to riding during daylight.
I hear you there. From a driver's perspective, I absolutely *hate*
those bikers that you don't see until "almost too late." So I am indeed
planning lots of reflective tape, etc. should my rims not appear shiny
enough in the headlight test (probably not, I'm guessing.)
I think I'm back where I started, though - your ideas for homebrew look
good, but I've got so many other projects (old car, old house, ugly
yard, etc.) that I was really hoping for something involving minimal
fitting. Looks like this is would actually work with my handlebars and
appears to be fairly bright:
http://www.bikemannetwork.com/biking/p/LT1042
found it here:
http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?t=176131
where it seems to be pretty good in the "bang for the buck" department.
I think it was the very first light I found when looking for a light
with a handlebar mount that would work on my bike, and it actually looks
like a very viable option. It ain't the size of my pinkie but it might
get the job done. I am still considering the LED flashlight options
too, for the multifunctional goodness.
nate
--
replace "roosters" with "cox" to reply.
http://members.cox.net/njnagel
> In article <[email protected]>,
> Nate Nagel <[email protected]> wrote:
>
>
>>Telling everyone that wants to ride at night that they need to spend
>>$180 on a headlight is fine, I guess, if you want to encourage people
>>not to ride...
>
>
> Well, you know, there those who encourage riding, and those who
> encourage spending lots of money at the LBS, with riding being quite
> optional, so long as the money gets spent - and not at any of your
> hardware stores or evil on-line places.
>
> Put on a tail-light and some side markers as well, preferably. You can
> get the standard 3 red LED tail unit for $2.95 + shipping from
> www.sciplus.com (just a happy customer). They also have a bigger one
> (with 6 times the LEDs) for $8.50. At least you'll know how much your
> LBS is extorting (above the commodity price) for this sort of thing if
> you shop there.
>
> If you're handy with a soldering iron, you can cobble tail and marker
> lights up yourself, though you would have a difficult time breaking even
> for the above price on a tail light with a nice lens and mount.
Already picked up a seriously bright blinky; one of those 9 LED deals.
It's brighter than the taillights on my car, I think. But thanks for
the pointers...
> Don't bother with their 9 white LED "bike & head lamp", other than as a
> possible side marker light, with a little yellow on the lens. Beats no
> light at all (I got one for the headlamp function), but is shamed by the
> low-end single emitter light mentioned below (which I got later on).
>
> If you'll be riding a lot, a NiMH rapid charger and a pile of NiMH AA's
> will cost a lot less than disposables. If you don't use them much,
> disposables are cheaper. Best price I those I found last year was for a
> 20-pack at Adorama camera (also just a happy customer, and a very price
> sensitive one for "commodity" items like this). Some other place may
> well have them cheaper this week. Avoid coin-cell lights for regular use
> - coin cells are expensive unless you buy thousands at a time.
That's what I'm thinking... I've already got the charger and batteries
for the digicam that I keep in my car for work, so buying a couple more
batteries would make sense. Also if I felt like a long ride I could
easily just throw some extra batteries in my seat bag.
> I've got one of the less exciting super-duper LED lights (Terrralux
> lower-end conversion for a 2AA minimag I already owned) and it's very
> effective for being seen (by oncoming cars - I use it when walking along
> the road at night - there's no sidewalk here), and pretty darn good for
> seeing, though I'd suggest getting one of the better/brighter units (as
> others have suggested) for that purpose on a bike. Goes a very long time
> on a set of AA rechargables (I have yet to run it all the way out before
> I decide to recharge for the sake of the batteries). Changed a dim
> battery-eater into a useful light.
>
> Be careful about aiming the bright LED lights - they are painfully
> bright to look at and can blind/dazzle the same as a car high-beam if
> aimed too high. That can help get you IN an accident.
Believe me I'm well aware of that... I'm running E-code halogens on my
car as well, just my way of trying to set a good example...
> Riding at night can be a hairy proposition - but that's regardless of
> how much or how little you've spent on lights, and daytime does not
> remove the hairiness in many places. Every route out of town here
> involves long stretches of too many cars and not enough space for bikes
> (one even has a goodly stretch of concrete retaining wall on the inside
> of a corner - no place to go AND no visibility) - I'm surprised there
> are not more accidents. Once out of town the bike-lane program on the
> highway bills has had a noticeable positive effect on room for bikes -
> getting there is not half the fun, however. At present, I try to stick
> to riding during daylight.
I hear you there. From a driver's perspective, I absolutely *hate*
those bikers that you don't see until "almost too late." So I am indeed
planning lots of reflective tape, etc. should my rims not appear shiny
enough in the headlight test (probably not, I'm guessing.)
I think I'm back where I started, though - your ideas for homebrew look
good, but I've got so many other projects (old car, old house, ugly
yard, etc.) that I was really hoping for something involving minimal
fitting. Looks like this is would actually work with my handlebars and
appears to be fairly bright:
http://www.bikemannetwork.com/biking/p/LT1042
found it here:
http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?t=176131
where it seems to be pretty good in the "bang for the buck" department.
I think it was the very first light I found when looking for a light
with a handlebar mount that would work on my bike, and it actually looks
like a very viable option. It ain't the size of my pinkie but it might
get the job done. I am still considering the LED flashlight options
too, for the multifunctional goodness.
nate
--
replace "roosters" with "cox" to reply.
http://members.cox.net/njnagel
