Bike lights

[Vipassana]

I ordered them several times. Each time there was a handle bar mount, headband, charger, battery pack and battery carry case.  The wide angle lens was a sperate purchase.

[Carbon_Dude]

All for $25?

[Vipassana]

Yes, sir.  Like I said, I have two of them and my riding buddies have a couple more. 

Here is a review of the kit I have, though he got it on eBay.

http://forums.roadbikereview.com/commuting-touring-ride-reports/review-ebay-1800-lumen-cree-xml-t6-led-bicycle-bike-headlight-lamp-269236.html

[snipe]

From what I saw, your link was only for the light, not the battery, charger, or accessories.  I have seen lots websites selling the CREE LED lights for $25 but they were only the light itself, nothing else.

I'm not sure which link you were referring to but the ones I have looked at in that price range have included the battery and headband...more or less the same as the magic shine kit I bought.  I bought mine when geoman was still around and he provided the better battery.   Whether that battery is worth the premium its hard to tell but there were several stories about the cheaper batteries.  However my friends that are running the cheapos are pretty happy. 

[Carbon_Dude]

Yes, sir.  Like I said, I have two of them and my riding buddies have a couple more. 

Here is a review of the kit I have, though he got it on eBay.

http://forums.roadbikereview.com/commuting-touring-ride-reports/review-ebay-1800-lumen-cree-xml-t6-led-bicycle-bike-headlight-lamp-269236.html

Okay Vip, for $20, it might be time to update my old dual halogen bike light (with my handmade battery) and put on one of these inexpensive lights.  Night rides start next month at the local trails so I might as well get something nicer on order now.

Rather than getting the single Cree that you posted and adding a wide angle lens, what to you think about this dual CREE bar light from the same seller?

http://www.amazon.com/Lumen-Cycling-Bicycle-HeadLight-Headlamp/dp/B00F372RGK/ref=pd_sim_sg_6?ie=UTF8&refRID=1KH3GWM475M8F9RKY7YH



Doesn't come with a helmet mount but that's okay, I've got the other Chi-Cree for my helmet that I bought a few years ago.

[tasty.dirt74]

I have both styles of light. Prob have bought 5 sets of lights, mostly to get more batteries, as the quality can be hit and miss..!!

They have cost generally AU$30-70 each over the last 4 years or so..

Both styles give incredibly good output, even if the official claims are misleading. Run the dual led on the helmet, and a single on the bars. We need plenty of light for the trails that we ride at night!!

I would really like to get a couple of GOOD quality battery packs, for reassurance.As it stands, if the ride is remote(far North Queensland, Australia type remote..)then 2, or 3 batteries in total to bring(just in case, you know!)

The lights themselves are good, but I find over time that the actual switch becomes difficult to operate. I have a few good ones, and a couple of not so good ones.

[carbonazza]

I'm just back from a night ride here in Belgium.

And it was the second time I used this cheap light:
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/New-Generation-XM-L2-X2-Cree-LED-Bike-Bicycle-MTB-Light-Cycling-Lights-UK-Stock-/161362759435?ssPageName=ADME:X:RTQ:GB:1123

The brand is UniqueFire. There are plenty of sellers of this light on ebay but this one ships free in Europe.
It has two different beams.
One narrow beam, as a long range.
The other beam is wide and short range.

The 5000LM is totally misleading.
I would say it looks a bit less bright than my Lupine Piko at 900LM.
But still very good for the price.

The battery case is more waterproof than the usual pack you get with other lights.

[325racer]

I've been doing a little bit of night riding lately and have used a couple different lights.

A few years ago I purchased a set of the round Magic Shine Style Chinese lights.  They look very much like the light below, but if I'm not mistaken were listed as 1400 lumen.

http://www.amazon.com/RioRand-Bicycle-HeadLight-Flashlight-Headlamp/dp/B006QQX3C4/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1414694310&sr=8-6&keywords=cree+bike+light

These lights work very well, but are very much a bright spot light.  I tried getting a wide angle lens, but it turned out to be a slightly smaller diameter than the lights I had and thus would not fit.  I have however, loved the amount of light, but just wanted a wider pattern and maybe brighter if possible.

Recently I purchased a set of the new small dual lens lights, which are supposed to be a higher output than what I previously had.  In comparison, the brightest setting on the new lights is about equal to the lowest setting on the old lights.  However, the new lights are a much more dispersed pattern and make a very good flood light. 

http://www.amazon.com/Lumen-Cycling-Bicycle-HeadLight-Headlamp/dp/B00F372RGK/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1414694310&sr=8-1&keywords=cree+bike+light

I also was searching around for a better handlebar mount than the "rubberband" method.  On my old set I had picked up the mount from Action Led Lights.  http://www.action-led-lights.com/collections/accessories/products/bar-mount-clamp-on  I felt that it worked quite well, but the the light would sometimes rotate slightly even when tight.

So I started searching for some new mounts and found these HOPE Universal mounts.  I have yet to put them to the test, but first impressions are they fit the bill just right, well except that the included screw is to large a diameter and the one on the stock mount for the light is to short, requiring some rumaging for the right size and some washers to take up the extra space.  On first glance I would deffinitly recommend these mounts with the expectation you'll need to hunt down the right screws.

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/us/en/hope-universal-handlebar-mount/rp-prod23533

I have a 12 Hour Team endurance race coming up on Nov 8, where I know I'll be doing at least one 10 mile lap in the dark, so my plan will be to run one of the new lights on the bars as a flood lamp, one of the old lights on the bar as a spot, and a second one of the old style on my helmet.  I ran this same setup the other night and while I was dissapointed in the overall performance of the new lights, I think they will work very well in conjunction with my other lights.

[Carbon_Dude]

I ended up ordering two different lights for my bars, in hopes one will really like one of the two and maybe sell the other.

I already received this one:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00JGNEMAG/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

It's a really nice light, and about twice as bright as my Magicshine.  For $40, I'm very pleased with it, quality is a step above the other Chinese lights.  For a little more cost, it's a much nicer light than I expected.

The second one is another dual beam CREE LED but it was only $15 and already posted by myself and others.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00F372RGK/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

It's up to $18 now and it has a long shipping time out of China, no bother, I don't mind waiting and for a cheap backup light, I can just put it on the shelf if I don't use it.

[Patrick C.]

Vipassana, how do you mount your light on your helmet?  I don't really want to tear up the included mount with the head strap, since that would come in handy before or after the ride.

[Carbon_Dude]

This one was included when I purchased my Magicshine light.

http://www.amazon.com/MagicShine-Helmet-Mount-Kit/dp/B004QOVA00/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1415384968&sr=8-1&keywords=helmet+light+mount

Also, I did a 2 hour ride this past Wednesday night.  Both lights worked great, no problems and very bright.