TheX Posted October 24, 2020 Share Posted October 24, 2020 30 minutes ago, CBaron said: Changes a bit with how quickly you will be moving in the dark. -CJB Haha, I have a feeling that will be pretty slow the first time out. I imagine it takes some getting used to. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cafeend Posted October 24, 2020 Share Posted October 24, 2020 I have a NiteRider Pro 1200 on my bars. How far ahead of the bike should the center beam land?My bar lights are about 10 to 12 feet out and centered on my bar. I run the light on my helmet a slightly higher angle so as I look ahead that light is much further past. I think the biggest adjustment is dealing and reading shadows.Oh.. and deciding if the root ahead of you is a root or CobraSent from my SM-N960U using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hugh Posted October 24, 2020 Share Posted October 24, 2020 4 hours ago, Cafeend said: My bar lights are about 10 to 12 feet out and centered on my bar. I run the light on my helmet a slightly higher angle so as I look ahead that light is much further past. I think the biggest adjustment is dealing and reading shadows. Oh.. and deciding if the root ahead of you is a root or Cobra Sent from my SM-N960U using Tapatalk Reminds me of 24 Hours of Rocky Hill years ago on a night lap. I stopped for a massive snake slithering across the trail. Another guy came flying up and screamed,"WOOHOO!Snake!" as he bunnyhopped it. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leafkiller Posted October 25, 2020 Share Posted October 25, 2020 This is my current setup. I used it for the second time Friday night and had a blast. It is a Blackburn Dayblazer 800. I keep a battery pack mounted on the bars next to it to keep it going. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TAF Posted October 25, 2020 Share Posted October 25, 2020 The Dayblazer red blinky is my rear light of preference - I don't think I've ever seen anything as bright that wasn't connected to an airplane or a train. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheX Posted October 28, 2020 Share Posted October 28, 2020 Woohoo! Your Outbound Lighting order has been shipped! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WLemke Posted October 28, 2020 Share Posted October 28, 2020 53 minutes ago, TheX said: Woohoo! Your Outbound Lighting order has been shipped! Nice! After I purchased my gloworms, creepy ass Facebook started showing me ads for Outbound lighting. I never saw anything about them when researching different lights which is too bad as their product looks intriguing. Did you get both of their lights? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheX Posted October 28, 2020 Share Posted October 28, 2020 2 minutes ago, WLemke said: Did you get both of their lights? I bought the Hangover for my helmet. I have a NiteRider Pro on my bars. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cafeend Posted October 31, 2020 Share Posted October 31, 2020 Riding Rim tonight. I had a young owl buzz me twice. Very cool . Also never road Dave's Ditch at night before, way cooler in the darkSent from my SM-N960U using Tapatalk 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheX Posted November 2, 2020 Share Posted November 2, 2020 The Hangover light showed up today, and it is brilliant. Bright, and VERY low profile. Very happy with this purchase. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
olddbrider Posted November 3, 2020 Share Posted November 3, 2020 The time change and all this talk of lights prompted me to dig out my old lights (NiteRider MiNewt and a first-gen MagicShine) and see what condition they were in. To be honest, I was fully expecting neither battery to hold a charge given that both of these lights are over 10 years old and haven't been used in at least 5 years. I was also a bit worried about even trying to charge the batteries, especially since those early MagicShine batteries had some, uh, let's say, issues. So, I got my trusty metal bucket and put it on the back porch and started charging. Surprisingly, neither battery exploded or burst into flames. Both indicator lights turned green after a while so I hooked up the lights, turned on a fan to keep things from getting too toasty, and fired them up. The NR burned brightly (well, as bright as it can) for 90 minutes, then started to fade over the next 30 minutes. It was still technically on after 2 hours but I'm not sure how useful it would be on a trail at night at that brightness. The MagicShine was still going strong after 2 hours with no noticeable drop in brightness. My setup certainly won't be as bright as some others mentioned on this thread, but hopefully it will allow me to keep doing at least one after-work ride during the week. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yosmithy Posted November 3, 2020 Share Posted November 3, 2020 I hadn't used my $20 ShenKey Amazon lights for probably 2 years. Just this last weekend I decided to go out for a night ride and cautiously put both lights on the charger (outside). I was quite surprised that they both took a full charge and had no noticeable decrease in luminosity. Go figure Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leafkiller Posted November 3, 2020 Share Posted November 3, 2020 I went on my first night ride with the Waco Bicycle Club last night and had a blast. My setup worked quite well. I was able to see very well for over two hours with it. Quite pleased for now. For now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
circuitbreaker Posted November 4, 2020 Share Posted November 4, 2020 On 11/2/2020 at 3:16 PM, TheX said: The Hangover light showed up today, and it is brilliant. Bright, and VERY low profile. Very happy with this purchase. Regarding the Hangover, it comes with a mount? and the mount will just stick on my helmet? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheX Posted November 4, 2020 Share Posted November 4, 2020 25 minutes ago, circuitbreaker said: Regarding the Hangover, it comes with a mount? and the mount will just stick on my helmet? Yes, it comes with a nice GoPro compatible mount. Just peel and stick. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mack_turtle Posted November 17, 2021 Author Share Posted November 17, 2021 (edited) back to this. I think my Night Rider battery is finally staring to poop the bed. started CnD last night with a full change and rode with low- medium mode for about 90 minutes before it died. that left the Sofirn dive light on my handlebar which is bright AF, but it's kind of a "spot" light. the handlebar mount I am using is very rubbery and bounces all over the place, so it's like trying to read the terrain with strobe light. fortunately, I was following two other riders who helped tow me to the end so I would not get lost in the dark. it forced me a slow down a lot. I got out of the woods OK but it sucked. the worry that I might lose the handlebar light also left me feeling uneasy. YGWYPF. Niterider wants $130 for a new battery and that would be me well on my way to a superior light, so that's a waste of time. so I'm back in the market for something new, watching for Black Friday type deals. before I go on, I have one question: how do you deal with the weight of a self-contained helmet light? I weighed some of my lights —that flashlight I have is close to 200g, my old Niterider 550 baby light is 137g, and the Minewt light unit (without battery) is 122g with the plastic mount. I'm surprised by how much the Minewt weighs because that's the one with a battery pack on a cord that sits in my pocket. I've tried the two self-contained lights and each one results in a headache within a few minutes or wearing it because the weight of the light pulls my helmet down over my face if I don't cinch the helmet down so tight that it crushes my skull. (maybe because of MIPS?) then my neck hurts the next day from the helmet yanking my head around. I don't have a bull neck like some of you. Am I doing something wrong? how do you deal with the extra weight on the helmet? lights to consider: Outbound Hangover — killer light for the price. my only concern is, being a self-contained light and battery, it's going to be uncomfortable enough that I won't want to ride it. it's actually pretty darn lightweight though. Glowworm Alpha Plus — very light, dual beam, handlebar remote, external battery. Gemini Duo 2200 —very similar to the Gloworm but brighter. Lezyne Multi-drive 1000 — another similar light that allows for USB charging Magic Shine MJ902S — ridiculously bright in theory, cheaper than the others. MS had a poor reputation for a bit there but they might have gotten better. Edited November 17, 2021 by mack_turtle 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ssorgs Posted November 17, 2021 Share Posted November 17, 2021 (edited) 3 hours ago, mack_turtle said: Am I doing something wrong? how do you deal with the extra weight on the helmet? lights to consider: Outbound Hangover — killer light for the price. my only concern is, being a self-contained light and battery, it's going to be uncomfortable enough that I won't want to ride it. it's actually pretty darn lightweight though. Glowworm Alpha Plus — very light, dual beam, handlebar remote, external battery. Gemini Duo 2200 —very similar to the Gloworm but brighter. Lezyne Multi-drive 1000 — another similar light that allows for USB charging Magic Shine MJ902S — ridiculously bright in theory, cheaper than the others. MS had a poor reputation for a bit there but they might have gotten better. I have an older Gemini Duo 1500. It's my only light and I wear on my helmet (as far front as I can), along with a replacement 4-cell battery pack (back of helmet). I find that this set up is pretty well balanced and I like that it's reasonably self-contained. However, I've had mixed results with Gemini. This is my 2nd light of theirs. I had a Xera 950 and left it on top of the car one night. It fell off on 360 may have gotten run over. It still worked but the lens popped out and housing was too dented to take the lens anymore. They gave me a discount on the Duo 1500, which was cool. But after the original stock 2-cell battery crapped out after 2 years or so, I've had overheating issues in the summer. I've used a replacement Gemini 4-cell and a couple of different ~$30 amazon 4-cell batteries because the Gemini replacement 4-cell was very expensive, didn't last more than a couple of years at best, and still saw my light overheating. I even made an aluminum heatsink for it, that was only marginally helpful. I did just get the ~$15 handlebar remote for it, which makes it much easier to dim when stopped or going super slow, if necessary. That may be my savior. Otherwise, I love the light! It's size is great, I can mount it under my visor so no shadow and doesn't hit branches. Best thing is that the L, M, H settings are configurable. Most lights on high only run for <2 hrs. I have 'Medium' set at 75 or 80% so I get >1100 lumens and the 4-cell lasts about 3 hrs. Most other lights have Medium at 50%, which I find much less useful (though as max lumens go up, this becomes more tenable). So, I still think Gemini is worth it on balance because of the configurable settings and remote. Otoh, there's the Oxbow Voyager https://www.oxbowgear.com/product/voyager-mountain-bike-helmet-light-kit/ that I saw on fb that looks identical to the Duo with 2100 lumens and I believe a 4-cell battery for $119! Replacement battery is only $39. Of course, not much 3rd party info on it... Edited November 17, 2021 by ssorgs Clarified that I used Gemini 4-cell. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JRIDER Posted November 17, 2021 Share Posted November 17, 2021 The best way the deal with the weight on the helmet is to have a separate mounted battery. I tried the contained light on the helmet and it felt like someone was smacking me on the head each time I hit a bump. Not good on a technical trail. Save the contained lights for the handlebars. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AntonioGG Posted November 17, 2021 Share Posted November 17, 2021 I agree with @JRIDER. I spend extra on lighter helmets because it makes a difference over a 12-24 hour race, and I also use a lightweight helmet light with a battery in my back pocket. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mack_turtle Posted November 17, 2021 Author Share Posted November 17, 2021 I might skip the Outbound Hangover in that case, although it seems like a great product. it might just not be for me. there are a lot of great options for under $200 and I have learned the hard way — way too many times — that saving a few bucks is not worth just getting the best tool for the job the first time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AustinBike Posted November 17, 2021 Share Posted November 17, 2021 I have an old Gloworm X2 that I have on my handlebars, works fine. I was joking with Chuck that because I ride slow that was enough. After last night I am gonna get the NiteRider helmet mount and put my Lumina 900 up there and try that out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mack_turtle Posted November 17, 2021 Author Share Posted November 17, 2021 (edited) I wish I could ride with just one light, but the secondary angle of light has proven to be a necessity for me. with just a handlebar light, the beam casts a shadow in grassy areas. I can only see what is directly in front of me, never "around a corner" or looking down into a hole. maybe part of the problem is that the light I had is to focused and spot-y and something with a wider beam would be better. Edited November 18, 2021 by mack_turtle 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AustinBike Posted November 18, 2021 Share Posted November 18, 2021 I mostly night ride at walnut and have been riding that trail for 20 years, so I kinda know it. Would be much more of a problem on other less known trails. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedRider3141 Posted November 18, 2021 Share Posted November 18, 2021 4 hours ago, mack_turtle said: I wish I could ride with just one light, but the secondary angle of light has proven to be a necessity for me. Agreed, my ideal setup is a moderately bright, self contained handlebar light with a super bright helmet light with a remote battery. With just a handlebar light I can make through the trail but I'm not comfortable enough to ride very aggressive. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ATXZJ Posted November 18, 2021 Share Posted November 18, 2021 Been looking at buying a few of these for the wife and I to go on some fall group rides. Prices from this vendor seem pretty reasonable. https://bikecloset.com/product/niterider-lumina-micro-750/ And maybe this one for ballin' on a budget https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07HDWSQ4F/?coliid=IFFEDGERWEO0M&colid=QF35KH787K14&psc=1&ref_=lv_ov_lig_dp_it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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