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Anyone tried their newish 1600 lumen effort?
http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs
Looks a bit generic but was thinking I'd get a light with a guarantee for £50.
Be interested to know what the run time is? the 1000 looks like it could be good for evening rides on the road.
Just ordered the 1600 with the remote switch. Should have it tomorrow.
There's one review on the halfords site and the guy says he gets 2hrs at 1600. I'm not expecting that to be true but it'll be a bonus if it is. The light has 3 XMLs and 3 battery cells so I'd be expecting it to get a little over 1.5 hrs on 1600. I'll be using mine on 800 mostly with the odd 1600 blast for descents/flat out parts of the ride so it should manage 2.5hrs. Obviously this is just guesswork. If it's terrible Halfords are pretty good with returns.
I haven’t got the bike hut one but another light that Cycle Republic sell called the Ryder Alumia 1600 which maybe quite similar inside (although I think it only has 2 leds). Used it a few times now and when used at full power it goes from blue to amber on the power meter in about an hour. I’m not sure then how long it takes to get to red then flat as I’ve not been riding for long enough in the dark yet this year to find out. Maybe it would eek out 2 hours but I suspect not quite.
I've just took the plunge brought one for a trip to Afan tomorrow. Looking at it and it has a powerbank function which will come in handy for audax and touring duties.
I assume it's a rebadged something but I've never seen that design before. TBH 1600 lumens from 3 XMLs is easily doable and wouldn't drive them hard so could still get a good life from 3 18650s. Mode memory's a nice sign, always says it's not just the cheapest crappest board they could find. Pretty tempting!
Be really interested to hear how you get on with the mounting, too... That's always fixable if it's bad but it'd be nice if it works.
It looks a bit Leyzne-ish
Cant see a weight on the halfords site - specs look good but might be too heavy for helmet use?
Northwind. The Bikehut light uses a gopro mount. Part of the reason it interested me in the first place (the remote is another). I already have gopro bar mounts fitted to bikes for a more powerful ext battery pack light and a go pro mount underneath the garmin outfront mount on my roadbike.
I want this for shorter rides so I won't have to **** about fitting battery packs and connectors.
Will let you know what it's like. beam/runtime etc.
Comes with an out-front mount too.
For those of you who have picked one of these up what are your thoughts on it?
Story corner time
Now children sit down and finish your milk and cookies while I start...
I have the light here. In the box there's
The light unit with rubber quick mount fitted
A stabilizer block for the quick mount
A USB to Micro USB cable
Replacement GoPro style mount
Plastic Garmin/Gopro outfront mount including 2 keyed rubber reducer rings to fit different bar diameters
2 allen keys
Very thorough instructions in english with diagrams
The light itself appears very well made and well thought out. Alu case, nice soft rubber buttons, battery life/charge indicator leds along the top, sturdy rubber plugs covering each USB port 2.0 for the powerbank on the rear and microUSB for charging and the remote connector underneath.
It has 3 XP-G2 LEDs (whatever they are)
the size of the unit is 115mm x 34mm x 44mm
the weight is 234g incl quick mount and stabilizer (it'll be lighter with the go pro mount attached)
The adjustable rubber band on mount it comes with allows easy remvoval/fitting without the need for any permanently fitted baracket or tools and is actually fairly decent. it's bolted onto the underside by a single 4mm allen bolt. This has silicone rubber on the base and a small dog to stop it rotating/vibrating loose. The design includes a silicone/rubber stabilizing block to help it grip your bars more securely. This mount without the stabilizing block would probably be fine for roadbars or commuting but there's no way it's secure enough not to move if used off road or hard street stunting 😉
With the stabilizer block it's actually really secure. Not entirely convinced it would stay put on the roughest terrain but a millinion times better than the generic chinese O-ring style mounts.
The Outfront mount is possibly one of the best plastic outfront mounts I've ever seen. it's stiffer than most aided no doubt by the moulded with hollow honeycomb section underneath. I've used quite a few Garmin/Gopro OF mounts to run a garmin and a chinese lamp together and all but the Alu ones have flexed, some so badly that even road riding the vibration is so bad you can barely read the garmin and your light noticable shakes on the road ahead. This one seems a lot stiffer. The Gopro mount bolts on below by 2 allen head screws and the garmin mount by 2 allen head screws above. Both are well made and fit well. (not all generic ones are) The OF mount also comes with 2 rubber/silicone rings to shim it to anything between 22mm and 35mm bar diameters (35mm go pro/garmin bar mounts are like gold dust) great for someone like me with multiple bikes from multiple eras. I'm not planning on using this mount as I have a quality alu one on the only bike I use a garmin on (roadbike) but will definitely be keeping it as a spare.
It's almost charged now and I'll be using it to find my way through the woods to the pub after tonights story comes to an end.
Talking of which...
You'll just have to wait until tomorrow to find out more.
Now clean your teeth and off to bed...
Remember to take your dishes to the kitchen on the waaaaaAAYYYYYy!
These are good, don't stick out as much.
Used with this for my Evolva X8
Seriously doubt I need another light, but that looks great, waiting for a review of the beam as it might be useful for commuting.
I bought one of these after seeing this thread, thanks flatpat.
Initial thoughts are it's well made, not too big and has a decent amount of modes. I was drawn to it by the GPS on top light on bottom out front mount because it looks a lot neater than my current set up with cables to batteries everywhere.
Also got the remote lever (which at only a fiver was a steal) and that will make changing settings on the go a lot easier. Seems bright from my testing it in a dark room test.
For 55 quid in total it really seems like a good deal and I hope I don't end up disappointed in the end.
The out front mount comes with a Garmin mount, I have a Wahoo but was able to turn the computer mount 90 degrees and fix it in place with a couple of small bolts threaded into the plastic body of the mount.
Blimey - looks like a good all in one solution.
I'm currently riding on the road with an old Spokeshirts bike light with separate battery & to be honest it's a bit of a faff, especially as there's not much room on the bars.
Might be a good solution for the road bike, although I'd really prefer one of the german-spec non dazzling lights.
hmm, it's not the sexiest of lights but for £50 from a place where you can take it back if you have any problems it is hard to ignore.
I only rode the light for probably 8 minutes (sober) last night. A fast road descent, streetlit residential street and some woodland single/double track. Not the worst ride to the pub here. 😉 I've no idea how many minutes it took me getting home. (Say half an hour mainly on full) and hadn't even used one bar on the battery indicator
Beam review:
Bright AF, quite floody with shitloads of throw. You won't be disappointed.
I'm not sure how to describe the beam so you'd understand but with the light on full power it shines all the way down the hill to the pub (400m?). and with the light pointing straight forwards and dipped only a tiny amount if I manual my Ebike (much higher balance point than normal bikes) The light still reaches the ground infront of my wheel. No other light I have does this at the same angle and it's nice and wide to the sides too.
No weird hotspots.
the next 3 lower brightness modes are all useful for proper riding the bottom 2 are more of a commuter be-seen kinda deal than something useful to ride by.
A couple of the strobe modes could actually be used to ride by when you've almost drained the battery fully.
The wee remote feels like an old skool kinder egg toy, Not a bad thing, old skool kinder egg toys were genius. Not like the 3 piece crappy cartoon figurines they put in them these days. push the lever up for one sec to switch on/off. push it down once to change mode. it's a very light action and like an excited milf easy to flick fast. 😉
it's really intuitive and easy to cycle through all the (too many really) modes quickly. it doesn't attach to the bars all that securely. I think it might be designed to be fitted to a grip/bar taps as well as bars and as such isn't a tight fit on a 22.2 section of bare bar. I think I might pad my bar out with a slither of mastic for it.
Brightness: 1600 Bright AF, Next one down brighter than a Solarsun X2, next again probably a little less than an X2 (like X2 medium)
The rubber mount didn't budge at all. Stuntage wasn't high though and the trails riden are far from gnarly.
It's £50 all in with BC discount.
Really pleased with it. Will take it out tonight for a proper (Sober) ride.
OMG I'm too ****ing hungover... thnak christ you're all still at school 😉
As a sex toy it's actually a decent size, a bit short though and could do with tapering more at the tip. you'll probably want to remove the bar mount completelybefore use. it should also be pretty discreet in your manbag
like an excited milf easy to flick fast.
I had to double take on this!
Are you still a bit drunk? 😀
Yes
I'm no different sober though
Thanks Geex, just ordered one and the remote to collect within the hour. Sick of crappy battery packs flapping around the bike and been looking for a unit which has a remote to compliment my Diablo.
Oh... Now I'm sobering up. I just stuck the light back on charge for tonight and remembered. I hadn't fully charged the light before using it. So ignore anything I might have said above about battery life. Will report back about that after a proper ride.
Assuming the LEDs on the top are for battery indication, is there anyway to know when using it on the out front type mount that the battery is getting low? A rear warning led or something on the remote?
Yes. but I'm far too Strungover to explain it
To cheeck (not that there's any need) Simply put your hand under the light, the green light from the LEDs will reflect onto your fingers. The shorter the light reflects the less LEDs are lit.
The reason there's no real need is the light automatically switches to a lesser mode when the battery starts to die. Plus with use you'll begin to learn roughly how long it will last anyway. Switch it off or onto min when stopped and use lower settings for climbing and it should last a decent length of time.
Even if it had unlimited battery you don't be one of those ****s who puts 1600lm on and turns to face the others every time they stop. Do you?
OMG that was way harder typing that than it should have been.
I think it's your round?
Does it have an easy method to toggle high for descending and low for climbing? Or do you have to cycle through all the modes each time?
Can you consistently count to 5, 6, 7 or 8 with confidence?
would others rate your thumb flicking technique as effective?
if Yes to both of the above, then Yes there's an easy method to quickly choose the correct mode for the next part of your ride.
If you lack either of the above skills you may struggle. And not just riding bikes after dark 😉
So so thought I would give a bit of an update now I have ridden with my light in anger! I’m impressed, battery life is outstanding and cycling through full and dipped beam gave me 3hrs with half charge left at the end of the ride. I use the light with an exposure diablo on my helmet for reference...
The remote is great, albeit is a loose fit so needs some modification and the rubber attachment strap for the main light is not great. I will look at modifying a GoPro mount. Really impressed that the unit game with a Garmin put front mount, be useful for the road bike. Look a bit shit on my ‘Nduro sled!
My main criticism is all the shitty functions! You have to cycle through. It’s bloody annoying, basically from dipped beam to full power requires about 30,000 clicks of the remote....I soon figured when it gets to strobe function the next click is full. But it’s so annoying. Overall happy with the purchase, couple with the Diablo it’s a pretty descent light set for night forest riding
A slither of masic tape round your bar and the remote mounts far more securely. mine is butted up against the inside of my right lockon collar, very easy to reach and doesn't move now. I by think the size of the plastic clamp it was designed to fit over a grip and/or bar tape rather than a bare 22.2 bar.
I've found the rubber light mount surprisingly secure. Do you have yours done up properly tight?
It takes 4 flicks of the (very easy to flick quickly) remote lever to go from from full dipped to full blast.
Join molgrips in remedial arithmetic at lunchtime.
I need to space out the outfront mount to fit my bars, but it should be a more solid fit than the rubber clamp.
Remove is a cable into the light unit so unsure how that impacts waterproof capabilities - unless the plug has a huge rubber cover on it?
if Yes to both of the above, then Yes there’s an easy method to quickly choose the correct mode for the next part of your ride.
It might be easy, but it still takes longer which is the issue. Although to be fair if there's a bar mounted remote it's not so hard.
Although then again, for those of us that run droppers and front mechs and GPS units the bar area's getting a bit crowded!
I wonder if I could rig up my phone to give voice control? 'Ok Google, full beam!'
I don't see the lack of sealing around micro USB port when the remote is plugged in as being a huge problem but if you do, silicone sealant or sugru around the usb connector might be enough to keep the worst of the wet/crap out
Mine is 7 clicks from full beam to full beam I just counted...I’ll get molgrips to save you a chair Geex 😉
i actually made the remote fit fit snug by adjusting the strap and will modify it further to improve. It’s a ‘light touch’ switch and I rather it have play so it doesn’t snap in the inevitable off... as for the light mount. I had it done up tight yep with the additional rubber support boot. Found it to slightly ‘nod’ over rougher terrain, it needs a more secure fixing for sure...for me anyway I guess it’s the challenge with all in one units.
im very impressed through, it’s a good light for the money the beam pattern, whiteness of light all spot on. You would be forgiven for thinking it a light 3 or 4 times it’s price
I like your writing style for product reviews geex, I think I'd buy more bike mags if you did the product tests 😀
No Rusty. come back tomorrow lunchtime and try again.
Here's your homework.
The light has 8 modes.
Now count with Geex...
One... (1600lm)
Two... (1000lm)
Three... (640lm)
Four... (240lm)
Five... (15lm)
Six... (day flash)
Seven... (flash)
Eight... (pulse)
Keep counting (starting anywhere in the list) until you 'get' that it takes 8 clicks to get back to the same place. It's ok if you need to use your finger to keep your place in the list while you count 😉
Now here's the difficult to comprehend part...
full lowest (15lm constant) beam is 4 clicks from full HIGHEST (1400lm constant) beam.
Just as it's 4 clicks from full highest back to lowest.
It took me two terms to escape Mrs Leaper's lunchtime remedial arithmatic detention centre in P3. I'm a ****ing boss at it. Trust me.
@hooli - Um farely deesent ut writin aswel 4 u boy hoo niver reeley went too skool awl that mush
I didn't look at the connection for the remote, but there is a large rubber bung that seals it to maintain waterproof status...if that is unplugged then the innards are exposed. If you remove the micro USB plug then moisture can get in to the plug...so it would be better to plug the hole that the rubber bung leaves when it is removed...just to make sure it remains watertight.
If the remote plug has a rubber bung that seals that space then not an issue.
Whaaaaat?
or maybe just don't remove the USB remote plug?
Like I said, if you're really worried sugru the micro usb plug to seal the hole when plugged in (not that it really looks to need doing). when the plug is removed just put the rubber bung back in.it's permanently attached to the light. or if you're really really worried don't use the remote at all in the wet.
TBF being from Halfords. if it breaks from water ingress they'll replace/refund.
You're probably overthinking this aren't you?
Ah Geex, I understand you now. Apologies. To be honest, there is no need to count. When it flashes strobe style I know next click is full beam. Still shit but hardly a deal breaker.
No need to apologise at all. I'm only messin wiv ya.
When you reach FULL you ****ing know about it.
I do count though. That way I can flick to exactly the brightness I want anywhere I am on the trail.
Been doing this with stupid single XLM chinese lights that have a strobe/flash/OFF in their mode sequences for years. I find it's particularly important to know the counts on the road. Dipping for cars oncoming but getting it back bright enough not to muller myself on a new pothole at 40mph on the shitty roads round here. switching it off for too long trying to get full power for a descent really is not the one. 😉
I'm not finding the out front mount* terribly tight, the unit will slowly revolve downward during the course of a ride no matter how hard I try to tighten it up.
* the bit which actually connects to the light
I got one. Based on geex's review (!)
Off road - I've tried it once - on my helmet (using the halfords mount), at night, on the moors for an hour and a half. It's great. It looks massive, but it's actually not too heavy. Honestly, I barely noticed it. I had a nestling/solarstorm thing on the bars as well, but its battery went mid-ride and with the bikehut pointing wherever I looked I didn't even notice I was down to one light for ages. It's fine on its own. So the halfords light is now my main one. I'll keep wearing it on my helmet.
On road - I've used it pre-dawn (so properly dark) on the outfront mount that came with it. Sure, it's a momentary pain leaning under to mess with the mode button. I'd rather that than have a remote cluttering up my bars though. And on the second brightest setting it lights the road fine (unlit rural roads) and angled a bit down I think it's OK for oncoming traffic (there wasn't any though). The outfront mount is plenty tight on road bike bars.
I've charged it once, for a few hours, then used it for over two hours at various brightness. Battery still shows half full.
Does the outfront mount allow the garmin mount to be rotated 90 degrees to fit a Wahoo on - i.e does it have another set of screw bosses for the mount so you can undo it & re-mount it rotated 90 degrees?
Probably not a deal breaker, but if I was to get one of these I would probably want to use the out-front mount with my Wahoo mounted on it.
I wonder how this compares to the Raveman BR1200 - I like the idea of that light for the road as it has a cut-off beam lens pattern.
I have far too many cheap as Chinese lights but still tempted with one of these.
Im currently using a nitenumen X8 AIO which was recommend on here a while back.
Does anyone have both and how do they compare?
Nitenumen X8:
http://budgetlightforum.com/node/54158
Don't think I am overthrowing it, but depends on how often you ride in the rain (I suspect you ride far more than me)...on the outfront the plug is facing up and it looks like the remote plug isn't snug inserted, so there is space for water to get in and sit.
Probably not an issue for first few rides but if the water stays in there it'll start doing something. The rubber plug is very snug so no water will get in.
Having had cheap light erode/corrode due to poor waterproofing, it is something I tend to consider nowadays.
If the remote has a good seal so no water can get in the hole where it is plugged in then my concern isn't needed, but if not and you ride in the wet a lot with the remote then you'll need to take extra care to dry that hole properly.
However enough of my dry hole concerns...what are people using to space the outfront clamp on mtb bars? The clamp is too big as-is and the rubber spacers don't fit...so just inner tube wrapped round bar to space it out?
eh?
What size bars do you have? the clamp fits 35mm and 31.8 and 25.4 depending on rubber shim orientation
the black plastic cover of the remote microUSB plug sits pretty flush in the socket.
consider your 2 year warranty and physical shop to return it to should it corrode. or as I said above silicone it if you're 'that' worried
31.8mm...I'll try again, but the thinner rubber insert appears to make the clamp too wide to shut...
If the remote plug is flush, then my concern is unfounded, ta. Warranty is great, but I don't tend to buy stuff knowing I'll need to rely on that.
I used mine last night coupled with it's slightly smaller 1000 version on my lid. I did 3hrs on Exmoor using various modes and there's still a ton of battery life left in both units. On full chat it was like riding in day light. I used a bolt on go pro mount off ebay for the bars and the light never moved all night,. Very impressive for the money.
Got a link to the bar mount neilsonwheels? I have been looking but not settled on one I think would work well yet
@stumpy01 just get a magCad Wahoo/ Garmin matchmaker for £15 if it's an issue.
Ebay/Aliexpress(if not in a rush) have plenty generic (K-edge copies) aluminium go pro bar mounts, outfront style or closer to the bar. for about £2 posted
like these.
and depending on your stem face plate width and bolt size, Gopro stem mounts like these: for about £3-4
And top cap mounts like these
How about QR bar mounts for the light? havent taken the rubber strap mount off yet, but I'd think either a gopro style QR, if they exist, or a generic QR that attaches via the bolt?
Agree that the rubber strap is a bit on the wobbly side for rough tracks/offroad. But I'd like something I can easily move from bike to bike with minimal fuss.
Also like to add, I need to stick a bit of electrical tape over the top of the lens as it gets in your eyes a bit.
otherwise, first use last night and it's a great little light.
I've been looking for an all in one type light for the bars as I'm still using cheapo Chinese head units and old 18650 laptop batteries in a 4x holder from a batch of nearly new Sony packs a very kind friend gave me after his Vaio packed up years ago. That all works well (especially with a backcountry research strap to hold the pack on) but it's a bit of a faff and lots of flappy cable everywhere.
I had planned / plan to buy an Exposure as their stuff is lovely and their support is also good, but £50 was a bit too hard to ignore. Hurrah for impulse buys. I still need to replace my disc rotors, of course. Gah. Those probably cost about the same. I'm such a slapper.
I picked one up from my local Halfords this morning along with a remote. A couple of observations:
* A quick try in the garden after dark suggests better performance than the BT40s it is replacing. I'm old school enough that I religiously turn my lights down or off when climbing (Anyone remember NiCADs and Halogens - or the old GU10 plumbed into a load of Wickes plastic plumbing from ages back?), and that makes me think I could probably get an evening's ride out of it comfortably
* I can probably hack together a piggyback charger a la the Lezyne version using my 4x enclosures and 18650s
* The strap and stabiliser thing looks pretty sturdy, but I just think holding something like this on with a rubber band is daft for off road riding. Even the tiny X2s used to flap around.
* I replaced the rubber thing with an Lumicycle QR clamp similar to these £10 Hope ones, Lovewookie - I've had it for years and it's totally reliable. A spare Shimano SPD cleat bolt fits about right. The whole thing has a low enough profile that if can't snug right up next to my stem on the bars, so it's nice and compact. The Hope version looks like it's a slightly higher profile so should be perfect. I might treat myself at some point.
* There's not exactly a ton of material for the bold to fasten to, so be careful
* the light's CoG is roughly where the hole is for the mount
* The remote's rubber band thing is adjustable, but it's still pretty floppy on the shortest setup. I tried a few things, but what seems to work best is an Exposure-style band with one end looped over the whole thing - that holds it snug enough
* The remote isn't ergonomically perfect to say the least, but it's very light action. and super quick compared to clicking through the menu on the button on top of the light. I'm toying with the idea of mounting it sideways on the spacer on top of my stem - probably a dim idea
* The remote clicks when pressing down or pulling up, but it only cycles through the menu on the downstroke. It sort of feels like the action of a cheap and cheerful microswitch under there, but I'm concerned about busting it up trying to open it. I might splash out another fiver at some point if the remote turns our to be worth the hassle
* Charging took a while, and the destructions actually mention a nine hour first charge, advice probably worth sticking to. But don't expect to pull some mammoth ride to work on full chat and charge it fully for the return leg - it might not happen. There's only 5v / 2.1a going in there.
* mention was made of the lens sticking out bit and needing tape across the top. Probably an idea, but I'll test ride it first to see if it'd be a problem for me
* There's cutouts on the side so you throw light out at 90 degrees as well as forward. Good work, whoever designed and made these
* a bit of sugru around the USB remote plug might well solve the issue of water pooling in the socket when it's mounted upside down. I don't ride with a Garmin, so I'm not too worried about this, but I reckon some of that stuff with a nice big overlap would probably see you right
* It seems quite well made. I'm resisting the urge to take it to bits
I'll see if I can upload pics somehow - haven't tried it on the new forum yet.
Hope this all helps. I'll take it for a quick spin tomorrow night if the weather cooperates and actually, you know, ride with it instead of performing an armchair review.
How tight are you guys doing the rubber strap?
Mine is as tight as it'll go on the tapered section of bar a few inches from the (31.8) stem bulge. I then slide it over onto the (tighter) bar clamp bulge so it's touching the stem and it isn't budging in use. (but angle can be altered if I wish to) I've not ridden any rough AF neverending rock gardens or anything but it hasn't budged jumping even with harsh landings ie. a stupid kicker the local kids built and didn't bother building a decent enough landing to get both wheels onto at the same time so basically becomes a semi blind stepdown to almost flat lander. (15ftish gap 4ft lower landing).
I wasn't expecting it to be anywhere near secure enough but am actually happy using it and the convenience of it's quick easy fitting/removal.
I also find the remote completely ergonomic and easy to use. I can't see how mounting it to your stem would improve anything. Unless you run 400mm wide bars 😉
Piggyback charger/battery extender is interesting. I assume you mean just plugging a micro USB from an external battery pack or powerbank into the charging socket while running the light? Would that power the light or would the ext power surce just charge it a little?
If fitted I guess it'd be impossible to use the remote at the same time? The remote waso ne of the main reasons I bought the light in the first place, the other it being stand alone light with no pack/wires to faff with.
I also have far brighter longer running lights with external battery pack for longer/more full on rides but I can see how it'd make the light more versatile if it can run off an external pack for folk who haven't.
Rubber strap here with the extra rubber mount added, firmed the lamp mounting up quite a lot.
I use rubber strap and additional rubber support boot pulled as humanly tight as possible. I didn’t find an issue on features more on rooty/rocky chatter where the movement is enough to ‘wobble’ the light. It’s not the end of the world, just prefer it didn’t do it. As it’s distracting and forces my sight from looking ahead slightly. Hence looking for better clamp options.
I've yet to try mine out properly and looking to use the outfront clamp...just need to work out why I can't get it to fit my bars...suspect I'm being too soft!
There are two ports on the light unit. One is for the remote and the ither for charging.
So it seems it may allow charging as you ride and still use the remote. I havnt tried to see if you can charge the lamp with it on.
Beener
The rear port is so you can charge from the light. Basically you can also use the light to charge your phone. Not really a function I’m ever likely to use I’m afraid
Picked up the 1000 lumen version for my wife's commute this morning, really impressed with it for £36 (BC discount). Seems equivalent or if not better than my evolva x8. I'm interested to test it when it geta dark and see what the optics do.
@Beener the micro USB port is for both charging and connecting the remote.
The USB is for use as a powerback.
Are you saying an external power supply could be attached to the full size USB on the rear to extend runtime?
@Russy. Can't say I noticed an annoying wobble over roots. But TBF for proper riding I run a helmet mounted SSX2 as well so any slight wobble on the light probably wouldn't really be any more noticable than a completely rigidly mounted light when the bike is chattering over the roots.
I too come from the times when the ultimate nightriding lights were a £250 Nitesun which was just nicad batteries inside a waterbottle and two 99p dichroic lamps (10w and 40w) fitted to a homemade looking titanium mount/housing. So find it pretty funny how much shit we can talk about the imperfections of a £50 light that's about a million times brighter and more advanced.
Maybe just me then, I ran it with an exposure diablo on my helmet. Just found it chattering over proper rooty sections, basically the rubber strap can’t dampen the movement. It’s not a problem so to speak, just distracting. Really not wanting to come across as I’m moaning, I’m really not! I’m super chuffed and with some slight modification I think can be improved! But £55 can’t really go wrong
Geex - you're right about the stem mount, of course. I must have pretty short thumbs. 😀 I'm running mine on the left hand side, so in order not to foul the dropper lever it's at a slightly odd angle.
I found lights with rubber bands didn't necessarily rotate around the bars, but I did notice the beam boinging all over the place on chattery stuff compared to when using a rigid clamp. Horses for courses - if you're cool with the band, then stick with it - it's definitely a different level to the ones that X2s used to come with!
As you say, for £55, it's an utterly bargainous light. I seem to remember spending almost £200 on a my first actual grown up night riding lights in about 2000 after faffing with homemade stuff for far too long. This one's basically alien technology in comparison - although it was lovely talking to Mr Lumicycle and working out that he used to deliver stuff to the building I worked in when he was a motorcycle courier.
//Edit// my 4x 18650 enclosures had / have a USB socket on the wiring loom, so yes, I was looking at simply using it as a power pack plugged into the micro usb port. I probably won't use it more than once in a blue moon. Good to know it's doable - I plugged everything in last night after running the light for a bit and it charged.
Of course 😉
Mount he remote on the right. next to your grip, or even ON the edge of the grip with the switch sat above the bar and it's out the way of your shifters but easily flicked with your thumb.
Does the powerbank just charge off your external pack when plugged into the USB port or can it actually use the packs power to effectively double the runtime (while charging) while in use?
Can someone post some more beam shots here please
Hey Geex, I just tried plugging the 4x 18650 enclosure I mentioned in and turning the USB power on while the light was running. The enclosure has a power button to power up the USB part of the wiring loom. At full beam and no pack, the lights are green and the 3.0 light goes out immediately, indicating it's discharging and there are less than three hours of power but more than two. When I switch the extra USB power on, the lights turn red (as they do when charging) and start indicating it's taking a charge. However, when I switch off the USB power, the lights stay red, then the whole thing powers down. I'm making a guess here, but the single tap of the power button to show how much juice the battery has when the light isn't on looks exactly the same, so the extra pack may be fooling the electrics. Either way, if you plug a power bank into the micro USB socket, it appears to charge exactly the same as if plugged into any other powered USB cable.
Was there something wrong with the one I posted on page 1? Happy to take more? But can’t see how much different it will be? A forest in the dark with a light on?
Thanks bent udder.
I'm not sure I understand you though.
I get that the light can be charged by ext battery pack even when the light is in use.
What I was wondering was will it keep running from the power/charge from that pack once the lights internal batteries have run down?
Hopefully you'll understand what I'm asking. Not sureI'm explaining myself too well here.
I'm with Russy on beam shots. Light beam shots are usually pretty pointless except for when done by boffins who do light comparissons with a variety of lights directly compared to each other with everything set-up exactly the same for each light.
Ah, I think I get you. I'm guessing it should do, but I have no idea. I'm night riding next Wednesday, so will do my best to get it nice and flat and try a drunken experiment after I ride back from the pub. Sorry - probs won't take an external pack with me.
Oh yeah - beam shots. That's some sort of obscure kink, right? It's scorchy bright, basically. Hope that helps.
Beam shots on a long straight road might be better. On a middling setting say 600lm.
I find that road is harder for lights to deal with sice you go faster and need to see further, also tarmac is black.
Buy one and do beam shots then. While everyone else who has one is perfectly happy riding with the thing
To be fair I understand why a few more pics would be good. I went today with money in my pocket only to be put off when reading the battery times on the back. 1hr at full, 1.5hrs at 1000, 2.5hrs at 640, 7hrs at 240. I'll need 3hrs worth of light some nights so it would be good to see what 640 & 240 look like.
it lasts a little over an hour on full. So probably more like 1hr 40 on 1000lm. (haven't had it long enough to be completely sure and I'm definitley not going to ne testing run times on each mode)
640lm is perfectly useable for non tech non flat out singletrack (Seems somewhere between mid and full on my Solarstorm X2 helmet light)
I'd find 240lm fine for climbing all night long.
15lm is obv just handy as emergency to plod home by or to be seen by in residential streets.
No trails I ride actually need 1000lm+ for a full 3 hours but get what you mean. Riding somewhere steep I reckon managing to eek out 3 hours by using the 240lm for all the climbs, 15lm for any faffing and 1600lm for only the most gnarly descents and 1000lm for the faster less technical ones could be do able. I only bought the light for shorter rides of upto around 2.5 hours though and have brighter lights with an ext battery for any longer/more full on riding.
I don't think Bikehut were ever marketing this light as a serious off road light for longer off-road rides.
I still don't really think pics would help very much.
I'm injured and bored AF right now though and the nights are long. so... you never know 😉
To be fair I understand why a few more pics would be good. I went today with money in my pocket only to be put off when reading the battery times on the back. 1hr at full, 1.5hrs at 1000, 2.5hrs at 640, 7hrs at 240. I’ll need 3hrs worth of light some nights so it would be good to see what 640 & 240 look like.
I did the exact same thing today. The size of the light you'd think it would have better run times.
****ing tyre kickers.
😀
Ps. you could have saved yourself some petrol money/nightmare shopping time if yu'd clicked on @neilsonwheels link to the box info on the first page of the thread
My main criticism is all the shitty functions! You have to cycle through. It’s bloody annoying, basically from dipped beam to full power requires about 30,000 clicks of the remote….I soon figured when it gets to strobe function the next click is full.
This is one reason why Lumicycle is still my go to bar light. The switch works both ways, no cycling through five different sequential settings, you can make the light either a step brighter or a step dimmer with the same primitive toggle switch.
I know it's not strictly relevant to the light in question, but I can't believe the makers of cheap and not so cheap bike lights - yes, Exposure, I mean you - still haven't managed to devise a switching method that doesn't mean constantly cycling through increasing light levels to make a downward adjustment. Have I missed something. It just seems odd.
Buy one and do beam shots then. While everyone else who has one is perfectly happy riding with the thing
I've already decided to anyway. Just contributing to the 'discussion' about beam shots.