[Closed] If you didn't have any lights...

There are cheaper options but going for a good, reliable and UK based product is a good idea. Only hear good things about these lights and the guy who sells them is top notch..

yes.

you are about to get inundated with suggestions to 'only' spend £25 but to make sure you only charge the battery in the open so it can explode harmlessly, invest in a soldering iron to fix the wiring problems, learn to seal the lights/switches/batteries against water ingress.

up to you - but the mtbbatteries route will have you riding more and learning 101 electronics less.

I've got their V2 1000 lumen light and I'b buy from them again.

It's not perfect but for the price (£67+p&p) it's damn good 😀

you are about to get inundated with suggestions to 'only' spend £25

Yeah I figured that. Anyway I took the first 3 replies to this post as enough positive encouragement so took thew plunge and spent the dosh. Now I'm much poorer and a little bit scared of the OH finding out.

However, I look forward to being chased by ghosts and bears around the woods in Marple.

I've had some and my riding mate has had some of the cheapo ones from ebay, £17 and claiming many lumens. We've not had to do any soldering and they have been absolutely faultless, we ride some proper MTB trails and they're great, we can see fine at speed. 2 rides a week of about 25-30 miles and they just about last the whole ride. They've not exploded yet whilst recharging. Yeah go ahead and spend £185 😕

edit: too late.

enjoy - the number of folk I spoke to at the strathpuffer riding in total darkness due to failed lights was silly -they all had one thing in common - magic shine 😀

one of our pairs teams was running a magic shine - that was quickly removed for one of our ayups in the borrowed pile and the magic shine relegated to the spare lights pile

£185 is a lot of money to 'test' whether you like night riding, as it simply isn't for some ppl... no idea why not, but it's not.
That said, if you are determined you will do it & want a solution that 'just works' & backup that is tested in the real work , then you can't go wrong with MTB batteries units.

Unlike previous years, this years 'recommended cheap chinese light' has really quite bad ancillary kit that come with it (battery & charger), not to suggest that previous years were perfect, just not quite as bad. That said, if you buy the kit from a UK supplier and it turns out to be rubbish... send it back!

So without trying to inundate you can I suggest you look at UK seller like [url= http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Hot-SolarStorm-X2-Mountain-Bike-Light-Bicycle-Black-2-Cree-U2-5000LM-T6-LED-/131041049161?pt=UK_SportsLeisure_Camping_LightsLanternsTorches&var=&hash=item1e82a7ba49 ]these guys[/url] (I'm not connected to the business nor have used them)

Z1ppy, you're too late - he's already spent his money.

However, I look forward to being chased by ghosts and bears around the woods

Seriously. Not a joking matter. 😯

We picked up our exposure lights at a discount after an event they/the bike shop ran at Dalby...try out night lights on a guided ride and buy if you like...no obligation. Might be a way to try out night riding without committing?

See that what happens when you take the time to write a carefully crafted reply (He hadn't posted when I started or I overlooked it 😳 ). For balance my SSX2, though it had a rubbish battery & I've never had to use the charger has been fine since I bought it last august, and used every week since in all weathers.. and TBH if I was doing a 24hr race I'd be looking at spending more money on a light.

Yeah sorry z1ppy I was pretty quick on the trigger - just decided to go with it. I know it's a lot of money but I've been putting pennies aside for a while and have been getting increasingly frustrated not being able to ride in the evenings.

Cheers everyone.

Money well spent.

The Lumenator is a fantastic light, adequate on its own for me - but I'm sure the headlight is great too from feedback on here.

enjoy night riding mate, I love it. Don't fear the darkness, embrace it.

a little bit scared of the OH finding out.

Of all the things cyclists are capable of [s]wasting[/s] spending money on surely decent lights is the easiest to justify. That's £185 to make you safe riding at night, so OH doesn't need to worry about you becoming a statistic, not for the fun of riding in the dark.

I've got the V2 and its been faultless. I'd imagine the combo you've gone for will be equally reliable, so money well spent I reckon. When you are out somewhere remote in the dark peak on a solo night ride, you'll be happy that you're not worrying about whether your lights will go out unexpectedly.

That's a good deal but I wouldn't, the dual XML unit is really nice but not sure I see the rationale for the (relatively) low powered headlight.

TBH I'd get exactly what I have, 2 Magicshine MJ-872s. High quality lights, usually shipped with good chargers and decent batteries. Less throw but more widebeam, which is great IMO, it feels like you're riding in light rather than at it.

(or, rather than recommend what I own, the Fluxient 4xR5 is very similiar at a similiar price. As is the Hope R4.)

They are still Chinese lights - no?

Chambord - you get the lights? You like?

I have a cheapo DX and the batteries have given up the ghost so was thinking of the lumenator as a treat to myself.