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Front light recommendations

Kupe
Kupe Posts: 758 Member
in Social Groups
I need to replace my front light and would like some recommendations.

Replies

  • BrianSharpe
    BrianSharpe Posts: 9,248 Member
    I'm a big fan of the Cygolite Mitycross lights, compact but extremely bright - my bike commute is partly on unlit trails that are pitch black at night.

    If you're looking for more of a "see me" kind of light for reasonably well lit roads check out the Planet Bike 2w LED Blaze, very affordable and bright enough to be seen in daylight (I use mine riding during the day on its flash setting - I figure if daytime running lights make sense for cars they do for bikes too)
  • FatDadSlim
    FatDadSlim Posts: 497 Member
    CREE LED, Cheap & cheerful. just started using one this week, paid £22.50 (with free rear light!) perfect for commuting, throws a nice bright white light and lasts a couple of hours, nice and lightweight.

    Just the light alone is £18 atm on amazon, probably more selection on eBay for a little less? http://www.amazon.co.uk/Cycling-Bicycle-HeadLamp-HeadLight-Waterproof/dp/B007WAAO70/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1382693144&sr=8-2-fkmr0&keywords=creed+led+bike
  • KitTheRoadie
    KitTheRoadie Posts: 641 Member
    Hmm I've been looking for the same thing but I think FDS has just answered my prayers! Off I pop to Amazon to purchase one of these CREE LEDs! :happy:
  • beatpig
    beatpig Posts: 97 Member
    http://www.bikeradar.com/road/news/article/partner-promotion-cateye-hl-el530-front-light-for-less-than-20-38820/

    for the uk!!
  • zorbaru
    zorbaru Posts: 1,077 Member
    I have a Lezyne brand one. i borrowed it off my dad, but its pretty good. you recharge it just by taking the back cap off and plugging it direct in to a USB port.

    the on / off button doubles as a power meter so you know how much time you have left. clips on to the bike very easily.

    http://www.lezyne.com/products/led-lights/sport#!micro-drive-front
  • Kupe
    Kupe Posts: 758 Member
    Went with Brian suggestion and got my self a cygolite - lumen 300. I'll only get to try it out in a couple of weeks as I am interstate the whole of next week.
    I'll update once I have used it a couple of times
  • primal_cupcakes
    primal_cupcakes Posts: 280 Member
    Went with Brian suggestion and got my self a cygolite - lumen 300. I'll only get to try it out in a couple of weeks as I am interstate the whole of next week.
    I'll update once I have used it a couple of times

    I love my cygolite and have not regretted the purchase. A good portion of my bike commute is on a winding, unlit country road, and the cygolite really illuminates everything. I sometimes also run a blinking white light on the front for increased visibility. An inexpensive battery-operated one I picked up at a bike shop. Don't know the brand off the top of my head.
  • Spatialized
    Spatialized Posts: 623 Member
    I have one of the Cree LED knock-offs from Amazon and have yet to be disappointed. Bright, nice field of light and cheap. I'm sure it will die on me one day but it's been a good investment. I rode single track with it last week and had no issues seeing, even at speed. Has a high/low/strobe settings where unless it's really dark, I usually only use the low and it's brighter than my Planet Bike 1/2watt Blaze back-up.

    This one is very similar: http://www.amazon.com/CREE-Bicycle-Headlight-Files-Lumens/dp/B006Y1FK18/ref=sr_1_3?s=cycling&ie=UTF8&qid=1382994401&sr=1-3&keywords=cree+led
  • gajones02
    gajones02 Posts: 34 Member
    +1 to the CREE..........maybe

    I got this one just this morning:
    http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B006QQX3C4/ref=oh_details_o00_s01_i01?ie=UTF8&psc=1

    It only has Hi/Lo/Strobe, no medium as in the description. I don't really care. I went out right at dark and Hi was fine and Lo got more and more usable the darker the night got.

    I've had it on the charger for about two hours now and the charge light is still red, it's supposed to turn green when charging is finished. I'll have to wait until morning to see how that works.

    It's simple to mount. The rubber band, O-ring, held it better than I thought it would. It didn't bounce around as I had feared.

    I have a wide angle lens on my wish list and will wait and see how the beam is now before I order it. It's looking like it might no be needed.

    All in all, it's quite a bit of light for $22 with free shipping (Amazon Prime).
  • gajones02
    gajones02 Posts: 34 Member
    The battery charger did it's job and the red light finally went to green, indicating a full charge. At 1:30 AM the charge light was still red. I thought I was going to have to return it to Amazon because of either defective batteries or charger. The charger had be on for over six hours.

    When I got up minutes before 7:00 the light was green. Everything had finally worked as it should. I was just impatient with the charge time.

    I had posted that the light was bright. Boy, was I ever wrong.............with fully charged batteries this thing is SUPER BRIGHT.

    A quick ride up the road and back before sunrise left me quite satisfied with my $22 light. I'll mount the $40 light that I bought a few years ago as a back-up.

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