# Best value lights for proper night riding?



## Glover Fan (30 May 2011)

Hi all.

In August I am planning to take part in the Exmouth Exodus which is a 100 mile night ride from Bristol to Exmouth.

I need lights that will be able to show me the way on dark country lanes, if possible they should not take up to much real estate on my handlebars and be rechargeable.

Budget is £100 max.

Any recommendations?


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## Kestevan (30 May 2011)

Hope Vision1 and a set of decent rechargable batteries.


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## dellzeqq (30 May 2011)

that would be it. I've used Cateye 530s for three or four years, but the Hope is much brighter

http://fnrttc.blogsp...m/p/lights.html 

uber-bright back lights are not a good idea if you're riding in a group


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## PpPete (30 May 2011)

I'm a big fan of the Hope Vision 1... but it takes AAs rather than built-in rechargeables.... although of course you can use rechargeable AAs

Alternatives 
B&M Ixon IQ
and this ain't half bad at the regular price .... at £14.99 it's a no-brainer as a back-up light, although full-speed along dark country lanes with just this on it's own would require more cojones than I have.


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## slowmotion (30 May 2011)

Hope Vision One light
Sanyo Eneloop hybrid rechargeables
Technoline BL-700 battery charger

One advantage of using rechargeable AAs is that you can use them for a whole lot of other gadgets. Also, dedicated rechargeable battery packs for bike lights do not come cheap compared to replacing a few AAs.

My two pennies. Good luck.


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## dellzeqq (30 May 2011)

I'd have a second, less powerful, less thirsty and less expensive light as well. You can use it in town, or when it's bright enough to do without the big light.


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## ianrauk (30 May 2011)

Kestevan said:


> Hope Vision1 and a set of decent rechargable batteries.



+1 to this.
Very well made lights from a great (British) company.


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## Hacienda71 (30 May 2011)

I use a Magicshine mj808 less than 100 quid. Rechargeable Li ion battery and seriously bright with an excellent spread of light. It is as bright as a lot of car headlights. Plenty of threads on it here.


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## Glover Fan (31 May 2011)

Thanks all for your contributions so far.

Am tempted by the Cateye 530, mainly because you can pick one up on ebay for about £30 brand new buy it now. I don't plan on doing much riding at night and most reviews seem to suggest that you can see your own way round with this light. I also have a cateye LED front light that I would use in lit up areas.

As for my rear light, it is LED but not massively bright which would be appropriate for group riding I think.


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## siadwell (31 May 2011)

Glover Fan said:


> Am tempted by the Cateye 530, mainly because you can pick one up on ebay for about £30 brand new buy it now.



For that money, you could get 2 Smart Lunar 35 lights from planet-x/on-one.

The Cateye is a bit long in the tooth and you might find a single Lunar 35 to be as good or better.


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## mcshroom (31 May 2011)

siadwell said:


> For that money, you could get 2 Smart Lunar 35 lights from planet-x/on-one.
> 
> The Cateye is a bit long in the tooth and you might find a single Lunar 35 to be as good or better.



The Smart is a good light, I often use it on it's own for commuting (rural roads) and have used it with a 1W light on night rides. A couple of these should make a very decent set of lights with a set of decent AA rechargeable. 

Last FNRttC I tried out a new magicshine-like torch (same led but using single 18650 cells). It was ridiculously bright and good for descents but probably too bright for group riding as I kept turning it off so that the rider in front wasn't riding in a shadow (still had the Smart light on). I think the total package came to about £45 for the torch, 4x18650 cells, mounting block and a charger from dealextreme - but did take over a month to arrive from China.


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## HLaB (31 May 2011)

Not as the only light but I'd recommend a helmet light something like the Cateye EL410 its great being able to directly light up something you want to look at which may not be in the beam of another light.


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## cyberknight (31 May 2011)

Hacienda71 said:


> I use a Magicshine mj808 less than 100 quid. Rechargeable Li ion battery and seriously bright with an excellent spread of light. It is as bright as a lot of car headlights. Plenty of threads on it here.



+1 on the magic shine, and you can get them for around £50 dependent on the exchange rate .

I use one on unlit country lanes during winter and i can cycle at full speed with complete confidence, at least 2 times as powerful as a hope vision 1 even at the most conservative estimates.A fellow C2W commuter has the hope and TBH i was not impressed at its output for the price.

This is what i use..

http://www.dealextreme.com/p/mj-808-ha-iii-ssc-p7-c-sxo-3-mode-900-lumen-led-bike-light-set-44459


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## Cubist (31 May 2011)

Magicshine.


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## Davidc (31 May 2011)

The Cateye EL530 was a good light when it was first launched but there are much better lights now. If they're £30 on Ebay I think it's a bit much. The Smart Lunar 35 is a better buy now - £25.95 from JE James.

I'm expecting to be there on the EE, and will be using my Cyo 60 dynamo light which I know from experience on the roads the EE uses will be quite enough.

If I can I'll be borrowing a Hope 1 as well. The major drawback with those is that when the battery gets low they switch off completely, rather than just going dim like the Cateye EL530, so if you get one make sure you have a back up running as well.

See you at Cannings!

Edit: Just had a look and I see that the 2011 model of the Cateye EL530 has a new type of LED lamp and is brighter. Are the ones on ebay to the new spec? Worth checking before buying.


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## Glover Fan (31 May 2011)

Thanks again,

Had a look at the magic shine and it quotes a battery life of 4 hours which isn't good enough. Is this figure correct?


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## dellzeqq (31 May 2011)

Glover Fan said:


> Thanks again,
> 
> Had a look at the magic shine and it quotes a battery life of 4 hours which isn't good enough. Is this figure correct?


work out how long you'd need it on for. It's light enough in mid-August not to need a big light at 5 in the morning. You'll be under streetlights for some of the time. If it's a clear night you'll need a big light only when the road is overshadowed. If it's overcast and raining you'd need to take spare batteries, but if it's clear four hours should do


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## cyberknight (31 May 2011)

That is 4 hours at full power , unless you are riding on completely pitch back , unlit roads in the middle of winter you do not need full power, you can probably get double that on low power .

10 o clock last night it was not what i would call dark and its light before 6 am.

The hope vision 1 has around a 3 hour run time , most of the lights to actually see where you are going are going to be in this ball park for power usage.

I tend to use a 3AAA powered torch light as a back up / main light for lit roads and only put the MS on for the bad bits , you can pick them up with a mount for around £10.
I reckon they come out around 50 -100 lumens .


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## dellzeqq (31 May 2011)

siadwell said:


> For that money, you could get 2 Smart Lunar 35 lights from planet-x/on-one.
> 
> The Cateye is a bit long in the tooth and you might find a single Lunar 35 to be as good or better.


I used to have a Lunar 35 side by side with the EL530 on the Brompton, and, to be honest, the EL530 was much the better light. It makes a good 'second light' although there's a cheapie Electron which is about as good.


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## Flying Dodo (31 May 2011)

cyberknight said:


> The hope vision 1 has around a 3 hour run time , most of the lights to actually see where you are going are going to be in this ball park for power usage.



That's on full strength, warp factor 4. On roads, you don't really need it that bright. The second level is bright enough and depending upon which batteries you've got in it, that should last 8-10 hours.

As mentioned above, I'd use a second light (such as another Hope!) for when the batteries give up, in case you do run it at a higher level..


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## Origamist (31 May 2011)

I run a Fenix TK35 torch, very bright and well within your budget. I mount mine on my stem - it looks a bit ungainly, but it throws light a long way down the road.


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## threebikesmcginty (31 May 2011)

dellzeqq said:


> I'd have a second, less powerful, less thirsty and less expensive light as well. You can use it in town, or when it's bright enough to do without the big light.



That's what I do, Smart light for town and Hope V1, with rechargeables, for out of town stuff!


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## zigzag (31 May 2011)

if only the battery technology had advanced so much as led technology in recent years.. i agree, most lights mentioned above are good value, i've got b&m ixon on special price (£36), so using that now. on bright setting it's about the same as hope vision1 on 4 (same led maybe?), while low setting is adequate on dry smooth roads.


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## Baggy (31 May 2011)

dellzeqq said:


> work out how long you'd need it on for. It's light enough in mid-August not to need a big light at 5 in the morning. *You'll be under streetlights for some of the time*. If it's a clear night you'll need a big light only when the road is overshadowed. If it's overcast and raining you'd need to take spare batteries, but if it's clear four hours should do


Streetlights on the Exodus are few and far between - it's mostly rural and unlit...I'd heartily recommend taking spare batteries, just in case.


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## Soltydog (31 May 2011)

On your budget i'd go with a couple of Smart Lunar 35 £15 each delivered from planet-x 
If you want a cateye el530 I have one that's a couple of years old, you can have it for £15 posted & i'll get a smart 35  but i wouldn't recommend the cateye for use alone on unlit roads, unless the new model is much improved.


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## MacB (31 May 2011)

Origamist said:


> I run a Fenix TK35 torch, very bright and well within your budget. I mount mine on my stem - it looks a bit ungainly, but it throws light a long way down the road.



820 lumens on high, that's a lot of light


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## Glover Fan (31 May 2011)

Baggy said:


> Streetlights on the Exodus are few and far between - it's mostly rural and unlit...I'd heartily recommend taking spare batteries, just in case.


Ah, I forgot you were involved with the event! Do you have an idea on what most people use?

I like the idea of the 2 smart ones for £30. I am aware I am being a complete cheapskate now, but I rarely do any night riding!


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## MacB (31 May 2011)

Glover Fan said:


> Ah, I forgot you were involved with the event! Do you have an idea on what most people use?
> 
> I like the idea of the 2 smart ones for £30. I am aware I am being a complete cheapskate now, but I rarely do any night riding!



why not get one of the Fenix torches with a lockblock mount, gives you a decent torch for home as well.


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## Baggy (31 May 2011)

Am not quite convinced the Smart Lunars would be powerful enough. What about an Asteri 3 LED or as I think it's been re-branded now, Asteri One23 
It's rechargeable, reasonable price and we've used ours a lot for unlit rural commutes.


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## Baggy (31 May 2011)

Glover Fan said:


> Ah, I forgot you were involved with the event! Do you have an idea on what most people use?


Bah! Bloody wireless internet, lost half my reply! Bar mounted torches seem to have been very popular, but we see everything from blinky commuter lights through to top of the range Ayups and Lumicycles. 

Cheddar Gorge is more fun with a bright light!


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## scsnow (31 May 2011)

I purchased a couple cree torches from China, with the latest XML-U2 LED. The manufacturer claim 1300 lumens each, but all my mates agree when they're on Turbo mode are noticeably brighter than the Magicshine MJ-816! I liked the idea of no cables so the pair of torches works a treat.

So impressed, I bought a stack of them - watch out for them in the classifieds!

Here's a clip of them in actions: http://www.youtube.c...h?v=yKEITs-hPaE


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## Glover Fan (31 May 2011)

Thanks a lot, I'm still tempted by the smarts, will doubling up make a big difference?


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## BigTone0777 (31 May 2011)

Dynamo????


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## Davidc (1 Jun 2011)

BigTone0777 said:


> Dynamo????



As I said above I'll be using my B&M CYO 60 powered by a Shimano hub for the EE. I've used it riding most of the roads on the route and it's fine up to about 20 mph in pitch darkness. 

I'll also have a Hope V1 - which I now own - complete with 3 spare battery packs, at least 2 of which should be unnecessay. Although the CYO would be enough I'll want the Hope for Cheddar Gorge and the road off the Blackdowns into Broadhembury, which I've ridden 3 times this year and have found covered in loose gravel each time. It'll also get used but on lower brightness up Burrington Coombe and up Blagdon Hill, but that's because I'm so slow that the dynamo lights get a bit dim.  No matter what light anyone has it can fail and on a route like this a backup which is useable alone is essential. 

I've tried the Hope before and its brightness on level 3 is about the same as the CYO, on level 4 it's brighter than the CYO.

Many of the roads in this area are as Baggy describes, they have precious little street lighting, and for next winter it appears that the local authorities are going to switch off many of those we do have so good lights are going to be even more of a necessity.


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## jay clock (1 Jun 2011)

mAgicshine 808. Amazing. I got a spare battery. Mounts and dismounts in seconds too


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## Origamist (1 Jun 2011)

MacB said:


> 820 lumens on high, that's a lot of light



High is too bright for urban riding so I have it on the lower settings, but it's v good for nightrides/MTBing when you're at the tête de la course!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/16114972@N00/5421279317/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/16114972@N00/5421885840/


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## MacB (1 Jun 2011)

Origamist said:


> High is too bright for urban riding so I have it on the lower settings, but it's v good for nightrides/MTBing when your at the tête de la course!
> 
> http://www.flickr.co...N00/5421279317/
> 
> http://www.flickr.co...N00/5421885840/



if you're on Whitstable we could have a comparison, I should have my E3 Triple by then


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## Wobblers (1 Jun 2011)

Baggy said:


> Am not quite convinced the Smart Lunars would be powerful enough. What about an Asteri 3 LED or as I think it's been re-branded now, Asteri One23
> It's rechargeable, reasonable price and we've used ours a lot for unlit rural commutes.



+1

I have an Asteri 3 and it's an excellent little light. It puts out enough light for 20 mph plus along pitch black lanes, and it'll do it for more than 7 hours on full power. Shop around and you should be able to get it for around £45.

The Hope 1 or Ixon IQ are both good choices if you already have decent rechargeable AA's and a good chrager to go with them, else factoring buying them too makes them an expensive choice. I found the bracket on the Hope 1 rather fragile - I managed to break mine just by dropping it two feet! The Ixon IQ is also rather fragile, I broke one when I didn't clip it properly into its mount. 

The Magicshine is always recommended because of its price. Its cheap for a reason - it's built down to a price and durability and reliability were not considerations (think electronics being driven at twice their rated power... ) There are plenty of reports on the mtb fora of people with dead Magicshines. I'd run it with a decent second light as a backup: you don't want it breaking as you're going down Cheddar Gorge! Actually, I'd recommend having a decent backup whatever light you use.


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## TorchyTheBatteryBoy (29 Jun 2011)

The leds are rated at 1300 Lumen max, but with 1x 18650 battery, they will draw around 1.5A, If you download the data sheet from CREE you will see that this equates to around 600 Lumen (from memory). The led will only reach it's full output with a 4x 18650 battery pack.


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## cyberknight (29 Jun 2011)

McWobble said:


> +1
> 
> 
> 
> The Magicshine is always recommended because of its price. Its cheap for a reason - it's built down to a price and durability and reliability were not considerations (think electronics being driven at twice their rated power... ) There are plenty of reports on the mtb fora of people with dead Magicshines. I'd run it with a decent second light as a backup: you don't want it breaking as you're going down Cheddar Gorge! Actually, I'd recommend having a decent backup whatever light you use.



Funny because there is another light thread on here with 2 of us running magicshines , another forumite has had his over a year and i have had mine 7 months and they have neither exploded or died.The problem lay in the battery pack but that was a global problem with all lights using the same battery type including very expensive models and even laptop s.


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## Hacienda71 (29 Jun 2011)

My Magicshine rocks! Can't get a brighter light at that price point as the vast majority of reviews point out.


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## Kestevan (29 Jun 2011)

I have to admit I came incredibly close to buying the magicshine when I wanted a new light. The only thing that made me get the Vision1 was the fact that as a commuter I needed something totally reliable and easily replaceable.

The magicShine may be a cracking piece of kit, but I figured that the chances of the Hope failing were a little lower, and that if the thing did fail, I'd have more joy dealing with Hope (a uk company with a very good rep for customer service), than an unknown distributor in Hong-Kong.....

I'm still tempted to buy a MagicShine as well just for messing about in the woods, but any further expenditure has been put on hold till the missus stops looking


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## TorchyTheBatteryBoy (29 Jun 2011)

I can only go by my own experience. I have found Magicshine can only be relied on to go wrong.
I put some details on my blog to try and stop others having their fingers burned (literally in some cases): http://www.torchythebatteryboy.com/p/magicshine.html

I'll give the XM-L a go (they surely can't go wrong with that) and the 4x XP-G.


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## Glover Fan (29 Jun 2011)

I completely forgot about this thread!

I ended up going with my gut instinct and inner-tightness and went for 2 sets of the Smart 35 LUX at £15 each. Not disappointed at all, took it out very late at night the other night and gave a good spread of light, and could comfortably travel at 15mph+

Jon.


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## elsdyr (22 Feb 2014)

TorchyTheBatteryBoy said:


> I can only go by my own experience. I have found Magicshine can only be relied on to go wrong.
> I put some details on my blog to try and stop others having their fingers burned (literally in some cases): http://www.torchythebatteryboy.com/p/magicshine.html
> 
> Torchy, with all due respect, I am actually here to stalk *you*.
> ...


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## the_mikey (22 Feb 2014)

I use a pair of RSP RX480s, reasonable brightness, light is quite diffused and not too focused, charged via USB.


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## buggi (22 Feb 2014)

dellzeqq said:


> that would be it. I've used Cateye 530s for three or four years, but the Hope is much brighter
> 
> http://fnrttc.blogsp...m/p/lights.html
> 
> uber-bright back lights are not a good idea if you're riding in a group


 
http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/mobile/smart-lunar-35-lux-front-light/rp-prod70360
this is as good as the cateye 530 but gives a more continuous light thro the beam. I bought it after a direct comparison of my cateye riding along in the dark with my mate who had this. I have two on my bike because they are slimline and it means i can have one flashing and one static (so if the batteries fail in one i can put the other on full beam). It takes normal batteries, like the cateye, which i prefer coz i can carry spares rather than worrying a battery pack will run out and I'll have nothing. Two is better than one and i know you can get some really good ones for up to £100 but i prefer this, similar to the cateye, but it looks better on the bike, only slightly more pennies than one cateye for two of these and it doesn't have a battery pack that can run out with no back up. Also doesn't blind the rider in front if they look behind (past you) for traffic coming up the rear when they want to turn right (an issue i have with another friends battery-pack Chinese light which is great for lighting up the road but, when she is behind me, i can't tell when cars are coming behind bcoz it drowns out their headlights on the road, and neither can i see what is behind her coz its like staring into a full beam).


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## moo (23 Feb 2014)

If you want a Smart Lunar 35 it is currently on sale for £11.72 at Amazon (or £11.81 direct from Amazon - right side):

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Smart-Lunar-Lux-Front-Light/dp/B005GPLYQS/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1393167306&sr=8-1&keywords=Smart Lunar 35


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