# Best Budget Headlight (Dark Country Lanes)



## Taylor (17 Jul 2008)

Hi, i wonder if anyone could help me regarding the selection of a top budget headlight for riding my MTB through very dark country lanes (un-lit) late at night for commuting. I have read the other forums, but i would like to find out if you can still get a quality very bright set of headlights for say under £80.00, the cheaper the better. If it has to be over £80.00 please just be frank and i'll just have to dig deep. I'm on a budget at the moment, but things may be improving soon. My rear lights are all sorted (2x Smart 1/2 watt superflash), so its just the front. I appreciate you all taking the time to answer this thread. Thanks Taylor


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## 4F (17 Jul 2008)

I use an older version of this and 8 miles of my commute are on dark unlit country lanes. 

http://www.wiggle.co.uk/p/Cycle/7/Electron_5W_10W_Double_Lighting_System/5360025995/


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## Origamist (17 Jul 2008)

Taylor said:


> Hi, i wonder if anyone could help me regarding the selection of a top budget headlight for riding my MTB through very dark country lanes (un-lit) late at night for commuting. I have read the other forums, but i would like to find out if you can still get a quality very bright set of headlights for say under £80.00, the cheaper the better. If it has to be over £80.00 please just be frank and i'll just have to dig deep. I'm on a budget at the moment, but things may be improving soon. My rear lights are all sorted (2x Smart 1/2 watt superflash), so its just the front. I appreciate you all taking the time to answer this thread. Thanks Taylor



A bit out of your price range, but...

I went for the Brightstar Levin 12w HID. It is very good value (£130 or so quid from Ebay), with a powerful blue/white beam, good battery life, and simple, if a little bulky fixtures. 

http://www.brightstar.com.tw/product_info_e.php?UID=773

Its 550 lumens are very impressive off-road. I don't use it for commuting (I have a Cat Eye Triple Shot for that) - but for unlit country lanes it would be great.


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## magnatom (17 Jul 2008)

Check this light out 
View: http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=XCABEdtjByE


Busch and Muller Ixon IQ and it can be had for £72 from dotbike.


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## Riding in Circles (17 Jul 2008)

I have some Smart halogen 10w with rechargeable lead acid battery complete with charger for £35 at the moment, I have about 5 of them. All brand new and boxed.


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## spindrift (17 Jul 2008)

View: http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=XCABEdtjByE


Don't use in Wales, the locals will report UFOs to the cops.


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## magnatom (17 Jul 2008)

spindrift said:


> View: http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=XCABEdtjByE
> 
> 
> Don't use in Wales, the locals will report UFOs to the cops.




Hey spindrift, I've already posted that!


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## 4F (17 Jul 2008)

magnatom said:


> Hey spindrift, I've already posted that!



I see your youtube video came with the mandatory heavy breathing


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## magnatom (17 Jul 2008)

FatFellaFromFelixstowe said:


> I see your youtube video came with the mandatory heavy breathing



It wouldn't be a proper test without it


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## spindrift (17 Jul 2008)

Yeah, i copied your link magna, that's a beauty but may confuse yokels.

If you sit upstairs in The Red Lion, Holborn, you see virtual mobile discos as lit-up cyclists pedal past.


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## magnatom (17 Jul 2008)

spindrift said:


> Yeah, i copied your link magna, that's a beauty but may confuse yokels.
> 
> If you sit upstairs in The Red Lion, Holborn, you see virtual mobile discos as lit-up cyclists pedal past.



I suppose you did add some value with the comment about Wales...


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## spindrift (17 Jul 2008)

99p Store are doing two Tyreflies for a quid, useful for sideways visibility.


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## twowheelsgood (17 Jul 2008)

If you are a bit DIY adept a 20W philips masterline ES bulb run at 14.4V (12 NiMH cells)

Around 900 lumens can be done for £50 with 1hr45min burn time.

I've run a 35W version for near 3 years - it's about a match for a single car headlight on "dip".


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## mikeitup (17 Jul 2008)

*lights!*

I had the same problem. A lot of dark country lanes.
Bought the AYUP Roadie kit £150.
No regrets, absolutely fantastic light.


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## Plax (17 Jul 2008)

spindrift said:


> View: http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=XCABEdtjByE
> 
> 
> Don't use in Wales, the locals will report UFOs to the cops.




Oi cheeky, change that to "Don't use in *South* Wales, the locals will report UFOs to the cops"


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## squeaker (18 Jul 2008)

Trelock LS730 (~£28 + delivery from Roseversand) works for me up to about 20mile/hr.
Otherwise B&M Ixon IQ if feeling flush. Note that AFAIK both these have sensible road beams, not off-road floodlights.


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## Soltydog (18 Jul 2008)

The smart halogen lights are very good for unlit country roads & wont break the bank.
I currently have a 10w/2w combination & my commute cosists of approx 10 miles of unlit roads. The 2w is great on lit roads & then the 10w allows you to see where you are going on unlit roads


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## Taylor (18 Jul 2008)

Thank You all for your help and replies. Please keep them coming as i have a couple of weeks to go before i buy them. I do like ORIGAMIST suggestion most, but they are above my price range a little. Its a great light though, so who knows. Thanks for the live feeds too excellent and for the offers. Your a great bunch. Cheers Taylor.


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## levad (18 Jul 2008)

I have a 10/5W halogen combination for winter use on my commute, only 1/12th of the route has street lights. I also use a Cateye EL530 for twilight and wet weather use, more to be seen by than to see.

Can anyone tell me where I can get a lighter  battery for the halogens, I currently have a 6v lead acid battery that sits in a bottle cage.


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## BentMikey (18 Jul 2008)

Another very bright and easy to use combination is the Fenix L2D (if you want to use normal batteries) or Fenix P3D, and the TwoFish lockblock mounting. I have two Fenix P3Ds on my bike, they are exceedingly bright.


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## John the Monkey (18 Jul 2008)

BentMikey said:


> Another very bright and easy to use combination is the Fenix L2D (if you want to use normal batteries) or Fenix P3D, and the TwoFish lockblock mounting. I have two Fenix P3Ds on my bike, they are exceedingly bright.



How are they for lighting up the road Mikey? I need to start thinking about stuff like this now I live in the country


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## twowheelsgood (18 Jul 2008)

Uncle Mort said:


> I suspect in a dim and distant past on a diffferent forum I saw you posting instructions or your home-brew lights - if so, would you mind terribly reposting them?
> 
> Cheers, Mort



I think that was a chap called "rooster" who used to sell his own home brew light heads for about £15-20 and very nice they were to. I used an MR16 unit from the USA designed for cars (actually probably chinese in origin). It was about $8 for a pair mail order or about £2 each in todays money! It doesn't really matter, as long as the lamp is metal to cope with the heat.

Basically all you need is 12*cells of around 4500mAh with solder tags or you can buy a pack from batteryspace, a switch, some mains flex and a you can add a fuse for safety. Best to split them into 2*7.2V packs which are common radio control sizes for which it's easy to get chargers or ready made packs.

The magic efficiency for halogen comes from three factors that combine together:

-The Philips bulb has a special IR reflecting coating that boosts efficiency by about 40% - they claim - I'd say that's optimistic, but they are definitely better. As a bonus the internal build of these lamps is different (there is a large metal support on the burner) and this makes then very tough.

-The MR16 format is larger than the typical MR11 format of bike lights, the reflector is MUCH more efficient this size. This is a problem in all of those oh so neat little lights - the bulb itself obscures the tiny optics!

-Overvolting is MAGIC - 20% more voltage buys you 87% more light - and the light is much whiter too instead of the typical yellowish halogen. Now this does come at the cost of bulb life BUT domestic lamps are designed to work in enclosed fittings, the additional cooling in a metal fitting on a moving bike means this is no problem - I still have all the original bulbs working from 3 years ago.

Basically you get around 70% HID levels of efficiency (bike HIDs are not that efficient anyway as this is compromised by the small form factor) without the cost and the fragile eletronics. The bulb you want is Philips Masterline MR16 ES and the narrowest 8 degree beam (it has a good "be seen" halo) - it's important you get the right one!

I don't of course count the charger as I already had a suitable one for charging radio control model battery packs.

I personally don't think HID has much of a future in small applications like bike lighting because LED is already much more effecient and it only takes 3 emitters to match the amount of total light output these days. also you get none of the drawbacks such as the high-voltage electronics, fragility and limited bulb life.

References:

http://nordicgroup.us/s78/wattslumens.html
http://nordicgroup.us/s78/headlights.html


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## Taylor (18 Jul 2008)

Catrike UK said:


> I have some Smart halogen 10w with rechargeable lead acid battery complete with charger for £35 at the moment, I have about 5 of them. All brand new and boxed.


Hi Catrike UK, Could i ask you have tried these lights out on a very dark road, especially the 10w. Also could you give me the model number or name, so i can check what is said about the lights on the net. Thanks for your help. Taylor.


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## Riding in Circles (19 Jul 2008)

Taylor said:


> Hi Catrike UK, Could i ask you have tried these lights out on a very dark road, especially the 10w. Also could you give me the model number or name, so i can check what is said about the lights on the net. Thanks for your help. Taylor.



BL912HF, I used one last winter and it was very good if a little basic for a light that retailed at £70, lots of light and cars tend to give you a lot of respect as it is motor vehicle bright. I could never go back to a standard cycle light now.


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## Taylor (25 Jul 2008)

Thanks Folks i went for the Ixon IQ in the end as recommended by a couple of good guy's above. Sorry for the delay in replying to your offer Catrike UK, but i went for a light with high and low setting for town and dark lanes. Thanks all it mean't a lot. I'll let you have a review of the Ixon IQ as soon as i get out at night. Taylor


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## HJ (27 Jul 2008)

Try this review of lights, I think some of them are within your budget...


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## BentMikey (27 Jul 2008)

Just a comment on my Fenix P3D lights - I had two on the front on the Dunwich Dynamo, and I did 30mph down some of the unlit lanes. Incredibly bright lighting, really really great.

At one point Chris N and I were riding side by side, with similar light setups, and it was like being in a car.


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## yenrod (27 Jul 2008)

I got mine in Wilkinson BUT cant find it on the site try the shop


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## PrettyboyTim (27 Jul 2008)

I have the Smart dual halogen set, (10W/10W), it cost me £27. Granted, I cycle through London so it's normally streetlit and even if I go somewhere non-streetlit you've always got the unearthly yellow glow of the London sky, but they are very bright for the price.


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## Taylor (31 Jul 2008)

I've now had the chance to use the Ixon IQ LED Bike light at night in very dark lanes. Well i must say I'm impressed with the light overall. The plus side's are there's plenty of light good enough for the speeds i ride and its easy to charge with a long rechargeable battery life 4 hours and still going strong. The light looks good and was under £80.00 and has two light settings for city and dark lanes. The Downside is the attachment for the handle bars, its not straight forward and I'm still not sure its right. The instructions are really poorly written and are so tiny you need a jewellers magnifier to read them. Overall i would recommend this light, but the manufacturer needs to sort the issues raised by my test. I hope this helps a cyclist out there, if you have any questions please ask. Taylor


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