What lights?

[Miquel In De Rain]

No good for the colour blind though.

 

[Col5632]

the velcro mounts are available on fleabay for about a fiver a pair, if you search for ultrafire mounts you should find them.

the emitters (the LED's) are better spec and are emitters used seem to be ones that actually meet the spec as it appears the torchy brand/company have decent quality standards

I've not noticed heat being a problem btw.

Thanks for your help Greg Still not sure whether to get 1 hope light or two from torchy

 

[GrumpyGregry]

No, such decisions are tricky.

For myself, the nature of my commute is such that I would never rely on a single light source at speed on an unlit road when commuting and I don't want to slow down much at night as that extends the duration of the commute beyond my, albeit arbitrary, one hour limit.

Hence I have a pair of AyUps up front (which are excellent lights with very long run time but still have several single points of failure) plus the Torchy's as auxiliaries, though most often so far the torchy pair alone have been turned on.

 

[MrGrumpy]

do you have any room to put your hands I am woefully under prepared compared to you guys, just one set of lights normally.

 

[totallyfixed]

do you have any room to put your hands I am woefully under prepared compared to you guys, just one set of lights normally.

I suspect that more than a few posters on here are using straight bars, on drop bars there is only really room for two front lights unless you start adding extension bars and the like. I personally have 1 main front light with a backup head torch, useful for punctures etc, but always 2 on the back, both on flash which in my experience makes drivers think a bit more, and I do a lot of night riding on very dark lanes.

 

[gaz]

I suspect that more than a few posters on here are using straight bars, on drop bars there is only really room for two front lights unless you start adding extension bars and the like. I personally have 1 main front light with a backup head torch, useful for punctures etc, but always 2 on the back, both on flash which in my experience makes drivers think a bit more, and I do a lot of night riding on very dark lanes.

You might want to change one of your rear lights to solid, it is much easier for people to follow your position.

 

[Downward]

Well i actually bought this

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B004FEL7Y0/ref=oh_details_o00_s00_i00

O ring is useless as is the battery now, would be easier to have it neat i think

I have this - It's into it's 2nd Winter now. Only issue is the Screw came loose on the light to bracket connector but I superglued it.

Used on the Rea Valley Route (Unlit Cycle lanes) and can't fault it for the price. Much much brighter than the 2 Tesco torches used from 2008-2010 winters !

 

[totallyfixed]

You might want to change one of your rear lights to solid, it is much easier for people to follow your position.

I am in the fortunate position in having a partner who is also a cyclist [and a very talented one at that] and I am able to test any new innovations [that we can afford!] by observing them from a motorists point of view. BTW this is how I came to be concerned with the power output of front omni-directional lights when seen from a drivers point of view on unlit roads, especially narrow ones, I digress.
I have had the opportunity of driving behind my partner when she has had both combinations of rear light, flashing/steady and flashing/flashing and on a very dark road it is difficult at a distance beyond the throw of the car headlights to determine how far away the cyclist is. However, and this is the important / common sense bit, it didn't matter that I couldn't tell how far away she was because in the first instance I could see the flashing light first and this was the better part of 1 mile away on the straightest road we have around here. At that distance the steady light was not discernible. Many cars dip their headlights when approaching from behind for some reason, perhaps an indication that they have some respect for us? I would rather they stayed on full beam and help light our way. I am inclined to think this idea of having one steady rear light is a bit of a red herring because once a vehicle's headlights illuminate a cyclist they damn well ought to be able to judge the distance.
It may well be that in an urban environment where numpty drivers sometimes only use sidelights [don't get me started on that one!] then a steady light could be of more use for judging distance, but I'm not convinced, perhaps the urbanites on here could run some experiments with non cycling friends?

 

[gaz]

I am in the fortunate position in having a partner who is also a cyclist [and a very talented one at that] and I am able to test any new innovations [that we can afford!] by observing them from a motorists point of view. BTW this is how I came to be concerned with the power output of front omni-directional lights when seen from a drivers point of view on unlit roads, especially narrow ones, I digress.
I have had the opportunity of driving behind my partner when she has had both combinations of rear light, flashing/steady and flashing/flashing and on a very dark road it is difficult at a distance beyond the throw of the car headlights to determine how far away the cyclist is. However, and this is the important / common sense bit, it didn't matter that I couldn't tell how far away she was because in the first instance I could see the flashing light first and this was the better part of 1 mile away on the straightest road we have around here. At that distance the steady light was not discernible. Many cars dip their headlights when approaching from behind for some reason, perhaps an indication that they have some respect for us? I would rather they stayed on full beam and help light our way. I am inclined to think this idea of having one steady rear light is a bit of a red herring because once a vehicle's headlights illuminate a cyclist they damn well ought to be able to judge the distance.
It may well be that in an urban environment where numpty drivers sometimes only use sidelights [don't get me started on that one!] then a steady light could be of more use for judging distance, but I'm not convinced, perhaps the urbanites on here could run some experiments with non cycling friends?

Nice idea that, driving behind someone else with your lighting setup to see how it looks.

From my experience and feedback I have had, a steady light is easier to follow. Perhaps not as required so much out of town, but in town I see it as a huge benefit.

 

[GrumpyGregry]

do you have any room to put your hands I am woefully under prepared compared to you guys, just one set of lights normally.

plenty of room thanks on both drops and bullhorns. AyUps are tiny and the velcro mounts for the torchys are only about 15mm wide,

 

[fossyant]

Two hope ones, two Decathlon v100 USB backups and a Garmin on my road bars.

 

[MrGrumpy]

well I have been offered a refund on the MS clones so dunno what to do, cut my losses or get a replacement? Think two torches would be better i.e. back up if failure occurs in one?

 

[GrumpyGregry]

well I have been offered a refund on the MS clones so dunno what to do, cut my losses or get a replacement? Think two torches would be better i.e. back up if failure occurs in one?

Were it me I'd cut loses get refund and buy a pair.

 

[MrGrumpy]

just looking to see what ones to buy, was thinking do I order from UK or risk something from HK??

 

[GrumpyGregry]

just looking to see what ones to buy, was thinking do I order from UK or risk something from HK??

I can only recommend big_f_d_d (Torchy the Battery Boy) on fleabay but he has nowt in stock at present. Winter of 2009/10 I bought two cheap Taiwanese torches and some rechargeable AA batteries off there from a Taiwanese seller. Cheap, cheerful, pretty quick delivery, utter waste of effort.

Batteries were gash, wouldn't hold charge, wouldn't charge, the mounts for the torches ridiculously large and the torches were no more than ok. As torches go. No good on the bike in the rain, and you couldn't focus/diffuse the beam.