Lost another rear light on my commute last night. Was just an Aldi cheapy, but it's not ideal. Last time it happened it was proper dark, on country roads and I had to angle my helmet light backwards to make sure I was seen.
Now i carry a back up rear on my bag just i case.
Any recommendations for not too expensive usb charging rear lights - that won't easily fall off a helmet/seat?
There’s lots of cheap ones, just get an Exposure Tracr for the cost of 2 cheap. Then put a cheap one on helmet, as a back up. Or an Exposure link when funds allow.
Not an area I’d take any risks, but Moon fit the cheap but good category.
Exposure Tracr as above. Don’t even fall off on the mtb and will last for ever. Have then got a Moon Sirus as my back up second light.
I've always run two lights when commuting, both turned on. Means that if one fails or goals your covered. I used the cheap px tears (not rechargable) as they were super cheap and bright. Do you know what is causing theme to fall off? Can you fit them with an extra zip tie around to secure them?
Lezyne zecto, had it for over 5 years.
Got two Aldi rear lights running this time of year, must be 3-4 years old, and never lost them, including using them for some spirited gravel rides with the club.
Still think they are the best value rechargeable lights, £15 front and rear. There's a spare set in the garage I bought this year just in case.
Moon rear light fixings are very secure. Sometimes tough to get off with my fingers.
They’re also bright and reasonable price.
Thanks for the suggestions, i'll look into them.
My commute isn't really a typical commute. 1h 30. Some easy road, interspersed with quite technical rocky singletrack and depending on energy levels steep sections.
I think the best bet is something that will go on my bag. It's only been helmet and seat fittings that have failed. Plus i'm more likely to remember to charge it that way.
The best one i had didn't fall off, but died from getting filthy and soaked.
If you don't want retina burning bright,<span style="font-size: 0.8rem;"> These x lite 100's are good. Zip tie mount on the saddle rails and the light screws onto it with an O ring for watertightness, also gives enough friction to prevent accidental unscrewing. </span>
Cateye Viz 300 - uses the classic Cateye square mount which is very reliable.
+1 on the Moon light fittings being very secure.
Great lights.
I've bought two sets of the Aldi light for commuting this year.
So far so good
another vote for Moon, mounts are great
my Cateye Holy Hand Grenade is still going striung along with all the brackets, but it takes 2*AA batterieus
Off road I use a small bontrager light. With rubber strap. Small enough that it's does not get knocked and I'd imagine this also helps stops it bouncing around.
I've also seen lights that attach to the saddle rails. If you had something like that the mount shouldn't break and if you picked something that has a lanyard loop you can feed the lanyard around the rails as a backup.
I use/d 2 cateye Rapid x2 on the seat stays and an exposure link on my helmet.
I also used a German approved front light as well as an 800lm Evans job on the bars and a white rapid x2 on the headtube.
The rapids are great, just bungee on battery lasts ages and puts light all over the place.
The link is good too because it’s high up and gets a lot of attention.
I only ever got hit by a car once and that was a blind spot issue in a small suv, no amount of lights would have solved that
+1 for Exposure TraceR - I've got them on the saddle rail mount on my MTB and commuter and haven't managed to lose either in several years. Nicely tucked away out of the way.
The Zecto's are great, as are the copies (but not as bright) Got copies on the commuter, and use front/rear Zecto 250's as a daylight lamp on the road bike.
for offroad commuting the best i have found is the topeak redlite
i use this with a cheapo AAA light on my backpack.
the only time i`ve lost a light is crashing and smashing one to bits. Lots of jumps and tech singletrack on my commutes.
Always 2 lights as riding home without a light sucks.
All my usb rechargeable lights ive tried (and ive tried a lot!) failed after a month or so of rainy wet muddy offroad commutes.
I've got the other Lifeline one as a backup to my See.Sense Ace - https://www.wiggle.co.uk/rear-lights?ea=4294789698
Superb little thing, very bright, has a few fixing options.
(Both have survived many a rainy commute)
Off road I use a small bontrager light. With rubber strap
I love these lights too...but they stick out quite far and i've lost 2 due to teh rear wheel hitting it (on a FS).
I've now got a few of These lifeline ones, and they are GREAT- well fixed on, don't protrude too far..puurrrfect
DrP
The longest lasting lights I have are some unbranded Zecto knock-offs from China via eBay for a fiver several years ago, and a AAA powered 'phart' (smart knock-off) dual 1/2 watt LED job that was about £2 over 5 years ago... neither has died, both stay attached and functional through on/off road use and splattering with mud and water...
PX no longer sell the 'Phart' lights, but they seem to be flogging a Zecto knock-off very similar to the ones I have been using for several years: This one for £4 which seems worth a punt if you're already ordering some bits from PX and need to push the order value into free postage territory...
I also have a Lezyne Femto which I find to be a bit bobbins for the relative cost TBH, the battery life seems less than those ancient Chinese jobs and the output is less Impressive than the £2 PX light from half a decade ago... Despite costing more it's been relegated to backup duties.
Basically don't buy Lezyne products, buy the cheap copies of Lezyne products 😉
Plus whatever for the Moon shield, lives on my commuter and MTB all year around and going strong after a few years.
my Cateye Holy Hand Grenade is still going striung along with all the brackets, but it takes 2*AA batterieus
I actually prefer AA or AAA batteries for a rear light because the burn times are so much better.
To prove the exception to the rule I lost a moon shield on the commute a few years back. Fortunately had a light on my helmet as well.
Replaced the moon with a trace-r which has stayed put to date, although a lot less commuting since Covid and lockdowns, so not a fair comparison.
Aldi lights are good and cheap. Run one on the MTB as the strap is narrow so just goes round the cm or so of the dropper post that sticks out the frame.
I think the best bet is something that will go on my bag. It’s only been helmet and seat fittings that have failed.
Weirdly, I'm the opposite.
All the lights fitted to my bags or jacket have fallen off, even when zip-tide to death they seem to find a way of slipping through the 'mounts' on the bags.
My frame or saddle mounts seem to have been much more resilient and I've yet to lose one. But..
- I forget to charge them
- They get covered in muck so can't be seen
- Get masked by mudguards, bum-bags or jackets so can't be seen
So yet to find the perfect solution.
In terms of frame mounts, the Moon Nebula has a great saddle mount that is rock solid. The Tracer is rock solid too (albeit on my road bike).
Annoyingly I lost my Tracr at the end of last winter. I don't know when, but at some point I found the red rubber band for attachment on a neighbour's driveway, not realising it was mine. Months later, after summer, I realised I couldn't find my light. Don't know how it got lost, it has survived years of offroad riding so must have taken a knock.
Rubber ages eventually.
But TraceR here. Blinking excellent. Literally.
Off road, on road, for hours at a time.
Good thread timing Reeksy. I lost my Niterider Solas 260 on a day ride last week, no idea where & ive re-rode the route but no luck. I’ve ordered a Cateye Viz 300. £26.83 from Velozone. I’ve had battery Cateyes for years & never lost any, just hope the clip on this one is as reliable as the others, which it should be!
Had a zecto rear, but the clip was too loose, and it bounced out of the loop on my saddle bag. Happened to my son as well. The rubber strap was fine tho to attach to seat post
as mentioned above, the moon replacements have been superb - whether the seatpost rubbers or the excellent clips to attach to bags and loops
I've been using one of these for the last couple of years, works well and hasn't fallen off yet 😀
I'm a big fan of Moon lights, but would say TraceR here. I had the clip on a Moon Shield 60 break when I hit a pot hole once (clip replaced FoC, to their credit).
I never like lights on bags because they never seem to be pointing in the right direction. Rear lights tend to be pretty directional, so you want them pointing straight back for maximum benefit.
Alpkit Tau are great for me, got them front and rear on 4 bikes and not lost one yet. I mount to the seatstay on the rear (road bikes), but they can go on a seatpost too. Seem to last about 5 hours on constant full power.
Could anyone tell me how much clamp area you need for a TraceR? I don't have a lot of room between seatpost clamp and dropper collar.
I've been using the same light from PX as flicker, and I agree - it's laughably cheap and very effective.
I'm happy to accept that the TraceR is great as so many people here rec it, but could somebody explain why it is so loved? In pictures it looks a little clumsy and clunky, it seems to stick out too far so it might wobble around. I assume this isn't so, but what is it that makes the TraceR the STW fave?
@nedrapier 30-35mm with the included mount, I have mine half on the dropper collar and it's fine. You can get a saddle rail mount too.
@easily It's secure, very visible and has good battery life. Also solidly built and weather sealed. There are cheaper lights but given it cost me about £10 more than the Aldi and Moon lights I had that variously fell apart or stopped charging properly it's worth the difference.
I added a new light to my set up Last winter, a PX cob light on the top tube pointing down, it lights up my bottle, peddles, and front triangle. Gives loads of side on visibility on my 20 mile dark country A road commute.
Exposure TraceR. Very secure fit in the bracket.
Aldi +1
Or bite the bullet, get a dynamo and never have to worry about charging or losing lights again.
Having said that, my setup is a dynamo (Shimano XT, B+M IQ-XS friendly, B+M Secula).
+
Aldi as a backup, basically only switched on super bright flash mode in morning fog.
+
An old Cateye 1/2W light that zipties neatly to the back vent on my helmet. Because I think helmet lights stand out more and more visible over bridges and other rises in the road.
So many options!
Some i can't really get as they're not coming up in Oz. Most that are available are around AU$50. Ex Trace I can get for $85.
Anyone tried the Knog Cobber lights? I like the look of the wrap-around nature.
The problem i had with the Aldi one was that the charge didn't last long.
I run Ayup lights on the front are they're really well mounted. I'm not sure why the rear ones get lost. I think the rubber straps get knocked sometimes.
I’ve had a knog blinder for years (front), really secure, definitely worth getting a rear. Those cobber look ace but take up a fair bit of space.
I read this when first posted and smugly thought it was irrelevant to me. Needless to say, my rear light disappeared on a fairly tame Cairngorms descent yesterday so I am now re reading all these recommendations looking for a new one. I might even go for the Exposure which I had always dismissed on grounds of price.
Ain't that the way.
Best option at my lbs turned out a knog blinder which I bought on Sunday... And promptly left on the counter and drove 25 mins home.
Picked it up today and looks like it'll mount nicely on my helmet.
I had always dismissed on grounds of price.
Always the best to choose the expensive ones if you have a habit of losing them 🙂
Nope, first one I have ever lost in 35 years of mountain biking
Err, actually I should change that to ' first one lost off bike. Others seem to have just vanished in drawers, cupboards etc., not to mention being 'borrowed' by children