[Closed] That time of year is coming again - what's hot in the lighting world?

Liking all of this - top work, everyone!

I've a couple of questions; I have been given a bunch of Sony laptop batteries by a friend - his laptop died, so the batteries are pretty much unused. They're made up of 18650 cells. I'm guessing these are not protected, as there was a small amount of circuitry in the pack I've taken to bits. I have removed the tabs and they fit perfectly in the battery holder linked to above, as well as a few other 18650 holders I have. The question is: can I use some sort of fancy charger to charge them, or do I need to remove each cell and charge it individually? On top of that, is there a way for me to tell for sure that they're protected or not?

And a final one - does anyone have a link to hand for the extension leads you can get for Bastids or Solarstorms? I need to update a couple of the holders to these, as I'm making a switch from using an old Nightlightning unit to running Solarstorms on both bike and helmet.

There was a chap on here called Olly who was importing Panasonic cells, the waterproof cases and SSX2 lights. I bought a battery pack off him for the SSX2 I already had, is good quality. To be honest my SSX2 battery pack wasn't too horrendous, I just wanted more runtime. I now have the SSX2 battery pack as a backup. No reason to upgrade the SSX2 right now, never say never though

I keep being tempted by the Exposure Joystick, or maybe the Axis, as its such a good looking design. But my current set ups work so well I'm not sure there's much point in upgrading. I use a Sunwayman V20c on my helmet, had a couple of these already, not bought specifically for biking so was a cost effective solution. It has infinite adjustability using a control ring. Pretty throwy with some nice flood

On the bars of my road/commute bike is a Fluxient U2 mini, its great value (bought from Torchy boy). It comes with charger and I bought a spare cell, it also comes with a mount that I butchered into a very secure helmet mount. Takes 18650 cells so I can swap them out when one runs flat, or take them out and charge them at work. Its basically an 18650 torch with a very diffuse beam and a U2 LED, two setting and a handy flash. The Exposure Axis is probably closest in output beam but I don't have one so can't say for sure. I mount it on my bars with a twofish lockblock so I can easily remove the light when leaving the bike somewhere

I've got a Gloworm X2 which I've been using happily the last couple of years. Just bought a £15 solarstorm for the bars, can't have too much light.
Will charge it with my Gloworm charger and if the batteries are duff I can build a pack with some spare cells I have from a laptop battery.
Roll on the dark nights!

Found a source for extension leads if anyone else needs them: [url= http://www.bikelightsuk.com/accessories/1_metre_extension_cable_for_all_magicshine_lights_mj872_mj856_mj816_P576.html ]BikelightsUK[/url].

FWIW i've been using a yezl torch on my lid for a year or so. takes 18650 ( that xtar one + charger looks like a good deal linked earlier in the thread ), and also fits very nicely in a joystick mount, which can be had for ~ £10 quid from wiggle at the mo. useful amount of light for looking around corners and doing repairs, shows up in my bar mounted light ( a triple XML IIRC, I made myself ), just about, and gives good depth perception. they're about a tenner.

ordered one of [url= http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/SolarStorm-X2-CREE-U2-LED-Black-Red-Bicycle-Bike-Cycle-Head-Light-Lamp-5000-LM-/251423689585 ]these ones[/url] linked by BillOddie on previous page. It's more as backup/experiment anyway - if it's crap the kids can use it 🙂 certainly wont be leaving it charging at night tho....

ordered yesterday morning and dispatched today....

£15?! Holy cow. That's gotta be denting some of the profits from USE... although they still have the USP of longer battery life, a fully enclosed unit and less explosions.

£15?! Holy cow. That's gotta be denting some of the profits from USE... although they still have the USP of longer battery life, a fully enclosed unit and less explosions.

iainc - Member

ordered one of these ones linked by BillOddie on previous page. It's more as backup/experiment anyway - if it's crap the kids can use it certainly wont be leaving it charging at night tho....

ordered yesterday morning and dispatched today....

@iainc Let us all know how you get on with them!

Just starting to need to light up for the final descents off the top on evening rides in my neck of the woods.

Nothing wrong with my old lights but an upgrade never hurt anyone (unless they explode)...

I have the glowworm X1 and X2, the 850 and 1200 lumen versions, and a SSX2 and the YingDing light.

The Gloworm X2 is still a slightly nicer light than the others, more amenable to running at medium than the others, and also a slightly different light color.

But there isn't an awful lot in it, with the gloworm also winning on better build quality and the remote switches and battery indicators.

For use on the head though the X1 is better as it is more beamy.

I also had a fluxient mini torch which I tried on the head, but my mk7 Joystick, although berated by Torchy and a lower output, is actually better as it is a better spot.

So I would say that an SSX2 on the bars with something more spotty, maybe one of those single XML things like C&B seen do, might work very well.

Those battery cases are a good shout as well as they have a screw link which mates with the SSX2, and you can use high quality cells which can be replaced or spare carried as separate cells which might be stashable in your bag easier than a complete battery.

For use on the head though the X1 is better as it is more beamy.

I find the new X2, the 1500 version with a spot and a wide optic the best for an all in one light - so no bar light needed.

I do have the X1, with the wide optic, which I find excellent for when I do want some extra light on the bars.

For me the Gloworm represents the best value for money, as the reliability, build quality, support and overall cost in superb.

For me the Gloworm represents the best value for money, as the reliability, build quality, support and overall cost in superb.

I'd agree, my m8's is a much better light than my SSX2, but then it did cost quite a lot more & I have other (cheap) lights to compensate with. I have to say though I am not a fan of remote switches, but imagine thats a just my opinion (I see it as something go wrong too when out of warranty and no real advantage)

PS: CRG Moto (Gloworm distrib) currently have a sale on!

Arrived at the trail late on Wednesday night and felt a pang of envy as I saw some nice bright beams flying along at the other side of the woods. Two days later and I've ordered a SSX2, going to build a battery pack but looking for advice on chargers. There doesn't seem to be much suggested out there other than that the stock ones are crap. There's plenty of options for charging single cells but I'm after something with terminal wires to charge the pack as a whole. Any suggestions?

So is there still a market for the £300 plus Exposure, Lumicycle and other premium brands ? What is better about them and is the price tag justifiable ?

Being harsh as long as there's someone willing to pay £300 for a torch then probably 🙂

I've had the better brands in the past but now tend to stick with the cheap Chinese cnc'd lights...

Constant commuting tends to kill whatever you buy so I don't buy into expensive lasting longer 15quid a year for a light and battery is nothing .

I do have a rather nice set of £70 lights from kickstarter which replace a front spacer and fix in the seatpost so they can be left on without being easily tealeafed and actually look good which I did think was a bit of innovation.

And tbh anything bright on the handlebars seems to upset the other users of the cyclepath anyway and yes I do angle it correctly,

@iainc Let us all know how you get on with them!

So it charged fine and I just tried it on the bike in a dark garage, side to side with current model Maxx D. The solar storm is brighter, a bit whiter and wider beam, although less even and diffused. Will try properly once dark.

I need to get some lights for an unlit road commute of 1 hr each way. Any good recommendations. Was thinking to get a helmet and bar combo to maximise visibility and not leave me stranded if one dies on the way home. I need good lights without spending hundreds. Any good suggestions?

Any good suggestions?

Any good suggestions?

...aye, nearly 3 pages of them in this thread !

yep I know that but after something for dark country lanes, not off road MTB riding. Getting the balance between brightness, visibility and beam spread is different for this kind of riding unless you want to blind everybody.

On dark country stuff, which is my norm from the door for winter road rides I use the MTB setup of Maxx D on bars and Joystick on head. I point the bar light down a bit and if I see an approaching car tend to look left a little to dip the helmet light. At 25mph it can get scary dark without bright lights !

My SS turned up yesterday. Super impressed for £15. I'll use it to replace a much bigger, heavier and brighter unit, that tbh is complete overkill - offroad you actually forget it is night...

Neil's how much does the head unit weigh? I asked the seller and he stated 550g which can't be correct.

M yinding is tiny but the light is very yellow and poor so woukd like this for a helmet light

Not sure but certainly not 550 grams. On holiday with no scales at hand but no more than a couple of hundred grams max. You wouldn't notice it on your head that's for sure.

Ok found it on another seller's page claimed weight 140g

Sounds about right.

3 hour ride last night with my £15 light.

Bloody hell. Considering I paid £15 for the bit of plastic my USE Diablo clips into I'm totally staggered. It even came with a free rear light that I was about to spend £5 on.

Charger gets hot but I stick it on an extension lead on the concrete shed floor. Just. In. Case.

I do know it's wrong and all that but it's every bit as good as my £300 USE light. For £15!

Told ya 🙂

went for a 10 min spin from the house last night - right hand side of bars - MaxxD (current version) as usual. Left side - £15 Solarstorm. Tried them togther and more importantly seperately. Light wise there is nowt in it, with pretty similar beams. The SS is whiter and a little bit more irregular. It's also a bit of a jumble of cables wrapped around the battery pack and stem.

The MaxxD is great, as I know, and will keep going, with great warranty backup and it looks super and its cable free and dead neat.

You could buy 23 of the Solarstorms for the price of the MaxxD....., albeit I will need extreme care as to where and when I charge the Solarstrom due the heat from the charger and perceived fire risk

Anyone used something like this for a helmet light..
Do the headtorches stay on a helmet?

http://www.lightmalls.com/k33-middle-yellow-color-zoomable-cree-xm-l-t6-3-mode-800-lumen-headlamp-2-18650

I've had an Exposure Diablo for a few years now , brilliant helmet light , it's never let me down.

Question - when it does eventually die , has anybody ever had one serviced ?

Where did you send it & what was the cost & turnaround time ?

Cloud9, not used one but as that has the battery pouch included in the strap, you'll find it's extremely noticeable addition to your helmet. I used to run a [url= http://www.mtbbritain.co.uk/mountain_bike_lights_review_led.html ]'torch'[/url] on my helmet and even with only one battery, it was definitely not lightweight. The main issue with that will be keeping it attached & stable on your the helmet (Eg zip ties), even then the extra weight will make your helmet unwieldy. In all honesty I'd suggest a SSX2 unit & helmet mount (annoyingly tall TBH), with an extension lead to put the battery in your pack (or back pocket) will be easier.

PS: That look like a seriously good headtorch, but not for mtbing

stanleigh - Member
I've had an Exposure Diablo for a few years now , brilliant helmet light , it's never let me down.

Question - when it does eventually die , has anybody ever had one serviced ?

Where did you send it & what was the cost & turnaround time ?

If you have problems with it, Exposure themselves will quite happily deal with it, usually at nominal cost.

I use a Reflex an Equinox and a Revo. I've also tried (and own) an X2 and a Glowworm. The Reflex easily outdoes the X2(1500) and lasts almost 4 times as long on it's battery.

The Equinox is (on full) only good for 30 mins, but set to 2/3rds will last over an hour and makes the perfect companion for the Revo when I'm on the country lanes on my way home after work.

I'd also not really wanting to be charging either of the two cheaper lights at work...in fact I charge both of them using the outdoor plug due to the heat in the charger.

When bought with a degree of economic savvy, Exposure lights aren't too badly priced seeing as they hold their value quite well.

Nice if you can afford almost £1,000 worth of lights

I've got an Exposure rear light (the Flare mkII) which does a smashing job when the contacts are clean. With daily commuter use in the autumn, winter and spring, that means cleaning it about once a week when swapping the battery out. I tend to take a while to do this, as the plastic thread on the lens / light unit part seems a little vulnerable to cross threading. I've had to return the charger for repair. The rubber band for holding it on has started to tear, and the rubber band on the under-saddle fitting that I bought to replace it that stops the unit from sliding out of the holder didn't last a month.

I doubt a cheap rear light would last quite as long, but then I've used a couple of cheap rear lights as backups, because I don't trust the Exposure unit not to fall off or simply stop working. The warranty support is superb - but I imagine that's what you are paying the extra for.

In the same time, I've used a Nightlightning with a Smudge battery on the bars and an SSX2 as a helmet light, both of which have been completely reliable. One cost me about £120 four years ago, and the other cost me £25.

Much as I'd love to support a UK business (and I'm a big fan of both Exposure and USE - they're smashing people) and as much as I hate the disposable nature of cheap lights, I'm plumping for the cheap and cheerful option.

ahem cloudnnine:

Del - Member
FWIW i've been using a yezl torch on my lid for a year or so. takes 18650 ( that xtar one + charger looks like a good deal linked earlier in the thread ), and also fits very nicely in a joystick mount, which can be had for ~ £10 quid from wiggle at the mo. useful amount of light for looking around corners and doing repairs, shows up in my bar mounted light ( a triple XML IIRC, I made myself ), just about, and gives good depth perception. they're about a tenner.

Thanks

If you have problems with it, Exposure themselves will quite happily deal with it, usually at nominal cost.

I think the question was more about general wear and tear. I've got a 5 year old MaxxD and Joystick and the batteries aren't what they were - steps down to save battery after an hour on full beam, not 3. Nothing wrong with it, just old. can you get them refurbed?

Exposure fixed my (very) old Joystick which had a dead battery after 5 years. Cost me £30 I think. Someone off here also does it but wanted me to get the battery out and I couldn't shift the thread. My Lumi XPG3 is about 3 years old now but at 900ish lumens and still three hour life, not worth upgrading. Might get a diablo this year as I like the Cable Free Design on the helmet.

[i]iainc - Member
So is there still a market for the £300 plus Exposure, Lumicycle and other premium brands ? What is better about them and is the price tag justifiable ? [/i]

The market share for the premium product has significantly reduced as a result of the flood of low cost lights coming from China.
As for explaining [i]"what is better"[/i]. In my experience, most of the public do not understand the differences and will not. The only difference of any concern to buyers appears to be price, so thats how it pans out. looking back at the days when Lupine were charging £800 for a light, I find it easy to see why people would become cynical about prices Vs perceived quality. But things are different now and for any premium products which remain. It will always be the case that certain customers will ask what the difference maybe, when the lights all appear to be designed and built the same. Fact is, there's quite some significant difference which may or may not become apparent during many years of use. Which again, is not something a customer is going to come to appreciate if they're replacing their budget light each year.

help please - front lights are sorted here but what rear lights are recommended ?

I run a MaxxD on my bars and have just ordered a Diablo for my helmet. My old helmet light, a MJ-808E, is great but the trailing wire and sloppy mount have made me change.

Also ordered a Support Cell (that clips on) for the Diablo to give a 2 hour run time.

Expensive but I ride a lot at night and wanted to be wire free.

what rear lights are recommended ?

Smart R1 or R2, both arround £8-£12, although I think On-One did a phart light which looks identical too so probably the same factory.

Or Blackburn Mars.

I prefer to ziptie one to the back of my helmet too as it's much more noticable bobbing arround at eye level than on a seatpost covered in crud.

I've also got a magicshine rear light that runs off the same 8.4V batteries and a Y-splitter cable, as long as your front light is compatible with the magicshine batteries it'll work, or you can just cut and splice it into any other front lights cable.

I was tempted to spend more on wire free lights, but in the end as all my riding was on either the SS or the road bike over the winter it's easier to just fit the lights and wires neatly and zip tie them on, then jus disconect the battery, no more hastle than removing an exposure lamp to charge.

I have a Hope District on the road bike angled down so as to not glare but bright enough that car drivers can't not see it 🙂

Smart R1 or R2 are good on the off road bikes.

Anyone know if you can get a lead that splits from one battery pack to 2 lights? Was think of running my 4x18650 waterproof battery box to 2 lights.. one on bars and one on lid.. or even buying a bigger 6x18650 box and running to 2 lights

I've gone for a [url= http://www.dx.com/p/yinding-yd-2xu2-2-x-cree-xm-l-u2-1200lm-4-mode-white-bicycle-light-headlamp-black-4-x-18650-243661 ]Yinding[/url] for the helmet as they have been getting good reviews over on mtbr. Bit more expensive than the cheapest option at about £32 but pretty small.

I was keen to go for a cableless solution for the bars like an Exposure Maxx D. Wasn't prepared to pay £300 so have gone for [url= http://www.lightmalls.com/black-shadow-darth-3u2-3xcree-xm-l-u2-1000-lumen-4-mode-maget-control-led-flashlight-3x18650 ]one of these[/url] and some Panasonic 3400mah batteries. I still need to rig up a bar mount, but for about £65 I'll have a 1500lumen self contained bar light that will run for 2 hours (or about 3.5hrs at 900lumens). Its a floody light so would be no good on the helmet but perfect for the bars.

Anyone know if you can get a lead that splits from one battery pack to 2 lights?

Just found this..........8000 theoretical lumens for £30!
http://www.dx.com/p/marsing-b70-7-x-cree-xm-l-t6-3-mode-5500lm-white-bike-light-headlamp-black-6-x-18650-308400

Has anyone found a good way to mount the XML lights to helmets where the vents don't allow it to be done easily? I'm having to hang on to a very old Giro Xen because I've struggled to mount the SSX2/smudge XML/old DX P7 to any other helmets.

Slackman these are a great way of fitting tricky lights to bars.
[img] http://i1083.photobucket.com/albums/j398/Zippykona/mM0zo-0bjjW24XFcLDvuMpA_zps652b4c42.jp g" target="_blank">http://i1083.photobucket.com/albums/j398/Zippykona/mM0zo-0bjjW24XFcLDvuMpA_zps652b4c42.jp g"/> [/img]

I presume you're trying to use the semi circular bracket that comes with the lamps? like this http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/like/171267056081

I binned that and just zip tied it directly to the helmet with one tie on the front hook and one on the back directly to the central spine of the helmet. It has to be a long way back though to point far enough up.

That should work as long as the helmets symetrical arround a central solid bit this works, obviously not if it symetrical arround a vent, but might still be possible it'll just be off center.

Added bonus it lowers the lamp significantly so the weight becomes un-noticable and eliminates the 'nodding dog' feeling I had with the original mount.

Theres just about enough wiggle room in the zip ties to remove the lamp for daylight rides, more of a faff to get it back on in a hurry if your disorganised in the evening though.

Zippykona, where's that from?

leftyboy - Member
I run a MaxxD on my bars and have just ordered a Diablo for my helmet. My old helmet light, a MJ-808E, is great but the trailing wire and sloppy mount have made me change.

Also ordered a Support Cell (that clips on) for the Diablo to give a 2 hour run time.

Expensive but I ride a lot at night and wanted to be wire free.

Also using current models of Maxx D and Joystick and can justifiy them to myself on basis of use and hassle free setup, but the £15 chinese one I got, as per my posts earlier up, kicks out similar quality of light, albeit it might only last a few months....

[quote=slackman99 said]Zippykona, where's that from?

google "THULE CHARIOT Hydration Cage"

Slack man got mine off eBay for a fiver. Look for handlebar bottle cage.
Here's my commuting solar storm mount.
[img] [/img]

I used to own an exposure enduro maxx, very well made and very convenient, but I found that if I was in front of mates with the Chinese lights, I would be riding in the shadow cast by much brighter lights. For me it didn't seem worth having such a well made light only for it to be eclipsed year on year by £15 worth of light.

zippykona - how is the light affixed to the cage ? tia !

[img] [/img]I've taken the screw out of the bar mount and screwed it to the cage.It needs a longer screw. There's handy holes in the cage already.
The battery is cable tied on.It could be made a lot neater and I want to shorten the cables.

The Yingding is decent had mine for a year. Nice and bright, decent burn time.

I made a mount from a spare section of 90 degree gopro mount, it bolts straight into the chassis of my Yingding.

Top work zippykona, ordered a few bits to build something to mount my own X2 with battery.

Also got a 2 year old XML T6, went flickery which I thought was the battery. Nope, the +ve wire inside needed a bit of re-soldering so it lives again.

Thanks to snownrock for the recommendations on page 2. I've had a Solarstorm since last year and the battery, which initially seemed good, has pretty much given up now. I ordered the linked batteries from banggood the other day and quickly recieved an email sayin they were out of stock but offering to change the order to [url= http://www.banggood.com/2PCS-NCR18650B-3400mAh-3_7V-Gold-Plating-Rechargeable-Li-ion-Battery-p-940444.html ]these[/url] instead, at no extra cost. They shipped later that day. Very impressed with the service from them so far.

Ok, so it seems that remembered correctly and, in a fit of sleep-deprived rage, I threw out my waterproof battery case for my Solarstorm. All the usual suspects (DX, Lightmalls, ebay, etc) seem to be out of stock. Anyone seen any recently?

Make your own?

[img] [/img]

Or wrap the battery in self amalgamating tape.

Here's light mount mk 2.
Have turned it all sideways and it looks a lot neater.
The other torch is way too large for one of the lock blocks.
Richard 3rd how easy is it too shorten the cables. I don't have an iron or know how to use one.
[img] [/img]

No shortening required Zippy, it all (just) fits in the box.

I've not read all the thread but can I have full details of your box Rich?

Sure, box is a Z45 project box, eBay id 261485868450

Attached to alloy bar cage holder eBay id 380899085928

Like yours, remove original bar clamp from lamp unit, use that screw to fix to box with a piece of rubber etc in between to minimise movement

[img] [/img]

I used a Dremel to make a cable slot in one half of the box. The cables wrap around the battery and hold in place. It's a fairly tight fit, I used 2 x disk mounting bolts to fix the box to the bar clamp as they are shallow, to not dig in to the battery pack. Whilst removeable, it's not as QR like yours, but I left the connector exposed purely to make recharging easier/ on the bike. It tucks under the bar knob.

[img] [/img]

[img] [/img]

I've not read the whole thread, so apologies if this has been mentioned; there are Solarstorm X3 lights on eBay now- does anyone have experience of the 3xled light? It looks like they come with the same battery, which will impact run times?

Are the SolarStorm batteries/chargers still exploding?

Are the SolarStorm batteries/chargers still exploding?

Not sure about that, but the QA is definitely hit and miss. Bought mine from Amazon the other day. First outing (Early morning, so at least it was getting lighter) 5 miles down the road the road, off it went. Got home later that day charged it up, green light on charger in about an hour, only 1 light on the back lit up, used it to go to work, 3 miles down the road off it went. Quite a bit darker this time too. No CE markings on the box no instructions. Order fulfilled by Amazon rather than sold by the seller, so it's eventual refund only and no exchanges. Whilst over the last few years I've had 3 different MagicShine style lights all with the same sort of battery pack as this, I think I'll move on to an all in one unit like the Exposure Joystick. Nearly all these lights have had battery pack issues. Either cables coming loose where they connect, not charging fully, dying in a short space of time etc.. The lights themselves are great, the batteries and chargers not so. The amount of money I've spent on them I could have bought a well made light like the Joystick and had less hassle! 🙂

I've had a year out of my Solarstorms and the battery pack has died due to loose wires. Got a 4 x 18650 battery case coming as a single order coming (regardless of the group buy post in the other thread).

In the meantime, I've ordered one of these [url= http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/3-x-CREE-XM-L-T6-LED-3600-Lm-Bicycle-bike-Headlamp-6x18650-Batteries-Head-Light/161200314302?_trksid=p5197.c100068.m2280&_trkparms=aid%3D333008%26algo%3DRIC.MBE%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D20140211125758%26meid%3D251247beadff4be387427f2292a40059%26pid%3D100068%26prg%3D20140211125758%26rkt%3D3%26clkid%3D239956948866257760&_qi=RTM1851812 ]3 x Cree - 6 x 18650[/url]

If the battery pack is gash, I'll just get another battery box and bung some high capacity 18650's in to cope with the 3 Cree's

[img] [/img]

[img] [/img]

nice one TheArtistFormerlyKnownAsSTR my mate just sent me the same link having purchased last week (for half the price) and raves about them. apparently illuminates a large field easily...obviously the price has shot up due to the darkness falling

He paid £12.25?????

I can't even buy them wholesale from China for that price!

fghj

What?

that's what he told me, from amazon ...and you know what they are like at shifting stuff

also main reason I'm no longer interested 😆

Just picked these up 🙂 bring on the dark mornings

[img] [/img]
[img] [/img]

Womp, you weren't a mod were you?!?