The night are drawing in and I’ll need something soon to run with as my routes are mainly on unlit country roads.

So what do you use? Needs to be pretty light, and throw enough light to see with.

All suggestions welcome!

Cheers

I’ll go –

Alpkit.

End of thread

Lensor H7 – can be rechargeable if you want – cost £30 with a P3 torch if you google it. Was in trail running magazine as good.

I’ve used the Alpkit one, but I generally just run with a 900 Lumen P7 DX torch in my hand as I don’t like having anything on my head.

Ebay bike lamp. Most come with a headband for running. I got one last winter for night orienteering and am quite impressed.

Only problem can be putting the battery somewhere, but a waist pack is fairly cheap and you would likely be carrying a phone to anyway.

Had previously used my exposure joystick with the headband mount , but the ebay light is much brighter ( although I carry the joystick as backup)

Head Torches and Lighting

…shame it’s not got a bit more oomph, as it is so comfortable/adjustable/light/cheap.

+1 lensor h7

Amazing light for the money, light, bright, variable beam and brightness

DX do some very bright headlamps, and Fenix do a good one for £45 or so.

Lensor h7 here as well great for trail running at night

Is it worth the extra for the rechargeable version rather than just putting rechargeable batteries in a normal one?

Petzl Zipka – nice and light with a retractable cord for the headband. You can also use it on the back of your hand if needed, or just hold it like a torch as it is small and doesn’t have all that headband to get in the way.

Good enough mount to stay on your head without moving whilst running:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Petzl-E94-PS-Zipka-Headlamp/dp/B0027GVIX8/ref=sr_1_16?ie=UTF8&qid=1377042477&sr=8-16&keywords=petzl

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y4RrwZV7bkE[/video]

Either an e+lite or http://www.candb-seen.co.uk/bikehead-lights/cabs-01—cree-xml-t6-led.html depending on how much light you need – nothing in between is really worth the extra weight over the Petzl, unless of course you’re on a budget in which case the Alpkit is as always the best VFM. Personally I tend to carry an e+lite as a backup to my high powered one.

I used a petzl last winter but I’ve lost it somewhere around the house so I too am looking for something else now. I don’t run roads, I run trails in forests and found that turning the light off was actually a little better as my eyes adjusted to the lack of light. On occasion though it would have been much better having a better spread, just so I could/can see roots etc.

Shall keep an eye out on this thread, ta.

This is tantamount to a what tyre thread.

What sort of running are you talking about?

Fell Running, Trail, XC, Orienteering, country lanes, public parks?

The Alpkits have always seemed popular with folks on the interweb. However, they’ve always seemed a bit underwhelming to my eyes. Poor light compared to some, but very cheap. They don’t really provide enough light for my running.

In general I use a Petzl Tikka xp2, and one of Smudges bike lights with a heads strap. I do occasionally use a Hope Vision Adventure. But only when out for a really long one, where the xp2 doesn’t provide enough light, and I need to carry spare batteries.

Are you running with others, there can be something of an arms race with head torches as one light drowns out another.

aracer, do you actually own that light from candb-seen? It looks absolutely perfect for what I want – I want to run in the dark but I could also really use a biking headlamp. And I could do with it being £30 too 🙂

er, no – I use a much lighter home-made high powered LED headtorch. I do own one of these though http://www.candb-seen.co.uk/bikehead-lights/cabs-02-series—cree-xml.html

That’s a slightly superior bike light to the one I linked to, but totally useless as a headtorch as the body interferes with the supplied headstrap and won’t point straight – the headstrap is clearly designed to work with the one I previously linked to. The one I linked to before you can also get much cheaper on ebay if you’re prepared to wait for it to get here from China – I know several people who’ve got one that way and are very impressed with them for night orienteering, hence I know they work well. The company I linked to does have good customer service though, and it will come with a warranty, something you don’t get with an import – the choice is yours.

That light that aracer linked to is available on dx.com, in fact there’s a whole bunch of different variations on there. Just go on the site and search for bike/headlights, you’ll find loads. The price will be a dollar version of the UK price, but the postage is free, and I’ve yet to pay duty on anything I’ve bought from DX.

I know several people who’ve got one that way and are very impressed with them for night orienteering, hence I know they work well

Yeah I would want it for running too so if they like it it should be a good bet. A remote battery pack might be less convenient, but it should be less wobbly. I’ll just have to get one of those belt packs that I was looking at in a previous thread.

Remote battery pack is much better IMHO – gets the weight off your head. Has been standard with orienteering headtorches since the days when people were using packs of 5 D cells to power halogen bulbs! I’ve used a money belt to carry my battery packs, though I’ve now got my power requirements down enough that I can use a 2 cell pack which fits in a pocket.

As CZ says, also available cheaper on DX – though I couldn’t be bothered checking so didn’t mention that as I wasn’t sure. I also know that what I linked to does work with the headstrap, and personal experience suggests some might not (I’m not that bothered with the one I bought – would have been nice if it did, but I bought it as a bike light).

Lensor H7 here as well. Great light, small and well balanced and you can adjust the beam and brightness which is important IMO. Personally i think lights can be too bright for running, you end up losing your night vision and can only see what’s in the beam. I often turn the light right down or even off when running through open areas as i think i can see a lot more.

I do also carry a small Dealextreme 900 lumens, XML torch in my hand for when it gets technical/scarey 🙂

Personally i’m not convinced by using the bike type lights for running, they just seem too big and difficult to secure. Surely they would just wobble around on a headband?

PS if you’re on country roads it’s worth getting a little flashing red light on the back of your coat/rucsac.

I use 2 petzl tikka xp2’s, one on my head and one round my waist, I find a single point of light just visually flattens all obstacles on the trail, 2 lights give much better definition.

Having one on your waist also means that rocks and roots underfoot are in your peripheral vision, allowing the little corrections you would make running in daylight.

Alpkit is ok for running on unlit roads. The red light on the battery case on the back of your head aids visiblity too. Its not really bright enough for trail running though (I know the OP said roads only). I prefer to use my Trouted Hope Vision2s which are amazing.

molgrips – Member

Is it worth the extra for the rechargeable version rather than just putting rechargeable batteries in a normal one?

I think the rechargeable version is slightly brighter but has a much shorter run time.

Lenser recommend not using NiMH batteries because their lights are designed to use the higher resistance of alkaline cells. The lower internal resistance of NiMH allows the light to run brighter but generates more heat, which is detrimental to the light because it uses a very limited heatsink to keep weight down. It does however seem that a few people use rechargeables in them without any problems except a slightly warmer head!

As CZ says, also available cheaper on DX – though I couldn’t be bothered checking so didn’t mention that as I wasn’t sure. I also know that what I linked to does work with the headstrap, and personal experience suggests some might not (I’m not that bothered with the one I bought – would have been nice if it did, but I bought it as a bike light).

That is a very good point, and one I’ve thought of when I’ve been looking at them on dx. I’ve got the 900Ln bike light, and it’s pretty bulky, so having that sat on your head might well get irritating before too long.
Having said that, cavers have been using similar size lamps for years, but they are attached to hard hats.

Having said that, cavers have been using similar size lamps for years, but they are attached to hard hats.

You don’t do a lot of running in caves….

I may get that c and b seen one, it says they have a diffuser kit which might be ok assuming they mean wide-angle.

You don’t do a lot of running in caves….

….unless your mega lumens retina frazzler disturbs a hibernating grizzly.

This is the one I use for running…..

Cree one battery headtorch

Slugwash, I have a headtorch of similar desgin, and it’s a bit wobbly when it’s angled down towards the floor. Too wobbly to run with in fact. Do you not have that problem?

Slugwash, I have a headtorch of similar desgin, and it’s a bit wobbly when it’s angled down towards the floor. Too wobbly to run with in fact.

That’s the thing with those oversize high power lights, they wobble around too much for running. Not that I run, you understand… 😀
The Fenix one puts out around 230Ln, IIRC, and is much more practical, ‘cos it’s more compact.

I have a headtorch of similar desgin, and it’s a bit wobbly when it’s angled down towards the floor. Too wobbly to run with in fact. Do you not have that problem?

Not with that model ^^^^^^. I run with it on flood beam (zoom pushed right back) so it dosen’t stick out as much if that helps. The only trouble I did have was with the headband slipping off when worn over an acryclic beanie but not a problem when worn over a buff.

The photos in the ebay link of that particular model might suggest that it’s larger than it actually is. Photo of it mounted on helmet…

That’s pretty similar to mine but less crappy.

Personally i’m not convinced by using the bike type lights for running, they just seem too big and difficult to secure. Surely they would just wobble around on a headband?

Well you could make assumptions from just looking at them, or you could instead rely on feedback from people who have used them for running…

I’m planning to get an ‘official’ headband for my Lupine Piko if I go running in the dark this winter – with an extension on the battery to a rear pocket it’ll be very low weight.

Ohh I like the idea of one light on yer head and one at waist height, I can fit one on my water bottle belt..

Neat idea 😉

Light & Motion Solite

aracer – Member
Personally i’m not convinced by using the bike type lights for running, they just seem too big and difficult to secure. Surely they would just wobble around on a headband?
Well you could make assumptions from just looking at them, or you could instead rely on feedback from people who have used them for running…

Apologies for daring to give a personal opinion, you’re right i’ve never strapped a bike light to my head. It was silly of me to use my experience of running with several different types of headtorches over the years (remember the Petzl Zoom?) to compare similar sized ones and make assumptions. Maybe i should just ask people if they wobble around? Oh wait a minute i did!

Anyway of course you’re right, i should look for feedback from someone who’s used one…

molgrips – Member
Slugwash, I have a headtorch of similar desgin, and it’s a bit wobbly when it’s angled down towards the floor. Too wobbly to run with in fact. Do you not have that problem?