so got my gloworm X2 the other day and took it for a ride last night. I wanted it bar mounting as i already have a helmet spot.

Anyway due to the mounting being to one side of the main light body i’m finding it wobbling a lot on fast rocky descents. (light is secureley attached to the mounting bracket, its the bracket with ‘o’ ring loop thats wobbling.

I could make a support for underneath the light head out of some silicone putty but then this would cover some of the cooling fins on the light head.

Ideally it should have had the mounting point in the centre of the light (like the Lumenator) , or an attachment on both sides.

Anyone noticed this problem and did you do anything to solve it?

Hi meeeee

I’ve not heard of anyone having this problem and haven’t myself having run one for 7 months.

Is it mounted on a flat section of handlebar? I find it mounts best butted up to the stem so the light sits over the stem face plate.

Give me a ring or email if you want any help.

Not got mine yet from the deal last week but will let you know if it happens to me too.

Not happened to my light …seem really secure and doesn’t budge or wobble ……even on some very rocky and rooty descents on the Quantocks……..
I know that doesn’t help but as said make sure it’s def on the flat part of the bars .

Yup, happens to me too. It doesn’t slip around the bars but rattles like a very rattly thing. I rarely use the bar mount off road but I even get a bit of rattle on some of the more… rustic… road descents around here.

I had considered just putting a tiny blob of sugru on my stem to keep the noise down.

Tick. Happens to me. Mrs Mugsy alluded to it in her review after neninja kindly lent her a set (that we then bought) for 24 heures VTT du luberon.

Doesn’t happen to Mrs Mugsy. I think mounting on the flat part of the bars would help. My bars are particuarly high rise and my stem bulky so there’s not enough flat section of bars to mount on. I also wonder how it would sit with an oversize bar due to the ‘bulge’

If it’s fouling on the stem you can rotate it through different angles so it sits on front of the stem faceplate.

I’ll pass your feedback to Gloworm.

I’ve run the X2 on 3 different bikes – oversize bars and regular bars and not seen this.

I guess if the handlebar doesn’t have enough flat area to mount to by the stem it might be better mounted on the 22mm section nearer the shifters/brakes.

yeah its butted right up against the stem amd the light head is firmly screwed to the mount. I’ll have a look again tonight and see if that areas completely flat, and i’ll fiddle around with the positions and see if i can get it any better.

Its not slipping round the bars or anything, just seems as if the light head part is moving up and down slightly on rough stuff, due to it being off to one side of the bar mount, and the bar mount only having a relatively narrow mounting area.

Might try the smaller o ring see if that will stretch round and keep it tighter, or failing that a little blob of sugru or something.

Keep me updated if you don’t mind.

When the mount is attached to the light body is there any movement between it and the light head? It should just be nipped up and the o-rings allow adjustment with out it moving by itself.

Mine wobbles a bit on rough stuff. It’s the o ring attachment letting the light bob a bit. A more static fixture would solve it or a wider base bit that sits on the bar.

Again, mine if butted up against the stem, 25.4mm centre if it makes a difference.

Also found that I needed to put some sticky PVC tape on the bar to stop it from moving, but I think that’s more to do with condensation in my shed…

Also…
Is the belt loop on the battery strong enough to hold it on the stem using a velcro strap? I’ve an old velcro loop that does a better job of fixing the battery to the stem than the single strap supplied, but it’s not long enough to wrap around the whole of the battery and stem, so I just loop it through the belt loop in the hope it wont snap.

The belt loop should be strong enough but the strap should be long enough to go round the stem and battery pack. I mount mine on the top tube and it goes around both no bother. I’ll check the stock I have here.

Edit – are you using the correct velcro strap (the battery pack strap is the one 38mm wide) I just measured it with a battery and after going around the outside of the battery it could go still around something with a diameter of 65mm/2.5 inches.

Would the hope universal bracket be made to fit?

Would the hope universal bracket be made to fit?

No – this mounts on the side.

Guess the piko one is a possible then, although its over 20 quid! Not actually tried mine on the bars yet

I’ve copied Gloworm on this thread. They’re the most proactive company I’ve ever dealt with in terms of continuous improvement of their product in response to feedback.

I think the key is mounting to a flat section of bar. I personally have always used the smaller O-ring regardless of bar diameter (as I’ve done with previous O-ring mounts).

just been in garage playing around with mine again. Large diameter bar (easton haven) and its butted up against the stem, but if i bounce the front wheel up and down a bit the mount slides round the bar. I think i have stopped this temporarily using a bit of fast-tack mounting spray.

Seems like the foam stuff on the mount isn’t quite grippy enough and also a bit too cushioned? The stuff on the back of my old lupine ‘o’ ring mount, (which is a slightly harder sort of rubber rather than foam), or the stuff you get with computer brackets is a lot grippier.

Also the narrow footprint of the mount seems to allow some slight wobble which isn’t helped by the light being offset from the mount. All this might be fixed using the fast tack spray and the smaller o ring, but not had a chance for another ride yet. If it still wobbles i’ll have to try bodge a support of some kind for under the light head.

Edit – are you using the correct velcro strap (the battery pack strap is the one 38mm wide) I just measured it with a battery and after going around the outside of the battery it could go still around something with a diameter of 65mm/2.5 inches.

Hi, yeah I was using this, but as it’s just a straight strap I was finding it difficult to get it tight enough to stop the battery rattling. I found an old strap with a buckle which fits but isn’t quite long enough to loop around both the battery and the stem.

Re: light mount. I think I’ll try a small bit of inner tube in the place of the foam part on the bar mount, should help the bobbing light. I may also temporarily zip tie the mount in place to see if this reduces it too.

edit: actually a Hope universal mount may be made to work too. Can’t see why it wouldn’t, any side mounting bolt mount should?

Danny just sent me a mail regarding the strap. I have an old version strap, the new one has a loop on it so I can tension it properly.

I’m going to be sent one when they have stock. Great service, thanks Danny 🙂

Gloworm are looking at the design of the bar mount.

They’ve also tested a thicker 5mm O-ring (the one supplied is 4mm) and found that makes a difference. I’m in the process of sourcing some locally that I can forward to people who are having issues.

meeeee – I run a Easton Haven bars too and haven’t had this problem. I have been using a thicker 5mm O-ring from another light for no other reason than it was already out of the packet so perhaps the O-ring is a major factor. I’ll forward you the 5mm O-rings when I get them.

lovewookie – the Gloworm X2 now has a battery strap with a buckle so you can apply more tension. I’ve emailed you and will forward one on a weeks time when more spare battery straps arrive.

Edit – you posted before I did. I really must type faster.

Hello there – I’m new to the forum and pretty new to off road biking – be gentle with me 😀

Sorry for butting into the chat but I am about ready for my first taste of night biking – going to be doing it up on Cannock Chase trails – have I missed a good deal for gloworm lights? I have’nt got a helmet light yet and am looking for one, any advice much appreciated chaps.

Not tried mine yet but can see the foam although compliant isn’t very tacky, maybe a little bit of vulcanising solution on it will tack it up a bit and stop any slippage?

motozulu – email me at crgmoto at gmail.com

Best stuff I’ve found to use is self amalgamating tape , its not sticky but sticks to itself and is a rubber texture , couple of loops around bars and the O-rings grip like mad , I use it on lots of things – chainstays , seatpost to stop crud guards moving etc , handy stuff .

http://www.screwfix.com/p/self-amalgamating-rubber-tape-black-19mm-x-10m/87717?cm_mmc=Google-_-Product%20Listing%20Ads-_-Sales%20Tracking-_-sales%20tracking%20url&gclid=CKrazpjk37ICFUXHtAodXGoA-w

fixed mine by bolting it to an old lupine bar mount. I used the alloy helmet mount that comes with the gloworm light, drilled a hole in the flat plate part and bolted this to the lupine bar mount using the hole in the mount that attaches it to the lupine light head.

I dont intend using the light on a helmet so this works fine with me, and even if i did decide to mount it on the helmet its only one bolt to undo. Its very secure now, no wobble at all.

I think gloworm just need to alter the fitting side of the bar mount so its a bit wider, and use a more rigid grippy rubber strip rather than the foam, + a stronger O ring. (ie just make the underside of the bar mount like a lupine one!!)

You could do the same with the Hope mount as well, just drill the flat plate part of the helmet and bolt it to the hope mount.

So where did you actually get the light from? website? link appreciated 😀

http://www.crgmoto.co.uk/gloworm-x2-led-light-system—version-2—over-1200-real-lumens-1734-p.asp

Cheers reggie – am toying with the idea of the cheap T6 magicshine Chinese rip offs available on ebay or amazon – for 30 spondulicks it does’nt matter if I only get one summer and winter out of em, but the gloworm looks quality kit and worth the extra investment.

Had my first ride with the gloworm tonight and had no problems with it moving on the bars, I used the smaller o ring and my Renthal bars have a very grippy finish so maybe that helped. Excellent light, highly recommended!

neninja: can you forward us a thicker mounting o-ring and a new style battery strap, assuming it’s now like a ski velcro strap. Also, you were going to send us a head strap or something (mrs mugsy knows exactly what it was), only we never got it.

I understand you’ve done us a bit of a deal, and as we’re in France too we’d be happy to pay for postage etc.

Cheers! Looking forward to getting home from Azerbaijan in 3 weeks ish time to ride!

mugsys_m8 – no problem. I’m waiting for the new o-rings etc to come in and will forward them to you. Sorry you didn’t receive the headstrap and optics, I’ll put another set of them in too.

Gloworm are working on a new ‘upgrade’ bar mount that will be a fixed mount with a clamp.

This is why I bought my Gloworm with a view to mounting on helmet only. If I had been looking for a bar mount light I would have not have bought the Gloworm as I have ZERO confidence in the various O-ring and friction type mounts for lights when mounted on mountain bikes.

It frustrates me that supposedly high end manufacturers continue to put out lights with this type of mount which is IMO, unfit for purpose when intended for mountain bikes. Even el cheapo £10 lights from Tesco or Halfords have a proper clamp mount.

Sure, in most cases you can modify to fit a Hope or Lupine etc. clamp style mount but seriously – I just want to buy one that works out of the box.

It frustrates me that supposedly high end manufacturers continue to put out lights with this type of mount which is IMO, unfit for purpose when intended for mountain bikes

Works fine for me and most people, it is a simple, effective system that is cheap to repair after a crash, unlike for example the exposure bar mount which has a tiny little pin in the hinge, that snaps very easily and requires a new mount to be bought at a ridiculous cost. I also find clamp systems tend to struggle with the curves in bars.

This is why I bought my Gloworm with a view to mounting on helmet only. If I had been looking for a bar mount light I would have not have bought the Gloworm as I have ZERO confidence in the various O-ring and friction type mounts for lights when mounted on mountain bikes.

Do you have any reason for your lack of confidence?

My biggest problem with O-Ring mounts is that I managed to ping the o-ring on my Gloworm off into my eye the other day. This level of stupidity is transferable to all mounting otions.

I’ve only done 1 ride with mine and had a tiny bit of a wobble, not a big deal but would certainly prefer the fixed clamp mount when it’s available.

The thicker 5mm O-rings have now arrived. I have a note of everyone who requested them on this thread – they will go in the post tomorrow.

neninja,
Any chance of getting hold of one? Mine’s still pretty rattly in spite of my Sugru bumper.