That time of year is coming again – what's hot in the lighting world?

bjj.andy.w – Member
purchased a solar storm x2 last winter which gave great service but upon digging it out and charging it up it looks like the battery is goosed. Lasted less than ten minutes on low, recharged it and still the same. Looking at getting one of torcheys battery packs off eBay :
http://m.ebay.co.uk/itm?itemId=291254386245
Anybody use this pack with a ssx2 and can give us an idea of run times ?

I ordered one of those this week – it should be here tomorrow, so I’ll let you know how I get on

I ordered one of those this week – it should be here tomorrow, so I’ll let you know how I get on

Cheers 🙂

Not sure if the connector on the fluxient battery will fit perfectly with the solar storm light. I have both and on the SS it has a screw to tighten/hold the battery connector to the light cable. My fluxient battery has a standard press fit type that will power the light, but unsure how secure it will be. The battery is superb though, as is the fluxient light it powers.

Not sure if the connector on the fluxient battery will fit perfectly with the solar storm light. I have both and on the SS it has a screw to tighten/hold the battery connector to the light cable. My fluxient battery has a standard press fit type that will power the light, but unsure how secure it will be. The battery is superb though, as is the fluxient light it powers.

My magicshine and lumenator are like that, both the same size pin, but different plastic bits. Just used a wrap of electriclal tape to keep them together just in case.

You could always cut the wires and connect the old battery connector to the new battery?

Not sure if the connector on the fluxient battery will fit perfectly with the solar storm light. I have both and on the SS it has a screw to tighten/hold the battery connector to the light cable. My fluxient battery has a standard press fit type that will power the light, but unsure how secure it will be. The battery is superb though, as is the fluxient light it powers.

Easiest solution I’ve found is to push the connectors together and give them a couple of quick wraps of Electrical tape before you set off, just to hold them together for the ride…

muggomagic – Member
I read a thread on mtbr about the XT40 light that said they suffer pretty badly with getting hot. So make sure you switch it to low/off when stopped.

Here you go. Found the thread here

POSTED 14 HOURS AGO # REPORT-POST
kevin1911 – Member
Yeah, I’ve pretty much got into that habit already – as much to preserve the battery as to stop the whole unit melting. It also helps that it’s usually <5degrees in the winter up here.

Tested two XT40’s on medium on wooden decking in the sun for 4 hours and temps were consistent and no issues. High felt a bit too hot to the touch, so i’ll leave that for a moving bike.

High is only really needed for quick/steep/technical descents, then I drop back to medium. (Which too is ok for descents, but high is just so mind blowingly bright its addictive lol)

Just tested the 50g T6 mini zoom torch tonight, sitting in the light plastic Exposure lid mount. Perfect, could hardly feel it and bright enough. Paired with X2 on the bars, for now.

What’s the deal with Solarstorms then, are they variable?

I bought one of the £12 ones on ebay, battery has been fine. Last night I did 3hrs on medium with occasional downhills on full.

It did die suddenly after 2hrs on full but that seems fine too.

Charger gets warm but it hasn’t exploded and I’ve checked there’s a small fuse in there.

I was expecting it to explode/die after an hour/kill a child’s face but it’s absolutely fine at the moment. 😐

So in summary:

> The Lumens wars have ended, long live the Lumen!
> The current (sorry :lol:) battlefield is in battery life and size.
> Check the beam pattern is suitable.
> Best setup is one strong light on the bars and one helmet mounted that doesn’t need to be as bright.
> Either go cheap (< £40) and be prepared to replace yearly or spend a sizeable chunk of cash (> £150) and be reasonably certain that the unit will last.

Dunmail going cheap doesn’t need replacing yearly. Simply get a battery box and decent 18650s. Failing light units are rare, its usually the cheap batteries.

Cruzcampo: from experience it’s not usually the LEDs and control circuitry in the light units but the connectors that fail. But even then it’s also a possibility with the more expensive units.

Then there’s the built in obsolescence of subtly changing the connectors so that you have to find the battery for “last year’s” model.

I only buy solar storms which always stick to the screw on connector. But if buying other brands this could be an issue.

Orgered this one from DX under the fandyfire name for £25 as it was both £8 cheaper and came with an 6×18650 battery rather than others with 4x batteries.

http://img.dxcdn.com/productimages/sku_241291_1.jpg

Also ordered a spare ‘waterproof’ 8x battery for £17

Will see if either arrives and if they’re brighter than a lumenator.

If not I’m not fussed, I really just needed batteries and the light for £10 is a bonus!

If it doesn’t live upto it’s spec and kick out something like 3000lumens (it’s advertised at 5500) I may take it appart and start upgrading drivers etc. In theory it could be a failry crazy 70W+!

Agree with the light(!)weight helmet light comment.
I never normally notice the weight but this year it’s making my head go all floppy. So have gone with a light like Rich3rd.
Only bought it as I needed a torch for work and it was the cheapest light on ebay.
Very light and very happy.

Cruzcampo: from experience it’s not usually the LEDs and control circuitry in the light units but the connectors that fail. But even then it’s also a possibility with the more expensive units.

While it’s always a possibility that even new components can fail very early in their lifetime. All a manufacturer, using such components, can do is choose a specification level, based on performance Vs cost and use those components.
I probably over Engineer my lights and this is true with the connectors, which were really intended for use in F1, military applications, aerospace, etc.
The pitfall though was cost, but with a specification that included a life of 5000 cycles, they were never going to be cheap.

A question about drivers for the DIY/technicaly inclinded amongst you.

How do you spec/buy them, looking through the websites there’s a few 2.8A drivers intended for XM-L lights, but they’re all intended for 3.7V, how do you do it with 8.4V batteries, just wire up 2x drivers in series and use an even number of LED’s?

What’s the advantages/dissadvantages of running various configurations, are there drivers that will drive 2.8A at 3.3*7=23.1V through 7 LED’s in series, or a 2.8*7=18.9A at 3.3V in parralel?

FWIW, I’m using cheapy Deans connectors which are for RC batteries.

They’re good for 100A, and I put some heatshrink around the female connector in order to try and prevent water ingress.

I’m sure there are some better connectors, but I have no idea where I can find any, what are the some that are reasonable quality and good for around 5A or so?

How do you spec/buy them, looking through the websites there’s a few 2.8A drivers intended for XM-L lights, but they’re all intended for 3.7V, how do you do it with 8.4V batteries, just wire up 2x drivers in series and use an even number of LED’s?

Don’t hook up multiple drivers, this shouldn’t be required. You need to decide between a “buck” and a “boost” driver. Buck drivers operate with a battery voltage higher than the Load voltage of the LEDs. Then, as the name suggest, a Boost driver operates with a battery which has a lower voltage than the load voltage of the LEDs.

What’s the advantages/dissadvantages of running various configurations, are there drivers that will drive 2.8A at 3.3*7=23.1V through 7 LED’s in series, or a 2.8*7=18.9A at 3.3V in parralel?

You need to consider the voltages in relation to the load of LEDs and the current your are going to run through the LEDs. A nice set up for a home builder might be to use a boost driver with 3 LEDs and an 8.4v Lith-Ion battery. Using your figure for an LED load voltage of ~3,7v, 3 LEDs in series would then give a load of 3 x 3.7 = 11.1v, 2.7v over the battery nominal voltage. In this set up a good boost driver should provide a controlled current and all should be well.

If you’re going to use a Buck driver, ensure that the battery voltage is always higher than the LED load. So back to the 3 LED setup, using possibly an 15v Li-Ion battery would also work.

I’m sure there are some better connectors, but I have no idea where I can find any, what are the some that are reasonable quality and good for around 5A or so?
I can’t really help you there, without getting buried into some online spec’s and I wouldn’t really know what your presonal preferences are.
I went to the very top, high ratings, high cycles, hermaticaly sealed, the lot. Which included eye watering prices.
Even if you did find a spec you liked, you might not like the price or the physical dimensions of the connector may not lend that connector to use in your application. It can be very challenging.

Cheers, got it. I don’t think I was being ambitious enough in searching DX etc, just found the liner.com site and entered the spec I needed/wanted.

Hopefully it won’t be needed but it’ll be interesting playing about if it is.

Any recent links for the XT40 as they looks great for the money.

Can anyone steer me towards a UK ebay seller with legit Solarstorm X2 or X3s?

I did a fair bit of searching and came up with these two sellers

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/201168999969?_trksid=p2060778.m1438.l2649&var=500367993033&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/121324427589?_trksid=p2060778.m1438.l2649&var=420275361363&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

I’ve ordered one from the first seller, yet to receive so I can’t confirm.

@nemesis best XT40 link was posted a few pages back and it includes the solar storm 18650 battery box 😯 which means no batteries through the post + no customs issues?

https://www.fasttech.com/p/1527803

XT40 on last nights outing, 2.5 hour ride, half the ride on high, rest on medium.

Batteries @ 3.76 from 4.19 volts, not bad!

It casts a great circle of light, very wide..

Funny how ALL canal paths look identical when lit up with
bike lights.

What’s that charger you’re using cruzcampo? Looks handy
EDIT: Just found it! http://www.amazon.co.uk/VP1-2-Channel-Battery-Charger-batteries/dp/B00CO6KKZS

So much awesome information here but complete night riding rookie so apologies if I ask and rehash old advice!

Thinking of buying first light to see if I enjoy night riding. Like the look and price of the ebay solarstorm 2 lights. Should I stick with the original batteries and charger and risk fire/explosions/crap run time and generally bad times….or…..buy new batteries from torchy…..or….a nice Xtar VP1/VP2 charger? Or both?

Assume the lights themselves are much of a muchness (for a rookie). Is it the 18650 batteries or the charger which are the main concern here?

Honest thoughts and ridicule please!

Thanks

If you’re just getting started, the Solarstorm 2 would be the ideal place to start. The batteries that come with them are a bit of a lottery. The rumour was that many of them are recycled laptop batteries, so could either be great or near-death, depending on what sort of life they’ve had. I’ve had some that were great for a whole winter, but then seemed to not hold more than 30 mins worth of charge.

The chargers that come with them are also fairly cheaply made (for £20, can’t really complain). There have been reports of some catching fire, exploding etc. So long as you don’t leave them charging unattended, the worst that could happen is you get a fright. Some people put them in a metal pan so the explosion is at least contained 🙂 But it will be a tiny tiny fraction of the total units sold that end up with this sort of problem, so best keep it in context.

That said, I opted for some individual batteries and have just bought the Xtar VP4 charger from one of the e-cigarette places (£28!). For me, knowing that my light is unlikely to die in the middle of the woods without warning or explode in my face is worth the extra outlay. Altogether it’s still less than the cost of 2 tyres, for a whole heap of fun 🙂

fwiw I’ve not bought updated batteries or chargers (save for a single panasonic 18650 for my head torch)
I always buy from the cheapest UK BIN ebayer, SSX2 starting it’s second year and XML on it’s 3rd.

Only problem I’ve had is the XML went intermittent last year, took lamp apart and re-soldered a loose wire. Batteries and chargers are all 100% still, and I get 4hrs+ out of the SSX2 on a mix of lo/med/hi.

There is luck involved, but I’d only trade up the std. stuff if it proves to be duff, I am tight though!

I always have a head torch too, it’s highly unlikely both would fail at once, so a bit of insurance there.

Thanks guys. Cheers

@kevin 1911 concur someone thought they recognised the last towpath shot 😆

Charger is the Xtar VP2

http://www.torchdirect.co.uk/batteries-and-chargers/xtar-vp2-dual-bay-lithium-ion-battery-charger.html

What’s the main differnces between the VP1 and this new VP2?
1. VP2 can charge 26650 batteries.
2. VP2 has 3.2V/3.6V/3.8V optional charging voltage. 3.2V is for Li-FePO4 batteries and 3.6V & 3.7V is for Li-ion batteries.
3. VP2 has indicator lights which can indicate the charging situation.
4. VP2 has a 1A USB output function so that users can use the charger as a USB battery backup (use it to charge mobile phones and other mobile USB devices)

Very impressed with it, can get a pair back up to 4.19v in 1.5 hours usually.

cjr61 – Member
So much awesome information here but complete night riding rookie so apologies if I ask and rehash old advice!

Thinking of buying first light to see if I enjoy night riding. Like the look and price of the ebay solarstorm 2 lights. Should I stick with the original batteries and charger and risk fire/explosions/crap run time and generally bad times….or…..buy new batteries from torchy…..or….a nice Xtar VP1/VP2 charger? Or both?

Assume the lights themselves are much of a muchness (for a rookie). Is it the 18650 batteries or the charger which are the main concern here?

Honest thoughts and ridicule please!

Thanks

POSTED 4 HOURS A

I rode a single SSX2 for all last years night riding and i’d class it as the most bang for buck light out there for overall long runtime and sheer output. The batteries are most definitely recycled laptop which come with the £25 package deals from Hong Kong, as a pair of decent Panasonic 18650 costs £17 alone 😆

If you can afford to spend £65 i’d get this

http://mtblights.co.uk/light-sets/x2-set

It gives you the excellent battery box and 18650’s, so you have the option of buying an Xtar charger in the future, and the reliability/safety/longevity of proper batteries. Then if you decide to move on from the SSX2, just buy the latest Solar Storm offering!

My mates got a bad addiction for Solar Storm products, two of each 😆

I forgot to add comments RE the XT40 and the heat concerns some people mentioned from MTBR. When moving on High the XT40 is warm to the touch, after a fast descent its timid to the touch. Once stationary it gets hot to touch, after around 2-3 minutes it dims down slightly and puts itself into medium mode!

This is great as sometimes I forget to turn onto low when stopping for a mid ride snack etc.

On low and medium modes, both moving and stationary heat remains low.

The heatsink appears to work as intended, heating up quickly on high mode and dissipating the heat efficiently when moving, with built in protection once stopped. The above tests have been on the recent balmy 16-18*c nights too, come next weekend riding in single digit figures i’d wager it to run even cooler.

I did a fair bit of searching and came up with these two sellers

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/201168999969?_trksid=p2060778.m1438.l2649&var=500367993033&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/121324427589?_trksid=p2060778.m1438.l2649&var=420275361363&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

I’ve ordered one from the first seller, yet to receive so I can’t confirm.

Quick update on this. Received a light from the first seller listed and no real surprise, as fake as they come. Still it works so I’ll probably keep it and see how I get on.

I have ordered one of these:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Torchy-Oriole-2x-XM-L-T6-1000-lumen-led-bike-light-/291255176012?pt=UK_SportGoods_CyclAcces_RL&hash=item43d0294b4c

I figured it was only a few quid more than a decent battery for a solarstorm. I will put an update here when it arrives and I get to use it.

It seems

http://mtblights.co.uk/light-sets/x2-set

has run out of stock this year…

Anyone else got any links to the genuine Solarstorm X2’a lights and decent battery box?

Ta.

Jim

i ordered one from http://www.kaidomain.com/Product/Details.S023038
but its gone on backorder !

Me ^ too, but dont hold your breath.

I’ve been advised that Solarstorm are no longer manufacturing the battery boxes, they’re supposedly working on a new one, don’t know how true this is but unable to get one anywhere so seems likely.

Fast tech had a link a few pages back for the xt40 and battery box for around 50$, bargain and usually genuine,especially as battery box included and original retail solar storm packaging.

Uk plug adapter would be needed
https://www.fasttech.com/p/1527803

Anyone using a Torchy BK2200? Tempted to go for it at 89 quid on ebay.