The Lemon Fool

Now the nights are dark I want to still cycle - but the basic lights that make me visible don't help me see where I am going.

Can you help me know what I need to look for? whats a minimum lumen level etc?

thanks!

Can't recommend anything I'm aware of. In my youth - when my eyesight was better - I'd happily cycle in the real dark at night, but now I tend to avoid cycling in the dark, or stick to adequately-lit roads. Or else go very slowly!

The one observation I would make is that the brightest light is no help if it dazzles you - and it's not a good idea to dazzle oncoming people either - be they walkers on the path or drivers on the road. I'd say it's more important that your beam is well-focussed, cast forward and angled slightly down than that it reaches some brightness threshold.

stooz wrote:Now the nights are dark I want to still cycle - but the basic lights that make me visible don't help me see where I am going.

Can you help me know what I need to look for? whats a minimum lumen level etc?

thanks!

I bought a job lot of these from my local Aldi's and solved this problem by having two on the front, one pointing down in front of my wheel so I can see all the potholes and crud I have to dodge, the other pointing up/forwards. I must admit I had that one on flash tonight, which probably annoys drivers heading my way, but makes the idiot ones slow down, particularly when getting across the A road I need to (that is a separate debate in itself perhaps ....). I hate cyling in the dark at this time of year ....

https://www.aldi.co.uk/front-and-rear-l ... 9062109500

Which reminds me. I'm after a good set of lights that can go for 3-4 hours for my London-Paris next year. Not sure if these would be up to that.

I use Exposure Sirius for the front, always carry 2 of them (one is 500 Lumen, the other 550 - they last a fraction under 2 hours on maximum brightness) and have an Exposure TraceR for the back. I usually also ride with a couple of Cycliq cameras (Fly12 and Fly6), which can also act as lights if necessary. In terms of how bright you need, it depends a lot on where you're cycling and whether there is much help from street lights. I find 500 Lumen to be enough on country roads, but more would be better. Many of the riders in my club use much more powerful lights (2000 Lumen), which can also be used effectively off road.

The Exposure lights aren't cheap, but I've found them reliable, you can much cheaper lights. I've just bought a Joystick which comes in at 1000 Lumen, haven't used it yet though. To be fair since I retired I've been taking advantage of day light and don't often get out on evening club rides.

I bought one of these from Argos. I find it good enough for cycling or along dark country lanes.

https://www.argos.co.uk/product/9176980

I had a headlamp in my youth, and used it for cycling including the dark country lanes. With much less light than today's LEDs I had to slow down on a dark night, but that was true of all lights back then (even more true of my eyesight today).

It had one huge advantage over a light fixed to a bike, or even the much brighter headlamps of a motor vehicle. If I came to an unfamiliar junction, I could shine it straight up at any available fingerpost signs that would otherwise be totally unreadable, to help navigate. Though nowadays the phone would do that job (if by any chance GPS navigation were unavailable).

I bought this rechargeable set for myself:
https://www.evanscycles.com/fwe-recharg ... n-EV303084

Was so pleased I bought another set for my sons bike.
Front light really lights up the road ahead. Front light is 450 lumens. Rear light 50 lumens.

Front light has full light mode, plus 1 or 2 dimmer modes plus a flashing mode.
Rear light has 4 modes. Slow flash, quick flash, full on and a mode I'm not sure how to describe.

Shenstone.