[BigMike]

So last year I got into night riding, went out a few times, its a lot of fun. I got a pretty cheap Performace helmet light.

This year, I am planning on doing it a LOT more, and am looking into getting an HID. I borrowed my friends Light&Motion last year, and it worked pretty well. I want somthing bright (odviously) good battery life, fast recharge time, sturdy, and easy to use with gloves (on/off). Battery size is not too important, as it will be going in my Camelbak Mule.

Any Suggestions?

 

[MTB_Rob_NC]

oh I thought you meant time to put on the Santa hats

 

[Echo]

There are basically 2 kinds of night riders. Those who swear by NiteRider lights, and those who hate NiteRider and will use anything else as long as it doesn't say NiteRider on it.

Personally I've had good luck with NiteRider lights, but there are plenty of other good options out there too.

 

[RhinofromWA]

There are basically 2 kinds of night riders. Those who swear by NiteRider lights, and those who hate NiteRider and will use anything else as long as it doesn't say NiteRider on it.

Personally I've had good luck with NiteRider lights, but there are plenty of other good options out there too.

Yeah at one time (back in college, 94-97ish) Night Rider was KING.

Now there are lots of options. I know I don't have a clear winner. A the $$$ has lept forward to with the better batteries, etc.

 

[riderx]

Light and Motion.

I'll never buy another Nite Rider light again and can name a dozen local riders who will say the same thing. Quality and customer service both suck.

 

[Westy]

There are basically 2 kinds of night riders. Those who swear by NiteRider lights, and those who hate NiteRider and will use anything else as long as it doesn't say NiteRider on it.

Personally I've had good luck with NiteRider lights, but there are plenty of other good options out there too.

I like my NiteRider but don't swear by it. Light works good but I don't like the helmet mout. If I had to do it all over again I'd get whatever I found a good deal on.

 

[BikeGeek]

I can't compare it to other brands, but I've been very happy with my Lume. My only complaint is that I didn't drop the extra coin for the quick charger.

 

[amydalayna]

I like my NiteRider but don't swear by it. Light works good but I don't like the helmet mout. If I had to do it all over again I'd get whatever I found a good deal on.

i feel the same way. i like my NiteRider, but only have it because i got a sweet deal on it. it's super bright and lasts forever. but sometimes i have issues turning it on. nothing too bad though. no real complaints.

 

[douglas]

when I was looking back springtime, I really wanted a L&M arc lithium but ended up w/ a '05 NiteRider Storm 2.0 from wheelworld.com(being it was $150 less)
the storm is helmet mount but I ended up buying the handlebar mount - its worked just fine for me so far


did you see this:

http://www.mtbr.com/spotlight/lightshootout/beampattern.shtml

 

[OGRipper]

I rode a Niterider digital head trip for three years or so and it worked out fine for me. The only time I had a problem, the CS was pretty good. The one frustrating thing is that they changed their connections on me the year after I got mine, so when I wanted a second battery I was out of luck. Not sure often they do that but it was pretty annoying.

Last year I was given one of these as a gift:

http://www.bikelights.com/Products/arc_li_ion.htm

It's ridiculously bright, even on the lower setting. And at the lower setting I can get well over three hours on a single charge.

For years I ran two lights, one on the bars and one on my helmet. Since I got the L&M I have stopped using one on the bars unless it is really foggy. The L&M is that good.

 

[BigMike]

I'll probably go with the L&M. Good link there Douglas The L&M looks like it has a great spread.

 

[ghostrider]

If price were no object I'd have to have one of these:
http://www.jensonusa.com/store/product/LS504A04-Niterider+Moab+06.aspx
Note the 12 Hour burn time.

And one of these:
http://www.jensonusa.com/store/product/LS506A00-Niterider+Flight+Hid+System+06.aspx
Note the 15oz weight.

 

[BikeGeek]

I'll probably go with the L&M. Good link there Douglas The L&M looks like it has a great spread.

must...resist...mom joke....

 

[BigMike]

If price were no object I'd have to have one of these:
http://www.jensonusa.com/store/product/LS504A04-Niterider+Moab+06.aspx
Note the 12 Hour burn time.

And one of these:
http://www.jensonusa.com/store/product/LS506A00-Niterider+Flight+Hid+System+06.aspx
Note the 15oz weight.

You just HAD to throw those in the mix, didn't you?!

 

[Wumpus]

Lume lights

Jet lites just came out with a HID.

 

[TreeSaw]

There are basically 2 kinds of night riders. Those who swear by NiteRider lights, and those who hate NiteRider and will use anything else as long as it doesn't say NiteRider on it.

Personally I've had good luck with NiteRider lights, but there are plenty of other good options out there too.

I have had excellent luck with my NiteRider Storm (I think that's the model...it's the helmet mount HID).

 

[Trainwreck]

I'm really liking my Lume Strada wide beam. No Niterider flicker, just a constant beam of light!

 

[manhattanprjkt83]

I like my NiteRider but don't swear by it. Light works good but I don't like the helmet mout. If I had to do it all over again I'd get whatever I found a good deal on.

Im with westy on this, love my nightRider (rage) HID model. But the helmet mount leaves something to be desired....makes you feel like you are ripping the whole mount off everytime you attach it.

 

[splat]

OK well I have a Nite rider , and that is only After I got a good deal on it ( really really good ) If it wasn't for the good deal I'd never go with them , even at that It left me in the dark on a trail twice!

I Demoed a L&M at Pedros 2 years ago , and it was far lighter on the helmet , and I liked the mount better.

and to make your decision a lot more complicated here is a set up for $210
http://www.batteryspace.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=1395
( $30 more for the fast charger) How well it works ? I'll be able to tell you more later , I'm suppose to ride with Oldbroad tonight and she has this set up.

 

[partsbara]

i ve been keen to pick up a decent light set for a while... i was going to go with a niterider HID helmet mount, but now i m looking at the L&M ARC Li-ion...

whats the best deal around on this set ?? i m guessing that buying off ebay will leave me without warranty yeah ???

any news on the $210 set up splat ??

thanks

 

[splat]

any news on the $210 set up splat ??

thanks

Well here are some ride Pics from that ride
http://www.ridemonkey.com/forums/showthread.php?t=135930

and I must say If I did not already have a Nite rider , that would be the one I'd go with Hands down.

it was just as bright as the Nite rider HID , comparing to both myself and Ben-O who rides dual HID. and we rode with the lights on for over 2 1/2 hours had had no problem with a ride that long. I didn't get a chance to see how heavy the Light it self was , but it looked nice.

the Only 2 things Oldbroad said she didn't like about it .

1) the on/off switch is in the back just about in your camel back, ver inconvientent to reach. she had to take her camel back off to turn it on and off , so It styed on the whole time

2) the mount is Vecro , she didn;oke the idea of permently mounting the velcro to her helmet so she took a older Helmet mount and flatenned it out and applied the velcro to that , found it easier and cleaner to mount that way. she also said the velcro has never let go on her.

 

[BigMike]

Thanks Splat, but for the two reasons mentioned above, I am very turned off to that light. I hate taking my camelbak off, and I turn my light on and off a lot when riding (stop to talk, get to a well lit urban area, etc)

I think I've decided i'm going with the L&M. In a month or so, after I get it, i'll post a report

 

[Wumpus]

I turn my light on and off a lot when riding (stop to talk, get to a well lit urban area, etc)

I thought it was bad for an HID to turn it off and on frequently.

 

[splat]

I thought it was bad for an HID to turn it off and on frequently.

you beat meto it Wumpus. it is bad to turn an HID on and off Frequently.

I did alot of research before buying my HID. I was looking to build my own.

1) you don't Just turn on the light and go , you usually have to wait for it to warm up to full bright ness. , about a minute.

2) An HID Bulb life span is More determined by cycles rather than run time. although run time does affect it. ( a cycle being an On /off cycle )

3) Turning an HID on and off frequently will drain your battery faster. the claim is an HID bulb is about 10 - 13 watts , but that is after it has warmed up. when the Bulb first Ignites, it is drawing close to 50 Watts and slowly ( over 1 to 2 minutes ) draws less till it is at about 10 watts .

4) there is a Ballast used to regulte the power to the bulb , and frequent on and off will also put undo strain on that as well.


the general rule is unless you plan on turning the light off for 10 minutes or so , you leave it on. so Most the time when I ride. I turn it on and it stays on till I'm done.

 

[Castle]

http://www.mtbr.com/spotlight/lightshootout/ you may find this useful...

http://www.mtbr.com/spotlight/lightshootout/beampattern.shtml

the topeak moonshine HID and Light and Motion lamps look really nice....

I'm in the market as well.... and it's between those two, we've been selling light and motion at the shop for a while with great results. Don't know much about the topeak moonshine.

 

[splat]

a couple of Guys I ride with have the topeak.

Nice unit Nice mount . 2 things about it . it gets HOT!!! sincethe Case is made of Metal the whole thing gets very hot.

and sencond the control cable is about 6 inches long and flops around a bit, would be useful on a Handle bar mount but on a helmet mount is it kind of strange , but you wouldn't want it on the light housing because of the heat.

 

[BigMike]

Yeah, after I made that post I realized its not a good idea to turn HIDs on and off. I deal with Metal Halide and xenon lights all the time, same deal

 

[Wumpus]

Jet HID vs Niterider HID

 

[N8 v2.0]

For less than $80 I picked up a Cygo light.



http://www.cygolite.com/light/products/12RoverWB.htm

 

[narlus]

that Lupine Edison 10 throws a TON of light, but at the price it should throw money too.

who would pay $900 for a freakin' bike light?

 

[Wumpus]

For less than $80 I picked up a Cygo light.



http://www.cygolite.com/light/products/12RoverWB.htm

There is probably a reason that it is only $80.

 

[JRB]

There is probably a reason that it is only $80.

With the NiMH battery, that is not a bad light. I would want a better light on the trail, but that is perfect for neighborhood riding.

 

[JRB]

I'm really liking my Lume Strada wide beam. No Niterider flicker, just a constant beam of light!

I like mine a lot. Best customer service in the world. Mine is a prototype of the wide beam. They switched it for free and did so in 3 days to make me happy.

 

[Skookum]

Save some money and just pour gas on your head, you'd be amazed at how long burn time on your scalp lasts.