Cateye HL-EL530 Lumens?

[ET3]

Does anyone know how many lumens the 530 or 520 are? What kind of LED? Regulated?

 

[Genesis 1:3]

I have a HL-EL530 on my bike for quite some time now and I found it to be quite useless. It is 50% brighter than the old HL-EL500, but even that, you would be better off with a Fenix L1D-CE.

The LED has a slight yellow tint and is quite comfortable to the eyes. Run time is good at about 40hrs before I change a new set of batteries (official figure at 90hrs). I don't know the lumen figures but it is no brighter than my Fenix L1DCE on medium. Beam quality is average with limited throw, and the side spill is so faint that it is almost unusable. I guess it is a trade off between run time and output. It doesn't have the strobe mode, which is quite a good safety feature when cycling through well lit city streets.

I now use 2 x L1DCE on my bike, with one pointing forward and the other pointing slightly downward. When I want to go for a longer ride at night, I replace one of them with a L2DCE.

 

[ET3]

I was thinking I could replace the LED with a Cree and get a better light. Another choice is to mod a Cateye HL-500 incandescent with a different bulb and some 18500s. I prefer the durability of the LED but not if it isn't bright enough.

 

[Minjin]

I now use 2 x L1DCE on my bike, with one pointing forward and the other pointing slightly downward. When I want to go for a longer ride at night, I replace one of them with a L2DCE.

Any chance you can post a pic of your bike with the L2D on it? I'm currently split between the L2DCE and the U2-style light for use as a bike light.

 

[Genesis 1:3]

Minjin,

Tried to post pictures but without luck. Being a new member here, not sure if I have done something wrong. If you like, I could send you pictures via email.

 

[Minjin]

Minjin,

Tried to post pictures but without luck. Being a new member here, not sure if I have done something wrong. If you like, I could send you pictures via email.

Try hosting HERE.

 

[Genesis 1:3]

"This country banned for violating
our Terms of Service"

No luck, here is the message I got from TinyPic.

 

[Minjin]

"This country banned for violating
our Terms of Service"

No luck, here is the message I got from TinyPic.

Doh! :laughing:

 

[jayflash]

Hello, ET3. We still have three old Cat Eye HL-500s. The new ~$50 LED offerings aren't as good as that 1990's, $15, incan. Maybe a Two Fish brand small flashlight holder for a good flashlight is a better option than < $100 LED bike lights.

An X2B2 lamp, at 1.3 amps, also provides some improvement over the original .5A halogen, but rechargeable C cells are necessary. What lamps do you use with the two 18500 cells? Do those cells stay in place OK, without moving around?

 

[chesterqw]

it should either be luxeon III or K2...

i can't believe the price for that bike light however...

i can easily buy empty "nub(s)" from litemania and get a brighter and cheaper light for ALOT lesser money.

 

[ET3]

I haven't started yet, but I was thinking of using a Mag 5D bulb. I was planning on using a bit of tubing or pipe to hold the cells.