How do you / Where do you aim?

[Inner Prop]

Now that I have a light that actually works I wonder where the best place would be to aim it.

I have a single light mounted on my handlebars. Right now I put it as horizontal as possible. It seems the hot spot touches the street out about 100ft. Aimed like that there is a flood just a bit wider than two lanes.

Where I travel is pretty much two lanes (one each way) and lightly traveled (at 4:30am). I don't expect to travel in the evening rush hour so I only have the one situation.

 

[PCC]

I typically aim my main headlight down so that the middle of the hotspot is about 50-75 feet out. That's because I use that light to spot potential road hazards that are going to slice and dice my tires up. I don't ride at 20+ MPH so I don't need it aimed like a car headlight.

I also ride with a helmet-mounted light when I ride after dark. The main headlight is aimed passively, the helmet-mounted one is aimed aggressively. I'm always mindful of where that light is pointing and will try to avoid blinding others with it, but I have used it to shine into the face of unattentive or just plain stupid drivers to avoid getting run over. I honestly believe that this particular light has saved my life one evening when I pointed it at the face of an SUV driver that completely missed the fact that I was crossing the street that he was trying to make a right turn into, despite the back of my bike being lit up like a Christmas tree.

 

[Steve K]

that's a pretty open-ended question. I aim forward, with the hope of illuminating the road at least 100 feet ahead of me, and prefer not to put much light within 10 feet or so of me (to avoid reducing my night vision).

The important factor is the beam pattern of the headlight. Better bike headlights are designed to produce even illumination of the road over a broad range, and to not shine much light into the eyes of oncoming traffic. These usually conform to the German standard/law.

When I design a headlight, I am usually limited to the optics & reflectors that are commercially available, so they don't meet the German standard. They produce a basic circular beam, like a flashlight would. I usually try to select a fairly narrow beam (about 6 to 8 degrees, I think), to avoid throwing light too high or too low.

regards,
Steve K.

 

[BrianMc]

I assume you don't feel a need for a daytime front running light coming home.

The question has as many answers as riders and the light systems they have used. It is a very personal thing and changes as our eyes age and our top speed decreases, and we buy or build better lights.

If the volume of oncoming traffic is really low, you won't be blinding many drivers, but any light you put above the horizon that can get into their eyes does you very little good. In fact, bouncing back off of reflective signs, that light can be a problem. Since the 'hotspot' generally represents the majority share of lumens out of the light, getting that all on the pavement is a very good idea.

Lower light positions highlight shadows and smear the beam out more, higher ones like the helmet allow a tighter beam to be thrown a bit farther.

I like the near edge of a round hot spot to be wider than the bike and narrower than a full lane, close enough I can seee and dodge gravel, far enough that my night vision is OK. From there I like it spread out to a full lane 50-75 feet ahead and two at twice that (if there's any light left to get that far). That takes a fairly narrow beam.

I have seen lights mounted with mounts at the front axle, mid fork, fender front, fork crown, front rack, head tube, headset, bars (as well as helmet). So any height from axle to handlebar plus the mount height is in the game.

I built a new system late this past winter and early this spring and I am still messing with it. I am thinking of lowering the main unit from the bars to the brake/fork crown position, likely with an upswept mount so it is a bit above that. My handle bar bag will act as a large hood and save my night vision and I can reduce glare for oncoming drivers while making gravel easier to see. In theory, at least.

Sorry for a less than definitive answer, but is is a lot like asking for a favorite beer, cheese, or recording artist. However the question IS valid, it's just that it is for each of us to answer. Also lights are adjustable and can be mounted one place one ride another the next. Sometimes I want Beethoven, others Led Zeppelin.

 

[Inner Prop]

One good thing is that I'm not in Germany and pretty sure I don't have to follow German standards.

Thanks everybody for the answers. I realize it would be hard, not knowing exactly what I'm facing, how I ride and what I prefer.

I knew there would be a lot of opinions, but I was hoping that from all the opinions I might get some useful ideas, and I'm starting to.

Keep the ideas rolling.

Thank you.

 

[Bobblehat]

I use twin Smart Halogen lights, 6W "wide", 10W "spot". Overvolted from 6V to 7.2V. Each light individually switched.

The wide is aimed about 20-25ft away and the beam shape throws a little light nearer the bike and a little farther away than the main area. I use this in traffic and when other cyclist/pedestrians approach on cycle tracks etc. The spot beam is aimed so that the top of the beam is just above the distant horizon, so that the majority of the light falls from about 25-30ft at the nearest, the brightest part maybe 80ft and beyond. The switches near my thumbs mean I can change from one to the other (or both :devil as quick or quicker than a car can dip.

 

[Avernus]

My rides are usually pretty variable in terms of speed, pedestrians, lighting and exposure to vehicles so I'm adjusting brightness and angle of my headlights to suit the current situation. Having a mount that lets me tilt the lights up-down on the fly is key.

^I really like the thumb switch idea though for keeping your hands in position.

 

[Bobblehat]

^I really like the thumb switch idea though for keeping your hands in position.

Yeah! I like to keep my hands on the grips and near the brakes for as long as possible in traffic!

Here is another early version that worked just as well, but I didn't like the look of Jubilee/Hose clip that much ..... decided to make my own stainless steel "P" type clips out of thin sheet on later versions. Gave a better choice of switch position etc. for the Judco switch, so as to be as close to the thumb as possible but not clash with the changers.