New beamshots of my bike light project.

[mkrabach]

Weather finally turned nice enough to do beamshots of my' bike light project' prototype lights. While this is a full article that I have on my web site, I reference all the parts used, which includes alot of the DX (dealextreme.com) optics and such. So it might be helpful to others trying to decide on parts. I had some references from forums but needed more to see what worked best. I still have a box of parts left over probably worth $100 for further fun. One of the problems was finding what works in Maglite flashlight heads. Most of my lights look crude compared to some of the machined lights people are making, but the idea was for simplicity of construction.
http://www.kayakaccessri.info/krabachwebsite/bike_light/bike_light_project/intro.html
The new beamshots are at: http://www.kayakaccessri.info/krabachwebsite/bike_light/bike_light_project/light.html

 

[Derek Dean]

Very nicely documented and presented. Thanks for posting it for us. Keep up the good work!

 

[mkrabach]

The next addition to the project is a bright rear red taillight. I had one prototype working for a short time but had problems with a kaidomain regulator, some worked and some were flaky, (KAI sku 3151). But worse was the fact that evidently some of the GE Silicone II sealant got next to the LED dome itself. I had suspected that the sealant might be harmful. In the past, maybe present too, the acetic acid in the compound is corrosive to electronics. Special non corrosive silicone adhesives are available. But I really did not worry too much in the other prototypes since the L2 optics had a lip that protected the bare wires where they soldered to the LED star base. But for this led (red DX sku 1776) the sealant got forced under the filed channels on the bottom of the L2 optics and into the lens cavity. The result.... the led lens, ie the plastic dome, came unglued and sealant got into the led. I found the problem, besides the light being flakey, by the fact that I was getting a voltage reading on my DVM without the battery being attached. That was weird.

I am currently waiting for more parts from DX and will start over. It looks like the red ( wattage ?) Cree (DX sku 1776) , using a single battery regulator and the L2 oval sub-lens 8x25 deg <http://www.ledsupply.com/l2-optx-1-825s.php>, you get a tremendous rear light. From the first tests, the beam is wide, does not interfer with riders close behind you and should get a full evenings ride from a single AA NiMH battery.

 

[mkrabach]

More prototypes finished. Mainly rear flashers. Superflash and other commercial rear flashers move over, these homebrew lights make you squint. But that is the point, I have been testing various light combinations late at night and drivers really move over. I have settled on a commercial (dealextreme.com) housing that can be modified as shown in prototype 16. Other prototypes were in old Vistalite cases, which work perfectly for AA rechargeable batteries. If you have any old AA Vistalites, dont throw them away. Rebuild them. New beamshots are included, including more interactive mouseover images comparing the lights.
The starting page is: http://www.kayakaccessri.info/krabachwebsite/bike_light/bike_light_project/intro.html
The beamshots are: http://www.kayakaccessri.info/krabachwebsite/bike_light/bike_light_project/light.html

 

[FrontRanger]

The starting page is: http://www.kayakaccessri.info/krabachwebsite/bike_light/bike_light_project/intro.html
The beamshots are: http://www.kayakaccessri.info/krabachwebsite/bike_light/bike_light_project/light.html

Thanks for taking the effort to create such detailed documentation.