Pros/Cons to carrying bicycle headlight as primary light

Jeffro115

Newly Enlightened
Joined
Mar 4, 2009
Messages
3
Location
Greensburg Pennsylvania
Hello all,

First off, what a great forum! I've been a lurker for years, and a flashlight enthusiast for many more.


Now let's get down to brass tax... I currently carry an Ironton 600 Lumen LED flashlight in my car's glove box. The light is from Northern Tool, and it is the brightest light that I could find to fit my requirements: that would squeeze into the glovebox, and that it would run on regular, easily available batteries. I believe it to be a true 600 lumens - if not, then it is very close.

I recently bought a Niterider Lumina 750 - a helmet or handlebar mounted LED light designed for bicycling. The amount of light that this little thing puts out is just amazing to me. It lights up the road more than my car's headlights could. While it doesn't have quite the focused hotspot that a typical flashlight does, because of the way that the light spreads out, I am able to really see a lot. I would rather use this for search and rescue than a typical flashlight or handheld spotlight.

It has 3 modes for brightness, plus a fourth, ultra-low power "walking" mode. Since I have purchased it, (besides biking with it) I have taken it camping, used it to work on my car at night, and have just found it to be really useful. Very bright when I need it, but I can dim it down to read a map without blinding myself as well. It's very compact, waterproof, and while it doesn't run on replaceable batteries, it charges with a mini-USB charger, the same one that I use for my phone. So I am able to charge it in the car as well.


After this limited but positive experience with this bike light, I am thinking of buying three more and dedicating them to my car, my wife's car, and my daughter's as well. They can be had for around $90.

So, is this a good idea? What am I not thinking of? Is there another light that is equal in size/weight/performance that I'd be better off with?

As always, thanks in advance!
 

geokite

Newly Enlightened
Joined
Apr 24, 2014
Messages
187
Me too; currently I ride with a Zebralight SC600 Mk2 L2. 1100 lumens flashing in 4Hz mode during the day. $95 plus battery, charger, and handlebar connection (many to choose from). More cost upfront, but a better overall light and future-proofed for replacing the battery.

I switched over from an Exposure Diablo. While I liked the frequency of the flash on the Diablo, I wanted to get half (!) my money back before the battery was toast.

Steve
 

Mr Floppy

Flashlight Enthusiast
Joined
Feb 19, 2007
Messages
2,065
Back in the 90's, the thing to do was to carry a bike light as a primary light. They were often at the forefront of technology. The gap has closed but the pricing has gone the other way.

I used to carry a cat-eye which had an oval beam and Fresnel lens back in the 90's. Partly was that it was brighter than anything else at the time while still compact, and I still rode a bike ...
 
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