During the dark winter months, you need good lights on your bike, and these aren't them… The "Kodak" lights sold vor about 3.99 are good enough to be seen, but not good enough to see.
So i upgrade with a USB- C rechargeable one for the front
However, for that price, it's worth buying just to get the rear light; it's good enough and a thousand times better than nothing.
by SBCProductions
19 Comments
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Knog 700 Road front and Blinder rear light set.
Knog blinder up front and a Lezyne Strip Pro Ai Alert 400+ on the rear. (The lezyne is technically illegal here but idc, it’s as bright as an ambulance when the brake light strobe kicks on)
I use this [Cygolite set](https://www.rei.com/product/110180/cygolite-dash-pro-600-hotrod-50-bike-light-set) and really enjoy them. Bright and there are a lot of modes depending on what I need.
Cygolite Metro/Hotshot combo
Riding in Seattle (mostly in the city but also in surrounding areas).
On the front:
Handlebars:
Outbound Lighting’s Detour and a random AAA powered light
Helmet:
Outbound Lighting’s Hangover
All front lights are run on steady, as flashing front lights are illegal in Seattle.
On the rear:
3x NiteRider CherryBombs at different heights
(I used to use PB SuperFlashes and am totally agnostic on CherryBombs vs SuperFlashes, but CherryBombs are just easier to find in my area presently)
The helmet light totally changed how frequently I have dangerous-feeling close call with drivers. From one every few months to essentially never (I can’t remember the last time I had one).
I tried high viz and found it utterly ineffectual in Seattle. Lights, lights, lights, is the only thing that works here.
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Niterider Lumina Micro 900 front and a Niterider Omega 330 rear. You can kinda see my Blackburn Grid side Beacons All together a very bright set up that makes me feel much better.
Solarstorm 5000 but I am just an the old school cyclist pretending to be a truck
Idk whatever the led dynamo front and a some zefal branded 270 degree 150lm light on the rear. But also reflective strips on the spokes and tyres with reflective sidewalls
I use redshift pedals on top of lights. I really appreciate them flashing as I pedal. I feel it adds a lot of visibility. Maybe it’s in my head but I don’t like riding at night without them. I have a Luminitop light for the front. I love that it’s angled downwards so it doesn’t blind people. I also run a tail light that runs steady and has laser lanes it projects onto the ground. Forget the brand and specific light I can find and link if there is interest. The head light and taillight are steady. The pedals flash. Makes me feel much better.
I have integrated lights on my handlebar and seatpost on my commute bike (both by lightskin). So I always have my lights with me as long as I remember to plug in!
On my other bikes, I’ve settled on some surprisingly nice $30ish lights i like by Ravemen. The LR500 front light and the CL06 Rear light. Bright, reliable, and both are USB-C. I own about a half dozen of each now, and have mounts on all my bikes, my wife’s bikes, and my kids’ bikes. I always have a handful fully charged, and just grab as many as I need as we head out the door. Obviously a bit of an initial capital cost to getting set up that way, but it’s a real luxury once its done.
I even use these lights for randonneuring, which involves riding overnight. I just have two of each, and keep one charging while the other is in use.
Hub dynamo with cheap $20 front lights and a red light bar at the back.
I cycle every day if the year and with a hub dynamo you never need to charge anything, you cannot forget to grab your lights when leaving home and they even work in the day (which is handy when visibility is bad like in the rain or smth).
Both my lights have a capacitor in them so they stay lit for a short period after I stop pedalling which is handy at traffic lights.
Anything that has a cut off up front
My old Cygolite died last spring so I ended up getting a new, different light. Its body is metal and the battery gets too cold as a result and dies way earlier than it shoud, I’ve taken to starting the light 5-10 minutes before I leave so that it can heat up and stay warm over the course of my ride home. So a word of warning to not get a light with a metal body.
Knog blinders and sometimes Knog road 3 in front.
Magic shine evo 1700
Bontrager commuter lights
Nothing dimmer than at least 1800 lumens with a boost. And I keep an extra cable to charge at work so that they are ready to go by the evening. Rear light lasts longer. I use NightEze brand.
I splurged on a 4-pack of the Lumos firefly mini and the controller. They are excellent. I have two in front and two rear, controller with blinker action works perfectly. Also have the Olight RN 1500 up front which is super bright. Lumos and Olight are all usb-c rechergeable and supposed to be waterproof. Bike is electric so it has its own basic headlight and rear light with integrated brake light function. Would highly recommend all of these lights.
Olight RN 1500 front and Magicshine Seemee 100 rear.
Other commuter, for when no studded tires are needed, has an Magicshine EVO 1700 that has a marginally better beam pattern and a Xoss taillight.
Both put out plenty enough to see on their middle settings, cut off beams, and both taillights have an accelerometer based brake function.
Backup light set is a Cygolight 1100 (spot pattern, no cutoff, maybe 800 actual lumens, but certainly serviceable)and a Rockbros taillight.
Also a set of red light up bike nuts and a cheap silicone headlight stashed on the bike as punishment if I fail to charge my decent lights. Weak and tacky, but still much better than nothing.