bulgie
Dirt Disciple
I like Zebralight brand, it's a US company (though made in China), don't know if they're available in UK. There are other similar brands but Zebra was the pioneer of this form-factor as far as I know, others are knock-offs. Zebralights are so tough you could drive a truck over one, very durable.
Two separate torches, red one in back, held on the helmet by velcro or zip-ties.
That's an old pic with an obsolete model from 2008. They've gotten much better since then...
Rear looks like a white light when turned off, but the LED only emits red light:
Using rechargeable lithium-ion cells, advantage is you can swap in a fresh battery mid-ride. That's not something you can do if the cells are soldered inside and they only supply a USB port in the casing for charging. I need separate cells that can be recharged outside the lamp. Oh also the torch doesn't become trash when the battery doesn't hold a charge anymore.
18650 cell in front, most energy storage = brighter and/or longer runtime. 12 possible brightness settings, though in use it just goes Hi-Med-Lo-Off. It remembers your settings, even through a battery swap. The rear is smaller, takes a CR123 cell. Same charger charges both sizes.
Since they're brighter than needed, I use them on medium for better runtime and less annoyance to other road users. I like "floody" for a be-seen light, since I don't have to aim my head at a driver, in fact I'm visible to drivers on my right and left at the same time. Flood or floody is also best as a work-light, for close-up stuff like patching a tube. With a narrow beam you do get more "throw", but it gives a sort of tunnel-vision, no peripheral illumination.
I upgraded several times as brighter LEDs became available, so I have my older Zebralights on an elastic head band for non-cycling tasks, like finding that thing that rolled under mydesk, taking the trash bins out at night... I leave one in the car. one by my workbench and one by my desk.
Oh and I strap them onto other head-gear too, like this one on my Optivisor:
A full-flood beam shape is a must for such up-close work. God-like for tweezing a tiny splinter from your flesh.
Two separate torches, red one in back, held on the helmet by velcro or zip-ties.
That's an old pic with an obsolete model from 2008. They've gotten much better since then...
Rear looks like a white light when turned off, but the LED only emits red light:
Using rechargeable lithium-ion cells, advantage is you can swap in a fresh battery mid-ride. That's not something you can do if the cells are soldered inside and they only supply a USB port in the casing for charging. I need separate cells that can be recharged outside the lamp. Oh also the torch doesn't become trash when the battery doesn't hold a charge anymore.
18650 cell in front, most energy storage = brighter and/or longer runtime. 12 possible brightness settings, though in use it just goes Hi-Med-Lo-Off. It remembers your settings, even through a battery swap. The rear is smaller, takes a CR123 cell. Same charger charges both sizes.
Since they're brighter than needed, I use them on medium for better runtime and less annoyance to other road users. I like "floody" for a be-seen light, since I don't have to aim my head at a driver, in fact I'm visible to drivers on my right and left at the same time. Flood or floody is also best as a work-light, for close-up stuff like patching a tube. With a narrow beam you do get more "throw", but it gives a sort of tunnel-vision, no peripheral illumination.
I upgraded several times as brighter LEDs became available, so I have my older Zebralights on an elastic head band for non-cycling tasks, like finding that thing that rolled under mydesk, taking the trash bins out at night... I leave one in the car. one by my workbench and one by my desk.
Oh and I strap them onto other head-gear too, like this one on my Optivisor:
A full-flood beam shape is a must for such up-close work. God-like for tweezing a tiny splinter from your flesh.
