Enlighten Me Please

[pistonbroke]

I have entered an event in April which will involve a single night of riding . I'll not be using my normal bikepacking bike which has a shimano dynamo and revo setup, preferring my gravel bike. I'm looking for a light that I can mount upside down on aero extensions, ideally with a remote switch to reduce the output on roads. I'm thinking I'll need about 800 lumen for the gravel trails and about 8 hours of burn time. Regrettably I can't justify Exposure prices for what is likely to be a 1 off event and have a budget of about £100. The Magicshine RAY2600 ticks most boxes apart from longevity, the 3000 has a better life as it has a 10,000mAh battery but no remote, both are over budget but not by much. Is there anything else I should be considering? What do people use for extended overnight riding?

[ScotRoutes]

What do people use for extended overnight riding?

My Exposure Maxx-D

How critical is the remote? I guess your issue is that you'll not be able to reach the switch on the light due to luggage/mounting?

[Bearbonesnorm]

How much faff would it be to use something that uses a separate battery? I was using one of these the other night and it was fine. Not as 'punchy' as something from Exposure but perfectly fine. The fact you can change from spot to flood it quite useful. Comes with a bar mount too.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B07 ... UTF8&psc=1

[Lazarus]

Sinewave beacon as it's both a dynamo light and it can run off a battery .
Anyone ever tried doing that with a revo as I assume it runs of 6v as that is what the dynamo produces .
As for upside down Amy mom road light will likely be just a round output so can be run upside down and won't make any difference.

[pistonbroke]

The attraction of a remote is that I don't want to be scrabbling around trying to find the switch on the unit which is upside down on the front of tri bars whilst dodging potholes. I would imagine a torch using 18650 batteries would have a burn time of about 11/2 hours so I'd need several spare batteries to get through the night plus the faff of changing them. And as for the cost of a MaxxD,

[Bearbonesnorm]

it lasts much longer than that Duncan. I had it on for nearly 5 hours the other night and it's still got charge.

[pistonbroke]

That's impressive, was that 5 hours on full power or on carrot mode?

[Bearbonesnorm]

was that 5 hours on full power or on carrot mode?

It was a combination of everything. Just press the button to suit conditions.

[redefined_cycles]

Mtb batteries lumenator. Should come with a stem mount as that's what I upgraded to when he released the adaptors... should easily see you through an 8 hour shift

[lune ranger]

I recently got an Olight/Magicshine RN3500 light and it’s bob-on.
£95. Tons of settings from 100L output over 75 hours up to 3500L over 1h40min. I’m fairly settled on 900L over 6h 30mins as my go to setting.
It is a separate battery which I wasn’t keen on but in practice it’s fine. The battery is long and thin ish and shaped to fit on a tube. Mine goes in a frame bag. The battery also has a USB output for phone etc. charging duties.
I have mine mounted on the fork crown. The head unit has a Garmin 1/4 turn style cleat so mounting options are legion.
Build quality is good. Wires and connections solid and waterproof.
I’ve had an Olight key ring light and hand held torch for many years and trust the brand fairly well.

[ton]

Mtb batteries lumenator. Should come with a stem mount as that's what I upgraded to when he released the adaptors... should easily see you through an 8 hour shift

yep, i have one. 12 hours for commutes between charging, and that is with on and off switching, which uses more power than low constant. iirc.

[riderdown]

https://www.jejamescycles.com/product/4 ... ht/option/

Battery is huge, has a remote, is programmable

[BigdummySteve]

For a one off I’d just get a cheap eBay light, I had one which plugged in to a usb battery, cheap, bright and was very good quality for around £30

[thenorthwind]

Might be worth considering buying the Exposure light you need and selling it on after. They seem to hold their value well - I've seen several much older Joysticks for sale at more than I paid for my brand new mk14 in a sale last year.

[rudedog]

https://www.jejamescycles.com/product/4 ... ht/option/

Battery is huge, has a remote, is programmable

Another vote for the Moon Canopus

I have this light, the battery is large but it's a really good light. On the 700 lumen setting you will get 12 hours runtime ( you can program it to be longer runtime/ lower lumens using the VLS system).

It also has a remote and max lumen of 4000

For £130, I think it must be one of the best value lights available

[Leerowe76]

The Exposure Joystick is a really good light pretty sure thats about 800 lumens with programs to play with also for maybe 10hr of light on low which would be plenty by the sounds of the ride, may even pick up a second hand one in good working order for a 100 or less


https://www.googleadservices.com/pagead ... RBU&adurl=

new 112

[Mart]

For a one off could you borrow one to see you through?

[pistonbroke]

Thanks for the interesting replies guys, maybe worth explaining that I live in Cataluña Spain. This makes buying an Exposure and selling it on more difficult due to posting costs for items containing batteries. Also night riding isn't much of a thing here apart from in high summer when it's too hot in the day. I already have a Joystick but wouldn't trust it for much more than 4 hours, even on low. That Moon looks a beast but I can't find it locally at that price and face import duties and hassle to buy it from the UK, same with MTB batteries. An all in one light and battery is attractive and compact which is why the Magicshine scores, it's frustrating that all the manufacturers shout about the light output but you have to dig down into the specs to get any idea of run time which is often stupidly short, who needs 5,000 lumen for 30 minutes?

[Bearbonesnorm]

who needs 5,000 lumen for 30 minutes?

Someone who's ride is 29 minutes long

[pistonbroke]

Any thoughts on this? https://www.amazon.co.uk/Ravemen-Unisex ... 543&sr=8-5
Seems well built and just about enough run time on low. Remote switch and 6000mAh battery. I can get it locally for €103 so on budget. What's not to like?

[Bearbonesnorm]

I'm struggling a bit with the remote thing ...

Light attached to bars, to change setting remove hand from grip and press button.
Switch attached to bars, to change setting remove hand from grip and press button.

If the light was helmet mounted then maybe?

[pistonbroke]

I'm looking for a light that I can mount upside down on aero extensions,

Fumbling about jn the dark at the end of tri bars with the switch underneath on bumpy gravel doesn't fill me with confidence. The switch could be mounted on the hoods so no need to move hand position. It also makes the light helmet mountable if you can tolerate the weight.

[Cheeky Monkey]

Thank god they labelled it otherwise I'd never have known

[johnnystorm]

I already have a Joystick but wouldn't trust it for much more than 4 hours, even on low.

Big USB battery pack and a lead? I ran my diablo from a 2.6ah usb battery and it was fine. As it's only for a single night...

[Cheeky Monkey]

MTB batteries will do very reasonably priced and Exposure compatible battery packs. AS you're dealing with a person with them you might be able to achieve something affordable and deliverable?