Needlight advice

I want a really powerful front and back light that flash. I want to be seen by our annual influx of winter visitors and others who insist on texting+driving, etc. We've had a rash of cyclists being hit and I'm looking to gain whatever advantage I can get!!

I looked at the Niterider 3600 on Amazon which is a little expensive ($560) but if it keeps me safe, I'll buy it. Niterider also has some tail lights & since they seem to have a good reputation, I'm guessing they are good too. I'm open to suggestions.

What are you using? I don't do a lot of night riding, but may start if I get a good enough light and I can switch it from my road bike to my commuter easily.

My taillight is an older version of this Bontrager light. I've been told it's very noticeable.

http://www.bontrager.com/model/11365

My headlight is the Light and Motion Urban 550. It got good reviews and was recommended by several people who work at my LBS including the owner. The only downside is that the battery life is only about 1.5 hours if you set it for steady light at the highest output level. It would last longer if you set it to flash.

I started riding after dark this fall. I used the L&M on the second brightness setting and it is more than bright enough. I also use a Bontrager Ion2 set to blink as an additional "notice me" light. I have a small Knog red blinker on the back of my bike and another small blinking red light on my helmet in addition to the Bontrager light I linked to above. I
wear reflective bands around my ankles and wrists and the Nathan cycling vest with reflective strips. I felt that people were aware of my presence on the roads.

All your criteria are going to be met with a Light and Motion TAZ 1000 or a TAZ 1200. About $250-$300
It will carve a hole in a drivers eyeballs,
It will give you a swath of light penetrating into upcoming intersections,
Will shine through and around cars nearby you.
Super easy to remove and charge.
Made here in the US of A... Monterey, Calif from a company who started out with scuba dive lights.
We sell them by the truckload.
Sure, we get the occasional return but statistically minimal and the company has been great about getting any issues fixed pronto.
http://www.lightandmotion.com/bike/taz1000c.html
http://reviews.mtbr.com/review-light-motion-taz-1000

I've had bad luck with NiteRider lights becoming non-functional in an unreasonably short amount of time….

I rely on an array of lights rather than just two. On the front I have a Blackburn Flea (USB rechargeable) that I usually have on flash, a L&M (200 lumen) Stella mounted on my helmet and my newest acquisition is actually a flashlight - it's a Nightcore EA4 (550 lumen on high - 860 on max, but it won't stay on max for long periods to prevent overheating) - it's got a nice flat spot that works quite well for mounting on your handlebar with a big O-ring - I haven't tried it on my helmet yet. It might be too heavy. At $80 it's considerably cheaper than most bike specific bright lights.

On the rear I have a red Blackburn Flea that I keep on my messenger bag and mounted on my bike I have a Dinotte - here's what they say….. If you thought there isn’t a tail light that could ever be bright enough, think again and don’t say we didn’t warn you. The world’s first bicycle tail light to project a beam on the road. A light this bright encourages motorists to slow down and move out of your path when passing you. Just when you thought you couldn’t find a bright enough tail light, we created the product for you. (Batteries not included.) MSRP $129.00 U.S.D.

I can attest to this - I notice when the batteries are getting low because cars start coming closer again… people really and truly do not tailgate me when I'm using this light - I love it. I also use some spoke lights for a bit of side visibility.

Think about a good solid light and one little blinker aimed lower on the back. Constant lights make it easier for drivers to judge distance from you.

I’ve used Dinotte lights on the front, rear and helmet for a few years now and have been quite satisfied with the visibility, build quality and customer service

We have Bike Ray USA front lights, 1500 lumens. They are extremely strong, as we don't have a lot of "illumination" out here. There is now a version with 3,000 lumens. I usually ride in the dark in the early AM, in the spring and fall. So, not long periods in the dark. But, I've used it in cloudy, rainy weather for 5-6 hours, on the low beam setting with no issues.
I have a solid tail light on my Guru, as well as a blinkie. The solid light looks like the rear light that's in the rear window of an SUV. It's big.
I have 2 blinkies on the rear of my Kuota. That way, if one goes out, there's another one. I use the rear blinkies pretty frequently, even in the daytime.

I also use blinkies in the daytime. I intend to use a front blinkey in the daytime also. I notice that when cyclists have those going, I really notice them. That's what I want - to be seen. I already wear very bright colors but I wonder if I'm any competition for texting....:rolleyes:

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Originally Posted by rebeccaC

Think about a good solid light and one little blinker aimed lower on the back. Constant lights make it easier for drivers to judge distance from you.

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Drivers are notoriously bad in judging cyclists' distance and rate of speed. For that reason, if I think a driver is going to pull out in front of me, I'll shift so that my feet are going really fast and I'll slowly apply the brakes. So, I'm actually slowing down but I appear to be going fast.

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Originally Posted by Dogmama

I want a really powerful front and back light that flash. I want to be seen by our annual influx of winter visitors and others who insist on texting+driving, etc. We've had a rash of cyclists being hit and I'm looking to gain whatever advantage I can get!!

I looked at the Niterider 3600 on Amazon which is a little expensive ($560) but if it keeps me safe, I'll buy it. Niterider also has some tail lights & since they seem to have a good reputation, I'm guessing they are good too. I'm open to suggestions.

What are you using? I don't do a lot of night riding, but may start if I get a good enough light and I can switch it from my road bike to my commuter easily.

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Dogmama, I did a blog post on lights, to see and to be seen by. Here's the link http://pedaltohealth.blogspot.com/2013/10/lights.html

There's also a post about monkey lights with a video, however I feel that those are most beneficial viewed from the side, like on a cross street, it can be found here

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Originally Posted by Bike Writer

I did a blog post on lights, to see and to be seen by.

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BW. I have to respectfully take issue with your assumption that a light too weak "to see" is possibly bright enough to "be seen"
There is no such thing as this distinction. Any of my sales staff caught making this distinction get a proper "talking to"

A small inexpensive light may look bright when you stare directly at it. However at any angle it is barely there.
It will also be quickly washed out by street lights and headlights around you. Both these situations rendering you essentially invisible.
Furthermore, any light that does not project into intersections and through/around cars nearby you should not be considered a light for being seen.

Imagine the scenario where a car driving in front of you blocks your "to be seen" light to the left turning car at the intersection. That left hand turning car is going to turn when the car is past....right when you get there. You want that left turn car to notice there is something behind the first car.

The only situation where the $20-50 lights are appropriate is on paved trails with no cars.

I rarely use lights, but my DH commutes daily and often comes home at night. He is pretty much obsessed with lights, and I will ask his opinion and get back to you. Plus he knows everything about where to buy bike lights in Tucson.

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Originally Posted by Seajay

BW. I have to respectfully take issue with your assumption that a light too weak "to see" is possibly bright enough to "be seen"
There is no such thing as this distinction. Any of my sales staff caught making this distinction get a proper "talking to"

A small inexpensive light may look bright when you stare directly at it. However at any angle it is barely there.
It will also be quickly washed out by street lights and headlights around you. Both these situations rendering you essentially invisible.
Furthermore, any light that does not project into intersections and through/around cars nearby you should not be considered a light for being seen.

Imagine the scenario where a car driving in front of you blocks your "to be seen" light to the left turning car at the intersection. That left hand turning car is going to turn when the car is past....right when you get there. You want that left turn car to notice there is something behind the first car.

The only situation where the $20-50 lights are appropriate is on paved trails with no cars.

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I don't ride at night, but at times do get caught at dusk or early nightfall and I believe I qualified that in my blog post and also advised people to seek out expert advice from their local bike shop. The lights I use are suitable for the kind of riding I do which is mostly trails and street riding in semi-rural areas with light traffic. I've checked with our local police officers when I've seen them while using those lights and inquired if they feel that they were adequate for me to be seen and got positive responses from them. Even that does not make me comfortable riding after dark.

One of the reasons I don't ride at night is that I don't feel there are any lights suitable enough for me to feel safe riding at night. If I end up staying longer at a friends house than I had anticipated and it ends up real dark, I stick to the sidewalks. But that is not convenient or even legal in some places.

You raise good points about lights getting washed out by street lighting and such. Your recommendations are good for night time commuting on roads and streets.

I'm thinking that my light needs to be very bright because I want it strikingly visible during the day. That's why I'm going towards a flashing head light.

And yeah, riding on the sidewalks in Tucson will get you a ticket.

Someone posted this last year when it was a kickstarter product- I think it looks pretty cool, and will be shipping in January 2014
http://www.blaze.cc/

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Originally Posted by azfiddle

Someone posted this last year when it was a kickstarter product- I think it looks pretty cool, and will be shipping in January 2014
http://www.blaze.cc/

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This kind of stood out to me :) "The Laserlight is eye-safe if used correctly"

I spotted a headlight yesterday that was so bright, I almost thought it was a motorcycle at first - which would have been odd on a snowy, icy road at -18ºC. I wish I could have flagged down the rider to ask what kind it was. Probably about 800 lumens, minimum.