UKC

Good morning,

Can anyone recommend some effective, simple and inexpensive bike lights? I want something to put on my wife's bike for dropping our daughter off to nursery in a trailer.

The route is 50/50 former railway now bike track and quiet roads. She is not an urban warrior looking to stick to the car driving man she just needs to be seen and have some reassurance.

Any recommendations?

In reply to TMM:

Have a look at the Cree torches on ebay - they're about £10, and very bright battery life approx 1 hour (rechargable)

there's a good bike light thread on bikeradar.com that's worth a look

In reply to TMM:

Aldi have some in tomorrows special at £7...gotta be worth a try

https://www.aldi.co.uk/en/specialbuys/thursday-26th-september/product-detai...

In reply to TMM:
Planet X have a good selection at the cheaper end

Cheers
Mark

In reply to TMM:

there's a big difference between 'being seen' lights and 'lights to see by'

For the former, the tiny Bontrager ones are very good at about a tenner each. For the latter, have a look at the Lezyne ones - the macro drive is about £60 and good enough to see by - paradoxically, the darker the better as car lights and street lights mess up the contrast.

In reply to TMM: the 5000 lumen cree ones from ebay via hong kong are mega bright and about £25

In reply to Kimono:

I wouldn't bother with the aldi ones, I got some last time they were on offer just as backups to my blackburn ones and although they are as bright as any LED bike lights they are rubbish because they turn themselves off with a slight tap to the sides. Both of the ones I got do this and I've tried numerous methods to stop it happening but it continues.

In reply to gethin_allen: agreed . got some for one of the sprogs. tantamount to child abuse. trouble with really cheap lights is that they often turn off randomly, not what you want on an unlit road.
these are good for the money
http://www.wiggle.co.uk/smart-7-lux-front-and-7-led-rear-light-set/

In reply to TMM: is the bike track unlit ? I know you said you don't want to spend much but decent lights could make the difference between being hit/coming off because you don't have enough light..I'd suggest some knogs- bright and not too expensive.

In reply to TMM:

Thank you for all the advice.

What about this combo?
http://www.merlincycles.com/bike-shop/lighting/bike-lights/front-and-rear-l...

I would prefer a USB charging set but most them seem to be flashers rather than designed to illuminate the road/track at all.

In reply to TMM: Plenty of good back and front packages available from Wiggle, Planet X, Evans and the like. Rear LEDs are so cheap these days you can get a couple to fit on different places - like on the trailer perhaps.

If you can wait a few weeks to get it, looking at the stuff on Deal Extreme from Hong Kong is worth it. I've just ordered a second one of these: http://dx.com/p/trustfire-tr-801-cree-q5-wc-230-lumen-led-flashlight-1-1865... it is ferociously bright yet small and and easily popped in a bag when not needed. You need to buy the batteries and charger that go with it, but that's just a few more quid, and a bracket like http://dx.com/p/universal-adjustable-bicycle-mount-for-flashlights-2cm-4cm-... I'm buying a second for off road mountain biking in the dark. The one is absolutely fine for seeing and being seen on the road.

In reply to TMM:

I bought

http://www.wiggle.co.uk/smart-lunar-25-lux-front-and-12-watt-rear-light-set...

for my son.

Very happy with them...

In reply to Dave B:

Thanks you everyone who left messages and those who mailed me.

I have gone with lights above as recommended by Dave B. I managed to find them On One/Planet-X for £22.49 including delivery, got to be worth a punt.

Thanks again.

In reply to TMM:

Update:

Lights arrived this morning from Planet-X. Very happy with lights, great price and great service. Recommended.

In reply to mike123:

I was also going to recommend the Smart lights - I've got an older set and they're brilliant (pun intended).