Lighting Bikes

[xela]

Going car free means riding a lot more, and in particular is going to mean riding a lot more at night. I don't subscribe to Neal Stephenson's theory (in Zodiac) that the safest way to ride at night in Boston is with no lights, because lights just give the drivers something to aim for. So I want to light my bike thoroughly. I'm thinking a generator system, and as best I can tell from preliminary research, that means permanently mounted lights.

So first: If anyone knows of good generator-powered lights that have a mounting system that lets you easily take the lights off and leave only a bracket on the bike, I'd love to hear about it.

But I assume it's not going to be that easy. And I know form experience that in Boston, anything that can be stolen off your bike is at risk. So: those of you with permanently mounted lights: what's your experience with theft? Do you find that the mere necessity to use tools to remove them is generally a sufficient deterrent to thieves? (Which is to say: Am I more paranoid than necessary to be thinking about tamper-resistant fasteners?) What lights do you like?

Also, does anyone know any good regional forums for cyclists? I joined the Bikes in Boston LJ community, but it's moribund (18 members, including me; most recent post a year and a half ago). If there's not a good local forum, maybe we can breathe some life into it....

Comments

[zkzkz.livejournal.com]

I thought generator systems went out in the 80s and went really really out when low power LED lights put the final stake in them.

[yakshaver.livejournal.com]

Best I can tell, the high-end remains generator-driven lights. Except now the generators are built into hubs (much lower drag and none of the annoyances of old-school tire-driven generators), and top of the line lights have capacitors to power the LEDs when you're stopped.

[awfief.livejournal.com]

I was very happy with the 2002 equivalent of this:

http://www.google.com/products?hl=en&q=bicycle+headlamp&scoring=pd&sa=N&start=190

(it looks the same as what I bought in 2002, but I may not have a good memory).

My helmet came with me, the battery pack would go in my backpack, and if a driver pissed me off, I just glared at them. Worked wonders. Oh, and it was plenty of light, enough to ride even the dark bike path at night.

I was happy with a reflector in the back, but if it was really dark you could see the beam from my headlamp, and if not, you could see me and the bike moving.

[jbsegal.livejournal.com]

bostoncycling

[yakshaver.livejournal.com]

Joined. Thanks!

[rax.livejournal.com]

Last winter I went with http://freelights.co.uk/ ; they lasted me around six months before one of the wires snapped out of its mount. I'm really harsh on bikes, though, and if you were gentler and insulated the wires with something I expect they would last longer. You can wander by and see it, or the remains at least, if you want.

No one ever tried to rip mine off; partially because you can't without doing some serious finagling and partially because, like my winter bike, they look kinda crappy.

The Cool Kids use in-hub widgets; I think I'm just going to go back to battery-powered LED lights. I have more than one bike I ride depending on weather and mood, and fitting them all with $100 front hubs isn't really practical for me. Your mileage may vary.

(also, hi!)

[yakshaver.livejournal.com]

Hi yourself! That looks really interesting, mostly for the dynamo-powered flashing lights thing (all the flashers I've seen are battery powered).