Bike LightsLights have never been better or more available than they
are now. Every country except England and Somalia is getting into them, and the
huge selection and technical specs can be depressing to somebody who just wants
a light to be legal and to see the road. Here’s a short summation-plus-opinions
that can’t help but miss a few details, but is otherwise right on the money.
If you just need a dinky little red for the rear and a dinky white for the front, just go to your local shop. Here in California, you have to have a front light to be legal.
Battery powered LED lights are super, and if you can handle
the battery part of it (if you won’t flagellate yourself for not being green)
and the prospect of spending three figures makes you want to give up, then get
this kind.
Generator lights are more complicated, but if you’re comfy
around electronics and circuits and wires, and are not put off by their higher
price, why not? No batteries, and whenever your bike moves, the light is on.
All of the generator lights (and hubs) we offer are good. Pick a price that
doesn’t hurt too much, and that’s your model. We follow the German road model of thinking (not offroad) which puts glare-prevention high on the priority list. These lights have a flattened beam to keep the light out of the eyes of oncoming drivers and pedestrians. For offroad, they still work fine, but you should compliment them with a head-mounted light like our Princeton Tec so you can illuminate branches overhead and point it around the bend.
FYI: The difference between lumens and lux, the two common measurements of light brightness, or output, breaks down like this:
Lumens are the total measurable output of photons emitted by a bulb or LED (usually, as measured in a small, sealed sphere.)
Lux is a measurement that takes brightness and beam throw into account, or, light within a given area (1 Lux = 1 Lumen per square meter.)
Peterwhitecycles.com
Peter’s life is lights, and everybody who knows anything
about lights knows that Peter knows more than anybody else does about ‘em. If you want to buy from him direct, you may do so
without hurting our feelings. He's got a lot going on though, and likes us handling the web orders.We've got what we think are his three best dyno headlights and a few German taillights too.
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