Nice bike light on ebay 24-90V 12w 29.99U$

[johnrobholmes]

lol, I like this part :7 DO NOT look directly into the light, it may cause damage to small children

[parabellum]

lol, I like this part :7 DO NOT look directly into the light, it may cause damage to small children

Could one skip the step-down module if one already has a dc-dc converter putting out 12v?

Yes, they initially are designed for 12v vehicle application, there is limiting resistor inside the light casing.

[iovaykind]

I bet they're all the same. Aka any of them can be run at 100v 24s lipo

[miuan]

I got one recently. The beam is nice, but the color is definitely more blue-ish than my T6 headlight, and the looks could be stealthier, with smaller chassis. Anyway, nice for the price.

[LI-ghtcycle]

Very interesting!

What is the wattage used with this light?

[bobale]

Indeed, measure the current it's pulling, and some beamshots would be nice.

[miuan]

130mA @ 79,8V = about 10W.
no shots but the beam is definitely less concentrated, and more blueish than T6.
definitely better when you need a wide view angle, e.g. while steering.

[bobale]

Thanks. What about using it as the only light on the bike? Does have enough throw for anything over 30kph?

[miuan]

Sure it does. It only depends on how much is enough for you.

[bobale]

Well, if you can comfortably see and avoid obstacles and potholes in the road at 30-35kph, I'd say it's enough.

[alsmith]

Sounds like it will be a good match with my T6 as a kind of main beam since this has a wider spread. Ordering one now, thanks!

[iovaykind]

Mine came in, did some testing. For those who say this is sorta big, its not.. its actually quite small. You can make it 1/3 the size by cutting down the heat sink which takes up about 2/3 of its space. I wouldn't though, I let this thing run for 10 minutes and its definitely warming up to the point where the heat sink is doing its job. Maybe cut it down 1/2, but definitely not removing it unless you live in a really cold place year round.

Couple of things I noticed.. like any led "flashlight" if you remove the glass (this is plastic actually) in front of the LED, you lose throw, but gain A LOT of spread. If you take off the plastic cover, you literally get 180 degrees of light, albeit not as bright obviously. But if you want to be seen, and want to see whats all around you, take off the plastic cover.

As for me I'll keep it. Next thing, even though its advertised at 24-90v, I ran it at 4s lipo (15v) no problem, and its just as bright as with 83v. The drive manages the power so no matter what voltage input you put, it will scale it down to the required voltage for the LEDs.

Waterproof no doubt, I'm sure this would work if placed underwater as its completely sealed including the drive unit.

Overall, this get an 8/10. For the price, unbeatable.. really a good product although its coming straight from China. The color is too white (hint of blue) for my taste, and my current led flashlight although has a worse spread, is still brighter in the center than this light.

Final words, I'm putting it on my bike and securing it there.. never have to carry around a flashlight anymore.

[bobale]

Can you put some pics of it on your bike? How's the throw compared to XM-L/P7 flashlights (I guess you have some of them)? Is one "wide" enough for good coverage of the road ahead? How fast can you comfortably ride with it on the road?

[Architectonic]

This is interesting. The seller also has 12v strobing ones so I asked about a 24-90v version. He said that "we're trying to design one now". So ask the seller if you want a strobing version.

Are there any worthwhile 12v red tail lights?

[www.recumbents.com]

The MagicShine tail lights work great, even in the daylight. They are eye-searing if you are following another bike with one of these close. You can get the light without the battery pack from geomangear.com, and use it with a Lyen.com DC-DC converter tuned to 8.5V.

BTW, I ordered one of these 24-90V lights too for my Bobber e-bike project, it should arrive in a couple weeks...

-Warren.

[Tench]

I have just bought this light from ebay to use as the main headlight, it beats the triple Magicshine 1400 i had last winter, i didnt like having to scroll through several modes to turn it off when approaching another cyclist. This one is run through an on off switch on the bars and i have fitted some of these as always on (when its dark) running lights;

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/LED-red-strip ... 256c766c07

They are very good, 6" long, self adhesive backing, i also got a white one for the front, i intend to power them all from the dropper that came with the headlight.
A much better setup than before, lighter weight, brighter, easy on/off and no additional battery pack to opperate them.

Simon.

[bobale]

it beats the triple Magicshine 1400 i had last winter, i didnt like having to scroll through several modes to turn it off when approaching another cyclist

This eBay light beats Magicshine 1400 only because you can simply turn it on/off, or it also beats it output wise? Some comparions beamshots would be nice, if you still have MS 1400.

[lazarus2405]

Could one skip the step-down module if one already has a dc-dc converter putting out 12v?

Yes, they initially are designed for 12v vehicle application, there is limiting resistor inside the light casing.

As in, you looked in and found one? If it's just a dumb ballast resistor, that's awfully disappointing. The description states "with High precision constant current drive, make
sure that the brightness is same under any input voltage." That sounds like to me an actual buck LED driver instead of a simple voltage step-down. Are you willing to open up all the guts and post pictures?

Also, I can't find specs for the actual emitters. Going on "USA BrigeLux 45mil chip" leads me to this data sheet, but that product is much "bluer" than I'd expect this light to look. (Dominant wavelengths all right around 450nm is really blue, not white with a blueish tint.) Wish I knew more. From the measurements you listed it's almost certain that the LEDs are wired in series and are getting 1amp.

It would be really nice to be able to put a knob on it to dim the light as needed. Many drivers have an adjustable current limit with a 0-5v pin or leads for a 0-5k pot. Barring that, if it's a constant current LED driver, it's got to be using some resistor to sense current. Tap a pot onto that and you're golden. Worst case, this is a steal for a lamphead with emitters, optics, and proper heatsinking. I'd buy a couple and attach my own drivers at that price.

[keysersoze310]

I've been using this light for a couple weeks now and loving it, but last night I ran into a problem.

First off, let me mention I got the 99V version, which I'm pretty sure is the exact same thing only costs a little more. Anyways. I've been running it at 20S (82V HOC) for a while and have had no problems. Last night I switched to 22S (91V HOC) and went for a ride and everything seemed fine at first. Then about a half hour into my ride I noticed the light seemed to be dimming. Pretty soon the headlight was so dim that my backup headlamp was actually brighter.

I turned the headlight off for 5 minutes and then turned it back on and some of the brightness had returned, but 5 minutes later it was once again dim. I suspected the power supply might have been overheating, so I inspected it but it did not feel warm at all.

I'll investigate a little more and contact the ebay seller, just thought this might be useful info for anyone running the light near 90V.

[iovaykind]

Was the headlight itself hot?

[Tench]

I dont have any beam shots but i think this light beats the MS 1400 on both output and convenience, time will tell if it stands upto prolonged use but i am only running mine on 18s, i got the 24-90v one.

[stinkler]

I got one of these a few days ago and it is silly bright.
This is my old headlight aka single 4watt scuba diving light.

and this is the new light.

I had to keep aiming it down because I was getting flashed by oncoming traffic.

[parabellum]

Could one skip the step-down module if one already has a dc-dc converter putting out 12v?

Yes, they initially are designed for 12v vehicle application, there is limiting resistor inside the light casing.

As in, you looked in and found one? If it's just a dumb ballast resistor, that's awfully disappointing. The description states "with High precision constant current drive, make
sure that the brightness is same under any input voltage." That sounds like to me an actual buck LED driver instead of a simple voltage step-down. Are you willing to open up all the guts and post pictures?
I hope you read carefully and look all pictures before asking. Anyway, if you look the product picture and description, you will see external step down module which brings the voltage to 12V so it is CV (I doubt it is also CC) , now "inside the light casing" is what you call "dumb ballast resistor" and it looks like all chips are connected in series to it. All this makes me think, they took ordinary car/motorcycle light and attached step down module to it
Also, I can't find specs for the actual emitters. Going on "USA BrigeLux 45mil chip" leads me to this data sheet, but that product is much "bluer" than I'd expect this light to look. (Dominant wavelengths all right around 450nm is really blue, not white with a blueish tint.)
You know that you are linking to "BRIDGELUX BLUE POWER DIEBXCE 24 x 24 mil" which is totally different product, right?
Wish I knew more. From the measurements you listed it's almost certain that the LEDs are wired in series and are getting 1amp.

It would be really nice to be able to put a knob on it to dim the light as needed. Many drivers have an adjustable current limit with a 0-5v pin or leads for a 0-5k pot. Barring that, if it's a constant current LED driver, it's got to be using some resistor to sense current. Tap a pot onto that and you're golden. Worst case, this is a steal for a lamphead with emitters, optics, and proper heatsinking. I'd buy a couple and attach my own drivers at that price.

[www.recumbents.com]

I just received my 12-90V light today. It looks like a resistor inside the light, but it is really a thermal switch (labeled ZH KSD-9700, 250V 10A 65 degrees C). That's 150 degrees F. I think the in-line DC-DC converter is performing the current limiting duties. Mine did not even have a back on the light, so the thermal switch is in plain view. I'll post some test results later.

-Warren.

[Cicada]

That would be great warren, thanks.