night rider lights!!!!!!!!!! SALE
Thread started by
sancho1 at 09.8.09 - 8:41 pm
price point has the MiNewt x2 for sale for 169. is this a good light deal. please leme know. the sale runs out tonight.
http://www.pricepoint.com/detail/16631-225_NITMD7-43-Brands-305-NiteRider-Bike-Lights/Niterider-MiNewt.X2-Dual-LED-Li-Ion-Bike-Lights.htm
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pleeeezzz need to know need to know. does anyone have an honest review or past experience with these or similar models???
sancho1 responding to a
comment by Foldie
09.8.09 - 8:57 pm
reply
BTw i used to love watching it. we used to watch the spanish dubbed version though. i never got used to hearing their voices in english. they sound a lot better in spanish.
sancho1 responding to a
comment by Foldie
09.8.09 - 8:59 pm
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Jenson has it for $140 with free shipping. Before you buy check out Price Points shipping charge.
mk452409.8.09 - 9:04 pm
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I don't have personal experience with them bu if you check this search you may finds what you are looking for
search here
Foldie responding to a
comment by sancho1
09.8.09 - 9:05 pm
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Awesome lights, but you might be able to get a better price, or not.
I figure Christmas season is soon, might get some good deals in Nov/Dec....
TheDude09.8.09 - 9:12 pm
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i have a 3 watt led flashlight i got for less than 10 bucks , works great for me. i dont have any experinece with these other than messing with them at a bike shop. seems too much to pay for just a light, plus the weight i would assume is more then a light plus 3 AAA batteries. i think its one of those, "wow this light is 150 bucks, it must be good" kinda thing...
Jeff Yess09.8.09 - 9:22 pm
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agree with JeffYess. i got one of those 3w (really 1w i think) led lights off meritline.com. works okay just have to keep an extra set of batteries charged because the runtime is not too great.
for best light for the buck, pick up a cree flashlight that takes AAA batts, get some nimh batts and charger, and a bike handlebar mount. sure, you'll have to recharge more often than those led blinkies but you'll have enough light to ride with.
ebay is also a good place to look for cree bike lights. they'll be a bit more expensive than dealextreme but it saves you some work trying to piece the kit together yourself.
tfunk408 responding to a
comment by Jeff Yess
09.8.09 - 11:05 pm
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I've been meaning to read up on the mtbr forums
Lights DIY. Just haven't done it yet. So can you point out a nice flash light on either of the sites above? I have all the stuff but a flash light.
@Jeff Yess, what light did you get?
User1 responding to a
comment by tfunk408
09.8.09 - 11:24 pm
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I spent over $150 on my light and it was worth every penny. I have a nite rider minewt and that shit is bright as car headlights, probably much brighter than your $10 light. Also, it uses a rechargeable battery. You will spend over $150 replacing batteries for your $10 light before a more expensive light ever stops working.
la duderina responding to a
comment by Jeff Yess
09.8.09 - 11:31 pm
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My light also has about a 4 hour run time on its brightest setting. It'll run 7 hours in flash mode before it needs a recharge.
la duderina09.8.09 - 11:33 pm
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The batteries I got at the last TRW swapmeet cost me $1.50 each. These were 2600 mAh on the AA and 1000 mAh AAA
NEXcell. These are quality batteries that haven't died on me yet. I bought some of these over 2 years ago. I just bought some other cause they increased the capacity of them. Tell you the truth, these will end up being unused before they end up dying on me.
I haven't read much on the forum link above, but the common view is that someone can build a light for $50 that would out perform a light offered retail at almost any price. It's just incredible what some of those dudes are building.
Oh yeah, the charger was bought for free with a rebate at Fry's.
User1 responding to a
comment by la duderina
09.9.09 - 12:00 am
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Cateye Opticube, Niterider taillight and my homebuilt, car air-horn make my vessel one to be reckoned with.
bentstrider09.9.09 - 12:20 am
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@User1: were you riding northbound on warner tonight around 9:40ish?
re: flashlights, if you want to stick to AAA batts (which i assume you do, since you mentioned you already have some and a charger), just get a 3xAAA cree flashlight from dealextreme. http://dealextreme.com/products.dx/category.943 any one will do, but find one that fits your needs (eg, if you want blinky modes, or more spread or hot spot beam).
i use sku.18307 most of the time (i don't know for sure but i suspect JeffYess might be referring to this one) and it stands up to a lot of the mini nwt/nightrider lights i've seen on rides. for more lumens, i use sku.14227 which is bright but sucks battery quicker. it also lacks a blinking mode, so i use this purely for biking thru dark suburbs on fast group rides. this is mounted with sku.8274, so far no problems.
tfunk40809.9.09 - 12:27 am
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@la duderina: no knock on these systems; i'm looking into acquiring a set myself because i suspect they have better (more consistent/reliable) driver and charger circuitry and have more useful modes for cyclists.
but lumen for lumen, a diy cree flashlight setup can definitely hang with the night rider/mini nwt systems.
tfunk408 responding to a
comment by la duderina
09.9.09 - 12:34 am
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by "these" i mean the ones that have the battery pack mounted separately.
tfunk40809.9.09 - 12:35 am
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this is my 3 watt led light with mount. NO FLASHING MODE CUZ ITS A HEAD LIGHT!! RIGHT?! i have this one, left on over 20 hours came back, for sure it was dim (but didnt have rechargeables) and still running. i bought a few but waiting for them to get in. when i get them i'll let you know. hook it up cheap. just need to get yourself 3xaaa rechargeable batteries
Jeff Yess responding to a
comment by User1
09.9.09 - 12:40 am
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This is the reason why you didn't come to TNS.
crossbones09.9.09 - 12:42 am
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That one looks pretty cool. You have a link on it?
Also I have both good AA and AAA rechargables. I would prefer to get a flash light that uses AA cause of the capacity.
g2g
User1 responding to a
comment by Jeff Yess
09.9.09 - 12:44 am
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i just got that one. sku18307 and was trying it out. it works ok but it has this pivot that moved around , dont like it much. didnt like the mount either, to big. my other light that i posted the pic up is fine for me. i double them up usually. but gave one to my friend, still have sufficient light.
Jeff Yess responding to a
comment by tfunk408
09.9.09 - 12:48 am
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nite rider lights are worth every penny.
using flashlights for bike lights, regardless of what kind of batteries you put in them, makes about as much sense as depending on a knog light.
ruinedbyidiots responding to a
comment by tfunk408
09.9.09 - 12:50 am
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the nite rider is a great product , made well , works well(from what i see). i use my cheap 3w as a headlight i take it off easily to use it as my flashlight, no battery pack, no cables, no tiny ice cube size light. so its a tough comparison. my light can be used more than just for my bike, its better for me then $150 light that mostly stays on the bike.
* quick note if i lose my light (or it gets stolen) im out 10 bucks, not $150.
Jeff Yess09.9.09 - 1:03 am
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@rbi: come back when you've actually seen/used some of the flashlights i referred to. these are ssc/cree flashlights used by the police and military, not those tiny cateye blinkies. like i said, the niterider systems are great, but these are a cost-effective alternative.
@user1: you're not going to find a good AA flashlight for the bike due to size restraints. you're going to be wiring the AA's in series so it'll either be too long or too thick if you use 3 of them. don't even think about a single AA flashlight; they lack the voltage to properly drive a cree emitter and battery life will be comparable or less than 3xAAA's in series.
the other option is to look on ebay; search AA bike cree light and you'll see what i'm talking about. they'll be about 50-70 bucks with a modded flashlight running off a separate 3xAA battery pack. haven't tried them myself but at that pricepoint you're looking at entry level niterider types.
tfunk408 responding to a
comment by ruinedbyidiots
09.9.09 - 1:38 am
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word, i had that problem too but i found that i can just tighten the screw to secure the pivot. i did experience some issues with the internal battery holder shaking around and the light would cut out when i hit large bumps (my first ride with these was up mullholland at night so it totally blew) but i ended up making shims to secure the holder inside so it wouldn't shake around.
definitely not the best light out there, but hands down best under $8.
tfunk408 responding to a
comment by Jeff Yess
09.9.09 - 1:49 am
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yess, the lights work like they are under 8 bucks and made in china. cant expect somethin from nothin. i am cool with my setup.
Jeff Yess responding to a
comment by tfunk408
09.9.09 - 1:54 am
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I stand by my nite rider, and I got it for $80 new from Helen's w/ 20% discount. I dunno where this 150/160 number is coming from.
Have you looked at the MiNewt USB? Retail is $100, but like I said my dude at Helen's always hooks up the 20%!
jonnyboy09.9.09 - 12:16 pm
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You guys are talking about two different lights. They are talking about the MiNewt.200 and you are talking about the MiNewt Mini-USB. All the dirty details here, http://www.niterider.com/bike.shtml
User1 responding to a
comment by jonnyboy
09.9.09 - 12:27 pm
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Who is this kid?
User1 responding to a
comment by ruinedbyidiots
09.9.09 - 12:28 pm
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found
this guy online. i have no experience with it but its 3 times as bright for half the price and lasts twice as long.
larsenf09.9.09 - 12:34 pm
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What about these 2 x AA powered lights SKU 14909, 1780, and 10727 ?
Another thing that's nice about these flashlights is that if you wanted to go brighter, you could without trashing your lights and buying new ones. All you have to do is go with higher voltage batteries. You would probably have to buy a new charger, but that's only about $10.
There's another forum I found that looks pretty good. Before I buy something like the 900 lumens posted, which looks nice, is to ask about the performance of this in the forums. This forum here looks good..........
http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/forumdisplay.php?f=86
User1 responding to a
comment by tfunk408
09.9.09 - 1:00 pm
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These lights above are from http://www.dealextreme.com
User109.9.09 - 1:02 pm
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the minewt night rider is hands down the best light I've ever invested money in. I'm not sure I would recomend getting the dual headlamp version as the single headlamp version is bright as hell. I use mine on blinker mode day and night and I truly believe it has saved me at least 3 times from the left turn t-bone and the right hook. not to mention countless doorings. I keep my light pointed at driver's eye level and I notice that driver's slow down presume-ably because they can't tell what the fuck I am. I've had drivers and pedestrians complain to me they thought I was a cop pulling them over, that the light is too damn bright... all indicators that the light is doing it's job well.
I have yet to see any other light that is as annoyingly bright and in your face as the minewt.
on flash mode it last for days.
I have an extra battery that I strap to the frame as backup on days long trips.
the bad side is that the older designs of the minewt 2 are susceptible to wear and tear damage however minewt appears to have corrected this with the usb version. even so, minewt sent me two new batteries and a light to make up for it and the new equipment is better built.
you can try to be cheap about your lighting system and probably make do. but to me it was worth the $150 price tag.
having the flash mode on in the day and night is the key and the charge lasts several days of riding around town in flash mode.
buy a $10 light for a $10 life as the saying goes.
Roadblock09.9.09 - 1:07 pm
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Some of these DIY lights have 8 modes. Have you seen the different modes? They got some crazy flash modes on some of these. Even some where you could still use the light as a driving light.
Your light is rated at 200 lumens. There's even talk on the forums of getting that with a setup in the $30 range. Granted that's the low end of the spectrum. What is a better bet is that one can match or beat the performance of your light with a budget of $30-50.
They have some serious markups on the lights you can buy at retail outlets. Just a little homework and you can get something at a fraction of the price.
User1 responding to a
comment by Roadblock
09.9.09 - 1:40 pm
reply
so far in my journey across the entire city of LA many times over and beyond, I've found that the 3 modes of the minewt are all I need. flash, bright and semi bright.... I rarely use my light to actually see only to be seen.... but it's nice to know it's there for dark areas when I do need to see.
I totally understand the need to save money and make a DIY light.... and you really should create one equivalent to the minewt if you are not able to afford a pre-built system....
Roadblock responding to a
comment by User1
09.9.09 - 1:48 pm
reply
for its price the minewt better be worth it. i personally wont spend that much for a light, my light is worth every penny too, and i have great beam coverage even being a cheap ass light.
Jeff Yess responding to a
comment by Roadblock
09.9.09 - 1:50 pm
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well, without argument, when you diy with a flashlight (even though it's bright enough), you're sacrificing some of the features that the niterider-type setups have. the quality of the dealextreme stuff have also been questioned. that said, if you know what you're getting yourself into when you go the diy flashlight route, it's the best lumens for the buck. the price markup can be explained by the R&D these companies conduct, the quality of the manufacturing, and the details towards making the light optimal for bike use. a flashlight is cheap because, well, it's just a flashlight, not a whole lot of tech to worry about.
tfunk408 responding to a
comment by User1
09.9.09 - 1:52 pm
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it is ABSOLUTELY worth it. I bet my life on it.
Roadblock responding to a
comment by Jeff Yess
09.9.09 - 1:53 pm
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another thing to consider is whether or not the DIY set-up is weather proof. I've ridden in pouring drenching rain with the minewt and it held up just fine.
Roadblock responding to a
comment by tfunk408
09.9.09 - 1:54 pm
reply
I've got almost all types Niterider lights made in the last 5 years. Best bang for the buck in their line-up is the Minewt USB ($100). I have the dual minewt , run time is not too long (around 3 hrs- low setting) and you need their charger. Same is true for the Minewt single, you need their charger. The Trinewt is great but it's $500. HID are good too but the replacement bulb is $100.
USB Minewt is best since you can charge using any USB port. You can use your cellphone, Blackberry, and a whole bunch of chargers that uses the mini USB. Down side is no battery life indicator, only one brightness setting.
sc_nomad responding to a
comment by Roadblock
09.9.09 - 1:55 pm
reply
re: AA lights
2xAA in series gives 2.4v, which won't drive the emitter to the max.
i think the 900 lumen bike light is pretty interesting. QA is reportedly subpar, which worries me. also, the other reason i haven't gotten it is because my $10 cree flashlights have so far been good enough for the riding i do.
tfunk408 responding to a
comment by User1
09.9.09 - 1:57 pm
reply
I can afford a retail light. I just don't have any interest in throwing away half or more of my money to a corporation to line their pockets. I'm more interested in making a better light they can offer for a fraction of the price. In the process I end up learning something. I understand that's not everyone's cup of tea. Some like to be spoon feed, which is fine with me.
My bad on assuming you thought the flash mode was important. Your first paragraph threw me off.
The point made about it being water proof or not is an interesting one. If I do make one, I think the true test would be if you could drop this in a sink, yeah? One thing I saw on some flashlights was glow in the dark O-rings. Sweet! I would think alot of the tinkers are working on making their's waterproof.
@sc_nomad, the down side is that the USB is 110 lumens too.
@tfunk408, yeah I know. That's why I was making the point that you could make the light brighter by getting different batteries. Looks like this would set you back $20-40. Lot cheaper than trashing your light and starting over. Plus the old batteries could still be used as backups.
User1 responding to a
comment by Roadblock
09.9.09 - 2:31 pm
reply
I've been hearing really good things about the Magicshine at $90 free shipping...
http://www.geomangear.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=4_41&products_id=138
alicestrong09.9.09 - 2:36 pm
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hahaha where do you think the parts you are using for DIY lights come from? yup... corporations.... I've gone the DIY route many times and realized that in many situations it is not worth the time of putting something together from parts not designed to go together. in other situations it is of course worth it. I prefer the well designed cohesive system. I paid an extra $100 for it. oh well. it's worth saving the time for that well designed product from a single (gasp) corporation. but that is a point you probably don't agree with and that's cool too.
flash mode is VERY important to me. I believe that flash mode attracts attention more so than beam. I believe it catches driver's eyes and even implies faster approach speed which can cause drivers to think twice about quickly cutting in front of me with a left turn or right hook.
again, if the DIY is more your range of afford-ablilty or more your cup of tea then more power to ya. just make sure the lumens are as good or better than the minewt, currently my minimum standard for light brightness.
Roadblock responding to a
comment by User1
09.9.09 - 2:42 pm
reply
thanks for the input everyone. its good to hear every angle on this. im definitely sold on the MiNewt usb. anyone know a good deal on this years model?
sancho109.9.09 - 3:30 pm
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I went ahead and bought this thing. I wana get started messing around with lights. The other crap I gota read up on and do some homework. Put it off for the winter time.
User1 responding to a
comment by Jeff Yess
09.9.09 - 4:29 pm
reply
user1, its a ok light , just look out for the left to right motion, even screwing it down didnt help the one i got. a dab of glue under it should take care of it.
Jeff Yess responding to a
comment by User1
09.9.09 - 7:21 pm
reply
we have the usb ones at h&s in burbank for $99. with tax they come out to be about $109 and change.
we also have the trinewt and another model (i cant think of it off the top of my head), as well as the cherry bomb rear light, which is their version of the planet bike superflash for $30.
ruinedbyidiots responding to a
comment by sancho1
09.9.09 - 7:35 pm
reply
cherry bomb light? is it brighter than the the planet bike light?
Roadblock responding to a
comment by ruinedbyidiots
09.9.09 - 7:45 pm
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I think they are about the same. I run the cherry bomb on wolfpack
la duderina responding to a
comment by Roadblock
09.9.09 - 7:49 pm
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thanks! any MR or "hey i know you" discount?
sancho1 responding to a
comment by ruinedbyidiots
09.9.09 - 7:49 pm
reply
Leo we ridden together on a few rides with my nightrider light on you seen how bright it is and that the cheaper one about 99 dollars.If you can buy the dual light with flashing light its a bit more
crossbones09.10.09 - 7:25 am
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the cherry bomb can be seen up to a mile away, according to the box it comes in. i would say its comparable to the superflash. although the blinking mode has a different pattern. they are both super super bright.
i cant do discounts on lights, sorry.
ruinedbyidiots responding to a
comment by Roadblock
09.10.09 - 10:49 am
reply
Night rider is worth it. I totally agree with Roadblock.
Maulie09.10.09 - 10:59 am
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..is this the next best?
Seriously, I just ordered one online just to check it out.
http://www.21wheels.com/owleye_light.html
alicestrong responding to a
comment by _iJunes
09.10.09 - 11:40 am
reply
How's this light Alice? I'm thinking not too good, yeah?
User1 responding to a
comment by alicestrong
10.7.09 - 3:32 pm
reply
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