Helmet light

JayK

Member
Aug 3, 2018
32
14
Belgium
Hi everyone,

I'm looking for a good helmet light to complement the one on the bike.
Prices range from almost nothing to the price of a cheap bike so I'm a bit lost here. I'd like to stay under or around 100 €.


What are you using ?
 

ChrisB NZ

Well-known member
Aug 21, 2018
138
107
Auckland, New Zealand
I did a lot of research looking for the best light. Lots of things to consider, weight, brightness, mounting etc,

I ended up buying the Exposure Link Plus:
Exposure Link Plus Combo Light with Helmet Mount | Chain Reaction Cycles

It’s really bright and great quality. It’s probably at the limit of the weight you’d want to carry on your head - but I don’t have any issues with the weight. There is a smaller version (the Link) if you want something smaller - but at the expense of less brightness and shorter battery life.

I managed to sort out a Go pro mount for it and so it clips into my helmet when I need it. I’d be reluctant to permanently attach it for safety reasons. This one pops out in the event of a crash.
 

Gary

Old Tartan Bollocks
Author
Subscriber
Mar 29, 2018
10,496
10,686
the internet
if it is to use to compliment a bar mounted light and to ride off-road you're going to need a far brighter light than the above 150lm exposure
What sort of runtime are you looking for?

Personally I've always just gone the cheap route for helmet mounted lights. Still using a SolarstormX2 (these can be found on Ebay for about £15 incl helmet mount and battery/charger, or less than a tenner for the head unit alone) On High I think the light is somewhere around the 800lm mark and has a couple of lower brightness modes. nowhere near the lumen count Ebay sellers quote them at but they're a fairly bright spot so work pretty well as a head mounted light to compliment a decent bar mounted light.
sku_207021_1.jpg

Mount:
41jOkn3ejsL._US500_.jpg


The batteries sold with these are generally not very good quality though (but what you'd expect for this price). So I had a custom high capacity 2 cell 18650 pack (£20ish) made up. Being only 2 cell it's light enough to mount on the rear of my helmet. Mine is mounted with 3M lockblock so easily removable if I ever wanted to. (I don't bother, just charge it while mounted on the helmet)
Magicshine LED Flashlight Battery Li-ion 7.4V 5200mAh by Sanyo 18650 w/PCM US 611434016774 | eBay
If you message the seller he can make a pack to your preferred spec with the correct connector and a shorter lead.
I also use a higher quality UK sold charger rather than the cheap one that comes with the light

I keep this old helmet specifically for night riding so rather than having to faff about fitting lights it's always ready to go.
SSX2 helmet light.jpg
SSX2 helmet light2.jpg


Total cost around £40-45
 

R120

Moderator
Subscriber
Apr 13, 2018
7,819
9,185
Surrey
if it is to use to compliment a bar mounted light and to ride off-road you're going to need a far brighter light than the above 150lm exposure
What sort of runtime are you looking for?

Personally I've always just gone the cheap route for helmet mounted lights. Still using a SolarstormX2 (these can be found on Ebay for about £15 incl helmet mount and battery/charger, or less than a tenner for the head unit alone) On High I think the light is somewhere around the 800lm mark and has a couple of lower brightness modes. nowhere near the lumen count Ebay sellers quote them at but they're a fairly bright spot so work pretty well as a head mounted light to compliment a decent bar mounted light.
sku_207021_1.jpg

Mount:
41jOkn3ejsL._US500_.jpg


The batteries sold with these are generally not very good quality though (but what you'd expect for this price). So I had a custom high capacity 2 cell 18650 pack (£20ish) made up. Being only 2 cell it's light enough to mount on the rear of my helmet. Mine is mounted with 3M lockblock so easily removable if I ever wanted to. (I don't bother, just charge it while mounted on the helmet)
Magicshine LED Flashlight Battery Li-ion 7.4V 5200mAh by Sanyo 18650 w/PCM US 611434016774 | eBay
If you message the seller he can make a pack to your preferred spec with the correct connector and a shorter lead.
I also use a higher quality UK sold charger rather than the cheap one that comes with the light

I keep this old helmet specifically for night riding so rather than having to faff about fitting lights it's always ready to go.
View attachment 6631 View attachment 6632

Total cost around £40-45
I like the look

Short-Circuit-620-03.jpg
 

ChrisB NZ

Well-known member
Aug 21, 2018
138
107
Auckland, New Zealand
Yeah fair call Gary. My use is mostly for safety on the roads/trails at night/dusk rather than illuminating the heck out of the trails at night. Don't do a lot of night trail riding.
 

Gary

Old Tartan Bollocks
Author
Subscriber
Mar 29, 2018
10,496
10,686
the internet
Ah. Ok. I personally wouldn't recommend using a helmet mounted light at all on the roads. Trails yes. Roads no. One of the most annoying/dangerous things cyclists can do on the road is when they look at other road users with a bright spot light pointing where they're looking.
I'm not just talking about blinding drivers. I've been blinded while night riding on my roadbike on unlit roads by dumbass roadies coming the other way with their helmet lights blasting out light.
 

JayK

Member
Aug 3, 2018
32
14
Belgium
Thanks for the answers. I finally ordered a magicshine light. I read good things about it and it was in my price range.

I won’t have the cool robot look though... ?
 

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