Best sports & outdoors Cycling according to Reddit
Reddit mentions of Wide Angle Lens for MagicShine, Gemini, and many other Bike Lights / Headlight. Includes O-Ring
Sentiment score: 11
Reddit mentions: 20
We found 20 Reddit mentions of Wide Angle Lens for MagicShine, Gemini, and many other Bike Lights / Headlight. Includes O-Ring. Here are the top ones.
Changes the factory 10 degree spot to a 10 degree x 30 degree floodWide angle lens spreads the beam out horizontally so light is not wasted in the sky were you don't need itSized to fit the Magicshine MJ-808/808E/808U or Gemini Titan (39mm dia.)Also fits most Magicshine copies with included O-ring (The so called CREE LED Bike lights) NOTE: ONLY WORKS WITH SINGLE EMITTER LIGHTSEasily installed, Takes just seconds
Specs:
| Height | 0.08 Inches |
| Length | 1.57 Inches |
| Weight | 0.0220462262 Pounds |
| Width | 1.57 Inches |
▼ More
#19 of 7,672
I agree. I used to use 3AAA LED flashlight, mounted with velcro or hose clamps. Now I just use generic USB (power bank) bike light that takes this wide angle lens.
I hate to be Mr. Contrarian, but those expensive lights that don't have replaceable batteries are just garbage waiting to go to the land fill.
I've been using this setup for over a year.
This battery: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00PE6TVFK/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
This light:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B006QQX3C4/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o08_s02?ie=UTF8&psc=1
And this diffuser:
http://www.amazon.com/MagicShine-Gemini-Lights-Headlight-Includes/dp/B004WLCLQY/ref=pd_sim_sg_1?ie=UTF8&refRID=1KB6Q8QVD6EJPX4QDBAE
The "crappy" Chinese lights are an excellent deal as long as you recognize that the battery packs aren't reliable. You might get a good one, or you might get crap. But at least you can replace the battery!
I have one just like that from Amazon. It's definitely not really 1800 lumens, but you also definitely don't need 1800 lumens. The build quality is about what you'd expect for that price, but it does work and is bright. If you get it, you'll want to find a difuser like this for it so you don't get a super-bright spot and no spill. I've ordered one but it's not here yet.
For tail lights, check out my blog post on the subject - last year I reviewed about a dozen tail lights and posted my recommendations. Rechargeable rear lights cost a bit more, but you save a lot more long-term on the battery costs. I'm working on a front lights review but it's taking a while. (Anyone in Oregon have an integrating sphere I can borrow? That's the hold up!)
As for a headlight, I have one like this. It's extremely bright and has three settings: high, low, blinking. I feel extremely comfortable with this on my bike and it lasts forever. I also opted for the wide angle lens that I think works great for riding on roads as it doesn't shine directly into the eyes of vehicle drivers.
For a taillight, I have this one. Again, it's got a few options for blinking/solid lights/etc, and the blinking option is super bright. I rode at night once and turned around to see if I could tell how far it was casting and I could see it reflecting off a stop sign about 1-2 blocks away.
One suggestion for a helmet (I don't know your budget), but I backed the Lumos Helmet on Kickstarter and received mine last month. It's awesome, and I feel way more visible with it than with a normal helmet. Plus the turn signals are a major plus!
http://amzn.com/B004WLCLQY
You can see customer shots of the light pattern there too.
Bought two of these; one with a wide angle lens. I've had other lights before but I would regularly override the lights on my 29er so I decided to double up. The narrow beam can easily be aimed higher if riding at higher speeds.
I've got each of these, they're inexpensive and solid lights. I spent over a month researching lights online and found these ones were the best balance of price, performance, and reliability.
This headlight is really nice, comes with a rechargeable battery, and is VERY bright. I would also suggest getting one of these lense replacements so that the beam projects in a wider arc.
This tail light is pretty fantastic as well.
I've got two pairs of those, they work great and are less than a third what competing products go for. I've had them for over six months now and haven't had any issues.
My setup.
Light, get 2: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00GJZ015Y
Kit for helmet: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004QOVA00
Wide angle lens: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004WLCLQY
Put one on your helmet. Put the wide angle lens one on your bars, means when you turn it has less effect on what you can see.
I've had no problem with battery life, but my night rides do tend to be a bit shorter, in the 90 minute range. Use half strength during the climb, full strength on the down.
This and this.
Anyone looking to start - imports from China have way lowered the barrier for entry. If you can find a group online that goes, do that or bring a friend, you don't want to get stuck out there without a buddy.
There's a lot of garbage out there too, I've tried several of the imports and found the batteries sorely lacking or the connectors shitty. I can vouch for this one. For bonus points, get this wide angle lens and put it on your bars, plus a normal one on your helmet so you can see where you're looking. If you can only have one, try to find a way to mount it to your helmet.
I have been working on this over the past 2 years. This will be my 4th HvZ game using this rig. We normally have a game in the fall and then in the spring. I got the idea when the magstrike saved my bacon and I wanted to fix the small bladder issue. The speed of them was awesome but pumping it every time was a pain. I looked up some other mods and didn't see anything I liked. I decided I didn't want to the noise of an air compressor so I went with a large backpack mounted tank.
The magstrikes don't fire much stronger than a stock one. I shot them with a stock magstrike and matched them pretty close. Since basically its just a magstrike with a huge bladder, there wasn't much argument against it. I had the mods come personally over to check it out before hand. The fact that I continue to improve on it and make sure it's safe has earned me respect and I even have people referred to me for help to keep them within reasonable limits.
I've worked up a master part list for you with links of where to get most of it too:
---
Parts List
Subtotal: $109
---
Clothing/Storage
Subtotal: $53
---
Air Tank Parts - All fittings are 1/4" NPT
Subtotal: $158.45
---
Lighting
Subtotal: $83
---
Tools
Subtotal: $60
---
Unknown Prices/Misc Pieces
Estimated Subtotal: $10
----
Grand Total: $473.45
This includes all the parts currently being used in the mod. It doesn't count the two magstrikes I broke/parted out from experiments, other gun parts, extra fittings and all my tools I purchased to build the stuff. Most of this was broken up into small purchases over the past 2 years. $5 fitting here. $50 order there. I also purchased mostly things I could use outside of just HvZ like the bike light, ammo pouches, etc so it's not all wasted on nerf stuff.
I second this.. Great light for the price. I would also recommend getting the wide angle lens instead of the default one, it has a much better beam. http://www.amazon.com/Angle-MagicShine-Gemini-Lights-Headlight/dp/B004WLCLQY/ref=pd_bxgy_sg_text_y
I've built lights, modded lights and generally tinkered with them since the generator/bulb days, but these days I just have a super-bright Chinese flashlight like this, a clamp to hold that to the bars and a lens to scatter the light in front. Bright enough to soften paint, cheap enough to lose (mostly) and rechargable. Probably not quite enough for serious off-road riding, but easily as bright as a good small motorbike light.
The other bike has one of these though with higher output than in the ad - even cheaper, AAA batteries, quite bright.
Here's the lens on Amazon
These XML T6 lights are amazing, I have three.
Make sure you also get one of these:
www.amazon.com/Angle-MagicShine-Gemini-Lights-Headlight/dp/B004WLCLQY/ref=pd_sim_sg_1
They make a huge difference to the beam, much nicer for a bike light.
also if you haven't seen this wide angle lens it might be worth getting. it should fit your light.
I'm gonna take some flak for this but I bought three of these guys ($20x3=$60) 1200 lumen is probably overrated a bit but not by too much. Maybe ~900:
http://www.amazon.com/RioRand-Bicycle-HeadLight-Flashlight-Headlamp/dp/B006QQX3C4
And then I bought one wide angle lens.
http://www.amazon.com/MagicShine-Gemini-Lights-Headlight-Includes/dp/B004WLCLQY
I am into my lights for $70ish bucks and have one unfocused beam, one trail sized focused beam and a spare light & battery. Nothing worse than getting stuck in the middle nowhere - in the dark.
So yeah, I took the cheap route. The bike specific brands do offer a stronger light but my light output matches or beats all of my riding buddies with brand name lights.
Worst thing I can say about the setup is that they are bound to the bars with a rubber strap. You have to tighten it down pretty well or it can slip on the bar. I didn't like helmet mounted because I blind my friends by looking at them when talking. So yeah probably not the most popular post but they work and they work well. They've lasted about 3 years already and no issues. One word of advice, some of the newer LEDs use a different battery connector so order yours at the same time so all of your lights & batteries are interchangeable.
I use this light with this lens on my helmet. I highly recommend upgrading to this charger as the included charger is one of those "fire-prone safety hazards."
That particular light doesn't suffer the major downside the other "Cree T6" bike lights do because it uses bare cells (batteries) you can replace them easily. The standard "Cree T6 bike light" uses packs of 4 shitty cells that don't stay "balanced" (one cell will eventually discharge too low and it kills the entire battery pack).
The lens compresses the hotspot vertically and spreads it horizontally so you're less likely to blind drivers when you don't mean to. It's still easy to shine somebody, like a car at a crossroad that might not be planning on stopping for you, and makes it a lot easier to spot those bumps too.
One last thing: run the straps through the vents in your helmet rather than trying to strap around your helmet.
This has some good info on mountain biking at night.
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1N0N1mKUq--cptFxh01deYLH-MHAQo9dxo2OaTgjfAas/pub
Good budget headlight option is
https://smile.amazon.com/Augymer-Rechargeable-Waterproof-Bicycle-Headlight/dp/B01CEABKR0/ref=sr_1_22?s=outdoor-recreation&ie=UTF8&qid=1476120789&sr=1-22&keywords=BIKE+LIGHTS&sa-no-redirect=1
and https://smile.amazon.com/MagicShine-Gemini-Lights-Headlight-O-Ring/dp/B004WLCLQY/ref=sr_1_1?s=outdoor-recreation&ie=UTF8&qid=1476120967&sr=1-1&keywords=BIKE+LIGHTS+WIDE+ANGLE+LENS&sa-no-redirect=1
This is the lens you want. To swap lenses, the bezel unscrews and the lens comes right out. Takes a couple seconds.