Bicycle clothing with built in lights - recommendations please ?
May 20, 2018 6:27 PM Subscribe
There are clothes out there with built in lights to make you more visible in the dark.
I'm interested in finding accounts of how well these work and reviews.
If you've used this type of thing or you know where the are authoritative user experiences to be found I'd love to hear from you.
It's a difficult thing to find as you tend to end up with a lot of passive high visibility clothing. The few I did find looked like they weren't terribly well made and had very few lights.
When I say clothes I'm interested in jackets, waistcoats etc but I'd also be interested in belts, harnesses etc .
If you've used this type of thing or you know where the are authoritative user experiences to be found I'd love to hear from you.
It's a difficult thing to find as you tend to end up with a lot of passive high visibility clothing. The few I did find looked like they weren't terribly well made and had very few lights.
When I say clothes I'm interested in jackets, waistcoats etc but I'd also be interested in belts, harnesses etc .
I bought my spouse these for bike riding and running and he gives them two thumbs up.
posted by raspberrE at 7:26 PM on May 20, 2018 [2 favorites]
posted by raspberrE at 7:26 PM on May 20, 2018 [2 favorites]
I used the Tracer360 from Nox Gear for quite a while, and it definitely caught the attention of cars and other bicyclists. Then the connector failed and it was no longer useable. It may be something where it was going to wear out anyway, but it was annoying.
posted by tooloudinhere at 8:19 PM on May 20, 2018
posted by tooloudinhere at 8:19 PM on May 20, 2018
I've used a couple of the Nite-Ize slap bracelets linked above for a few years now. They're good, sturdy, and the batteries are easily replaceable. I think they have other products with similar lights.
That said, they're no substitute for real bike lights. They're more an adjunct to make it obvious where all your parts are. Wrist lights are super useful for signaling turns or generally showing how far out you extend. Ankle lights are good for showing your legs moving and getting attention that way.
I've seen some light-up chest harness sorts of things, but haven't tried them, so can't speak for their sturdiness.
posted by asperity at 9:31 PM on May 20, 2018
That said, they're no substitute for real bike lights. They're more an adjunct to make it obvious where all your parts are. Wrist lights are super useful for signaling turns or generally showing how far out you extend. Ankle lights are good for showing your legs moving and getting attention that way.
I've seen some light-up chest harness sorts of things, but haven't tried them, so can't speak for their sturdiness.
posted by asperity at 9:31 PM on May 20, 2018
I ride with a long distance club that does all-night riding, and if this existed and were practical I would know about it.
Almost universally used in our sport is dynamo hubs, which generate power through the motion of the wheel. The modern LED lights that these power are VERY bright and because they don't rely on battery power they are always very bright. My problem with anything battery powered for cycling is that they're really only bright if they are freshly charged and then they fall off in brightness pretty fast.
Dynamos aren't cheap though (new front wheel + ~$200 light) but cars will mistake you for a motorcycle at night.
IMO "passive" high viz clothing is a lot more effective than some cheap LED novelties. The reflective stuff that's made now is very good.
posted by bradbane at 9:52 PM on May 20, 2018 [3 favorites]
Almost universally used in our sport is dynamo hubs, which generate power through the motion of the wheel. The modern LED lights that these power are VERY bright and because they don't rely on battery power they are always very bright. My problem with anything battery powered for cycling is that they're really only bright if they are freshly charged and then they fall off in brightness pretty fast.
Dynamos aren't cheap though (new front wheel + ~$200 light) but cars will mistake you for a motorcycle at night.
IMO "passive" high viz clothing is a lot more effective than some cheap LED novelties. The reflective stuff that's made now is very good.
posted by bradbane at 9:52 PM on May 20, 2018 [3 favorites]
My problem with anything battery powered for cycling is that they're really only bright if they are freshly charged and then they fall off in brightness pretty fast.
That *has* been true in the past, but for the last 4-6 years it's been possible to get USB-rechargable lights from companies like Serfas that last literally hours with relatively high output. Obviously you're not going to go 5 hours with 1,000 lumens, but you can get 2-4 with 200-300L pretty easily. And that's just with the "all in one" lights that have no battery packs. The models focused on mountain biking/offroad riding are brighter for longer; the downside is the (somewhat clumsy) battery pack that must also be mounted to the bike.
This is an example of the latter; it offers 1200 lumens for nearly four hours, which is insane. Of course, it's also $300.
The headlight I use isn't available anymore, but this one is close. On "high" it offers 450L for 1.5 hours, but will last 45 hours on a "flash" mode, and has several points in between. For rides in a mostly urban area at night, this would be just fine. With mine, I run on low for 90% of my ride because there's enough other ambient light -- I only kick it up to high if I go through a dark section.
Dynamo lights are appealing if you absolutely can't get by with rechargeables, but they have disadvantages -- cost is one, but the biggest one is flexibility, because you can't easily move the light between bikes.
posted by uberchet at 7:47 AM on May 21, 2018
I love my Lumo bomber jacket. It's warm, rain-resistant, and works as regular stylish-enough street wear; that is, it doesn't scream "bike clothes" until you turn the lights on. I use it in combination with bike lights, and it's too warm to wear above 45F.
posted by Jasper Fnorde at 1:57 PM on May 21, 2018
posted by Jasper Fnorde at 1:57 PM on May 21, 2018
Are you including helmets in your definition of clothing? "Smart" helmets with lights and turn indicators seem to be a thing now:
LIVALL Helmet Review – BH60SE Smart Helmet
Hands-on: The COROS Omni Smart Helmet
posted by meowzilla at 6:53 PM on May 21, 2018
LIVALL Helmet Review – BH60SE Smart Helmet
Hands-on: The COROS Omni Smart Helmet
posted by meowzilla at 6:53 PM on May 21, 2018
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Everyone I know who rides at night just uses copies on-bike lighting — big bright headlight plus at least two rear lights, with the addition maybe of some lateral reflectors on the wheels.
posted by uberchet at 7:18 PM on May 20, 2018