Fair comment, shipping to Canada would be ridiculous to be fair.
The c8 is a similar size tube with a larger head than the l2 say 42mm reflector compared to 26ish mm I think, the xintd c8 xm-l gets a very favourable review both in reliability and construction, it would be a good choice.
Who you need to comment on this is “between rides” maybe worth a pm to nudge him into commenting, I don’t know what he currently runs, but it maybe a 26650 c8 size light to give extra run time along with flood/throw, I think you want a good combination of both on a bar mount, with this size a keygos m10 is a consideration, it seems to review favourably, is available on eBay generally with two cells and a charger for not much cash and can have the driver replaced fairly cheaply if you get the bug and want more output :bigsmile:
Welcome exe, great bunch of flashlight people around here , a great bunch…
On the bicycle lights, I am a cheap skate, and I follow the code of BLF, that is, getting budget lights. For my bikes, I run PAIRS up front, one on the helmet, and was running a small torch in the rear, but still working on that…
My favorite, is the Keygos M10…Goes for $21.39 shipped on Ebay. The other one is the Keygos Ke-5, going for roughly the same price on Ebay. The M10 is a 26650 light, and the Ke-5 is an 18650 light. Right out the box, these lights are ready to burn a hole in the darkness.
The lights you have listed in your links are good too. But, that red torch is not a blinky. It is almost universal to run a blinky in the rear…
Yes, the C8 is a larger headed light with better heatsinking and will generally give more “throw” (but not narrow beamed throw).
I’d be tempted to tell you to look at the Cylcone C88 at Intl-Outdoor due to it’s battery versatility running on either a 26650, an 18650, or 3AA NiMh’s. Would be tougher to mount though and a bit pricey.
Hi, Exe, welcome to BLF. You have a good start in your OP. I’d follow Garry’s advice on the 3 mode P60 drop-in from Manafont. Most cyclists don’t use and don’t like Strobe or SOS modes. I actually detest them. All they do is annoy people in front of you. Unless you are fixed on having them, avoid is my recommendation. Some commuters will disagree with me on that… I also like the idea of having two lights on the bars, one with Smooth reflector for throw, the other with Orange Peel reflector for flood The L2 or L2P are great lights and will give decent throw. A C8 style will be just a bit better.
I think you can do better on mounts, but the one you chose will work ok. I think you should buy several each of different types of mounts and use the one that works best for you. They are cheap enough to experiment a little (I have about 15 mounts, use 2 types regularly). For quick removeability and all around versatility, try this one: Loading... This is like the one you linked to, but a little better quality plastic and it swivels: Loading... This is a very solid mount, but takes a bit to remove: Loading...
For rear blinkies, I don’t know anyone using a torch. Blinkies are cheap and easy to mount - they are made for this application. I generally run 2, one up high just below the seat bag, the other down low on the left seat stay. I prefer blinking mode - it’s annoying but attention getting, which is what you want. SuperFlash style work really well, as do the Blackburn Flea LEDs. They are bright! - visible from 1-2 miles away. cehoward turned us all on to an ebay seller a while back that had SuperFlash clones for about 1/5 the price you will pay for the original. Great spend - perhaps he can post the link later or I’ll come back with it after a little searching.
Anyway, good luck and remember to experiment until you find what works best for you. If you are anything like the other knuckleheads around here, you will end up buying a buttload of flashlights while you search for the perfect cycling light.
OK, so to narrow down what you all wrote.
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Front lights: *either XinTD C8 or Keygos M10. Both can take 18650, the M10 can also do 26650. Any additional pointers as to which is better?
I don’t think I will take the Cylcone C88, I don’t want to have mounting problems.
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Rear lights:* cehowardGS, what rear torch have you used? What do you think about the 5 mode Solarforce Cree red LED that I linked in my OP paired with a L2? Or using a regular white LED and pairing it up with the two items I linked to difffuse, a red cone or red filter.
BetweenRides, I wanted to use rear torch instead of the blinkies because the torch cost just as much ($20) but I will have simplified the battery using 18650, and will probably have much better run times between charge. Thanks for the mount links, I think your look better.
Both have less flood and more throw than my old lights. Of the two the XindTD has a tighter hot spot (larger smooth reflector), so if you want a bike light with a floody beam pattern for your handlebars this may not be the best choice.
I’m not sure which other XML based lights offer more flood?
Paired with Trustfire protected 26650. Any recommendation for chargers. I have narrowed down to Trustfire TR005 or TR006. They differ in the charge rate, 1.5a vs 1a.
I will get the first two out of the 3 mounts recommended by ‘betweenrides’.
Now since most items will come from Manafont, I was wondering do they list the entire value of the items? In Canada I can import tax free $20 worth of stuff. So I can do multiple orders if I have to.
I’m loving my Cyclone C88 (discovered through this forum) and am looking for a solid bike mount for a Trek Navigator 2.0 handlebar.
My main requirements (besides fit for the 38mm body) are that it does not move up/down over somewhat rough terrain (swappable rubber liners of varying thickness would be great) and that that the light is secured, not just dropped into a rubber “U” grip.
I don't think this is a good spend. The zoomie on flood is not going to be very bright compared to a lot of other lights and zoomed out the little patch of light is worthless for cycling. The batteries are most probably recycled laptop cells with low capacity and the charger is very cheap and you would need to watch it like a hawk to make sure it's not overcharging. You will also need to get a Digital Multimeter to test your batteries.
There are some good suggestions in this thread and many others here on BLF. Do some looking around before making your decision. It might help first to find out a little about how you are going to use the light: Commuting, trail riding, road, fast or slow, time of day?
Thanks for the welcome Racoon City. Love the pictures !
Thanks BetweenRides for the advice.
I'm now looking to buy the TrustFire A8. Since I have no batteries nor charger, it seems like a good deal and I like the extra runtime of the 26650's.
From the review at https://budgetlightforum.com/t/-/8028/ it seems like a good combination of flood and throw.
For now it will be my only light, thus a good flood will avoid tunnel vision.
Now the search for the ultimate handlebar mount... :D
