Any decent front lights for sub £50 ?

[Banjo]

On unlit roads I am having to slow down due to low power front light. Can anyone recommend one thats sturdy ,waterproof, enough light for a black country lane and ideally sub £50. Probably asking for too much light for the cash?

[madcow]

You can get  a pre -owned Hope 1 on e-bay for just under £50. See reviews elswhere on here. Uses AA batteries, not rechargeable Li-on so pretty flexible.

[Tail End Charlie]

Look in the Knowledge at the Cree LED light thread. Then buy a couple and have a spare battery.

[marcusjb]

B&M Ixon IQ can be had for a little over £50.  I used mine before I got a dynohub setup (and still use it on the commute bike when I have trips out to the countryside).

Good light - rechargable (though does take standard AAA as well - though be careful as the catch and battery connections are a little fragile on opening it).

I've certainly hooned down some grim lanes with it in the dark without any fear.  Great beam shape - not like many of these lights that just squirt light everywhere!

[Ray 6701]

Check out the alpkit gamma headtorch too 

[Karla]

A Fenix LD20 can be had for ~£35 from Hong Kong sellers on Ebay, or slightly more from somewhere closer to home.  A few quid for a lockblock and you have a light that is very popular with the silly audax contingent round here.  I had no problems at all using it on PBP.

[Edit: The current model is the LD22.]

[Exit Stage Left]

Cateye EL 530 from Ribble.
http://www.ribblecycles.co.uk/sp/road-track-bike/lights-lights-front-cateye-hl-el530-power-opticube-2200-cp-led-front-light/cateligh560000000000

[Veloman]

All you need for the Black Country lanes:

http://www.torchdirect.co.uk/fenix-professional-torches/fenix-ld22-led-torch.html

I use this on all my audxes during the night (incl PBP and BCM) and it is very good.  The velcro mount is also super:

http://www.torchdirect.co.uk/cycle-mounts/twofish-lockblock-bike-mount.html

Where are you?  You can borrow mine if you wish to test it.  PM me.

[Banjo]

Cateye EL 530 from Ribble.
http://www.ribblecycles.co.uk/sp/road-track-bike/lights-lights-front-cateye-hl-el530-power-opticube-2200-cp-led-front-light/cateligh560000000000

I am tempted by the Cat Eye as my old one has been v reliable but not bright enough. They claim this one is 50% brighter ,have you used it in anger on unlit lanes?

[Exit Stage Left]

Cateye EL 530 from Ribble.
http://www.ribblecycles.co.uk/sp/road-track-bike/lights-lights-front-cateye-hl-el530-power-opticube-2200-cp-led-front-light/cateligh560000000000

I am tempted by the Cat Eye as my old one has been v reliable but not bright enough. They claim this one is 50% brighter ,have you used it in anger on unlit lanes?

I rode PBP 2011 with it as a 'main beam'. Any time I was climbing or in company I had a couple of other lights I used. I switched the EL 530 on when I was descending. I'm not that fussed about super-bright illumination, so maybe I'm not the best person to ask. I'm mainly concerned to have a set-up that I can use for four nights in late August in Brittany without changing batteries. There are probably better lights if you want to go charging around in the dark at high speed with a fresh set of batteries. I've found the EL 530 adequate at the kind of speeds you get on 24 hour TTs.

[CrinklyUncle]

I own the Cateye EL 530, B&M Ixon IQ, and Fenix LD20.

The EL 530 stays at home, I use the Ixon IQ as my 'main beam' and the LD20 on its highest setting on descents and potholed roads to add some extra light.

If I was to choose one of these it would be the LD20.

[dasmi]

I have a fenix ld40 with will melt tarmac on full beam 

When it needs replacing i would buy two of the smaller fenix's e.g ld 20,s as these are easier to mount on the bike

dave

[Lardy]

B&M Ixon IQ can be had for a little over £50.

I bought one of these last week from bike24 - about £55 posted (incl batteries & charger).

[fuaran]

Or the Philips Saferide 40 lux battery version is about £45 from Germany.

[Hummers]

B&Q sell a light for £15 which is the best light I have had for the last 2 years.

It uses 3 AAA batteries, not in-line, and an adjustable beam.

You will need a bar mount and cable ties to strap it on.

Works for me.

H

[SteveS]

I used to have a Cat Eye 520 which was good enough and then got a Smart 35 Lux which is so bright it flooded out the Cat Eye on the low setting. The Cat Eye has gone and I am happy up to about 40km/hr on lanes under trees on low beam and just can't ride fast enough to run out of light on high beam. RRP is under £50. I got mine on line for £20 and the batteries should last a long winter night on low beam, about 3 hours on high beam.

[frankly frankie]

On unlit roads I am having to slow down due to low power front light.

I see slowing down at night as a plus!  On the longer events, it gives your legs an enforced rest which can actually be helpful.

I have 2 more Fenixes than I need.  P2D (1 cell) and P3D (2 cells).
Pictured below, I'll sell either for £20, or both for £30.  Inc p&p, and fresh cell(s), but NOT lockblocks mount. (£7 here)
The P2D (this actual one) is reviewed here - Arrivee reprint pdf, 2008
PM me.

[Exit Stage Left]

I used to have a Cat Eye 520 which was good enough and then got a Smart 35 Lux which is so bright it flooded out the Cat Eye on the low setting. The Cat Eye has gone and I am happy up to about 40km/hr on lanes under trees on low beam and just can't ride fast enough to run out of light on high beam. RRP is under £50. I got mine on line for £20 and the batteries should last a long winter night on low beam, about 3 hours on high beam.

That's pretty much the story of the evolution of bike lighting. Lights become brighter, and the beams become more tightly defined. At the same time the actual light becomes more intense and smaller. Oncoming motorists find it more difficult to judge the distance of the oncoming bike, and the cyclist is more intensely focused on the patch of road illuminated, and sees less of the periphery.
The solution that many adopt is to run a light like the Cateye as a general riding light, as they last quite well, and to use a more intense light as the main beam. It's worth bearing that in mind if you are reading this and want to buy just one light.
I also consider if the light can be mounted upside down, as on long distance rides I want to have all of the tops of the bars free for moving my hands about.

[Bairdy]

I'd stay away from the Cateye 530. They break very easily. They also are quite easily turned on by accident (like inside your bag, then you've got flat batteries  )

Hong Kong ebayers is the best bet I recon.

[mattc]

Mine has a sizable chip from a bounce-down-the-road incident in '07  - still works.

those switches are a bit risky though, you're not the first to point out that problem

[Bairdy]

Mine has a sizable chip from a bounce-down-the-road incident in '07  - still works.

those switches are a bit risky though, you're not the first to point out that problem

Mine came off it's (flimsy) mount and hit the deck, broken. Just as I was about to cycle 20km over the Moors in the dark.
I got on Julian Dyson and another guys back wheel and then HAD to keep up with them until we got into Rochdale.
I still have a EL 530 on my mucking about bike. Wouldn't use one on an Audax though.
Despite issues with them being flimsy and good at switching themselves on, I don't think they're that bright.

[Chuffy]

Road.cc 2012 light test here -> http://road.cc/content/news/69237-big-roadcc-lights-test-2012
The Moon Meteor looks quite tasty for the price but I don't know about run-time.

To be honest I wouldn't trust any light in that price range on a full-speed downhill descent, unless it was on pristine roads that I knew well. My advice would be to save up for a Lumi LED3Si. Superb light.

[Kim]

I wouldn't trust *any* single light for a full-speed descent.  Two is one, and one is splatty death.

[Tull924]

Just replaced my Smart Lunar 35 (broke after two years dependable service) with a Moon xp300. My, how bike lights have come in in two years! As bright as my friend Hope (300 lumens), I paid £47 (ebay) plus a fiver delivery. Lithium Ion battery, not sure on battery life as yet, probably not enough on it's own for all night, but as a commuting light, brilliant!

[Feline]

I would seriously consider one of these http://yacf.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=59808.0
Mine cost £17 and I bought it a £4 lens to give the beam pattern I want. It is at least as bright as my dynamo powered Cyo, and cheap as chips. It's more than bright enough for off-roading without having to worry about theft of valuable lights when parked. I don't think you could buy a brighter light anywhere for that money!