Mounting a front battery-operated light

[Polar Bear]

Here's the problem:

The bike has 700c wheels, dual pivot brakes and no useful fork braze ons.   The bike is usually equipped with a barbag thus negating handlebar furniture.   The barbag is an Ortlieb and does not have a light bracket mount beneath like some Topeak and Altura bags.   The barbag will not be changed.

Anybody got any useful suggestions of brackets and/or lamps please?

My thoughts revolve around a crown-mounted Cyo modified running from a battery pack in a frame bag.   However, the Cyo bracket seems a tad chunky for mounting with dual pivot brakes.

[LittleWheelsandBig]

The B&M wire bracket is fine with DP brakes but you may have to use a longer Allen nut because of the bracket thickness. EdinburghFixed is having some problems running a Cyo from a battery though, there is a thread about it.

[andrew_s]

Some fork crown/headset combinations leave the brake tucked below the lower headset race, and leave you needing to move the brake a fair way forwards with spacers in order to fit any kind of light bracket, let alone a chunky one like the B+M wire one. Consider available lengths of allen nut if it looks like this applies to you.

If all else fails, there are  brackets that clamp on the fork blade, like this. Fork blade clamp mountings aren't generally a good idea on account of the consequences if it twists round and you get the light in the spokes, so take care if you do go this way - eg glue on a layer of inner tube and clamp over that.

[Biggsy]

The battery-powered B&M Ixon IQ and Smart Lunar 35-Lux* fit the B&M crown-mounted bracket.  They're not the most powerful lights (and the IQ's beam is rather harshly rectangular), but are adequate for country lanes at crusing speeds.

* And various other Smart lights.  Someone please let us know if Smart has anything brighter than the 35-Lux yet.

[Bledlow]

What about the traditional pressed steel dynamo light bracket? Or a traditional fork crown reflector bracket, with two holes one above the other? Are there lights which could be mounted on them? An extended heavy-duty version of the latter can be improvised from bent & drilled steel strip.

One option is a dynamo light wired to a battery pack. Mrs B has this on her road bike: she uses the bottle-cage mounted battery of her old (& still not bad) Smart twin headlights wired to a dynamo light. I had the same setup on my old Roberts. The battery is heavy, but has the advantage of an on/off switch. One could rig up a smaller & lighter battery pack very easily using a battery box, akin to those of the Dinotte & Light & Motion lights which use 4xAA packs. Put it in a little bag under the top tube, or just slung in the bar bag as long as the cable is long enough. Only fiddly bit is a switch.

[MikeFromLFE]

This is a problem I've wrestled with - and not solved to my satisfaction - for my Specalized Tricross Sport, due to it's cross-levers on the bars.
I've ended up hanging a Space-Grip from the bar extension (below the bars - it would probably work as well above) to mount a couple of lights. Its plug-ugly but seems to work.
(Other solutions ruled out include a 'plug' mount (rather like the linked Minura example) on the fork or top tube - the forks are carbon and I don't want to risk that, and the top tube is not round.)

[Polar Bear]

I have just had a look at the bike* in question.   There is a sidewall dynamo braze on the rear of the right hand fork blade quite near to the top.

This gives me a couple of potential options:

1:  I could mount a homebrew lamp bracket to this braze on
2:  I could stick a Nob immediately above the bracket safe in the knowledge that it cannot slip down the fork blade.   

* Mlle PB's Thorn Brevet.
 

[Hummers]

If the crown is not an option, I have attached crown/brake mounting brackets to one of the four bolts used to clamp the handle bars on an AHEAD based stem.

The alternative is to use a handlebar equipment extender slung below (but attached to) the handlebars. I have had problems with using things like this in line with the bars with battery powered lights due to the weight of the batteries (B+M IQ in particular).

I think the battery pack in a rack/bar bag is a good idea as it gives you the ability to increase capacity and put the weight of the batteries where they won't cause problems.

H

[Polar Bear]

I'm quite warming to the idea of a Terracycle mount on the rh fork blade with the top clamp resting upon the dynamo braze on.

[Somnolent]

I'm quite warming to the idea of a Terracycle mount on the rh fork blade with the top clamp resting upon the dynamo braze on.

Those look useful.   I like having my lights on the forks when using a bar bag..... but I have lowrider rackmount braze-ons on steel forks so it's relatively easy for me.   In that position you can see the lights themselves, whereas on a fork crown mount they are likely to be obsured by the bar bag.  If want to swop between light levels, or from flashing to steady on the move - make sure you can reach the switch

[MikeFromLFE]

I'm quite warming to the idea of a Terracycle mount on the rh fork blade with the top clamp resting upon the dynamo braze on.

Not cheap - but could be just the job! Thanks