Another vote for Outbound Detour for commuting in the dark. When ordering I mentioned I don’t have round handlebars and would only be using it with the GoPro mount they swapped out the handlebar mount for the gopro mount for free. The mount is great, easy to click in and out. Only issue is that the go pro wings are areally tight fit into my computer mount and when mounted under the garmin I can’t press the button to turn it on and off, I have to remove it.
I also use the Garmin Varia for early morning rides when I know I’ll only need a light for 30 minutes. I like the ant+ connectivity and small form factor
Heard back form them. Got a pre-paid label and it is getting sent back today. For some reason it is going to Washington, and not down the street from me in Skokie, so
But they said they would turn it aorund in 24 hours once they receive it. In the meantime, I just got a new MagicShine light and it was fantastic this AM on its maiden voyage.
Absolutely love having a dynamo of my gravel bike, as most likely to get caught out needing lights on the adventure/gravel/mixed surface rides due to ‘I’ll just do another hour’ or total misjudgement or unexpected stuff. Front are rear lights are Supernova.
Winter road bike has a magicshine Evo which has fantastic high and low beams, with the low beam having a STVZO style horizontal cut off, and the light has a wireless remote switch.
I just bought the Trail Evo but for my road bike. A couple guys on my team prefer it to the Detour for brightness and number of bulbs. I have limited experience so far but like it. Also, they are from Skokie IL based on the website. Local to me.
I have this too. Feels really good quality. Lighting is excellent in the dark and it adjusts beam according to speed and ambient lightning (maybe a gimmick but it’s quite cool when you’re riding!). Mounts under the computer so it’s very neat and tidy. I’ve found the day flash to be a bit aggressive so tend to use the (more battery hungry) night flash (throb?) instead.
I’m an Exposure fan as well, from the US. The light is incredible and I use it across all my bikes. Up to 24hr battery on the low mode and 6 on the highest that’s bright enough to light a cargo ship. It’s excellent.
Exposure Lights. Why: solid design and construction; can be repaired (so many lights are disposable); great range.
Tracer and TracerR - I commute and ride all year. These are used heavily. After 8 years of usage, Exposure gave me a quote to replace the batteries for front and rear of around £30. Like new and still being used today. Over 10 years old. Solid lights and service.
Strada and Blazer - brilliant lights. Unfortunately they were stolen when the bike was stolen. Waiting for USB C version.
Boost and BoostR (with peloton and react) - bought these as my son is now commuting and needed a pair of lights. Same quality and design as Tracers.
I just picked up the GoPro mount too. The light sticks out pretty far forward of the mount. Since I have mine underneath my Garmin mount it’s pretty far out in front of bars. I found riding on a winding trail last night that light beam swings left to right a lot with minimal bar movements.
I have an absolute hatred of bike lights with no/poor beam pattern on roads or paths. Like, if someone drove their car around with the high beams on all the time. Just No!
So a good cutoff beam is essential and the StVZO standard is the go here
The Lightskin is compact, battery powered, mounts under an out-front computer, and has a superbly bright and well shaped beam. 550 lumens might not be the most but it’s more than enough when it’s focussed in the right direction.
I don’t really care about the aero claims, but they don’t hurt. A high beam mode would be nice if a remote control was added. Only major improvement I’d like would be better access to the USB charging port (difficult since there’s no quick release and external cables get in the way) and of course more battery life would never be unwelcome.
It’s not a premium brand but I’ve always been happy with Magicshine. They always seem to reach rhe best bang for buck as far as I’m concerned. I’m running a Ray2600b and the inverted EVO 1700. Inverted lights are quite rare so this one is very nice.
The app is awful though, but not absolutely necessary.
Just a question: I heard Lupine lights are somewhat susceptible to condensation. What’s your experience? I’d hate to spend that much money and have a light that’s not protected against the elements.
I’ve never never heard of that and I spent some time at the Lupine Forum. My friends neither have any problems. And even if you had such a problem, their customer support is top notch.
The biggest point of criticism is that their Bluetooth and app integration is not as good as one might expect.
I haven’t seen this myself and I can only speak about their lights with internal batteries: they are watertight when the USB port cover is closed. If water condenses inside, it’s from humid air during charging. Just open the cover and let it dry.
Received notice that my warrantied Outbound Detour light is getting shipped to me today….not certain if they just repaired my existing light or are sending me a new one.
Another vote for Exposure. I have a light from them that’s 14 years old that is still going. It has developed a rattle, and I’m amazed that they say they can repair it.
Edelux II and SON dynamo for my city/randonneur bike with a dynamo hub.
And the Raveman is great for quick deployment on my bike computer mount for being seen.
Another vote for Exposure. I live in Aus and the cost of the light was high but the Joystick I bought over 6 years ago is still going strong despite getting used about 5 days per week. I also bought a 6 Pack light from Exposure for 24 hour MTB racing and the run time and amount of light on offer are exceptional.
It looks like I’m in the minority in being unimpressed with the Outbound Detour. The beam is very dim at that price point. The beam design seems wasteful for road (it throws a ton of light down right in front of my tire and a lot of light off to the side, which is not helpful at road riding speeds). I find myself outrunning the beam far too often - anything above 26 mph and potholes or road furniture start to suddenly appear with little warning.
The Outbound is probably great for riding gravel paths with lots of bends, and it does do a great job of avoiding creating the “phantom movement” you get from shadows with traditional beam patterns. But it doesn’t throw enough light up the middle of the road for the long, straight roads I train on during winter.
The Outbound mount also gets a lot of love but seems overengineered and inconvenient for mounting under a bike computer. The mount/light combo is too bulky with the light installed to fit conveniently under all garmin mounts, you can’t easily press the power button while it’s mounted below a garmin, and my mount ejected the light after loosening up over a ride. I’ve never had that happen with the simpler spring lock designs common from other manufacturers.
I do like the Magicshine Evo a lot. It’s cheaper than most of the options here, has USB C charging, and has a high and low beam I can toggle while on the trail to avoid blinding other users. It throws up plenty of light for high speeds and also has a wide enough pattern for comfortable road riding. It’s designed to mount under a garmin with buttons and status indicators on the side, not the top.
