When is a Headlight Too Bright?

There was another discussion today (whether serious or not, I'm still not sure) about mounting a particularly bright light. That discussion raised a question that has nagged at me since it started getting dark at about 2:00 pm: when is a bicycle headlight too bright?

When commuting in winter, I rarely ride when the sun is up. And I use a pretty bright headlight (a Light & Motion Seca 700). I like the bright headlight because cars see me coming.

For a good chunk of my ride, however, I'm on the Lake Front Path. I still like the bright light there, because it really lights up the trail. Cyclists coming the other way, yeah, they're often not so fond of the light. Often, such cyclists are not using any lights at all, so I don't pay them a lot of heed. Of course, I run into plenty of cyclists that are using lights that seem to be as bright as mine. Still, I don't want to be an a--hole. So I often will hood the light with my hand when I see an oncoming cyclist, much as I would dim my high beams if I were in a car.

Is there some sort of unwritten-code / nice-polite-practice concerning bright bicycle headlights?

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Permalink Reply by Joe Studer 8.0 mi on December 5, 2009 at 7:24am
Excellent. Thanks!

Duppie said:
If you are worried about theft, Dinotte als carries a 120 Lumen taillight (inexplicably called the 140R) that runs on 2 AAs. That light is quick release through use of O-rings and is still brighter than almost anything else on the market. And it is about half the price of the 400R. May be worth looking into
Frank
Permalink Reply by Anne Alt on December 5, 2009 at 11:39am
Wow! That's some serious lighting. Drivers would have to be blind not to see you with that.

Duppie said:
Take a look at this. It is a low-quality video of the light in Slow Pulse mode, which is the one mode I always use. It has 6 modes in all, 3 steady and 3 blinking.
I did a lot of online research before I pulled the trigger and the taillight is the reason I went with Dinotte. It is THE brightest taillight currently on the market. Dinotte's website doesn't let you deeplink, so go to dinottelighting.com and search for 400R or 400L taillight.

Joe said:
Duppie said:
I recently plunked down a lot of cash and got a set of Dinotte lights: 800 lumen mounted on my handlebar, 400 lumen mounted on my helmet, and 240 lumen rear light.

That's a pretty bright rear light! How is that light patterned? While I'm pretty much lit up like a Christmas tree all winter long, I have this nagging fear that my rear light is just not bright enough.
Permalink Reply by Joe Studer 8.0 mi on December 5, 2009 at 11:49am
Yeah. I had to get this, albeit the one that runs on the lithium battery. And I love that as a result of posting a question about whether my headlight was too bright, I ended up getting a brighter taillight.

Even better, I purchased the light right before Christmas, thereby denying someone a potential gift opportunity. That's clean living.

Duppie said:
If you are worried about theft, Dinotte als carries a 120 Lumen taillight (inexplicably called the 140R) that runs on 2 AAs. That light is quick release through use of O-rings and is still brighter than almost anything else on the market. And it is about half the price of the 400R. May be worth looking into
Frank
Permalink Reply by Jim "Niterider" on December 5, 2009 at 8:22pm
When I night ride normal I run both a helmet and handlbar set-up. Niterider Hid lights. These put out around 500-600 lumens each for a four hour run time. I try to look away with on coming traffic. Be it riders or motorists, you do not want to blind them that could lead to an accident. Also Joe and other nightriders carry extra battries with ya since it is getting dark so early. Never know when your battry will take a dump on you. This happened to me last week. The cold saps the power quicker than in summer. Also carry a back up light if the primary light dies on you. Had my Pelican brand Little Ed with and got home safely since this happend to me down in Highland park. Had to ride back to Kenosha.
Permalink Reply by rik on December 6, 2009 at 2:29pm
hi all
Here is something to consider
At night there is little or no depth perception for the oncoming traffic.
That is why 2 lights are always better then 1 no matter how bright it is.
It give the distant viewers a sense of distance when they can see the 2 lights getting apart or closer together. That is why motorcycles or converting over to 2 head light systems.

my front lights

rear lights

battery 12v 7ah sla


My lights saved me at night - I avoided this one!

Permalink Reply by rik on December 7, 2009 at 7:45pm
she looks so bright floating free
when the darkness comes she will still need lights - helmet too
even on water's free form roads
with out lights she will run in to the wrong kind of buoys

M.A.R.K. said:
rik said:

you need bright lights at night to avoid this one.


Says who?

Permalink Reply by Tank-Ridin' Ryan on December 7, 2009 at 8:05pm
And what about a...wait for it...LIFEJACKET!

Pavement may give you bad road rash, but it definitely won't drown you.

rik said:
she looks so bright floating free
when the darkness comes she will still need lights - helmet too
even on water's free form roads
with out lights she will run in to the wrong kind of buoys

M.A.R.K. said:
rik said:

you need bright lights at night to avoid this one.


Says who?

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