Submitted by
Lisa
a Weekend Warrior
from Ann Arbor, Michigan USA
Date Reviewed: October 2, 2010
Strengths: ok, it's a halogen, but for the price this is a great commuter light. I commute daily in the dark, no street lights. I've owned mine for years and keep looking for a chance to buy another. I love the spread of the beam and the long battery life. Compared to a cheap led with its narrow beam and fast battery decay, this one wins every time.
Weaknesses: Case is screwed shut so not easy to pop open, and yellow blinky lights are set high so they can flash into your eyes and interfere with night vision. Commercial rechargeable batteries do not have enough voltage to run the light without diy work to add another battery to the pack.
Submitted by
Chris
a Weekend Warrior
from Piedmont, NC
Date Reviewed: September 22, 2005
Strengths: Nice combo of bright halogen, highly visible amber flashing light; quick mount/dismount feature. The translucent color selection is very nice for this model. Swivel operation for lateral positioning.
Weaknesses: The 4 AA batteries are a bit hefty; this light might not bounce well off concrete if dropped.
Bottom Line:
The beam is surprisingly bright. Very nice appearance in translucent color. As with other reviewer observations, take it easy when opening it the first time or two.
Similar Products Used: Non-halogen jobbies from years past. Big difference.
Bike Setup: Trek mtn. bike equipped with fenders and Continental Town and Country tires for cruising. Also use on Gary Fisher Sugar 3.
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Submitted by
george brown
a Weekend Warrior
from washington, DC
Date Reviewed: July 15, 2005
Strengths: combines a bright halogen head light with a forward flahing yellow light. can adjust both lights as desired. moderately priced. hard to steal off your bike when the small screw is inserted. i am a commuter / city dweller, and losing lights, etc., when the bike is parked is a constant threat.
Weaknesses: the glare from the light into a rider's eyes noted by other posts is an issue. i solved that problem for me by putting a small piece of electrical tape over the top of the light, and am quite satisfied. that locking screw is mighty tiny.
Bottom Line:
my favorite light for a city commuting situation. the ability to have a headlight and flasher going at the same time is pretty nice riding the streets here in DC.
Submitted by
Kathy
a Cross Country Rider
from San Diego, CA, USA
Date Reviewed: July 8, 2004
Strengths: For a stand-alone headlight, this is the brightest headlight with best dispersion pattern of any I have ever seen. WAY better than the second runner-up. Flashers are superb: bright, wide dispersion and amazingly visible to oncoming traffic.
Weaknesses: Must take apart the case very carefully to replace batteries, but after you've done it once, it's not difficult.
Bottom Line:
Though many stand-alone headlights are almost as bright, they typically illuminate only a small, focused spot in front of you. This is a brighter beam, with wider dispersion, and is hands-down the best I've used. Since I ride on terrible, broken pavement in heavy city traffic, I must be able to see the road in front of me, *and* be very visible to the car drivers. The flashers on this light can work at the same time as the headlight, so you can see and ALSO be seen!! I've tried a lot of headlights, and this is absolutely the best in every respect. The minor difficulty opening the case to replace batteries is a *very* small price to pay.
Bike Setup: Vintage Salsa mountain bike hybrid, Performance ST/K 1.25" tires, triathlon aero bars. Ride mainly on very rough city streets in heavy traffic, usually no bike lane.
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Submitted by
Bernd Nurnberger
a Cross Country Rider
from Yokohama
Date Reviewed: August 18, 2003
Strengths: Great LEDs, but too much scattered light in the face
Weaknesses: LEDs are yellow, coarse halogen reflector, looks like the output of a counterfeits factory
Bottom Line:
A bit big, a bit heavy, OK for a halogen, but too big for just great LEDs. Even to use those, I had to modify it. Above the LEDs a piece of adhesive aluminum tape helped most of the scatter. The halogen beam lights the ground so incoherently that it takes away too much attention trying to see obstacles through it. The narrow but consistently bright beam of the b&m toplight is outright comfortable compared to the Zefal.
Similar Products Used: b&m toplight with dynamo, LED Lenser V8 held with o-ring
Bike Setup: HP Velotechnik Spirit CLWB recumbent
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Submitted by
Sprocketeer
a Cross Country Rider
from Narashino, Chiba, Japan (native of New York)
Date Reviewed: January 10, 2003
Strengths: The triple LED flashing lights are awesome. I don't use this light anymore because I really needed something to see by off road and decided to use my off-road lights more and more while commuting, so I gave this light to a friend.
Weaknesses: Poor construction. Even just opening it, you have to be mindful not to break it, and when you do--which is inevitable--you have to put it back together with tape. In a crash, it falls apart into several pieces, however it is easy to put back together again.
Bottom Line:
This light was obviously not made for serious cyclists, but the LED flashers are amazing and I wish they would make a model of just the flashers because that's all I used it for--otherwise from occassionally as a flashlight--for cycling at any decent speed, it's useless. The battery warning light is also very helpful.
In terms of the flashers, I highly recommend this product--as well as their rear flashers, which are also awesome. Both will last you more than a year on their batteries at a shot.
As far as using it as a headlight goes it's no good even for being seen by, but I'll give this product a high rating just because of the flashers.
Similar Products Used: Cat Eye Daylights II, eLight--tiny LED blinker that's very bright.
Bike Setup: Two bikes: 1995 Trek cro-moly, Limited Edition Jetta model; 2002 Trek 8000 with Bontrager titanium gel insert Race Lite saddle, XT cranks and BB, Shimano 959 pedals, and Titec skibends.
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Submitted by
David
a Weekend Warrior
from San Diego
Date Reviewed: December 6, 2002
Strengths: LED's are very effective......lite weight.....good mount..
Weaknesses: the way the case opens to change batteries is poorly designed.........TAKE YOUR TIME WHEN YOU OPEN IT FOR THE FIRST TIME....I would imagine moe than a few have been broken before batteries have even been installed...
Bottom Line:
I like the light LED combo.......I was mostly interested in the LED's as a be seen weapon.....It's a fairly compact design so it's easy to stuff in a pocket when you go to the store......The light is fine for slow riding, but if you want a light for fast riding you should be looking at a 10 or 15 watt light.....I would have bought a cat eye 300L but it was too big and bulky....I'm happy with this purchase
Submitted by
richard
a Weekend Warrior
from Urbana, IL USA
Date Reviewed: November 5, 2002
Strengths: Mount has a set screw, making it rattle less and more theft resistant
Weaknesses: Poor light, too much light into rider's eyes, bulky, heavy, dumb nut on the mount!
Bottom Line:
Piece of junk! Let's face it; it's nothing more than an overweight, over sized LED. There are loads of lighter, less obtrusive, and brighter LED's available.
Let's start with the mount. For some reason, the nut fits loosely into a little socket. (I guess that's so you can replace it, but I've NEVER stripped one before.) It also falls out and rolls under the kitchen cabinets when you try to mount it. After several minutes of yard stick fishing, I had the nut secured in its socket with a wad of tape.
Next morning, it's Maiden Voyage time. I don't know why, but the LED's are completely unshielded. SO, I have these LED's hitting me in the face. I turn those off and turn on the lamp. Is it on? Yup - I can see the light if I put my hand out front. I turn onto a street with no street lights and few house lights. OH, THERE it is! Instead of a nice focused (howbeit small) patch of light I'm used to with my CatEyes, there are just random smears of light. If I'm to dodge potholes, I'm still forced to rely on ambient lignt.
Similar Products Used: CatEye, just about all of their AA & C-celled lights; Sigma
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Submitted by
Steve-O
a Weekend Warrior
from Kaysville, UT, USA
Date Reviewed: October 29, 2002
Strengths: Zefal is the best. I strongly recommend you get a Zefal light. I broke the mount on the handlebar. Several bike shops said no replacement part is available and you just have to buy a new light. I got on Zefal's web site and asked if I could buy a replacement part. They replied within 24 hrs. and mailed me a new mount free of charge. I also had the part on my doorstep within a week. ZEFAL IS THE CUSTOMER SERVICE KING. I am also very happy with the light. My buddy bought a Cateye at the same time. It's a good light but mine's a little brighter and I'm sure he won't have the same customer service.
Weaknesses: Batteries hard to change.
Bottom Line:
Excellent customer service. Bright Light for the price. I love the three LEDs. I use them until I get to the trailhead to save battery time.
Submitted by
Yoda Byrd
a Cross Country Rider
from Germantown, TN
Date Reviewed: September 10, 2002
Strengths: This is one GREAT "be seen" light at a bargain price! It won't turn some dark trail into daylight, but it has a very good bright white main beam and 3 DARNED bright yellow LEDs that cover over 180 degrees forward in a fan array. I use this as a nighttime backup to my 9/12/15W NiteHawk Prowler and run the LEDs in "flash" even with my big light on. It's supposed to run for hundreds of hours in flash and really gets attention (I had a carload of old ladies pull over at an intersection I was trying to cross one night ... COOL!) I run it alone in flash before it gets dark and it keeps the cars off of you. Worth the money just for the LED function!
Weaknesses: It is a bit of a chore to change batteries; you need good light and a phillips head. Pay attention to the tiny battery direction symbols inside the case. The mount to the handlebars is a bit tricky, too, but once mounted, the light easily slips on and off without tools. Watch that little hex nut that slips into one side of the mount, it'll run off and hide until you tighten the mount with its own phillips head.
Bottom Line:
The best "Be Seen" light for the money. You can't go wrong for $16.99. After using mine for months, I got my son one, too.
Strengths: This light I found to be bright-for what it is and that is a 4 AA cell light that far out shines my 5 D cell mag lights!
Weaknesses: Case difficult to take apart to access the batteries and the screw does not stay attached to the case when loosened to prevent getting lost. Batteries can fry fast but buy metal hydride rechargeables and end the battery buying festival.
Bottom Line:
Not bad for the money, not as good as the $75 and up units but not bad.
Bike Setup: Older Trek 660 with Suntour Superbe group
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Submitted by
Terry Hutt
a Weekend Warrior
from Running Springs, CA, USA
Date Reviewed: May 3, 2002
Strengths: Light comes out the front
Weaknesses: Need a screwdriver and a coin to change batteries. Difficult to remove battery cover even after screw is removed. When mounted upside-down, too much light shines into the riders eyes. Batteries don't stay in place while being changed So-so brightness
Bottom Line:
I bought this light for my wife but it's really not much good. It's very difficult to change the batteries, they don't stay in place while your'e putting the cover on and you need a screwdriver to take the cover off and to mount the light on the bike. I wouldn't want to change the batteries in the dark.
I prefer my light mounted upside-down otherwise my aerobars block the light. However, this light shines in my eyes when I mount it that way.
The light is OK but not quite as good as other small lights I've used.
