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Schwinn
Mod 4 light system
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Submitted by
PETE
a Cross Country Rider
from LOS ANGELES, CA.
Date Reviewed: October 21, 2000 | | Favorite Trail: | SULLIVAN CANYON | | Duration Product Used: | 2 Years | | Price Paid: |
$189.00 | | Purchased At: | SUPERGO | | Strengths: | POWERFUL 12WATT X 20WATT SYSTEM. ADJUSTS TO FIT ANY HANDLEBAR IN ABOUT A MINUTE. GREAT RUN TIME. BEAMS ARE ADJUSTABLE UP/DOWN AND LEFT/RIGHT | | Weaknesses: | BATTERY IS HEAVY AND MAY BE HARD TO MOUNT ON ANY UNCONVENTIONAL FRAME DESIGN. IF YOU HAVE TWO WATERBOTTLE MOUNTS (ONE FOR YOUR WATER BOTTLE AND ONE FOR THE BATTERY) THAN YOU WILL HAVE NO PROBLEM. THE CHARGER IS LAME BECAUSE ITS HARD TO TELL IF YOU HAVE UNDERCHARGED OR OVERCHARGED THE BATTERIES.THE DIRECTIONS TELL YOU THAT IF YOU ONLY USE 25% OF THE BATTERY POWER, THEN YOU ONLY NEED TO CHARGE THE BATTERY FOR 25% OF THE TIME IT TAKES TO FULLY CHARGE THEM. SCHWINN NEEDS TO MAKE A PEAK SENSING CHARGER THAT WILL SENSE A FULL CHARGE AUTOMATICALLY. | | Similar Products Used: | NITERIDER DIGITAL PRO 12. NITERIDER PRO 6. | | Bike Setup: | JAMIS DAKAR PRO WITH XT COMPONENTS. DIAMONDBACK VERTEX WITH LX COMPONENTS. | | Bottom Line: | THIS IS A GREAT LIGHT SYSTEM FOR THE MONEY. IT MAY NOT HAVE ALL THE BELLS & WHISTLES LIKE THE NITERIDER DIGITALS, BUT ITS PERFORMANCE ON THE TRAIL IS JUST AS GOOD. IF YOU HAVE TROUBLE MOUNTING THE BATTERY IN THE WATER BOTTLE CAGE, TRY BENDING OUT THE CAGE SLIGHTLY.THE HANDLEBAR QUICK RELEASE MOUNTING SYSTEM AND THE BEAM ADJUSTING SYSTEM ARE THE BEST I'VE SEEN TO DATE (THATS WHY NITERIDER MAKES ONE SIMILAR TO THE SCHWINN NOW - BECAUSE THEIR STANDARD ONE IS KIND OF A PILE). **IF YOU CANT MOUNT THIS THING SECURELY TO YOUR HANDLEBAR WITHOUT IT SLIPPING, HOW THE HELL DID YOU LEARN HOW TO RIDE A BIKE!**
I HAVE BEEN USING THIS LIGHT SYSTEM FOR TWO YEARS. I CHARGE THE BATTERY WITH A TEKIN BC112C PEAK CHARGER (EXPENSIVE - ABOUT $170 AT RC CAR HOBBY SHOPS, BUT I ALREADY HAD ONE). SO FAR, I HAVE YET TO HAVE THE BATTERY DUMP BEFORE ANY OF THE NITERIDER LIGHTS. I AVERAGE ABOUT 3 HOURS TOTAL RUN TIME, AND THATS RUNNING THE DUAL BEAMS FOR ABOUT AN HOUR!
IF YOU WANT A GREAT VERSATILE LIGHT SYSTEM, AND YOU DONT WANT TO SPEND $300+ ON A NITERIDER, THIS IS THE TICKET. A PLACE CALLED TOWER HOBBIES HAS CHARGERS AVAILABLE FOR ABOUT $40 THAT GO BETWEEN THE STANDARD WALL CHARGER AND THE WALL SOCKET THAT SENSE A FULL CHARGE OF THE BATTERIES AND ADJUST TO A TRICKLE CHARGE SO YOU DONT OVERCHARGE THEM. $190 FOR THE LIGHT & $40 FOR THIS CHARGER IS $230, WHICH IS STILL CHEAPER THAN THE NITERIDER. | Value Rating: Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Tim Bailey
a cross-country rider
from Indianapolis
Date Reviewed: April 14, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
The Mod 4 light consists of two separate beams: one low beam and one high beam. Overall, the performance of the light is adequate but it does have a few problems or limitations.1) the charging system is not the plug it in and leave it version found on some higher end lighting systems. You must remember to charge adequately before riding and not to overcharge. Its really easy to forget and overcharge the batteries. As a result of these limitation i have found myself without a light on a couple of occasions. I rarely can forcast when i will have free time in the evening to ride. Often as the day at work procedes i realize i could do a night ride... but damn, i forgot to plug my light in that morning before work. 2) the bracket is difficult to assemble and is likely to slip on the bars if not properly adjusted.3) the battery pack case is difficult to secure to a bike. The canvas and velcro battery case apparently was never fitted to a real bike before schwinn decided on the final production of the product. It takes some rigging to get the case to securely fit in a bottle cage with the straps provided. I have solved the problem by adding some velcro straps of my own.4) its expensive (well over 225.00)The Mod 4 does have a couple of things going for it:1) Its bright as sh#t... With the high and low beams on the light mimics a car's headlights. 2) the Mount is quick release so you can fit it to several different bikes with a minute or so of set up (if the frame has a traditional watter bottle cage).3) Run time is decent: With high beams on about 1.5 hours. Low beam only about 3.25 hours.Overall i am satisfied with the mod 4 but i did not pay 250 for it... i got a great deal. I think schwinn has the right idea with this light but i also believe that others are doing a better job in terms of refinement (charging systems, and mounting options).If you are looking for a basic/inexpensive light you might consider the mod 2, its not expensive and provides the same relative performance as the mod 4 low beam... which is plenty of light for most situations). | Overall Rating: |
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