Innovative bike lights, bell and navigation system

I’ve watched the Revolights saga since they first popped up for crowdfunding a few years ago. Since then I’ve seen them in the wild a few times. Under urban streetlights they haven’t seemed very bright, so they aren’t great “be seen” devices where that’s most important. I haven’t seen them in use in darker environments, but I doubt they would throw enough forward light to replace a good headlight. This latest iteration has battery and installation improvements, but I’d want to see them in person to figure out if they also work better. (Pretty expensive at $200, and they also make pre-built wheels with the same lights integrated into the rims.)

Beeline navigation looks really cool! It’s what my dad used to call “Polynesian navigation”: the destination is thataway and you merely need to take whatever path heads more there than away from there. Seems like a good idea for short trips on straight, grid-like streets that are all equally good options for riding, not sure it’ll help a lot where there are curves and disconnects – but the app may handle that like magic. I’d LOVE to see a version of this on Bikeshare, especially if it can be preloaded with things like station locations and preferred bike roads. (I think I would love it – it’s in pre-order so nobody has had a lot of hands-on experience with them in the real world.)

I’m generally skeptical about wearable signals and lighting. Cyclists tuck down against the wind, turn around to see traffic, and need to use the whole body to direct the bike. Body-worn lights won’t always be in the right place to be clearly seen and understood by others on the road, so clothes with signals would have to be thought of as secondary systems. Also, in an environment where street signals and lights on other vehicles are really bright the body-worn signals would have to at least match that, and this product doesn’t appear to. There are more videos on the Lumenus site that show the brightness level seems to be a pretty soft glow, though the animations use bright colors. Like Revolights (IMHO), Lumenus won’t be very effective in the environment where it’s most needed. This is also still in development so all examples are prototypes so far, no pricing or actual product is known.

Reelight is a well established company. Their previous range includes rechargeable lights with magnetic mounts and batteryless blinky lights that are driven by a wheel magnet. The Neo lights in the clip use a different principle to constantly make electricity from the way magnets interact with aluminum rims. This one is also in the “shipping soon” category, and I’m also skeptical here. Battery-free lights are great, and these look simple to mount and take off. But they look to be on the weak side for “see the road” lights, and they are directed ahead and behind so they won’t be great “be seen” lights either. Positioned alongside the wheel, they’ll be even dimmer from the opposite side and the rim and tire will cast a shadow. May be useful as a backup light, for getting caught out after dark or with a surprise dead battery. Ideally I think I’d want one of these on each side, but at $55 each the price is pretty high in any case.

Spurcycle bells are great, and available in many local shops now. Did you know they also make a key clip?

I have been happy with Spurcycle. 2 years now. Recently my bell stopped resonating like it used to; apparently early runs had an issue with rubber parts deteriorating due to ozone exposure. They sent me a new rubber piece (free) so hopefully that fixes it. It used to have such awesome sound.

They do include two mounting bands for different diameter ranges and have suggestions about mounting below the lever body on drop bars. Other than potentially being in the way of bar-tape wrapping, that seems like a good place if out of room at the traditional clamping area.

Yeah, the Oi looks very neat. I am a little annoyed when well-established companies like Knog turn to kickstarter for new products, but I guess that is pretty common practice these days.

@hozn 137687 wrote:

I have been happy with Spurcycle. 2 years now. Recently my bell stopped resonating like it used to; apparently early runs had an issue with rubber parts deteriorating due to ozone exposure.

I had this happen to mine…I either bought it during the kickstarter campaign or right afterward, so definitely an early model. Unfortunately, it went missing after it broke, so I never had the chance to try and fix it.

yea I like it. looks like good design. my current bell annoys me cause the hammer flips and spins out of position constantly. im hoping the copper will develop a nice patina, eventually looking diseased to match the rest of my bike 😮

I ordered two black ones. I debated about the metal finish ones cause they look nice but thought the black ones might be a bit more discrete in case someone wants to rip off accessories.

Also note that the site is in Australian dollars so it comes out a bit cheaper in US dollars.

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It’s very, very pretty. But I wonder if it’s a bit high-pitched for elder-people to hear, or for those wearing earbuds. Maybe because of my small stature I prefer a deeper sound that gives me presence, e.g. when I am ringing it to alert inattentive drivers, like those who sit through the left turn signal ‘cause they’re too busy on their phones. I’m not sure this bell would do the trick in those instances. Does anyone use more than one bell, selecting the tone that best meets the circumstances?

@wheels&wings 144365 wrote:

It’s very, very pretty. But I wonder if it’s a bit high-pitched for elder-people to hear, or for those wearing earbuds. Maybe because of my small stature I prefer a deeper sound that gives me presence, e.g. when I am ringing it to alert inattentive drivers, like those who sit through the left turn signal ‘cause they’re too busy on their phones. I’m not sure this bell would do the trick in those instances. Does anyone use more than one bell, selecting the tone that best meets the circumstances?

Ed C. Has a semi truck horn attached to his bike.

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