Looking for advice on… Electrification! (dynohub lights)

[Justin Antos]

As the days get shorter and darkness approaches more quickly, I’ve been thinking about adding dyno-hub lights to my “everything” utility-commuter-touring bike.

My Surly LHT is my means of transportation and carrying stuff year-round, and I leave it tied to outdoor racks all over. I love ridingit, but I am absent-minded, lazy, and don’t enjoy maintaining or fussing over it. The bike should be reliable and versatile. My “typical” ride involves about 5 miles, carrying stuff, but I also like longer rides, so I don’t want to be riding a tank.

I currently use a few battery powered lights, but I’m tired of fussing with them – forgetting/losing a light during the daily rigmarole, having to take off/on my nice LED light every time I walk into a store, realizing at dusk that I forgot to charge batteries, or worrying about whether the light will last til I get home, etc. etc.

So I really like the idea of lights that are always there and working without me thinking about it, and that are built into the bike. Basically, I want to take lights for granted, the same as headlights on a car. (The ability to do an all-night randonnée or charge a USB device is a distant side benefit)

Are dyno-powered lights a good idea? Anyone have experience with them? I’d love any advice on:

• The ability to flip the light on/off
• Drag
• Added weight
• How easy/hard to remove?
• Cost
• Theft-proofing
• Brands of hubs, and lights
• Two hubs or one?
• Can I power both a headlight and taillight
• Is the USB charging thing useful, or a gimmick that adds complexity?

Topic

[mstone]

@Dirt 62136 wrote:

On a sunny day, I’m guessing the solar panel will be more effective.

What I’ve read is that solar charging is problematic because it’s really hard to keep the panels aligned optimally. You also have issues with the charging current dropping and the device going in and out of charge mode. (Which is also a problem with a dynamo if your speed varies; adding a battery inline addresses that.) I think this (device charging for distance cyclists) is an area with a lot of potential for technical development.

[dasgeh]

Who needs a hub? http://www.magniclight.com/magniclight/index.php/en/startseite/8-magnic-light-homepage-english

[Steve O]

Looks cool. I would just get the taillight, though. The headlamps don’t appear to have a very good pattern–they just light the road immediately in front and aren’t designed to be brighter on top to light the road farther ahead. If you just want to be seen, great; if you need to actually see, not so much.

[rpiretti]

Just to add my humble thoughts..I was looking at a dyno hub this year but decided no to it for reasons of:

1) I can mount a light using my front rando rack using the Paul Component Gino mount
2) I have one bike and wanted to flexibility of not dealing with a dyno hub for all my rides
3) The B&M Ixon IQ rechargeable battery light is proving to be at least for now a great light with a very wide beam. You don’t take the batteries out, just plug a DC cord into the base of the light. Based on some of Peter Whites pics of some generator lights they were quite thin of a beam IMO although some were very good.
4) The setup I have with a battery light I decided on is the same as it would be on any classic randonneur bicycle – low to the ground lighting with cutoff not to blind folks ahead of you

Everyone is different, just comes down to your unique needs. For me, it was flexibility with a little bit of budget reasons too. I can take my “heavy” front light off anytime I want eg. summer months. From my research and let me know if I’m wrong but, w/o purchasing a SON or the like and forking up the money for it, you’re going to eventually wear out a Shimano.

BUT, you could always have a dyno hub front wheel built with a Shimano and then another wheel with no hub for the summer months as well to get around the wear issue in the summer long days.

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[ronwalf]

@Rando Guy 63319 wrote:

From my research and let me know if I’m wrong but, w/o purchasing a SON or the like and forking up the money for it, you’re going to eventually wear out a Shimano.

Yeah, the Shimano won’t last your lifetime. It probably has a good 10k miles in it, though. When I hit the spot where the “non-serviceable” bearings are giving me fit, I’ll go ahead and service them. It risks cutting the wires, but a former dyno-hub that spins is better than a generating dynamo hub that doesn’t.

[vvill]

I’ve considered getting one these off-brand Taiwanese models: http://road.cc/content/review/65840-shutter-precision-pv8-dynamo-hub
(they’re found easily on ebay)

That magniclight looks like a great option too. The lights I need to be running 100% of the time are to-be-seen lights.

I would love to have a USB output option too, I don’t think that’s gimmicky at all. For a short commute sure, not that useful, but on any sort of longer ride it’d be great as a backup in case your phone battery dies, etc. Also you could hook up random USB toys/accessories on your bike (just for the hell of it).

[ShawnoftheDread]

Popular Science article on rigging your own bike USB generator:
http://m.popsci.com/diy/article/2013-04/amp-your-ride

[vvill]

Wow that definitely looks DIY.

I kinda like this one:
http://www.en.tout-terrain.de/accessories/electric-power-supply/

[Justin Antos]

Thanks all for the advice! I pulled the trigger on a Shimano hub and the Supernova E3 Pro headlight and taillight setup. I’ll try keeping a “summer” and a “winter” wheel for awhile, and see how it goes. I postponed the USB charging stuff, since it seems reasonable but optional (but the Plug III looks like the best way to go).

Should be ready in couple weeks!

[TwoWheelsDC]

@Justin Antos 64015 wrote:

Thanks all for the advice! I pulled the trigger on a Shimano hub and the Supernova E3 Pro headlight and taillight setup. I’ll try keeping a “summer” and a “winter” wheel for awhile, and see how it goes. I postponed the USB charging stuff, since it seems a reasonable but optional (but the Plug III looks like the best way to go).

Should be ready in couple weeks!

OMGOMGOMG…that’s the exact setup I want. So I expect a full review and in-person demonstration!

EDIT: where are you getting the hub/wheel from? Are you have a local shop build it?

[Justin Antos]

Cool! I’ll be at 50 States again if you’re there for a demonstration. I’ve asked the gurus at BicycleSpace to build the wheel and mount the lights for me (because I’m lazy and much prefer riding to fiddling with my bike).

[Author]

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