Very Bright 2 Level LED Bike Light
by gwilhunting in Outside > Bikes
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Very Bright 2 Level LED Bike Light
I wanted a bike light that was cheap, individual, but bright enough to see far ahead during fast night time road riding in the countryside.
I also wanted to have a low brightness setting for use around town.
My original specification
Easy to make
Small
Brighter than 190 lumens
High- and low- brightness modes
Easy to remove from bike
Rechargeable batteries
Cheapish
Good battery life
Water resistant
It was fairly easy to make, and cheaper than a commercial version but not by as much as I thought initially.
It has two identical 227 lumen LEDs, one which shines through a 'spot' lens for long distance, and the other which shines through a 'wide' lens for peripheral vision.
It has two switches, one is on/ off, the other is high/ low brightness.
After making the electric circuits, I made the 'casings' from bits I had lying around, so I am sure there are other methods of achieving similar.
Here is the result.
Consumables, electrics
[note: I made this a few years ago, and the exact parts may not still be available. Comparable parts will be available.]
2x LED stars LEDENGIN - LZ1-10CW00 - LED, 5W, STAR, COOL WHITE ~£4 ea =~£8
1x wide LED lens and holder LED ENGINE 5W OPTIC & HOLDER, REC £1.12
1x spot LED lens and holder LED ENGINE 5W OPTIC & HOLDER, SPOT £1.12
8x AA batteries (Vapex 2500mAh) ~£1 ea =£8
2x 4 AA battery holder HOLDER, BATTERY, 4XAA, SNAP TERM, 2*£2.26/5= £0.91
2x PP3 battery clip BATTERY CONNECTOR, PP3 TYPE 2, 2*£4.52/10= £0.91
1x on/off switch IP65 water resistant SWITCH, ROCKER, SPST, ON-OFF, IP65 £2.02
1x another switch IP65 water resistant SWITCH, ROCKER, SPST, RED, IP65 £2.02
2x LED driver DC/DC, LED DRIVER, CONSTANT I 1000MA £9.00 ea = £18
1x resistor
Prototyping strip board
A selection of wire
Double-sided heat transfer tape ~£1
Total= ~£45
Consumables, everything else
Some metal tubes, preferably tightly fitting around the switches and/ or the LED lenses
Some aluminium angle extrusion
Some aluminium bar
A small seal-able Tupperware box
Hot glue
Some small screws
I also wanted to have a low brightness setting for use around town.
My original specification
Easy to make
Small
Brighter than 190 lumens
High- and low- brightness modes
Easy to remove from bike
Rechargeable batteries
Cheapish
Good battery life
Water resistant
It was fairly easy to make, and cheaper than a commercial version but not by as much as I thought initially.
It has two identical 227 lumen LEDs, one which shines through a 'spot' lens for long distance, and the other which shines through a 'wide' lens for peripheral vision.
It has two switches, one is on/ off, the other is high/ low brightness.
After making the electric circuits, I made the 'casings' from bits I had lying around, so I am sure there are other methods of achieving similar.
Here is the result.
Consumables, electrics
[note: I made this a few years ago, and the exact parts may not still be available. Comparable parts will be available.]
2x LED stars LEDENGIN - LZ1-10CW00 - LED, 5W, STAR, COOL WHITE ~£4 ea =~£8
1x wide LED lens and holder LED ENGINE 5W OPTIC & HOLDER, REC £1.12
1x spot LED lens and holder LED ENGINE 5W OPTIC & HOLDER, SPOT £1.12
8x AA batteries (Vapex 2500mAh) ~£1 ea =£8
2x 4 AA battery holder HOLDER, BATTERY, 4XAA, SNAP TERM, 2*£2.26/5= £0.91
2x PP3 battery clip BATTERY CONNECTOR, PP3 TYPE 2, 2*£4.52/10= £0.91
1x on/off switch IP65 water resistant SWITCH, ROCKER, SPST, ON-OFF, IP65 £2.02
1x another switch IP65 water resistant SWITCH, ROCKER, SPST, RED, IP65 £2.02
2x LED driver DC/DC, LED DRIVER, CONSTANT I 1000MA £9.00 ea = £18
1x resistor
Prototyping strip board
A selection of wire
Double-sided heat transfer tape ~£1
Total= ~£45
Consumables, everything else
Some metal tubes, preferably tightly fitting around the switches and/ or the LED lenses
Some aluminium angle extrusion
Some aluminium bar
A small seal-able Tupperware box
Hot glue
Some small screws
Electrics
Packaging
Assembly
Marvel.
Epilogue
