Comments on: Planet Bike Blaze Dynamo

By: Alex

Alex — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 00:37:37 +0000

To the folks wondering about the Shimano halogen light that comes with their hub, I have one and it is pretty mediocre. It isn’t very bright, it has a tiny LED that does little besides shining in your eyes, and unlike LED lights it is dimmer the slower you ride, and doesn’t have a standlight feature. The Shimano hub is great, but the light is pretty junky and I’m about to replace it.

By: borgbike

borgbike — Sun, 14 Feb 2010 19:07:26 +0000

http://tinygogo.blogspot.com/2010/01/plant-bike-dyno-light.html

Above is my fix for the quick disconnect issue with this light.

I second d*pow’s recommendation of the Light On! I’ve seen it in use and would say it is the best product out there.

By: Phil R

Phil R — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 20:37:30 +0000

Great to see a dynamo light review!
I’ve been using dynamo lights on my urban velos for years, both with a bottle/sidewall generator and hub generators. While they are slightly heavier and do add a little resistance you’ll never notice it on your non-racer commuter or other around town bike. So I’d offer that while they’re great for “lots of steady light for hours and hours without worrying about your battery flaking on you” they’re perfectly awesome for lights that you just never have to think about except to turn them on (and depending on the model, you don’t even have to think of that). The extra weight and drag affect your mind far more than your pedal stroke.

There’s a lot to be said for speeding under your own power down an otherwise pitch black road that’s now lit up like daylight thanks exclusively to your booty power. Even with a full and complete understanding of electromagnetism it feels like magic every time.

The mounting does seem like a bummer for this product. The design basically begs you to take it in with you wherever you go lest it be mistaken for an easy to steal battery light. A bolted on and wired light is still (for now) much less interesting to thieves than a clip-on battery light. No safety feature is better than the one you can completely forget about until you need it… bolted on generator powered lights are just that.

Eric: which B&M light is on your Breezer? They make some of the best dynamo lights but like everyone else they make some more entry level ones too. I’ve had great luck with their older halogen lights and love their LED line… even the lower end ones are impressively bright. Always spring for the “plus” version with standlight… totally worth the few extra $$ and the regular reminders that you “left your lights on”.

By: dmg

dmg — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 14:51:14 +0000

Raiyn – nice link; that’s a good idea. Planet Bike would be smart to incorporate something like that into the design (assuming that they’re expecting people to mount the light to the bars)… and maybe including a bolt for rack mounting also, just to cover the bases.

By: Joe Peralta

Joe Peralta — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 12:55:17 +0000

http://www.sheldonbrown.com/harris/index.html

eric, I was hunting a dynamo system a few days ago, and found excellent reources through the link above.

By: Ghost Rider

Ghost Rider — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 22:35:51 +0000

Wait…magnets AREN’T magic? I suppose you’ll tell me there’s no Santa Claus, either.

By: Raiyn

Raiyn — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 20:52:34 +0000

Everyone whines about how this light isn't easily removable instead of just adding the parts needed. All you need to do is splice one of these into the wire at a convenient point and your problem is solved. It's not like it's rocket science or something.

By: d*pow

d*pow — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 19:14:16 +0000

Stobin,

I’ve used both and I found the Planet Bike light to have a bit more focused beam, plus it has the flash mode which is sweet (eye catching) for right around dusk or dawn. As Ed mentions, yes periodically you’ll have to replace the bulb in theh Shimano light. Not a big deal.
The Supernova stuff is also very cool, and pricey. But you get what you pay for.
Light On! (http://lightonlights.com/) makes their lights right here in Oregon and they have a dynamo lite, it is pretty slick.

By: Ed

Ed — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 17:28:09 +0000

Eric,

The Shimano I’m thinking of is a halogen light. It is plenty bright, but you need to replace bulbs periodically.

By: Eric Stobin

Eric Stobin — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 16:58:12 +0000

i’m considering going to a front shimano dynamo hub on another bike and would like to know if the Shimano light is better than this one above?

i currently ride a Breezer Uptown 8 with a dynamo hub and Bauch & Mueller Lighting system and it seems to work just fine.

i just wonder what other lights are out there that may be brighter than the one on my Breezer??

thanks in advance for your help; who knows more information about this?