Lighting

With the days getting shorter, and so many of us contemplating night rides, lets have a chat about lighting. What works, what doesn't? Is running a handlebar mounted light w/ a helmet mounted light worth the investment?

For myself, I'm interested in entry level headlights, something in the under $75 dollar range for use in shorter after-dark rides (Trans Iowa is not in my immediate future). Any pointers on what does or does not work would be appreciated.

I'm a big fan of a 2 light set up as well and I think that anyone who has tried it will agree. If you have to limit it to 1 light, on the helmet is the way to go. The lights you can buy today for $75 were twice that price a year ago and the selection keeps growing. A good set of lights with 3 hour + battery life opens up a lot doors and can make your same old boring routes a brand new experience.
I'm a huge fan of Aye Up lights out of Australia. They're not cheap, but they are nice and simple and replacement parts are reasonably priced. I lucked out and found a complete set on Ebay a couple years ago, but haven't seen a used set for sales since.

I've been running Light & Motion's Solo Logic MV for the past few years and have been wanting an upgrade. 2 options I'm thinking about are, keeping the Light and Motion as a helmet light and replacing it with Serfas' TSL-1000 as my bar light, or keeping the Light and Motion as a helmet light and building a Dynamo wheel and light set up.

From what I have researched, the SP Dynamo System might be the most cost effective (over Supernova). Is anyone else thinking about Dynamos for gravel riding/racing?

Probably cheapest/best dynamo setup is a Shutter Precision hub and one of the new B&M lights. About $200-$250 for the system.

I'm a fan of 2 lights. One on the helmet so I can direct it and the other on the handlebar.

The handlebar gets the 1200 -->
$20 version http://www.amazon.com/CREE-Bicycle-Headlight-Files-Lumens/dp/B006Y1FK18/ref=pd_sim_sbs_sg_cy_6
$30 version http://www.amazon.com/Bicycle-Light-HeadLight-HeadLamp-1200LM/dp/B00DDL6BPG/ref=sr_1_9?s=cycling&ie=UTF8&qid=1386258033&sr=1-9&keywords=cree+led


The helmet gets the 750 -->
$100 NiteRider Lumina 700  http://www.amazon.com/NiteRider-Lumina-Rechargeable-Bike-Light/dp/B00E3VBO5W/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1386258587&sr=8-2&keywords=700+lumen+bike+light

The helmet gets an "all-in-one" unit that includes the battery. I don't like cords on my helmet. You can also easily remove the light to use as a flashlight...no cord fumbling stuff. 
 

A Serfas True 500 on the dome and one on the handlebars is ideal for me.

I want to say that I love J5 flashlight. It is exactly what I need when I have to see in the dark. Very good flashlight so far. Only 1 AA battery and the results are very good. Great price for quality.

+1 for a two light solution with one on the helmet and the other on the bars.

I have a dynamo setup on a 26" drop-bar MTB that doubles for gravel...  It has a Shimano hub and Edelux II LED headlight. The dynamo setup is about 6 years old (ancient?) and my newer Light And Motion Urban 1000 headlights are far far brighter.  Yes it's great being able to grab a bike and go without having to worry about charging lights but the new LED headlights keep going down in price while battery life and light output continue to improve.  

I prefer name brand lights: Light And Motion, Nite Rider, Cygolite. For my night riding I'll usually run two lights on the low setting and only move to medium or high when in more technical terrain or moving fast.  I also prefer having a wide beam on the bars and a narrower (spot) on my helmet, but that's just a personal preference for my riding.  For example, some friends who do technical mountain biking at night run much brighter lights (1,500 to 2,000 lumen) and need 2+ hours of run time, and they all run a two light setup of helmet & bars.

If you're needing a lot of light for 4+ hours then I'd suggest a looking at systems which meet your run time when set at maximum output but will put out ample light at half power. This will provide ensure you won't be left out in the dark so to speak as cold weather can significantly reduce battery life.  Also note that light output of some systems will decrease more than other systems as battery power decreases. Better designed systems will have less reduction in light output for the duration of the battery.

Should you get serious about a dynamo setup, check out Peter White Cycles. He has a lot of good info and sells all the good stuff!
https://www.peterwhitecycles.com/Shimano3N70.php