|   Home Made Lights | FB296
Dec 28, 2003 8:36 PM | | I have made a basic 20W Halogen system for my bike. I would like to know how many others are using Homebrew Lights on their ride for 12/24 hour races, and what is your setup.
I am currently in search of a good battery solution, as I am temporarily using my cordles drill battery. I have used a couple of sites to accomplish this task, mainly Pete Schmidt's design at http://www.nas.com/~petes/bikelite.htm
Thanks |
| re: Home Made Lights | Pohukai
Dec 28, 2003 10:15 PM | | Here's what I did.... http://www.btreecs.com/mtb/JimsBikelight.htm
I used the Panasonic 3.0 amp/hr batteries which would get you through 1 lap. I carried a spare for back up. The charger would fully charge the batteries in 45 minutes! I have yet to see a better 12 volt battery/recharging system at this price.
I do, however, prefer my HID for the brightness. |
| DIY Light FAQ... | Homebrew
Jan 2, 2004 10:33 AM | | Metroid "DIY Lights FAQ..." 12/30/03 6:50am
Most of the DIY resources I have seen use cheapo sealed lead acid (SLA) batteries. These are not the best choice for bike lights. The voltage (and brightness) start to drop almost immediately and slowly get dimmer as time goes on. NiMH on the other hand have very flat discharge curves so the voltage stays constant and drops off very quickly at the end. Even at $4-$5 each, the cells are not that expensive.
I've built serval DIY lights myself using NiteRider, Jet and Cateye housings with my own NiMH battery packs. For a 20W light, you will want to do a 13.2V battery to get a decent run time. I'm going to be building up some 13.2V 3800mAh battery packs next week. These give 2+ hours with a 20W bulb. Email me if you're interested. |
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