Night Riding: Are Exposure worth the money?

[Mr Moofo]

I do a lot of night riding - as I am a cheapskate I used a MTB Batteries Luminator that is reputedly 2000 lumens. Last night it definitely wasn't. Suicide Gulley nearly lived up to it's name ...
Obviously I can add more lights - or just stump up and buy a good one.
My MTB Batteries cam with a 800 lumen helmet light and a battery - but that actually weigh more the and old LED Cateye I have ( so that is mow back for helmet duty.
The posse are al exposure weenies - and boy, it is light riding though a well lit football field when they are behind you.

Does anyone know much about lights ( I always thought they we all much of a muchness - and all cree type lights the same) - or any direct experience of Exposure products?

Thanks

[weeksy]

The Exposure stuff are absolutely brilliant yes... but.... Is it really what you need over a pair of £16 each Chinese copies... well, not IME no. The cheapo chinese stuff works fine and lights up plenty... but if you want insane levels of vision, then sure, go something like an exposure.

[Mr Moofo]

The Exposure stuff are absolutely brilliant yes... but.... Is it really what you need over a pair of £16 each Chinese copies... well, not IME no. The cheapo chinese stuff works fine and lights up plenty... but if you want insane levels of vision, then sure, go something like an exposure.

Common sense says go Chinese copies
Rubbish night vision says Exposure

I will try next week with normal front lights and cat eye head torch

BTW - Smudge at MTB Batteries suggests people are paying a lot for the Exposure brand - and that individual parts are source where everyone else gets them ....

[lostboy]

Yes, Exposure are worth it. I run a couple of different Exposure lights depending on whether I'm on road or trail. A Diablo as my helmet light regardless of whether it's MTB or Road - and yes, a helmet light is essential, you really need to see where you're looking!!! I run an old Toro as the bar light on my road bike.

However, the bar light on my MTB is this[urlhttps://www.four4th.co.uk/collections/lights/pr ... white-leds][/url] and it's an absolute beast. They now do one which is even more powerful but I can't see that doing any more than causing forest fires or drying up the trail in front of you - the Holy Moses gives all the light you can ever want. The only reason I used Exposure for helmet lights was the "self contained" design. However Four 4th now do the same so worth a chat with them about their stuff.

As Weeksy has suggested there's also a world of difference between the lumens quoted and what it really means on the trail and Four 4ths* and Exposure are a world of difference from the cheap chinese shite.


*I used to ride with Del who owns Four 4ths and he's a proper engineer so the stuff is beautifully built and his service is superb. A group of us still have the original production light and it's great.

[Taff]

It all really depends on what terrain you're riding on IME.

I have a commuting to WFH loop that I've been doing for a while, and now that it's dark my Chinese cheapos are really not up to the task of riding the more technical single-track. It's not really a question of the output as that's passable, but the direction it's pointed in. After a couple of drops/rough ground the light moves slightly and isn't pointing far enough down the trail any more.

I'm not ready to drop hundreds into a light just yet though.

[Mr Moofo]

What makes Four4th better than exposure?

BTW - I know lumens quoted and real world lumens are two completely different things. I have a cheap Chinese cree light that claims 5000 lumens. It's nothing like - it might be 1.5 k

[lostboy]

What makes Four4th better than exposure?

BTW - I know lumens quoted and real world lumens are two completely different things. I have a cheap Chinese cree light that claims 5000 lumens. It's nothing like - it might be 1.5 k

I didn't say they were better. I said they were different and I bought them to suit a purpose - ie. massive bar light that ensures that birds and small animals start getting up thinking dawn has broken. And that Holy Moses is by far and away the best bar light I've ever used - Exposure included. What is an issue is that you need to find a home for the battery pack - usually velcro straps to the frame, in a bottle cage or on one of Del's very cleverly engineered mounts.

I've never liked helmet mount lights with a separate battery pack. I don't like the lead trailing down my spine or front to a pocket or pack. If I'm going to hit a branch or other bits of undergrowth (and you know how tall I am!) I want it to break off cleanly. The Exposure mount is a plastic screw and a very good "jaws" holder that is reliable whilst riding but will come off in case of impact - leash to the helmet is provided - so it's much more self-contained.

Where they both win over all the Magicshine and cheap chinese stuff is the beam pattern created by the leds just seems much better and brighter. And I've run other stuff.

[Mr Moofo]

Also a hater of separate battery for head torch - and worry about coming off and it snagging on something and breaking my neck ...

[MingtheMerciless]

I have a Hope R8, a Trout Liberator and an Exposure Equinoxe, all supposedly 2k lumens.

The Liberator (alas no longer made, RIP Trout...) is the brightest and with a new MTB Batteries pack lasts the longest (velcro under top tube). The R8 is next but its an early one so max power tends to bring in the thermal regulator which drops it to medium and the Equinoxe (no longer made) is a helmet mount. The Exposure eats its battery on max so I've a piggy back cell so my helmet can look a bit congested. Mrs M has an Exposure Joystick for dog walking.

Both Exposures have had drops onto a stone floor after rolling off the kitchen work surface and stopped working and even though years out of warranty have been repaired FOC. Exposure support is second to none.

A few mates have 6 packs and they are like having a Photon Cannon fitted to the bike.

In a nut shell if you want a safe, reliable, well supported all in one light that won't burn your house down when charging buy Exposure. Fourt4th get very good reviews if you want a separate light and battery combo.

[lostboy]

Hey @Mr Moofo - which one did you get?

Been using my old Toro as a road light the last couple of weeks and a Diablo as my head torch. Just waiting for my new Four4ths bracket to turn up so that I can run my Holy Moses on the road bike as well as the MTB

[Mussels]

How much is enough is entirely subjective. I used to ride home along the side of the Thames, where it was pitch black my phone light would have been enough but the stretch alongside a floodlit distribution centre where my eyes were above the fence line but the ground wasn't needed the equivalent of a car headlight. Riding through London's lit streets only needed a flashing light so drivers would notice me.

[Mr Moofo]

Hey @Mr Moofo - which one did you get?

Been using my old Toro as a road light the last couple of weeks and a Diablo as my head torch. Just waiting for my new Four4ths bracket to turn up so that I can run my Holy Moses on the road bike as well as the MTB

I talked to Exposure you are based just north of Arundel - and was going to turn up and have a chat. They were keen because of Covid not to do that!
After a discussion the suggest D-Maxx or 6 pack. They had a six pack as a factory second at 345 GBP.
SDJ were doing new Six-Packs for 325 GBP , which was cheaper than I could get a D-MaXx. So I got that ...

SDJ are now doing D-MaXxs fro 280 - but their prices do go up and down almost hourly ...
Whilst the Four4th looked great ( as were the reviews) I wanted to get away from extra battery packs and cables ...

How much is enough is entirely subjective. I used to ride home along the side of the Thames, where it was pitch black my phone light would have been enough but the stretch alongside a floodlit distribution centre where my eyes were above the fence line but the ground wasn't needed the equivalent of a car headlight. Riding through London's lit streets only needed a flashing light so drivers would notice me.

That wouldn't cut it dropping off the back of the Downs at Steyning on a wet Wednesday night.
Holding onto the phone would also we a challenge

[MrLongbeard]

The Exposure stuff are absolutely brilliant yes... but.... Is it really what you need over a pair of £16 each Chinese copies... well, not IME no. The cheapo chinese stuff works fine and lights up plenty... but if you want insane levels of vision, then sure, go something like an exposure.

Surprising to see you suggesting cheap Chinese stuff.
I'd not have a Chinese off brand charger or lithium battery within 50 yards of my house.

[Mussels]

I used cheap Chinese lamps with premium 18650 batteries before, very bright with a battery that wasn't built in someone's shed or rebranded for sale on eBay.

[MrLongbeard]

I used cheap Chinese lamps with premium 18650 batteries before, very bright with a battery that wasn't built in someone's shed or rebranded for sale on eBay.

If'n you're using your own premium batteries it shouldn't be an issue, providing you don't charge or store the batteries in the lamp.

[Crosshair]

I bought a pair of Chinese ones recently for £15 each. They’re incredible. My last Chinese one lasted 6 years until I reversed the polarity trying to mount it on my kayak

They come with a head strap, bar mount, USB battery pack, a rear flashing light with battery and a usb-usb charging cable.
With one on your head and one on the bars- they’re good for 40mph

[weeksy]

The Exposure stuff are absolutely brilliant yes... but.... Is it really what you need over a pair of £16 each Chinese copies... well, not IME no. The cheapo chinese stuff works fine and lights up plenty... but if you want insane levels of vision, then sure, go something like an exposure.

Surprising to see you suggesting cheap Chinese stuff.
I'd not have a Chinese off brand charger or lithium battery within 50 yards of my house.

I've had Chinese lights and batteries in my garage for the best part of 10 years now at a rough guess. No issues, no problems. I've got a few stand alone 18650s and a few combined into a 4 pack, no issues with any of them, charging, working etc. Only downside is my most powerful light only runs for 3 hours which is a 3 light thingy, the 2er runs for 6-7 hours easy. Both are perfectly bright enough for me. I like to have a headtorch for changes in direction, again, Chinese, these have been a bit more tempremental over the years with flickering and breaking, but they were £7-10 only, so what can you expect when battering them down trails.

[Beancounter]

I used cheap Chinese lamps with premium 18650 batteries before, very bright with a battery that wasn't built in someone's shed or rebranded for sale on eBay.

If'n you're using your own premium batteries it shouldn't be an issue, providing you don't charge or store the batteries in the lamp.

Excusing my genuine ignorance, what's the problem with charging/storing batteries in the lamp? It's been about ten years since I had a cheap Chinese Cree lamp for cycling but I remember being really pleased with the performance compared to the cost.

[MrLongbeard]

I used cheap Chinese lamps with premium 18650 batteries before, very bright with a battery that wasn't built in someone's shed or rebranded for sale on eBay.

If'n you're using your own premium batteries it shouldn't be an issue, providing you don't charge or store the batteries in the lamp.

Excusing my genuine ignorance, what's the problem with charging/storing batteries in the lamp? It's been about ten years since I had a cheap Chinese Cree lamp for cycling but I remember being really pleased with the performance compared to the cost.

The Chinese stuff that I've seen that takes 18650 is a bit rough , literally, leading to battery damage, and a damaged li-ion cell can be an unruly bugger.
They also don't generally come with any consideration to venting the battery compartment, so if a cell does fail rather than the gases venting it turns the lamp / torch / whatever into shrapnel.

Much of that can be mitigated by using known good branded cells with protection built in, but fake 18650's are as common as fake sd cards / usb memory sticks, and often those cells with inbuilt protection run a little larger and don't always fit in cheap stuff as they haven't allowed for such cells or even the normal expansion of a battery in use.

[lostboy]

In nearly 20 years of road and MTB riding I've used just about every value of light from the cheapest of the Chinese through to Exposure and Four4ths and I keep coming back to both Exposure and Four4ths. More reliable, brighter, better beam pattern, just plug and play. Even my shittiest old Diablo (rated at "only" 900 lumens!) continues to out-perform anything I've got left in the bag from China. And if I could be bothered to send it to Exposure they'd upgrade it for me - but it just doesn't need it.