Battery-less Lights
I’ve seen this website where they claim to have a ‘Blinkie Light Kit’ that runs on magnetic power. I found one of their auctions in Ebay and decided to give them a try. The package arrived in about 4 days, (Superfast considering that it was coming from the UK), I installed it on the Xootr Swift and gave it a try.
The Kit consists of a Generator and a magnet :
2 Front White LED Blinkies:
and 3 Red LED blinkies:
The kit was easy to install, although the screws in the generator need to be longer. Once I had it installed, I gave the pedals a push and just like magic, the LED’s were blinking!
I will be commuting with this kit, stay tuned for my upcoming review.
March 22nd, 2006 at 3:56 pm
[…] Check out this Battery-less Blinkie light set by […]
March 24th, 2006 at 4:59 am
It looks good doesn’t it? I’ve been thinking about getting one of them for awhile, so I’d be interested to know how it goes.
Does the flipping magnet make much noise? And how bright is the light really? And how about durability? Do you reckon it’ll last long in bad weather?
I’ll keep an eye out for your review.
March 24th, 2006 at 7:59 am
The magnet doesn’t make any noticeable noise and the LED’s are really bright. Time will tell how reliable these lights are. I will post an update after 3 months of use. I usually don’t ride in bad weather, but according to the seller, they are supposed to stand up to bad weather. I don’t see why not, all the pieces seem to be capable to withstand the rain.
March 31st, 2006 at 5:34 am
Good site… Nice design
April 13th, 2006 at 9:17 am
I’ve just got one of these (arrived today) and it’s fantastic. I’ve already got back to the guy at freelights.co.uk and bought six more of the magnet mounts, to get more power quicker, it’s really that good!
April 27th, 2006 at 12:03 am
They work well as the basis for small wind generator setup too. Check the link for pics
February 8th, 2007 at 11:31 am
So where’s the long-term review? I’d like to hear how this system holds up for commuting.
March 26th, 2007 at 4:12 pm
Anyone seen any of these on the other side of the pond? Any distribution in the US?
March 30th, 2007 at 8:29 pm
The lights are not in the US but you can buy them from their site or Ebay.
March 31st, 2007 at 8:11 pm
I purchased from Freelight.uk, and it did indeed arrive fast.
I was surprised at the strength of the magnets. I had trouble keeping the ‘flip’ magnets from moving on the spokes. And was also surprised to see the way the generator body swayed when the magnets moved past.
They lit up well. I have the SPL “standlight” version, and it worked acceptablely. Except only the rear red lights lit up; disappointing.
After the first ride, I noticed that the rear bolt on the generator had pulled thru the plastic on the generator body. I placed a piece of sheet metal to act as ‘washers’ for the destroyed rear bolt hole.
Then when I road off this AM, heard a loud kerpluck, and the whole generator had fallen off — cracked at the FRONT bolt hole (this had been braced by the same sheet metal piece). Apparently the molded plastic generator holder is jsut not solid enough to withstand the extreme pull of the powerful magnets that visibly moved the generator at each rotation.
Trying to think of a way to salvage this $35 investment: Aluminum container bracket?? I’ll look for some stock, but have doubts it will allow the generator to work properly.
Perhaps I’ll try another “reelight” model. Great concept! Poor execution.
-FP
June 4th, 2007 at 2:58 pm
Hi Jim. Photos i received. Thanks
June 19th, 2007 at 6:09 pm
Well, lost track of this site, and wanted to post my further experiences.
FreelightUK indeed made good to me. Along with the swift service, they replied to my complaint about the broken gen body, and sent me another body free of charge; which included two AL plates for support.
Since then, the package has worked out pretty well.
I got the model with the “brake light” capacitance feature. And while this works a treat, the bracket that holds the ‘brake light sensor’ is held to the frame with a zip-tie; and so tends to move around easily, often discharging against the brake noodle due ot the way my chain-lock, bungies, etc are wrapped around the seatpost. Perhaps a better hold device, like a jubilee clamp, would prevent this from moving. But I’m pretty satisfied with it for now.
It is great to have a generator that is always there, inexpensive, doesn’t increase drag noticable, won’t cause a flat tire due to wear, and is always ON.
So, three cheers to FreelightUK for their service and product. (Sorry I’m so late in correcting the previous post.)
-FP