Magicshine lights for XC - a short review with pics
Discussion
I thought I'd write a short review of the lights I've just bought for offroad riding. The lights I've used in the past have been adequate for occasional road riding but hopeless for offroad. I'm riding more regularly these days and work/life/children force me to ride in the dark early mornings or later evenings so I needed to upgrade.
After a suggestion in these forums and research online I bought the Magicshine MJ-816 from here. The service was excellent and the cost was £112 delivered next day. I waited two weeks for stock and they've sold out within four days so these are popular lights at this price.
I'm impressed with what I can see of the build quality. The light unit and battery pack are smaller than I expected, and the weight doesn't seem too bad.
This three-head unit uses a remote-mounted push-button switch. There are three modes: satellite lenses only; main beam only; all three lights. You can hold the button in any mode and the light dims - release it to set the brightness.
The switch illuminates to show the battery charge, with four colours ending up red when the battery reaches 25%. The switch is held to the bars with an O-ring, just like the main light unit. There's plenty of wire between the components to allow you to position it all wherever you like.
The battery is a four-cell pack encased in an aluminium tube with screw-in end caps and wrapped in a neoprene drawstring sock. The sock has an elastic velcro strap attached with which you tie the battery to your frame or stem. It's a bit big for my bike's stem so I've strapped it to the crossbar, protected behind the crudcatcher.
The battery seems very securely held and adequately sealed. There's a plug/socket close to the battery that seems relatively waterproof.
So far, so good.
During my first tests in the village I discovered that at maximum setting the lights are too bright to be acceptable for oncoming car drivers. I got flashed twice so I've taken to shielding them with my hand if I encounter a car before I reach the trails. Turning down the brightness seems to help but the small lenses mean that the light is a very bright spot and still dazzlingly uncomfortable. I wouldn't recommend these lights for on-road riding.
Offroad riding is another story though. They're fantastic. The larger lens provides a well-focused spot beam that can shine far ahead, while the two satellite lenses give a horizontal spread of light that's useful 30 feet in front and to the sides of the trail. Combined they inspire confidence and I didn't feel I had to slow down at all, even during a pitch-dark ride on an unfamiliar track. The colour of the light is a natural white.
After a couple of rides the only criticism I can find is that the light unit isn't perfectly steady on the handlebars, even on my full-suspension bike. It wobbles slightly but more irritatingly I had to reposition the unit every mile or so to reset the spot beam's range to the useful position far ahead. Apparently it's possible to remove the fixing from the light unit and replace it with a more secure one made by someone else, but I'll see how annoyed I get with it first.
Later on once it's dark I'll take some comparative photos that illustrate the difference between a regular £25 bike light and this monster. The Magicshine is bright enough to make the regular light's beam invisible. I considered buying the cheaper Magicshine MJ-808 to mount on my helmet but I just don't think I need it. This light is supposed to be 1400 lumens but Internet rumours suggest it's much less. I don't think it matters - the light is bright enough and the beam pattern perfect. I'm really pleased with it.
After a suggestion in these forums and research online I bought the Magicshine MJ-816 from here. The service was excellent and the cost was £112 delivered next day. I waited two weeks for stock and they've sold out within four days so these are popular lights at this price.
I'm impressed with what I can see of the build quality. The light unit and battery pack are smaller than I expected, and the weight doesn't seem too bad.
This three-head unit uses a remote-mounted push-button switch. There are three modes: satellite lenses only; main beam only; all three lights. You can hold the button in any mode and the light dims - release it to set the brightness.
The switch illuminates to show the battery charge, with four colours ending up red when the battery reaches 25%. The switch is held to the bars with an O-ring, just like the main light unit. There's plenty of wire between the components to allow you to position it all wherever you like.
The battery is a four-cell pack encased in an aluminium tube with screw-in end caps and wrapped in a neoprene drawstring sock. The sock has an elastic velcro strap attached with which you tie the battery to your frame or stem. It's a bit big for my bike's stem so I've strapped it to the crossbar, protected behind the crudcatcher.
The battery seems very securely held and adequately sealed. There's a plug/socket close to the battery that seems relatively waterproof.
So far, so good.
During my first tests in the village I discovered that at maximum setting the lights are too bright to be acceptable for oncoming car drivers. I got flashed twice so I've taken to shielding them with my hand if I encounter a car before I reach the trails. Turning down the brightness seems to help but the small lenses mean that the light is a very bright spot and still dazzlingly uncomfortable. I wouldn't recommend these lights for on-road riding.
Offroad riding is another story though. They're fantastic. The larger lens provides a well-focused spot beam that can shine far ahead, while the two satellite lenses give a horizontal spread of light that's useful 30 feet in front and to the sides of the trail. Combined they inspire confidence and I didn't feel I had to slow down at all, even during a pitch-dark ride on an unfamiliar track. The colour of the light is a natural white.
After a couple of rides the only criticism I can find is that the light unit isn't perfectly steady on the handlebars, even on my full-suspension bike. It wobbles slightly but more irritatingly I had to reposition the unit every mile or so to reset the spot beam's range to the useful position far ahead. Apparently it's possible to remove the fixing from the light unit and replace it with a more secure one made by someone else, but I'll see how annoyed I get with it first.
Later on once it's dark I'll take some comparative photos that illustrate the difference between a regular £25 bike light and this monster. The Magicshine is bright enough to make the regular light's beam invisible. I considered buying the cheaper Magicshine MJ-808 to mount on my helmet but I just don't think I need it. This light is supposed to be 1400 lumens but Internet rumours suggest it's much less. I don't think it matters - the light is bright enough and the beam pattern perfect. I'm really pleased with it.
I've got the older 1 beam 900lumen unit and it is bright but I find riding with only that a bit of challenege. I combined it with a 900lumen tourch on my helmet : http://www.mtbbritain.co.uk/mountain_bike_lights_r...
I find the combination very handy indeed as I have light where I'm looking and where my bike is pointing. Only thing about the head torch is that it eats batteries - about 30/45mins sees me replacing the battery (it is still shining, but no where near as brightly).
I find the combination very handy indeed as I have light where I'm looking and where my bike is pointing. Only thing about the head torch is that it eats batteries - about 30/45mins sees me replacing the battery (it is still shining, but no where near as brightly).
Thanks for the tips and suggestions.
Dealextreme... Judging by some US forums there seems to be a higher-than-average number of Magicshine units reported dead upon receipt (one downside of the built-to-a-cost design, I suppose) and I didn't want to take a risk with a product delivered from overseas. There's also a risk of UK Customs slapping import duty + VAT on the parcel and wiping out any saving. The mains chargers aren't necessarily UK-compatible either (from what I can see) so I'd have needed a UK/US adapter too. Too much hassle. Too much risk. Not much saving.
I'll try some innertube on the handlebar to see whether that stiffens up the mounting. If it doesn't I'll investigate the Lumicycle option. Thanks.
Dealextreme... Judging by some US forums there seems to be a higher-than-average number of Magicshine units reported dead upon receipt (one downside of the built-to-a-cost design, I suppose) and I didn't want to take a risk with a product delivered from overseas. There's also a risk of UK Customs slapping import duty + VAT on the parcel and wiping out any saving. The mains chargers aren't necessarily UK-compatible either (from what I can see) so I'd have needed a UK/US adapter too. Too much hassle. Too much risk. Not much saving.
I'll try some innertube on the handlebar to see whether that stiffens up the mounting. If it doesn't I'll investigate the Lumicycle option. Thanks.
Gassing Station | Pedal Powered | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff