Generator light?

[BrewMaster]

Is there such a thing as a light that would run on the rotational energy of a wheel? I swear I had something like this on my bike when I was a little kid. It would be nice if good light were available that didn't need batteries, but could run on the power of the moving wheel.

Am I dreaming or does such a thing exist?

[Neccros]

Originally Posted by BrewMaster

Is there such a thing as a light that would run on the rotational energy of a wheel? I swear I had something like this on my bike when I was a little kid. It would be nice if good light were available that didn't need batteries, but could run on the power of the moving wheel.

Am I dreaming or does such a thing exist?

I remember those... someone needs to make a modern version of one

[CalEpic]

Google is your friend

http://ecom1.planetbike.com/3001.html

C

[g-dub]

SRAM makes a disc-compatible generator hub for euro-style city bikes. It's heavy, and I don't know how durable it is, but maybe someone's laced one onto a MTB rim...
http://www.sram-imotion.com/us/html/navigation_us.html

[BrewMaster]

So if I am understanding this, you have to use a special hub? It's not something that can be bolted on somehow?

[Edog]

I think they went out of fashion as they where a little heavy & un reliable. The biggest issue was that your light went out on most when you stopped moving. Not a good thing if you are at a junction on the road. I think they where just refered to as Dynamos
http://www.blayleys.com/articles/lights/page2.htm
Check out this link

[2wheel_lee]

These are very popular in Japan. Shimano offers them in their Nexus line, commonly referred to as dynamo hubs.

These are so common on commuter bikes, that you may see 50 of them on bikes outside of a larger subway station. Of course, they range in quality and price. This wheel is one of the nicer ones.
http://cycle.shimano.co.jp/catalog/cycle/products/component.jsp?PRODUCT%3C%3Eprd_id=845524441782042& FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=2534374302050952&ASSORTMENT% 3C%3East_id=1408474395181677&bmUID=1189743131027&b mLocale=ja The generator in the hub connects to the light with two wires. These work very well, and they have a lot less resistence than the tire type generators.

Of course, there is always the old rub on the tire generator. These commonly come on the cheaper bikes, like my orange commuter bike shown here.

[BrewMaster]

All of these seem like commuter or road lights. Any chance there is an MTB generator hub? Sounds like wishful thinking, but it never hurts to ask...

[CalEpic]

For the cost of a hub you could buy a hell of a lot of batteries (or get a rechargeable light). They would also work when the bike was stopped.

I think there's a reason we don't see too many of them anymore.


C

[g-dub]

Originally Posted by CalEpic

For the cost of a hub you could buy a hell of a lot of batteries (or get a rechargeable light). They would also work when the bike was stopped.

I think there's a reason we don't see too many of them anymore.


C

Gotta agree. The economics are all wrong, and the engineering's bad too.

But I'm all for a little recreational irrationality. You want a dynamo hub? I say go for it...'cause that would be cool. Maybe impractical, but cool...practical is for work, and this is mountain biking. If we did practical, the beach cruiser would never have left the beach and evolved into the klunker, and we'd be sitting in front of a monochrome Usenet terminal cursing the vi editor's lack of a usable backspace feature.

[BrewMaster]

The desire for a generator light came more from my desire not to consume batteries. I figured it would be impractical. Batteries are some of the worst things we can throw away, so I try to minimize my consumption. Not a huge deal here, I was just looking for another way to care for the earth.

[TURNERob]

I remember when I was a kid I had one on my BMX. The frickin thing rubbed against the sidewall of the tire to work and it noticeably slowed you down cause it had so much resistance That and the light was about as bright as a keychain flashlight

[jeffj]

Originally Posted by TURNERob

I remember when I was a kid I had one on my BMX. The frickin thing rubbed against the sidewall of the tire to work and it noticeably slowed you down cause it had so much resistance That and the light was about as bright as a keychain flashlight

Sounds like the one I had circa 1969:

[Pain Freak]

Hey Lee,

メーカー標準小売価格(フロントのみ)

[BrewMaster]

Originally Posted by jeffj

Sounds like the one I had circa 1969:

That bike looks ripe for huckin'!

[jeffj]

Originally Posted by BrewMaster

That bike looks ripe for huckin'!

In addition to the worn out kickstand spring, if you look closely you can see bolt protruding at the top of the fork indicating a collapsed spring....

Huckin' was king!

[jcampbell]

I went new bike shop hunting a few weeks ago when I was bored one day and I saw one of these... I just can't remember what shop. I almost bought it for the beach cruiser. It was one of those old school ones that runs off your tire. I'll have to look around again.

[boludo]

Just do a search for Bell Generator Light and you'll be in 70's heaven.