Cree light battery/battery mod/questions

Ok so after a topic about them the other week I ordered 2 lights and 3 batteries.

1x zoom

1800LM CREE XML T6 LED Rechargeable Bicycle Lamp Bike HeadLight Headlamp | eBay

1x regular

1800 Lm CREE XM-L XML T6 LED Bicycle bike Head Light Headlamp Rechargeable Head | eBay

1x spare battery pack

KDQ6 NEW 6400MAH 8.4V RECHARGEABLE BATTERY PACK FOR BICYLE LIGHT SCA-1514 | eBay

I then figured I know lots about the lights but very little about the battery so I had a look online about them. It wasn't all pretty and many of them seemed to arrive unbalanced and one guy had his catch fire.

So based on what I will have(12 cells and whatever comes with them). Should I be looking to break them open and mod them or have they improved?

Also if I do break them open what would I need to mod them into one 8 cell battery and a spare 4 cell battery.

There's a saying: If it ain't broke, don't fix it.

Mine have worked perfectly for two years. If you have one of those zoomable torches that run off Ultrafire cells, be awsre thst they usually don't have any low voltage control, so charge at the first sign of not as bright as normal.

There's a saying: If it ain't broke, don't fix it.

 

Mine have worked perfectly for two years. If you have one of those zoomable torches that run off Ultrafire cells, be awsre thst they usually don't have any low voltage control, so charge at the first sign of not as bright as normal.

They both have the 4 cell shrink wrap packs(wanted them to be interchangable). Is just my cynical side looking for the weak link/bad part of the cheap lights.

Hi Tillson,

What bike do you have and how did you wire one of these lights to the bike battery?

I now run 2 cree headlights and a magicshine rear. The only mod I've made is to connect the packs in parallel to allow all 3 lights to be powered from the same source. The packs sit in a frame mounted bag, which is also where the connections are made. That way, one light doesn't run it's pack flat first.

I looked at running them all from the cycle battery, but as I often seem to run that flat, I decided not to reduce it's range further.

Ok so after a topic about them the other week I ordered 2 lights and 3 batteries.

 

1x zoom

1800LM CREE XML T6 LED Rechargeable Bicycle Lamp Bike HeadLight Headlamp | eBay

 

1x regular

1800 Lm CREE XM-L XML T6 LED Bicycle bike Head Light Headlamp Rechargeable Head | eBay

 

1x spare battery pack

KDQ6 NEW 6400MAH 8.4V RECHARGEABLE BATTERY PACK FOR BICYLE LIGHT SCA-1514 | eBay

Hi Clockwise,

How does the 1 x zoom light perform in comparison to the 1 x regular?

Hi Clockwise,

 

How does the 1 x zoom light perform in comparison to the 1 x regular?

I can't tell yet, had a family member buy the regular one as a christmas present and expected them to let me use it before(being it's safety and all) but they said no so ordered the other and it should arrive in work tomorrow.

I'm hoping I can set the zoom one to a wider beam like the one in this video but it looks different so I can't tell.

Hi Tillson,

 

What bike do you have and how did you wire one of these lights to the bike battery?

I still have the Kalkhoff Pro Connect. I ran a wire, with an in-line fuse, off the back of the battery connector on the bike to a DC-DC converter (12 to 60 Volt input 9 Volts out) which is housed in a small IP66 rated box. I have mounted a toggle switch on the box and a small indicator LED so that I can switch power to the DC-DC converter. I then brought a feed out of the IP66 box and ran it through the frame to the front lights. A second feed goes to one of those BikeRay rear lights.

The setup works really well, just one battery to charge which is ideal for my commuting use.

 

I'm hoping I can set the zoom one to a wider beam like the one in this video but it looks different so I can't tell.

 

Seems aj odd way to use the 2 lights:

I'd have thought it'd make more sense to have the handlebar lamp on wide beam & the headtorch on spot, so the intense light is wherever you're looking.

Seems aj odd way to use the 2 lights:

 

I'd have thought it'd make more sense to have the handlebar lamp on wide beam & the headtorch on spot, so the intense light is wherever you're looking.

He is bombing around trails in the dark, maybe a screw loose... on the handlebar fitting.

Hi Clockwise,

 

How does the 1 x zoom light perform in comparison to the 1 x regular?

Sorry to jump in, but I have both types. The non-zoom is more powerful by quite a margin. The zoom light is ok and I find it works best as a flood light. If you zoom it too much, it focuses to an intense rectangle of light.

I have 2 sets of those lights which you have bought, one set running off my electric bike battery, the other set, on a non-electric bike, powered by one of those 4 x cell shrink wrapped batteries. Both sets of lights work well and the shrink wrap battery has performed well for the past 2 years. Take d8veh's advice.

I was looking at similar on Amazon and wondered, can 2x lights be made to flash alternately? So 1 steady beam from riders pov, with visibility of separated flashing lights giving appearance of movement to traffic, and 1 batt pack on bike, 1 on charge (if weight /bulk matters). Oh and are they really rubber banded on, or which proper fixings used?.. & please? Thanks, oops

Edited December 9, 201312 yr by MikeyBikey

I use one of these (9V version) for CREE and magicshine lights run off 36V battery. It's good for up to 3A and copes with a rear light plus a 3-CREE front light (even on high setting) fine. tch-warehouse are quick to dispatch and send from HK or Singapore, not Shanghai so arrive much faster than some others even if sometimes a little bit costlier.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/DCDC-Converter-Power-Supply-12V-24V-36V-48V-to-5V-9V-or-12V-Power-Module-/251397384110?pt=UK_BOI_Electrical_Components_Supplies_ET&var=&hash=item3a8873a7ae

Plus inline fuse holder (using 3A not 30A fuse) :

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/MINI-Blade-Fuse-Holder-LED-BLOWN-WARNING-Waterproof-30A-/170588278706?pt=UK_CarsParts_Vehicles_CarParts_SM&hash=item27b7da8fb2

Oh and are they really rubber banded on, or which proper fixings used?.. & please? Thanks, oops

They come with o-rings on the whole, which are OK but not always stable and the rubber rings can be pretty short-lived. Plus if you leave bike out in the sun with them mounted in Summer the rubber rapidly degrades (not an issue for this time of year though !).

You can make your own fixings, or this is compatible with most of the front magicshine T6 clone units :

Swivel mount for Magicshine / Inton / Fluxient / Starlight etc bike lights | eBay

Edited December 9, 201312 yr by 103Alex1

I use one of these (9V version) for CREE and magicshine lights run off 36V battery. It's good for up to 3A and copes with a rear light plus a 3-CREE front light (even on high setting) fine. tch-warehouse are quick to dispatch and send from HK or Singapore, not Shanghai so arrive much faster than some others even if sometimes a little bit costlier.

 

DCDC Converter Power Supply 12V 24V 36V & 48V to 5V 9V or 12V Power Module | eBay

 

Plus inline fuse holder (using 3A not 30A fuse)

103Alex1, What rear light do you use at 9v to run off the 9v DCDC convertor?

103Alex1, What rear light do you use at 9v to run off the 9v DCDC convertor?

Magicshine MJ-818.

Some light reading...

Torchy the Battery Boy

Some light reading...

 

Torchy the Battery Boy

Some useful info there, but I don't understand this from the start of the bike lights review, "Maybe people just like to boast about how much they spent on their lights, but to me, the major brands are a waste of money. You can buy brighter lights at a fraction of the cost. They are just as reliable, and if you ever need to replace a battery or any other part, they are much cheaper too.", when they don't review a single one of the bay lights that we've mentioned above. all the reviews are of branded lights.

I did see mention of the Cree T6 X-ML2 emitter. looks like I'll have to chuck all my lights when that's available.

Agreed and the lights he lists on ebay are pretty expensive ?

Jerry

Some light reading...

 

Torchy the Battery Boy

The page on batteries and chargers makes for pretty grim reading. It looks like most 'cheap' batteries are recycled laptop cells.

Yes, there's lots of Ebay sellers (often Chinese) selling branded batteries very cheaply, which are not genuine. Often the "protected" ones aren't.

If you buy the light with batteries included, they're normally OK. The 4-cell packs for the Cree T6 X-ML lights that I've opened all had proper protection circuits.

The page on batteries and chargers makes for pretty grim reading. It looks like most 'cheap' batteries are recycled laptop cells.

Weirdly all of the site owners batteries score very highly...

Weirdly all of the site owners batteries score very highly...

I think the point he's making is that he stocks a variety of options, they are all tested before listing and realistic vs claimed results are given to make an informed choice. It's not just his own stuff that he sells and some of the others have better characteristics. They're also more expensive.

I've bought quite a bit from him and everything has been good quality. No problem at all over returns or replacements / refunds if anything doesn't arrive.

Well I ordered an Amazon "CREE XML XM-L T6 1200 LM LED Cycling Bike Bicycle Front HeadLamp HeadLight Waterproof Design with 8.4v 6400mAh Battery Pack £12.99 Condition: New, Sold by coco_cool"

And many good reviews, one of which mentioned fitting "The standard handlebar mount isn't great but with the use of a longer bolt I was able to fit the light to a Hope universal bar clamp". Time will tell.

Finally arrived, very bright but the "zoom" is kinda rubbish tbh, fiddly and then once it's zoomed it doesn't seem loads brighter just a small square instead. Leaving it on the wide setting it seem great.

Still trying to get my head around the battery, it seems to discharge if just left which is weird so charge it till the light changes green then wake up and can charge it again...