I wonder if anyone can identify an LED rear light I used to have that had the best mounting system I've seen. I bought it from Freewheel about 8 years ago for £15 and from what I remember (I lost it 4 years ago) it looked like this Vistalight 200X from behind http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/VISTALITE-200X-rear-bike-light-with-bracket-B-N-I-B_W0QQitemZ260201935927QQihZ016QQcategoryZ22689QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem Rather than having a mounting bracket, it attached directly to the seat post using a fabric elastic strap and quick-release buckle. The light was kept vertical to the angle of the seat post by a rubber wedge attached to the back of the light, the seat post side of which was shaped to follow the radius of the seat post.
I have a feeling it may have been taken off the market because the law says there must be a bracket that attaches permanently to the bike, stupid because this was more secure than the quick release systems between lights and brackets and eliminated all the problems with brackets moving about.
Anyone know this one? I have a nagging thought that it was a Cateye or a Basta, but that's only based on nagging thoughts! Does anyone have one they want to sell? They're not road legal after all...
It's possibly Vista's Cuëlite. It attached using the method you describe
Bought mine from Stockport Freewheel in the summer of '91, £16. Three very low powered (compared to today's) constant LED's and you had to slide the light to switch on or off.
There wasn't anything wrong with it so probably taken off market because it's lifespan had ended and more powerful units were being sold.
Not familiar with the legality of the mounting mounting bracket, as far as I can see it complies with the requirements, anyway it's quite rare for the Police to stop you for using the wrong 'type' of rear light. IME, they're usually more than happy for the fact that you have one on rather than not at all. The only reason it wasn't road legal was because it failed to comply with BS6102/3.
I still have mine, btw, but it's not for sale, sorry. It's low power comes in very useful for trail night rides because it doesn't distract the rider whose following behind
So it seems most bike lights are illegal in some way!
The VISTALITE VL-200QR CUELITE seems to be the light (the 'QR' denotes the quick release elastic strap system), or possibly an updated version as there is a 200X available on eBay. Only place listing it seems to be BikePro in US and they don't seem to have any way of contacting them! I'll find one by morning...
BikePro.com seem to be the only place to have the QR version. I just tried phoning them in California, but their number seems to divert to another bike shop. Then I looked at some of their news articles on their website... they're all from 1995!!
Duh!
I'm really only after one because of the brilliantly simple method of attachment and the resounding absense of brackets so I don't think I'll go for the 200X. Um... ah, now I think about it, no-one else in the world seems to be selling the 200X either. I guess they might be NOS.
I'll try pestering Vistalite and the guy selling the 200X and save a search on eBay for secondhand ones. I'm sort of running a homemade copy of their elastic strap system on an even older Basta light at the moment anyway, but using gaffer tape. This has the added advantage of stopping the batteries falling out because the front of the light is missing!
Looking at this photo of the 200X http://cgi.ebay.com/Rear-Bike-Stobe-light-VistaLite-200X-3-LED_W0QQitemZ7109610726QQihZ019QQcategoryZ22689QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem note the clip on the back. I now remember that the light could be removed from the rubber 'wedge' - the elastic strap is attached to the rubber bit and the light had exactly the same clip on the back and the whole of this clip slotted into the rubber bit (I think I prefer "bit" to "wedge"). These 200X's come with a seatpost bracket, so now I'm hoping it is the same QR strap and rubber wedge, erm... I mean bit. I've emailed the man and now I'm going to bang my head against a wall until a get a reply. I should be asleep. Thanks again Sprokitt!
How much fascination can the design of one bike light hold? Well, the amount written above.
Well, I last raced my MTB in 1994 and did my last triathlon in 1997, so I have no idea what is current these days (except that chainsets are FCUKT!! I leave the industry on its own for 10 years and just look at the mess!!).
My Cue didn't come with any elastic arm band type accessory just the seat post QR. Basically the light was removable and you'd clip it to your belt or whatever while walking/jogging at night.
The rubber wedge was just a method of making the light sit level when fitted to the seatpost, ie, the angle of the post being different to the ground, obviously.
FYI, the QR, which is in the shed somewhere consisted of a piece of metal that the wedge was glued to, this had a slot for the light to slide into. The fabric strap is just a basic wrap around the post, pass through a cammed buckle and close.
"THE LIGHT IS NO LONGER STRANGE"
Nope, but the people who read this later will sure as hell think we are
Well the QR still gets used for 24hr enduros. At the moment I just clip the light to a strap on the back of the helmet but when I use a helmet light for the enduros the battery pack sits where the Cue would be so it has to go in it's usual place on the seatpost.
If we walk away quietly no one will ever know this thread exsisted..
