how bright is "too bright"?

[RedBaronX]

I'm going to be finishing my bike VERY SOON. I want to finally get an LED headlight to replace the 55w halogen I have. I am looking at two on eBay (and they are probably by the same maker), One is 27w and 2000 lumens and the other is 18w and 1000 lumens. But "brighter is better" is not necessarily true in every situation....

Is 1000 lumens bright enough for night street driving? Is 2000 lumens going to be so bright that it ****es off oncoming traffic?

The lights I am looking at are marketed for ATVs.

I have not done any night driving with the light I have, but I want to switch it out for an LED to extend the amount of time I can get out of the battery (That's right, right? Less watts means longer battery life? Science class was a very long time ago)

 

[Cavi Mike]

The light pattern is actually the most important factor but you can bet 2,000lumens will be far too bright for oncoming traffic.

 

[RedBaronX]

they're both flood-type patterns, but I think I saw a 2000 lumen one available in a "pencil-spot" pattern, which would not be very useful for riding...

 

[RedBaronX]

and if anyone is curious, here are the eBay links:

18w 1000 lumens

27w 2000 lumens

the two lights look very similar, so I don't have to choose based on their looks. Also, half the price for the 18w one is nice, but I don't mind paying for the 27w one if it actually IS the better choice. But what it comes down to is I want to buy the RIGHT one for the application.

 

[RedBaronX]

I went a different direction to find an answer to my question, and I discovered that the legal limit for lumens output for a 55w halogen bulb is 1650 lumens. So, it would be safe to assume that a 27w 2000 lumen LED might be downright illegal for street use.

 

[MotoMagz]

With six leds there is no way to get a nice light pattern.You could get a single led which is just as bright and get a lens that snaps on in any degree from 10 to180. put it in a bicycle head light with a constant current regulator.And run it off of any battery you want.

 

[RedBaronX]

I bought the 1000 lumen light, and it came today (it's actually 1350 lumens, to be specific). I haven't tried it outside in the street, but right here in my darkened dining room and shining into my pretty dark kitchen... it's REALLY bright! and it's got a plenty decent pattern.

It's got a couple mounting options, too.

I highly recommend the light that I bought to anyone else looking for a 12v headlight. There is a link to it and the seller in one of my above posts, but there are many sellers on eBay selling what I assume is this same light (different locations around the world, different prices, some offer discounts on buying pairs and sets of four. I've seen square lights like this one as well)

 

[SdCruizer]

im getting a 650 lumens I think light tomorrow
its like $300 at bike store and is super bright, large flood light

I thought that was bright in a well lit store, cant imagine 1300 or higher
at least if you use bright ones during the day oncoming traffic will see you better

could always angle it down more for night

 

[SdCruizer]

Got my light, was told its 700 lumens
really bright at night has wide and spot lens
Im using the wide
at least I can now see the road at night for potholes and im sure everyone can see me now too