2 of his lights reviewed in this month WhatMTB, best get your order in before the rush with that sort of coverage.
Not read through in depth yet, but good to see them there, even if other lights got a better score (subs copy just came through, so was scanning through).
Loving the snide comment made about far east kit lacking support, so unworthy of a review

Interesting that they've used a LUX count to compare brightness, though no doubt it has it's deficiencies

Good luck to Trout, seems a lovely chap.

Loving the snide comment made about far east kit lacking support, so unworthy of a review

Well the more people put off the better if that means the updated magic shine, battery extension cable, uk plug and headstrap mount I just ordered for £60 gets to me a bit quicker. 8)

best get your order in before the rush

😉

Met Trout and Smudge at Ladybower today. Descent chaps… 😀

"Loving the snide comment made about far east kit lacking support, so unworthy of a review"

Snide? Idiotic is the word I think. "we've stuck with established (at least a year old)", the Magicshine's been around more than a year, and they should know that since they managed to review a Magicshine in MBUK a year ago and give it an award. "performance fades pretty fast", what? Utter bullshit. They're not bullet proof but unless you do something stupid to the battery performance doesn't fade at all (sometimes it just stops 😉 )

Was pleased they reviewed some Trouts but as advice goes that review's crap, it basically says "You need to spend a packet to get a decent light output". And reviewing a Fenix torch, what year is it? Expensive and low performance, if you're going to review a torch review one that anybody would actually buy these days

And printing claimed light output in lumens and measured output in lux, what use is that?

Loving the snide comment made about far east kit lacking support, so unworthy of a review

But for the price of a basic Troute Mini you could buy 2 far east lights (one for spares) and still have a shed load of change left!!

Its probably because they had to buy a magicshine before they could test it – they'll be too used to getting all their test kit for free 😉

Its probably because they had to buy a magicshine before they could test it – they'll be too used to getting all their test kit for free

That is the shittest part of it. MagicShine has a UK operation who would have sorted them out.

Oh Bugger didnt expect that out so soon thought it was next month .

When is it in the shops so I can find out what has been said .

see that magicshine.co.uk site, I wouldnt be betting on it having anything to do with magicshine other than some punter buying them in bulk from deal extrema and punting them on for a profit.

I wouldnt be betting on it having anything to do with magicshine other than some punter buying them in bulk from deal extrema and punting them on for a profit.

More than likely, but it does show there is a UK presence as well as backup. Just to counter WhatMTBs saying "far east kit lacking support, so unworthy of a review".

Saw a few people on Bikeradar who used those guys and had pretty shoddy support- slow delivery, a dead-on-arrival charger with poor responses etc. TBH I'd sooner go with DX myself. Was surprised how decent their warranty support is, once you figure out how to talk to them anyway (and get over being annoyed at having to post pics- "The battery doesn't work at all" "Send a photo of it" "Er, it looks like a battery" But the replacement was with me in days so that was decent.

far east kit lacking support doesnt advertize in our magazine, so unworthy of a review".

;0
fixed that for them

TBH I'd sooner go with DX myself

Likewise. £30 saving.

If you want the best light available contact Luminous and Troutie then decide if you prefer a cubic shape or a cylindrical one. Quality is superb, output is unbeaten. And on top of that they are excellent vfm. They deserve to dominate the market imo.

Zippy Any chance of a photo or scan of the page I wont sleep tonight
or any night till I have seen the mag now

Not on here email it Pretty please

M8 will sort it out, just watching TV with the mrs, will be done as soon as the movies over

Zippy your a star Thanks enjoy the movie

M8 will sort it out, just watching TV with the mrs, will be done as soon as the movies X factor is over

Speaking of X Factor, sometimes, very rarely, but sometimes there is a punter on there with an absolutely stunning voice. That girlie that was just on had a hell of a voice when she wasnt trembling with fear.

X-Factor? It's all a fix (just like the reviews in WMB).

It sounds like once again the needs of a magazines readership who are keen to get out riding at night, but dont have hundreds of pounds to spend are deemed not worth the coverage.
Curse them £50 torches. Curse them.

magazine review seemed to side with the established producers, presumably on basis of track record/warranty etc. Hope didn't get great reviews, the new Lumicyle ones did.

looked a quite reasonable test and the beam shots seemed ok.

agree that sticking a Fenix torch in there was a bit daft.

takisawa2 – Member

"It sounds like once again the needs of a magazines readership who are keen to get out riding at night, but dont have hundreds of pounds to spend are deemed not worth the coverage."

Mmm, to be fair they did give a recommendation to a £100 light. Just that it's a £100 light that makes less light than a £10 torch. So it's not like they dismissed cheaper options outright but the one they did recommend doesn't strike me as a good option (never used one myself). I reckon the testing they actually did is pretty good, apart from the lux/lumen thing, it's just their choice of products that's iffy. It's like doing a £500 bike test and forgetting to include any Decathlon and Halfords bikes, you end up recommending something inferior. They should be trying to recommend the best outright not just the best in test.

People assume it's advertising but Nukeproof are a big advertiser in WMB/MBUK and their light got slagged again. Niterider had a half page ad in the issue but 2 of their 3 got a bit of a going over too. So it's not that clearcut I reckon.

Chris ygm – let me know if not.

The daft buggers got the pictures mixed up
Dstars Light with my Little Proto lights write up .
and my light with his write up .

these lights were sent before I decided to do the Liberator again
so missed getting it in

But all in not bad .and the daft thing is I have sold out of the 7UP light and cant get more cases until after christmas so that is going to cause me a head ache

Thanks Zippy for the scan I will sleep soundly tonight .

They do recommend the Magicshine light and cheap lights in general elsewhere in the mag. In the supersonic column, which suggests inconsistencies. I have some ay ups and don't mind what they cost as they are well made, lightweight, plenty bright enough, long lasting batteries and excellent back up. It seems to me that there is more 'why would you pay more' comments on lights than almost any other components. Saddles, handlebars and seatposts all do a fairly straightforward job but you can spend massively varying amounts on them often just to save a few grams. I've had cheaper lights and they have been fiddly and unreliable and spoilt more than one ride. On the plus side they did get me into night riding in the first place.

what's wrong with a fenix?

£55 will get you a torch + batteries + charger, it's very near the performance of an Exposure Joystick*, for lots less than half the price**…

?

(*i've used both)

(**buy 2, you get more light, and it's still cheaper)

Youd of thought a magazine like whatmtb would of atleast checked the details before going to print. Theres no excuse for getting the light pictures mixed.
They did the same with Lumicycle last year if I recall correctly.

Also the more leds in a light head the bigger the battery and I wouldnt call a 8 cell Li-Ion heavy, They should weigh a equilivant NiMH.

What did they say about the Nukeproof lights? I've got a set and they're a right pain in the tits, getting the setting you want is pretty much hit and miss. But more miss.

I believe Nukeproof took a slating.

Here

I’ve ridden with a Maxx-D on the bars (amazing on the straighter bits but it couldn’t shine round tight corners like any bar mount light) and then decided to gamble on a Fenix LD20 R4 as a helmet only solution. I already had the charger and NiMH AAs, so it cost under £50. Plenty bright enough for the twisty singletrack I ride, only notice a lack of power when out in the open with a rider with a more powerful light just behind me. I often turn it off on the fire roads so my eyes retain some night sensitivity, which means one set of batteries last a whole evening ride. It’s properly regulated so the beam doesn’t dim as the batteries die. And it’s low profile enough to avoid most low branches and tough enough to withstand unplanned impacts.

“ahwiles – Member

what’s wrong with a fenix?”

The fact that you can get better torches for less.

for example?

Hard to answer that one since I can’t tell exactly which Fenix you’re referring to, but it’s a simple matter of looking up Dealextreme (or similiar) for the LED of your choice and seeing what they can do. The most expensive Fenix can’t quite match a $20 P7 torch, while DX have a range of XPG-R5 torches at about 1/4 the price of the cheapest Fenix XPG-R5. At your price quoted it looks like you’re either on an XPE or an XPG-R4 with AAs? The LD20 seems to be the best I can find at the price you quoted.

(worth mentioning the burn times on the DX XPGs all seem to be wrong)

I use a fenix p3d as a commuter light and on full power its bloody great. I’ve had it a couple of years now and its took a right battering, yet is still going strong. £37.50 + £7 mount.

hang on, you’re main criticism of the fenix L2D torch is that you can get something similar for £25 less from Deal-Extreme*?

i dismiss your opinion as mere piffle.

(*well known for it’s reliable products)

Fenix do see a bit pricey compared to the dealextreme stuff, but the Fenix I have is very, very, high quality.

I have deal extreme and fenix torches and the fenix is significantly better build quality and brighter for the claimed amount of lumens. The P7 torches are bright but have pretty poor battery life.

I also have a ‘bastid’ though which is better than the torches imo.