Hub dynamo and electronics thread.

[RonK]

Any word or reviews on the Sinewave Beacon??

I have one. I'm very impressed with the quality and it works as described on the Sinewave web page. Recommend without hesitation.

[Marc40a]

One here, too. Anxious to put it to use. My dynamo wheel should be done in the next week or so.

Oh, and spring has to come, too. 

[Dana Ernst]

Over the next few weeks, I'll be building up a dynamo front wheel (with SON hub). I'd like a system that powers lights and has charging capabilities for things like my phone and GPS.  I'm hoping folks can help me compare and contrast K-Lite and the new Sinewave Beacon.  At the moment, I'm not sure if I'll leave the system on my Spearfish all the time or swap it on and off as needed. 

[RonK]

This is the Klite Bikepacker Pro setup to do what you require.


This is the Sinewave Beacon kit to do the same. You will have to supply your own mount..



Spot the difference.

[Marc40a]

I don’t claim to have extensive experience with either unit yet, but I have done my homework to decide which light to use for my personal setup.

The K-lite is supposedly brighter, 1200 vs 750 lumens for the Beacon. On the other hand, a light's lumen spec isn’t the whole story - beam shape, uniformity and color are factors, as well.

I know that if you’re doing a long slow climb, picking your way through a technical section or pushing your bike that the Beacon can be supplemented by an external battery for smooth always-on output. That same battery (or a USB device like a phone or Garmin) can be charged by the unit when the hub when the light isn’t needed or is on its lower setting.

You could set up something similar with the Klite but in addition to the battery you’d have to rely on an external charger, a harness with a switch, another switch and some hard-wire cord routing. Even then, you wouldn’t have that always-on light at slow or walking speeds. The switches would provide binary choices: light or cache battery charging. You could do pass through charging with an active Garmin or Phone that sips power but not a high powered light - likewise with the Beacon which is why the light has to be on low setting to charge the battery and use the light at the same time.

Incidentally, The Sinewave Revolution charger that’s part of the K-lite kit pictured in the post above is similar to what is integrated into the Beacon. I was told that the Beacon’s charger is even a bit more efficient.

Sinewave is local to me, so for me it was a no-brainer. Lots of divide racers have used the K-lite system successfully, but it’s been around longer. Lael Wilcox used a Beacon prototype within the past year or two, I think, for a Baja divide tour. I think we're going to see a lot more Beacons going forward on all the major endurance races.

*update* it looks like the new Klite is 1300 lumens. That’s a bright light. I’d really like to see that side by side with the 750 lumen Beacon.

[Dana Ernst]

Marc40a, what are you using for a mount for your Beacon?


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[Marc40a]

The install is next Friday. The shop is pretty well stocked, so the plan is to pick up a B&M mount for the fork crown and hopefully some kind of bar mount as well.  I'm going to set it up with the default position on the fork, but  I'll have a little extension cord with quick connects so I can relocate the light up to the top of the bars if need be - like if  I needed that headtube/fork space to run a large handlebar roll or harness, for example.  

My plan is to go with Littleford Dynasnaps for the connections. They're corrosion-proof magnetic quick connects. Those might be just the ticket for your Spearfish setup, too. They also simplify wheel removal in the event of a flat.

One handlebar mount that interests me is that Klite mount that holds an Etrex on top and a light on the bottom. I've investigated it a little bit, but I'd need to follow up with them so they could print up a bottom mount that’s compatible with the Beacon. That might be further down the road.

I tell ya man...this is one of the saving graces with winters in New England... Having the down-time to figure out stuff like this and make it happen. I'm going stir crazy, not riding.

[RonK]

My bike doesn't have a fork crown mount, but I wouldn't mount a light there anyway - for a bikepacking it would be in way of the handlebar roll and any other gear I may want to attach to the bars. And I also think this light works better and is less likely to dazzle other cyclists and road users if it is mounted higher and angled down.

If you get a dynamo to GoPro adapter from KevinB you can the use one of the many GoPro mounts which are available.



I'm using a K-Edge Wahoo Element Combo Mount with the Beacon attached below via KevinB's adapter.



The K-Lite mount mentioned by Marc40a is actually a K-Edge Go Big handlebar mount modified with a 3D printed Edge mount on top. If you already have one of these Kerry can supply just the printed mounts and hardware to attach it.

[Marc40a]

This is the one I was looking at:

https://www.kliteusa.net/product-page/alloy-mount-kit-for-etrex-klite

It’s the only combo mount I’ve seen that has the Etrex style mount.

Also, back to Dana's question...here’s a link to the page that best describes the Klite system:

http://www.klite.com.au/info

To sum it up:

K Lite’s philosophy is to maximize brightness and damn if those light specs aren’t bright! 1300 lumens is pretty sick. It’s comparable to my Night Rider 1400 that I use for night mountain biking. There’s no option to supplement the hub power for continuous output. He recommends charging a headlamp during the day to use for slow, uphill or techy sections. USB and cache battery charging is an option but there’s a ton of accessories needed to get you there - switches, harness, charger, cache battery, etc...

The Beacon sacrifices raw lumens for for a host of features. It has the ability to balance energy consumption from the light, with the dynamo output and cache battery for conisistent light. The 750 lumen spec is more in-line with what I use for commuting. The design is elegant in that the switches and USB charger are integrated into the light. Just pick an external battery for cache charging and you’re off to the races.

[RonK]

This is the one I was looking at:

https://www.kliteusa.net/product-page/alloy-mount-kit-for-etrex-klite

It’s the only combo mount I’ve seen that has the Etrex style mount.

Yes, that is the one I have. Kerry sells it as a complete kit but I already had the K-Edge Go Big mount so Kerry (KLite) supplied only the 3D printed eTrex mounting plate.

Look closely at the second pic from the web site and you will see the K-Edge mount with the light attached to the GoPro mount via an adapter, and the 3D printed eTrex mounting plate sitting on top.



There is no question that the Klite kit is much brighter than the Beacon. Kerry also recommends you use a battery powered helmet light as well for low speed work. It comes down to what you need. I'm not an ultra endurance racer and don't often travel at night, so my light is really for better daytime visibility and the odd long day when I arrive late at my destination.

The KLite setup takes up a lot of bar space. My reason for choosing the Beacon is to reduce the clutter on my handlebars to leave more room to attach a handlebar roll, pocket and two chaff bags. All the webbing required to attach them takes up space and is slow and clumsy to attach when you have multiple mounts for lights and computers and a USB charger as well.

Here is my original setup to make space on the bars. It's an Exposure Revo (which does not have a switch), a KLite two-way switch and a Sinewave Revolution USB charger underneath the handlebar extension. It was still too cluttered for me when attaching the bags so when I saw the Sinewave Beacon I ordered one immediately.

[Marc40a]

Thanks for explaining that bar mount, Ron. That helped a lot. I'm definitely going to pick one up now.

Also, I liked the shifter and brake cable management in your earlier picture. That's well done with the zip ties.

[Dana Ernst]

I'm curious if anyone has tried one of the 3D printed GoPro to Dynamo light adapters.  For example:

https://www.shapeways.com/product/NBSJ475FQ/gopro-bicycle-dynamo-front-light-adapter?optionId=63642438

I have no idea if the 3D printed stuff will hold up to the abuse of bikepacking.  Is this one a better option compared to the 3D printed stuff:

http://www.pacifier.com/~kevinb/GoPro_Mounts.html

[RonK]

I'm using KevinB's CNC'ed adaptor. See the pictures in my previous (last but one) post.

[JoePavlik]

What do you guys think about using this k-edge mount for a k-lite? http://a.co/5JuDzcw

I needed something that goes a bit further forwards.

I would have my garmin angled slightly upwards using a kedge gopro combo with the gopro light adaptor below it. use a random bolt to secure the klite upsidedown.

[Bobonli]

Where are people mounting their SineWave Revolution boxes?

I'm looking to add one to my bikes, one of which is Di2 so the space under the stem is already occupied by the junction box.And the top is where is mount my Garmin or smartphone.

While we're at it.....I notice that a lot of pictures in this thread show a K-Lite mounted on the bars but that wouldn't seem to work well if you are running a handlebar harness to carry gear. My plan was to mount the light a bit lower which--I imagine--would make access to the charging port on the light more challenging. And that why I thought the Revolution might be more practical and also allow me to move it bike-to-bike.

[Kiwi Pete]

Hi all
So I had a kLite light on my bike and I was over all the wiring and parts too it

So I changed over to a Sinewave Beacon and like the way it was simpler so get a second for my about town bike.

Well after a winter of coming home from work in the dark I have sold off my two Sinwave lights and i'm back using my old kLite Pro light as it's far better light to see with and just works better.

I'm waiting on one of the all new kLite lights for my next Bikepacking adventure