First Impressions: Lumotec IQ Fly N-Plus

Standard

I ordered a new headlight for my bike. The UPS man dropped it off today. I got it all mounted up and took it out for a short ride after the sun went down.

Lumotec IQ Fly

My old headlight was a Shimano LP-R6000, so that’s all I have to compare it with.

The bottom line is that Lumotec is dramatically better in almost every way. It’s brighter. Way brighter. It lights up the whole road, even at ridiculously low speeds. When I got off to push up a hill, it was still nice and bright.

The Shimano light is pretty much worthless when you go too slow, and if you have to push up a hill in the dark, you’re SOL.

The Lumotec also has a capacitor that keeps the light running even when you stop. I stopped along the river to fart around and listen to the geese, and it stayed lit for 5 minutes. I don’t know how much longer it would have stayed on. The geese weren’t that interesting, so I left.

The Shimano light just turns off when you stop pedaling. That sucks when you come to a stoplight.

The only thing I don’t like about the Lumotec is the mounting bracket that comes with it pretty much has to be mounted on the fork crown, and I had to improvise some shims to get it installed.

The Lumotec is pretty expensive, too, but I think it’s worth it if you’re like me, and like to ride slowly and have to get off to push on the hills.

2 thoughts on “First Impressions: Lumotec IQ Fly N-Plus

  1. I have the same light! Got it very slightly used from Doc. When he handed it to me I switched it on and nearly blinded myself. The stand light capacitor still had a charge. I asked Doc how long ago he used it and he told me it had been at least one month. How’s that for German engineering? So far I’m impressed.

    I used a different mounting bracket to clear the straddle cable. The stock bracket is very beefy, but it just didn’t fit my application. However, based on Apertome’s broken VO fender story and my inability to get the damn front fender to line up just right, I think I’m going to add a second stay. Then I’ll try to mount the light where the stay meets the fender. We’ll see.

  2. yup. they’re great little lights. I’m glad to see more of us getting dynamo/LED setups. Last night I went for a short ride at dusk, had the Cyo on, and had a non-lit roadie nearly fall off his bike while straining his neck to get a look at the setup. More lights = more evening riding = greater awareness of bikes on the road.

    Scott: My fender sticks out well beyond the fork crown so I ended up adding a second stay, which creates a stable platform for the light.

Comments are closed.