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Project Beseen : Lets See That Reflective Tape!!

23K views 38 replies 18 participants last post by  mcbecerril 
#1 ·
Lets see them reflective bikes (tron?)

Here is my 2009 gf cobia, unfinished

with dieter rack pack bags and junk
 

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#29 ·
I like those sidewalls too.
CYRON10k said:
A quick opinion question.... is there a point where too much reflectivity and crazy lights might be distracting to drivers? Maybe they don't hit the cyclist but they veer into the opposite lane or don't see a car stopping in front of them? Thoughts?
For reflective stuff, I can`t imagine that. For lights, yeah. There are some SERIOUS bike lights out there if you`re willing to put up mega bucks- when you start getting out of the toy category, you need to be careful how you aim them. Also worth noting that daylight requires brighter lights or more direct eyball blasting aim than night time, so it`s conceiveable that you could have to re-aim between dark and light rides.
 
#30 ·
Yeah the Michelin City Tire's reflective stripe is potent on my pair, too.

Can we have too much?

Short of mounting a parabolic reflector to beam their own lights back at 'em, I don't see reflectors by themselves causing an issue.

Drunk drivers will drive towards flashing lights - just ask emergency personel and tow truck drivers. But people not concentrating on driving will miss a single blinky. So take your choice. It is only your life and limb at risk. Me? I think more is better in tail lights and side lights.

Rodar nailed it on the headlights and issues. They can be too much if broadcast. Most off road trail lights won't be road friendly. If designed well, placed precisely, they are highly effective and attention getting, but not blinding or offensive. :thumbsup:
 
#31 ·
CommuterBoy said:
My old Nashbike. I see about 5 cars on my dark morning commute...so the Lightweights were more because I thought they looked cool. I use a Planet Bike Superflash in the rear and I now have a Cateye 2 watt Blaze up front...the flashy mode on that causes seizures and carnage.. turns the world into your own strobe/rave dance party. low beam is plenty for my rural commute...planning on using high beam on the singletrack route when the snow melts.
Nice bike, what frame is that? What are the specs?
 
#34 ·
Hi Charlie

Glad you liked the photo effect! It gives a reasonable idea of what a driver of a vehicle would see with headlights shining onto the bike.

I took two photos, one with, and one without flash and used an old magazine freebie version of JASC Animation Shop to turn them into an animated gif. There are other freebie applications available that will do the same job. Have a look here ....... not used any of these myself ......

5 Best Free GIF Animators to Create Animated GIF || Free Software

Posting is the same as posting a photo. Essentially, you use a free Image Hosting website .... like Photobucket or others ...... to upload (store) your images to and you can then include the link to your image in the message you write on the forum.

I got my reflective black tape from an online auction shop, it is self-adhesive and has stayed stuck down in all weathers over 4 years ....... you end up using a lot more than you think you would on the bike!

If you want any more detail, PM me. Cheers, Bob.
 
#36 ·

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#38 ·
I haven`t tried to take any off, but I was warned when I put it on that it has to be scraped off, so I wrapped electrical tape around my frame tubes, then Reflexite on the electrical tape. For main frame tubes, it might be needed, but my tape doesn`t stick well to smaller radius surfaces-. I folded little flags of tape around my spokes and it didn`t last a week. Wrapped around 3/8 tubing on my rack worked for about a year, and it`s just now starting to come off the stays after maybe two years. All the tape I put on big tubes is still well stuck, though scraped and scratched here and there.
 
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