SEVEN DAY CYCLIST
CYCLING, BUT NOT USUALLY RACING

Function and style with a big dose of fun; Knog are innovative with myriad products fitting most price brackets and offering choice of colours for the cyclist serious about getting lit up.

 

Referring to micro “chips on board”, Mr. Chips is just one of five “personalities” in the range. In fact they are the most expensive in the Blinder MOB family. So, it was “Hello Mr. Chips”, and off into the gloaming at the end of some long days on an autumn tour. As the evening gathered in so the 36 LEDs up front began to demonstrate its power; first around the bars and then onto the road …. could it really be seen 1.2km ahead, as the website blurb claims. Finding a long straight, dismounting and disappearing down the road, my mount, half-hidden in a hedgerow was clearly visible. Preferring cycling to jogging, I gave up at the kilometre was reached and decided to take their word for it beyond that point The point is that these are seriously bright lights and what is a couple of hundred yards here or there at that sort of distance?The rear lamp boasts a stunning 64 LEDs.

 

The press bar switch, cunningly located in a curved recess, proved fiddly running up and down the range of settings when wearing thick gloves, but is unlikely to suffer accidental turn-on in the pocket or the pannier.

 

Rear and front lights came with a selection of silicone mounting rings, fitting solidly to bars, seat-posts and steering tubes. Aero compatible, you’ll not be lost for somewhere to fix it to. A double twist secured it to a saddle-bag loop, though that certainly looked more precarious. Easily interchangeable, too, and simply removable for this who don’t want to lose their investment

 

A tab on the light plugs directly into a USB port, saving confusion amongst chargers and tangled webs in the pannier. Lights indicate charging status, whilst a second light indicates low charge - plenty of warning time to step up the pace or search for a back up.

 

Charging time is officially between four and five hours. Ours generally seemed to take toward the former The reward for this lengthy process is a whopping fifty hours plus when used on eco-mode. this collapses to 4 for the front and 6 for the rear when used on full  setting, but even that should get the longest distance commuter safely home. Advertised run times seem broadly accurate.

Clearly suited the urban rider, on a tour these proved their worth, too; no need to use the main lights until the way ahead was unclear. Even then, these were good visible as auxiliary lights. They’ll be charged and in my pannier for the commute and the longer tour. Just make sure you have access to a USB port at work or a suitable USB charger in the B&B or hostel. Knog say that you could recharge from a dynamo-powered bike-mounted USB, but that you’d need a lot of pedalling to get much of  charge.