Spanninga/Hella Lights

Hella cycling lights are now part of the Spanninga group of companies. Hella also makes terrific lights for automobiles, but that part of Hella is not connected with Spannninga. I don't sell them and I have no more abillity to special order Hella automotive lights than to invent cold fusion.

Hella HL 2000, HL 2000R

The Hella HL 2000 headlight is now in stock. This little headlight has a very large beam, tall and wide, brightest at the top, with a nice vertical progression. From the bottom of the beam, it gets brighter and brighter as you come to the top. So the road further away gets more light than the road close to you, thereby appearing to be fairly evenly lit to the cyclist. The top of the beam has a nice sharp edge, so very bright light isn't fucused into the eyes of oncoming cyclists or motor vehicle drivers. Only 3 3/4 inches long, less than twice the length of a AA battery (it takes four) it easily mounts on your handlebar and can be easily removed for security.

Like most lights sold for road cycling, the HL 2000 isn't waterproof so you can't use it submerged in water. And if you ride in the rain, water will get inside. But like many other well designed headlights, it doesn't matter. What matters is that the light keeps working. When I got in my sample (not a prototype, a full production version) after testing the beam I put it in the kitchen sink (still switched on) and put the sprayer on it for about eight minutes, getting a lot more water on it than you're likely to get while riding. It kept working. When I turned off the sprayer, water continued to flow out of the bottom drain hole for a few seconds. So water can get inside, but it just flows out the bottom and has no affect at all on the function of the light. If you ride in winter on salted roads, I'd suggest rinsing the light thoroughly with clean water if you get salt water spray on it.

There are two ways to buy the HL 2000. It's available with four AA alkaline batteries. It's also available as the HL 2000R with four AA NiHM batteries and a charging station. Leave the NiMH batteries inside, and set the light on its charging station. The batteries will be charged while inside the light. And if you want to use the HL 2000R and its charging station to charge other NiMH AA batteries, feel free.You'll need a voltage converter for the charging station, which is set up for higher European voltage. We have them for about $12.

Ten hour run time of fully charged NiMH batteries at full power. About twelve hours at low power.

HL 2000: $ 65.00 AA alkaline batteries included

HL 2000R: $ 104.00 AA NiMH batteries and charger included. We sell an adapter for the German plug.

The HL2000 can also be powered by a hub dynamo, using one of three optional mounts. See below.

Spanninga Luceo

The Luceo mounts to the fork crown on bikes using V brakes or disc brakes. The mount is built into the light itself, so using this light at the fork crown with either caliper brakes or center pull cantilevers is impossible. But with either V brakes or disc brakes, this is one fine inexpensive headlight for the moderate speed commuter on relatively flat roads. The Luceo uses a center mounted LED pointing back towards the reflector. The reflector makes excellent use of the LED's output providing a moderate width horizontal rectangle of light (on a vertical surface) and dimmer light above and below the bright central rectangle. On the road, where it matters, the Luceo's beam is rather tall, close to the light patch of the Schmidt E6, but without that light's intensely bright top section, and much more diffused. I don't recommend the Luceo for fast descending on mountain roads. I do recommend it for cruising up to 15 mph on dark country roads, as well as urban commuting.

This headlight really shouldn't be compared with the Ixon, Ixon IQ or Lumotec IQ Fly from B&M, both or which have brighter and larger beams and are more expensive. The Luceo should be compared with lights such as the Cateye EL530 and the Busch & Müller Lumotec. So here goes.

The EL530 has a cute little spot surrounded by a dimmer halo. It's the classic symmetrical beam that most light makers sell you. The central spot of the Cateye is slightly brighter than the central rectangle of the Luceo. But that central rectangle is about four times wider than the diameter of the EL530's central spot, and twice as tall! When you factor in the halo around the Luceo's beam, it's much taller and wider than the Cateye EL530.

Compared with the Lumotec, the Luceo's beam is not as wide. It's about 3/4 the width of the Lumotec. But the beam is quite a bit taller than the Lumotec. As you're moving along, you'll have more time to see something on the road surface with the Luceo. Of course the Luceo is more expensive than the Lumotec.

So if you're considering the Cateye, and have either disc brakes or V brakes, consider the Luceo too. It's a bit more expensive than the Cateye, but you'll see a lot more of the road. With the Cateye, you'll see a nice little bitty spot on the road ahead. With the Luceo, you'll see a nice big patch of roadway.

And the Luceo is available in two versions. One version, Luceo XS, is powered by a hub or sidewall dynamo, so you have light any time the bike is moving. The other version, Luceo XB, is powered by three AA batteries.

Just remember that the Luceo only mounts at the fork crown, and only with V brakes or disc brakes. If you have traditional cantilever brakes, there's simply no way to mount this light at the fork crown.

Luceo XS: $ 35.50 Dynamo version, On/Off switch

Luceo XB: $ 34.00 Three AA batteries included

Spanninga makes a nice headlight using 5 LEDs, the Q229. It has three settings. First setting has three LEDs lit. Second setting has all five LEDs lit. And the third setting has all five LEDs flashing. The Q229 is great for fixing a flat or dealing with other mechanical issues. It can also be zip tied to your helmet making a great helmet mounted light for reading road signs or a map. It's also great for carrying wood in from the shed, or any chore that requires light while keeping your hands free. The vertical angle is adjustable in several click stops on the mount. You'll need a small phillips screw driver to install the two AA batteries, which are included. It takes a few minutes to install the batteries.

Q229 Headlight $ 31.50 Batteries Included.

The Star Cute can be slid onto the rear of the Q229 headlight band. It has a bright red LED that can be set to steady or flashing modes.

Just press the little button the back.

Star Cute $ 12.00 Battery Included.

The QL219 road handlebar end plug lights do just that! We have them for road handlebars as well as for flat or MTB bars. The road version has a single large LED in each plug. The MTB version has two smaller LEDs in each plug. The batteries are LR44 and each plug takes two batteries. Batteries are included. These are sold only in pairs. The prices are for two plugs, in other words, one pair of plugs.

QL219 Road Plugs $ 15.00

QL223 MTB Plugs $ 16.50

Hella RL ONE

Another Hella product, the RL ONE taillight is beautifully designed. The lens provides a very wide spread of bright light to the rear, 45 degrees horizontal, and 20 degrees vertical. That's the really bright part of the beam. It's visible from every direction. It can be set to be on steady or flash. It comes with a belt clip and two bicycle mounts; one for seat posts up to 28.2mm, and another for seat stays. It's powered by two AAA batteries. 50 hour run time on steady, 200 hours flashing. It's two inches tall and 1.5 inches wide. It also has a small reflector. To let you know the batteries are getting weak, there's a small red LED warning light that will came on. It's located directly behind the reflector. Once you see that you know you need to replace the batteries soon.

In my opinion, steady lights are safer than flashing as there's some evidence that tired or alcoholically impaired drivers may be mesmerized by flashing lights, at least bright ones, and drive towards the light. And without question, if you're riding in a group, steady lights are much friendlier to those following you.

Hella RL ONE: $ 14.50

Hella RL 1500

This little taillight has threee LEDs and easily attaches to the seat post without tools. Use it in steady or flashing mode. The typical run times are 50 hours steady and 180 hours flashing. A simple and reliable switch is on top.

Hella RL 1500: $ 22.50

Spanninga DX 25

This small taillight attaches to the seat post or seat stay without tools, and just a coin is needed to change the two AAA batteries. The light pivots vertically on its mount, so adjusting the aiming of the light is easy, whether it's on the seat post or a seat stay.

Spanninga DX 25: $ 17.50

Spanninga SPXb

The Spanninga SPXb LED taillight mounts on a rear fender. It is powered by 2 AAA batteries (not included) and has a 100 hour run time. The SPXb is ideal for use with generator headlights such as the Schmidt dynohub system or Dymotec sidewall dynamos when you don't want to or can't run a wire from the Lumotec headlight to the rear of the bike, or if you want a second light in addition to a DToplight Plus mounted on a rear rack. It includes a reflector. The light is visible over 180 degrees horizontal, and is very bright directly on axis, due to focusing prisms in front of the super bright LED. The beam doesn't blink.

$ 22.00 AAA batteries not included.

Eclipse Xb

This battery powered taillight attaches to a rear rack, such as most Tubus models. There are two screws that point forward. They are 50mm apart, side by side and enable mounting to the rear of any rack with a siuitable mount. If your rack doesn't have the mount built in, we do have some mounts that can bolt onto many rear racks. It has a single bright LED with optics that provide greater than 180 visibility to the rear and sides. A simple and reliable push button switch is on the top of the light. Crescent shaped refectors are positioned on each side of the LED's optics which are in the center section.

Eclipse Xb: $ 20.00 AAA Batteries are included. About 60 hours run time.

HL 2000 Headlight Mounts

Power your HL 2000 from a hub dynamo!

We have a few optional mounts for the Hella HL 2000 headlight. And they do a very interesting thing. They have wiring for a hub dynamo, allowing you to power the HL 2000 from the hub. There are three types. One replaces the standard handlebar mount with another handlebar mount having the electrical connections and the wiring. The handlebar mount will not fit the new goofy oversized handlebars. Sorry. The next allows mounting the HL 2000 at the fork crown on a fork with V-brakes or disc brakes. The last mounts the light at a fork crown with cantilever brakes, or, again, disc brakes. There is no option for mounting the HL 2000 on a fork which has caliper brakes.

Hella HB-02 handlebar mount with dynamo connections and wiring: $ 12.00

Hella HB-03 V-brake fork crown mount with dynamo connections and wiring: $ 12.00

Hella HB-04 cantilever brake fork crown mount with dynamo connections and wiring: $ 12.00

Dealer Inquiries Invited. Please call 603 478 0900

If you have a retail bicycle shop, or are a bicycle manufacturer, you can purchase Spanninga and Hella lights, at wholesale pricing for resale. Any shop in the US or Canada can purchase Spanninga lights for sale in your store. Please call me for pricing. Peter White Cycles is the official representative for Spanninga in the US and Canada, and we want all bicycle shops to be able to sell these fine lights.

In addition to Spanninga, we represent Wilfried Schmidt Maschinenbau, Busch & Müller, Inoled, Pitlock, and Tout Terrain. We can provide your shop with all of these products at wholesale pricing. See this page for more details on opening a wholesale account with us.

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This page updated: Monday, January 26, 2009

Peter White Cycles
24 Hall Rd.
Hillsborough, NH 03244
USA
603 478 0900 Phone
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