Review of Bell Generator Bicycle Light Set

Bell Generator Bicycle Light Set
By: Bell Average Rating: 2.5 Total Reviews: 13
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Just What You Need

On: 2008-05-28

It was hard to find a generator light locally for some reason, but
Amazon pointed at the Bell offering. Its perfect. While battery lights
have come a long way for bicycles, a good generator light is invaluable
because it never runs out. As long as your moving, you can see the
road, and if you bike at night, or end up on a long ride that leaves
you in the dark, you might just want that. The downside of any generator
light is that once you stop pedaling it stops shining, thats why you
have your back up battery light. The Bell is solidly constructed, the
light itself has a crosshatch of plastic that gives saftey from breakage
from flying stones, and the instructions and installation are a snap
for anyone. Be safe, wear a helmet, make sure youve got lots of
reflectors, wear bright clothes...and get this light.

Last <2 Hours

On: 2008-04-27

This by far wasnt going to be my primary light but as a backup/secondary light I thought it would be great.
Had it all setup and went for a short ride with my wife after work and decided to run it. We didnt make it much futher then 20 miles when she said the light wasnt on at all and when I checked on it had actually melted by top where it mounts to the tire and pushed through the side.

I guess if you are going to go really slowly and not very far this might work. If you plan on going at a good clip for >1 hour it probably cant take it.

broke within a week

On: 2008-01-20

While the price was right and it was easy to install, it broke within a week and there are no spare parts available. Dont waste your money.

Lights up the road and makes you visible for $10 and no batteries!

On: 2008-01-09

This is about as easy as it gets to light your bike. You simply remove the item from its package, install the clamp that holds the tail light on, install the clamp that holds the generator on and install the headlight, connect the wire and youre all set and ready to go. It produces strong light ahead of you so that you can see at night. The beam is a nice rectangular shape of bright white light.

A lot of people in the other reviews complain about the instructions being inadequate, but, really, how hard is it to mount a generator? It is important to make sure that the generator is mounted correctly and the instructions give you tips on how to do that.

That said, this is about as cheap as it gets. This thing costs $10 at Target, which is where I got mine. Replacing the bulbs alone will cost you $3, so you can see that this item must only cost about $1 to manufacture. Someone has to source the bulbs, the wire, the generator and the light housings in the Far East, package it, and ship it over here all at a price that makes selling it for $10 profitable.

The clamps could be a little stronger, the metals a little harder and more durable, but I put one of these on my bike for commuting and it held up in all kinds of weather for years and is still going strong.

For what it is, it warrants five stars, even at twice the price.

You could spend a lot more and get basically the same thing, or you could spend five times as much and get what most everybody was hoping to get for their $10.

PS: I took that black cage thing off of my unit and it looks so much better.

light set

On: 2007-12-21

easy install,lights work well, a little noisy, hope it lasts as i ride every day in the predawn hours.

It works....eventually

On: 2007-10-30

I bought one of these on eBay for 10 bucks with Huffy branding and couldnt get it to work. I was actually looking for a replacement on Amazon when I saw the identical system and decided to read the reviews. The key to making it work, as a couple of buyers said, is getting it grounded properly. The generator, the tail light and the headlamp have to share a common ground in all of these SINGLE WIRE systems regardless how much you spend. I have and old English racer style bike, but if youre trying to use this on a bike with independent suspension youre gonna have to get out the soldering iron and connect all three components with another wire which, according to some bike gurus, isnt a bad idea anyway in case you lose your grounding due to the environment such as dirt, rain. road salt etc.
I tried the electric drill thing too, but the lights wont work unless theyre grounded to the same element as the generator which in my case was the bike frame.
Keep in mind that this isnt for serious cycling and the directions even say that speeds over 20 mph can blow out the bulbs. Plus, in order to get enough contact for the light to work properly, you add a little more drag than before. Get used to it because with proper installation its minimal compared to the generator systems I had on my Schwinn 3-speed 45 years ago. Youre looking for maximum surface contact between the generator roller and sidewall with minimum drag. Its a little touchy and you may have stabilize the generator mount on the fork.
This is very adequate for short distance commuting, night time munchie beer runs or if you find yourself at a neighbors house after sunset.
What did expect for $15? Look it as your first lesson in fundamentals of electricity.
Overall, its pretty simple if you remember GROUNDING, GROUNDING, GROUNDING!

It works....eventually

On: 2007-10-29

I bought one of these on eBay for 10 bucks with Huffy branding and couldnt get it to work. I was actually looking for a replacement on Amazon when I saw the identical system and decided to read the reviews. The key to making it work, as a couple of buyers said, is getting it grounded properly. The generator, the tail light and the headlamp have to share a common ground in all of these SINGLE WIRE systems regardless how much you spend. I have and old English racer style bike, but if youre trying to use this on a bike with independent suspension youre gonna have to get out the soldering iron and connect all three components with another wire which, according to some bike gurus, isnt a bad idea anyway in case you lose your grounding due to the environment such as dirt, rain. road salt etc.
I tried the electric drill thing too, but the lights wont work unless theyre grounded to the same element as the generator which in my case was the bike frame.
Keep in mind that this isnt for serious cycling and the directions even say that speeds over 20 mph can blow out the bulbs. Plus, in order to get enough contact for the light to work properly, you add a little more drag than before. Get used to it because with proper installation its minimal compared to the generator systems I had on my Schwinn 3-speed 45 years ago. Youre looking for maximum surface contact between the generator roller and sidewall with minimum drag. Its a little touchy and you may have stabilize the generator mount on the fork.
This is very adequate for short distance commuting, night time munchie beer runs or if you find yourself at a neighbors house after sunset.
What did expect for $15? Look it as your first lesson in fundamentals of electricity.
Overall, its pretty simple if you remember GROUNDING, GROUNDING, GROUNDING!

Piece Of Junk

On: 2007-08-13

This was a complete waste of time and money. It never worked even for one minute, not even for a second.

The brackets are flimsy and the instructions useless. After seeing it didnt work we hooked it to a volt meter and spun it with a hand drill. Voltage output was ZERO.

I guess I should have returned it ASAP but instead I hooked the two lights up to a rechargeable 6 volt battery and try to keep my battery charged.

Piece Of Junk

On: 2007-08-12

This was a complete waste of time and money. It never worked even for one minute, not even for a second.

The brackets are flimsy and the instructions useless. After seeing it didnt work we hooked it to a volt meter and spun it with a hand drill. Voltage output was ZERO.

I guess I should have returned it ASAP but instead I hooked the two lights up to a rechargeable 6 volt battery and try to keep my battery charged.

Yes, it can be made to work...

On: 2007-07-24

This Chinese-made dynamo set costs around $15 retail. I bought one at an Ace Hardware store in Bonita Springs, Fl. I did have to run a ground wire between the headlamp and the dynamo, or else the headlamp wouldnt work. This is true of most tire-driven generators and any bike whose front fork is electrically isolated by a suspension. Once connected properly, it works just fine. (These bottle-style dynamos use the bike chassis as circuit ground in lieu of the additional wire.) The light output from the headlamp can be feeble, but can be substantially improved by removing the plastic "crosshatch" over the lens. It just slips off, the the light output improves by a factor of two.

Look, its no Busch&Muller unit, but what do you want for 15 bucks?

Yes, it can be made to work...

On: 2007-07-23

This Chinese-made dynamo set costs around $15 retail. I bought one at an Ace Hardware store in Bonita Springs, Fl. I did have to run a ground wire between the headlamp and the dynamo, or else the headlamp wouldnt work. This is true of most tire-driven generators and any bike whose front fork is electrically isolated by a suspension. Once connected properly, it works just fine. (These bottle-style dynamos use the bike chassis as circuit ground in lieu of the additional wire.) The light output from the headlamp can be feeble, but can be substantially improved by removing the plastic "crosshatch" over the lens. It just slips off, the the light output improves by a factor of two.

Look, its no Busch&Muller unit, but what do you want for 15 bucks?

Hard to get to work

On: 2007-01-15

The pointed screws that are meant to screw into the brackets to provide a ground are terrible. They are too small, what you need to do is go to the hardware store and pickup some longer pointed screws to provide the ground for the brackets, then the lights will work just fine. Other than problem with the wrong size screws, the product was pretty easy to install and worth the whole 15 bucks I spent on it.

Requires retrofit, but it works

On: 2006-12-09

I was initially frustrated with this set, but at ~$10, I wasnt really complaining once I got it to work. The key to getting it to work is screwing the bracket into the frame so it makes solid contact through paint for a good ground. I basically read the directions to get the general idea, and then installed it myself based on what made sense.

I would buy it again, but only for a cheaper bike, not my good one.

Bike Light

On: 2006-11-10

Initially it worked fine but seems to fall to pieces over a short period of time. I suspect it will be fine after some modifications on my part this weekend. They just dont build things as sturdy as they used too.
Still it was worth the effort, one can hardly find this type of thing at the local bike shop and certainly not at the mall.

Bike Light

On: 2006-11-09

Initially it worked fine but seems to fall to pieces over a short period of time. I suspect it will be fine after some modifications on my part this weekend. They just dont build things as sturdy as they used too.
Still it was worth the effort, one can hardly find this type of thing at the local bike shop and certainly not at the mall.

Horrible Product

On: 2006-08-23

Stay away from this prodcut. Manual sucks...and the product is horrible....there is no way this thing is going to work.

Let nothing induce you to buy this product

On: 2006-08-06

The only satisfaction I have gotten out of this product is this opportunity to vent. If the price seems too cheap, it is. Where to begin? Instructions, pretty bad. Hardware, missing, inconsistent, inadequate. Design, deeply flawed. Mounting, not on my standard mountain bike. Manufacture, cheap, cheap, cheap.

What result culminated my frustrating evening retrofitting it just to see if it would work? Ill spare you the suspense, it didnt. Not a glimmer.