A faux vintage headlight.

I've made a retro style headlight for my bike.

But I'm not sure if I like it or not. It's almost pretty good, I think. But I'm not quite sure it's going to make the grade. See what you think, wouldja?

(Operationally, it's good. I took it for a test ride last night. Good light pattern on the road. It vibrated a bit. But I've already figured out how to stiffen it and I'll be doing that after this is posted)

My daughter spotted it for what it was immediately; a painted coffee can. So I guess it won't stand a whole lot of scrutiny. Up close at least.

But.....then.....I'm not embarrassed about re-purposing junk into something I'd otherwise have to pay for.











So......whaddaya think? Does this look good? Bad? Maybe one, maybe the other?

I suppose I'll eventually form my own opinion. But right now I'm undecided.

I might not need to decide, though, in the end. Because I'm already forming ideas about something similar that, maybe, will be a bit less clumsy.

I guess we'll see.

I rebuilt the mount. And, maybe, got some improvement.










I think I like the way that it's sitting a bit better now. But it's still just a bit big.
I'm not sure of this one.

But.....I guess I'll be riding it like this for a little while anyway. I guess I'll have time to decide.

Well.......I suppose it looks kinda 'vintage' to me. But I'm more concerned with whether or not it looks half-way good. I'm having a hard time deciding.

That doesn't really matter, though, because I'll make up my mind. Probably within a couple of days or so.

I should have titled this thread with "Opinions, please". 'Cause that's what I'm after. There've been a number of views already. But yours is the first vote, Tom.

You worded it kindly. And I appreciate that. But I take it that you're giving it a 'thumbs down'?

Still.....as I type this I can look out the window at my bike in it's parking spot. And I think I'm liking it a bit more........

Oh, I see. And thanks for the encouragement.

But I've got far, far too much ego to not appreciate my own efforts.

And if I end up deciding that this one isn't good enough, then the next one will be better. I've already got an idea or two.

Diameter is just shy of 6 1/2 inches. Depth is 5 inches.

The look is beginning to grow on me. But this can is too big. Here's a couple more views. This morning in decent light.






This particular one isn't good enough. But I think I can do something with the basic design. I'll simply need to find some can that's just a bit smaller.

One other change I'll make. Looking at it from the front, I don't like the look of it because I cut out most of the back in order that I can stick my hand in there and switch the lights on and off.

The 'see through' kinda ruins the illusion of a headlight. So on the next one I think I'll simply drill two holes, maybe 1/2 inch. I'll stick something like a ball-point pen through in order to 'punch' the switches on and off.

Now imagine placing a 'lens' over the front and attaching it to struts on the rear with 'all thread'. That, I think, would give the illusion of a headlight from, say, the depression era or so.

It might take me a while to make it since I'm going to go with this one and see how I like it.

But I think this design might be improveable.

By the way, I made my commute home in the dark tonight. And the pattern it threw on the road was just fine. Good coverage and light spread.

Hmmm.....a vendor might be a good idea. I can get a bit of plexi cheaply enough. But I haven't figured out yet just how to cut a good circle in it.

"Get some conduit on that tree!" I'm afraid I don't know what you mean there.

"You had ought to do a matching tail light! " --mogollonmonster.

That's not a bad idea at all.

And thanks for the plexi-cutting tips. They could come in handy.

My coffee brand? Folgers.

As a matter of fact, I have learned that lesson. The hard way, if I remember right.

I'm pretty good at scoring and snapping straight lines in that stuff. A nice, smooth circle might be a bit more difficult.

"Anywho, how's your weather in Illinois? Just got our first snow on the Mogollon Rim! Already gone in our high 40s daytime temps." --mogollonmonster.

It looks like November will be kind to us this year. It can be a dreary month in these parts. Though I've always liked it. It's some of the best bicycling weather. As long as you're prepared for rain. Cold, grey rain.

But this November is a bit different. The foliage is a bit behind in terms of drying up, turning brown and falling off. And it's a bit more Sunny than our typical November. (Being a Sun hater, I don't approve of that) Temperatures are mild. This morning it got down to about 33 deg F. The first time this fall that we've even come close to freezing. Just last week we had highs in the lower 70s F. Recent days have seen highs in the 55 range. And the forecast for the next two weeks seems to indicate pretty much the same. Slowly falling highs and lows. But not extreme. A couple of days some rain is expected. But not much.

Riding has been just fine.

Just the other day I got my new rain suit. A set of Tourmaster rain pants and a Frogg Togg rain jacket. I've had the chance now to try them out on two commutes and they seem just fine.

My old rain pants --bib style coveralls, to be precise-- are at least ten years old. More, I think. I'm pretty sure they're not twenty. But they might be fifteen. And I'd have replaced them by now. Except it's really been pretty hard to find just what I want.

But they've been so faithful to me. They've gone through so much weather with me. Even when I had to stretch them into a longer life than they should have endured, it's been a pleasure. But the fabric has been feeling pretty thin for a while. And I just know that a seam is going to rip out sometime. Probably sooner rather than later. And they haven't even been very waterproof in the last several years. And the last couple of years they haven't been waterproof at all. I've sprayed them with Camp-Dri a few times. But that's temporary help. Nothing more.

The original Velcro which holds the pocket flaps closed wore out and ripped out years ago. I've replaced a few times since. But they wore out, too. This last time I replaced with stainless steel 'snaps'. Fine. But the material of the pants feels so thin that I'm afraid I'll rip it pulling those snaps open. The shoulder straps ripped out of their 'mounts' years ago. I machine-screwed them back into place.

It almost sounds kinda comical the way I'm describing it. Making these old flea-bitten rain pants last years longer than they should have been expected to. But I was holding out for the perfect replacement. I haven't found it. But what I did find is certainly pretty good.

But my old ones might be the last perfect set of rain pants on Earth. They deserve a retirement ceremony. They deserved to be entombed in a mausoleum. Heck.....I have almost as much affection for these as I have for my dog!

But they're not going to get such fine treatment. There's plenty of good patch material in these pants.

Oh, wait.........to get back on topic........I gave up on the headlight.

Only for now, that is. I'll come back to this idea. It might not be immediately since I have other projects that I want to work on. Not to mention all of the things that I must do.

I liked the headlight. But the mount needed improvement. Plus the headlight itself was just a bit too big. Sooner or later I'll find something that has better proportions. And then I'll do it again.

In the meantime, I've simply gone back to the 'light bar' way of doing things.