One of the fun parts of my job at Optics Central is that I can take display telescopes home and try them out, so I can write about them in this blog. Including the phone adapter, the bundle costs around $180. Finally, we took some photographs of the Moon and Saturn, using the Saxon ScopePix phone adapter (read more about phone adapters here). We even very carefully projected an image of the sun on a piece of paper. We looked at the moon, Saturn and Mars, some bright nebulas and clusters, as well as stuff on the ground. While it may be inexpensive, the alt-azimuth mount makes it very easy to use and the optics provide a high performance for its price. That said, £16.50 isn't that outlandish compared with similar quality retro-reflective sticker sets, including Respro's Camo.īottom line, they do work very well and would be something I'd consider on a winter bike/workhorse, especially if it regularly towed trailers/similar cargo.The Saxon F767 Newtonian Reflector Telescope is a beginner’s Newtonian reflector telescope. For my money, I'd be expecting a set catering for two bikes with sufficient surplus for a trailer/tagalong wheel. There's no denying the Flectrs do exactly what they promise to, but they are a bit pricey. Adhesives seem unaffected too, so they should last – unless you're prone to spoke breakages. > Buyer's Guide: Clothes and accessories to help keep you visibleĭurability seems favourable: despite regular exposure to wet roads and the cocktail of spilt fuels and subsequent exposure to bike washing solutions, the reflectives seem untainted. Put into this context, £16.50 pales into insignificance. I've had similar close shaves with a low-slung trailer trundling behind my tubby tourer. I've experienced this first hand when my son was small and it's terrifying.
REFLECTOR 3 REDDIT DRIVERS
However, many drivers are not looking for or don't consider a trailer/similar addition and will pull away, once the rider's rear wheel comes into view, seemingly on auto-pilot. With increasingly bright main and secondary lighting, solo bikes tend – thankfully – to be pretty visible.
Okay, some of us will not want these or anything similar adorning their pared-to-the-essentials race bikes, but to my mind they'd come into their own on tagalongs and trailers. Pushing things to 30-35mph along descents, there's been no hint of flutter, and for the most part I've not noticed them negatively. Open road visibility is nearer 100-150 metres in relatively clear conditions.
It's well worth giving the spokes a quick clean first too.Īt the other extreme, drivers seemed less inclined to 'chance it' when I was belting past unlit junctions at 23-25mph. The adhesive backing is super-strong and doesn't permit dry runs, or realignment. There's no prescribed pattern, which allows a fair bit of creative licence, although I'd urge you to plan first, then stick. They're also universally compatible with aero and round bladed spoke patterns, regardless of diameter. The blurb also says the Flectr's shape and profile are optimised to avoid drag and tested extensively – 100mph in controlled experiments failed to induce oscillation or noise. Superficially, they're no different from others we're used to seeing on clothing, luggage and accessories.Īccording to the blurb, these supposedly meet the standards set by police and other emergency services. Reckoned indestructible, these are impregnated with thousands of microprisms these are what reflect light back when graced by car headlamps. Obvious pluses include decent retro-reflective prowess, minimal weight and – theoretically – zero drag. The Flectr Zero is, crudely, a pack of four reflective peel and seal stickers designed to replace those clunky, unsightly plastic types often supplied with new bikes.