Review: Fenix BC21R
The Fenix BC21R sports good construction (click to enlarge).
Editor’s Note: This article is part of Mtbr and RoadBikeReview’s 2016 Bike Lights Shootout. See the 2016 Mtbr Headlights Index and the RoadBikeReview Commuter Lights Index.
The Lowdown: Fenix BC21R
The Fenix is a self-contained light from Fenix claiming 880 Lumens for an affordable price of $80. It features a field replaceable battery, thus allowing the rider as much run time as needed by carrying spare 18650 lithium batteries.
There is red side lighting available and there are cut-outs in the lens cap to give it good side visibility.
Additionally, Fenix prides itself in controlling the beam pattern well with a fairly distinct cut-off on the top and a secondary beam that illuminates the trail directly in front of the rider.
| Claimed Lumens: 880 Lumens | Mtbr Lux: 72 |
| Measured Lumens: 750 Lumens | Mounted weight: 155 grams |
| Lumens per $: 9.38 Lumens | Category: Headlight |
| Lumens per gram: 4.84 Lumens | Price: $80 |
| Run time on high: 1:20 Hours |
Rating:  4.5 Chilis-out-of-5 |
Pluses |
Minuses |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Full Review: Fenix BC21R
The highlight of this light is the beam pattern. It’s got a nice warm color that’s not too white so it’s easy to see shadows and trail contours.
More importantly, the beam is very well controlled. It has two spots, one that lights up the trail immediately ahead and one that reaches far ahead. Periphery is well lit with good spill at close range. Finally, the top is chopped off a little bit to conserve light from being wasted at the very top of the beam. It also allows the rider to avoid shining the top of the beam into drivers’ eyes when commuting on the road.
Fenix BC21R has good heat sinking (click to enlarge).
Infinite battery is a good feature of this light, as it uses a standard 18650 lithium battery that is field replaceable. The battery is very easy to access with a removeable rear cap. This makes long rides a possibility well beyond the 1:20 run time at the highest setting. The rider simply needs to carry as many spare batteries as needed.
Continue to page 2 for more on the Fenix BC21R, the beam pattern and Lumen measurement »
The post Review: Fenix BC21R appeared first on Mountain Bike Review.