New Red Zone 8 light

[Coolabah]

So did you guys buy the 8 or the new RZ4?

I was sent a replacement for a warranty on the previous RZ4 and thought that it was an 8, until I checked the website a couple days ago. The new 8 has 2 bulbs at each end and the 4 is one at each end. Not too fussed, just thought I'd point it out.

Re mounting the thing, I've got rid of my saddle bag/tool bottle altogether as my stem just wasn't long enough. Now I carry all my tools inside a ziplock bag which goes in my jersey pocket. I've managed to arrange it so it fits together nicely and is quite a small tight pack.

Touch wood I won't come off the bike onto my back as landing on 3 co2, a mini pump, some Allen keys, a tube and some patches can't be fun

....ahhhh..... very interesting ! My Redzone was supposed to be a free upgrade to an "8" at the cost of a "4" as I placed a pre -order sight unseen in the early days when the old "4" was discontinued ie ordered AND PAID for the old one but was then emailed that they were no longer available as the new one was going to be designed . I like the light very much but am annoyed that , despite confirmation via email that I was getting the "8" , I seem to have received a "4". Having said that , I think if I had an "8" I would not be running it at 100%. Still , re-inforces the posts that talk about the street cred of the company IMHO.

[kb]

8 here. But I did send a reply requesting one to the notification email for the "free upgrade".

[Coolabah]

correction , and also apology to Nitezone : My daughter is also a keen cyclist and upon my recommendation recently bought the new RZ light , but definitely a "4"

I am not pointing any fingers, but somehow our lights got confused.... hmmm....

So, I would like to retract my narcy comments, I do indeed have the RZ 8, my experiences with the company have been exemplary.

( wiping egg from face... )

I , as usual am sounding like an idiot , but at least an honest idiot I hope !!!

[NhiTrac]

I am not pointing any fingers, but somehow our lights got confused.... hmmm....

Haha.

So is the 8 a lot brighter? I can't see the need for using the 8 on its brightest setting as the 4 is already pretty damn bright. I'm happy with my 4 =)

[Coolabah]

I am not pointing any fingers, but somehow our lights got confused.... hmmm....

Haha.

So is the 8 a lot brighter? I can't see the need for using the 8 on its brightest setting as the 4 is already pretty damn bright. I'm happy with my 4 =)

The 8 is noticeably brighter but doesn't "appear" twice as bright . The 4 is perfectly fine , I probably wouldn't pay extra for the 8 if I need to get another .

[Dr_Mutley]

Just bought a RZ8... First ride tonite, and I'm super impressed... Very easy to mount on the back of my giro ionos using 2 rubber garmin mounting bands.... Super bright... Reliability will be the determining factor, given the premium price...

Has anyone still got outstanding warranty issues that have been difficult to resolve by email? If so I have some other contact info if you need it...


Attached some pics of it helmet mounted below....












[youtube]http://youtu.be/cbuPjVSiKQ0[/youtube]

[NhiTrac]

Soooooo... How are you lads with your new RZ4/8 now that you've had a few months to test it out.

Mine, not so good. Just tonight it displayed the exact same faults as the original RZ. I.e. turned itself on during recharge and won't turn off.

But wait there's more! My RZ4 got extremely hot and started melting into the two plastic end caps which I removed very quickly. It was then that the two lights started smoking really bad and the on/off button just fell off. I assume it got so hot it melted the soldering?

Anyway, its now outside on the tile in the laundry room just in case the thing sparks/explodes. Have shot off an urgent email to Niteflux for next steps

Edit: I guess a warning to be careful if your unit starts getting faulty!

[kb]

Sounds nasty. My original rectangular one only lasted 3 months but the RZ8 replacement has been flawless for about a year. Probably just lucky though, my Garmin's been good for a couple of years too and they're very variable.

[Mulger bill]

My RZ4 is still going strong. Intermittent QC issue maybe?

[il padrone]

Of course QC is what makes for a very good product, as opposed to one to be avoided.

To some extent warranty back-up can help this issue, but too many such QC issues will kill the brand's reputation.

[Aushiker]

But wait there's more! My RZ4 got extremely hot and started melting into the two plastic end caps which I removed very quickly. It was then that the two lights started smoking really bad and the on/off button just fell off. I assume it got so hot it melted the soldering?

I would suggest at least flicking an email off to Product Safety Australia ... this could be a safety issue that needs to be addressed by the manufacturer.

Andrew

[NhiTrac]

Update: received the warranty replacement RZ4 and have had two rides. One of which was yesterday after a few shower in Sydney so the road was still wet.

Charged the light fine but after disconnecting it turned itself on and started the death flash. It's now sitting on my laundry floor again and I've shot an email off to Niteflux asking for a full refund. I think that an email to that Product Safety Australia is also now a good idea.

Disappointing to see that a brand new unit is not able to keep out a few splashes on water. Disappointing too that it's the best light in terms of sheer brightness and visibility but for $100+ I expect better.

Going to give the Exposure Blaze a go. Have used their 'Joystick' for the helmet for a while now and am thoroughly impressed.

[Coolabah]

Update: received the warranty replacement RZ4 and have had two rides. One of which was yesterday after a few shower in Sydney so the road was still wet.

Charged the light fine but after disconnecting it turned itself on and started the death flash. It's now sitting on my laundry floor again and I've shot an email off to Niteflux asking for a full refund. I think that an email to that Product Safety Australia is also now a good idea.

Disappointing to see that a brand new unit is not able to keep out a few splashes on water. Disappointing too that it's the best light in terms of sheer brightness and visibility but for $100+ I expect better.

Going to give the Exposure Blaze a go. Have used their 'Joystick' for the helmet for a while now and am thoroughly impressed.

Wow- sorry to hear that. I still have an old RZ4 ( rectangular ) on my commuter saddlebag and just because I can , I also run my cylindrical RZ8 on the back of my helmet. Both- Never missed a beat so far..

I really feel sorry for retailers- myself included- nowadays- they/I are/am at the mercy of their manufacturers/suppliers, not to mention the rapidity that problems reach the internet. As an example, in my own business , we have had like 1 complaint in the last 25 years. We started a facebook page which has been up and running for over 10 years and no-one ever left any sort of review ( satisfied customers generally don't, we never thought comfortable asking our customers to post reviews just for the heck of it - my bad) . Then , out of the blue someone leaves a 2,000 word negative review, and he was not a "customer" ( definition: someone who engaged our services for a fee) , just someone who phoned us , expected ( actually: DEMANDING, and very abusive to my staff to boot ) us to help him for free ( which we tried very hard to do up to the point where he was expecting us to re-do the work of his previous supplier for free "under warranty" where no such thing ever existed ... WTHeck ????...)

So , what to do ? 1 review that makes our company sound worse than Pol Pot.

So , my post is tempered by this. I , personally would contact RZ again and explain the problem . If I was the owner of RZ, I would be at this stage pulling all stops to fix this problem. YMMV , and maybe it won't happen but , there ya go at least I feel better now

[Coolabah]

Update: received the warranty replacement RZ4 and have had two rides. One of which was yesterday after a few shower in Sydney so the road was still wet.

Charged the light fine but after disconnecting it turned itself on and started the death flash. It's now sitting on my laundry floor again and I've shot an email off to Niteflux asking for a full refund. I think that an email to that Product Safety Australia is also now a good idea.

Disappointing to see that a brand new unit is not able to keep out a few splashes on water. Disappointing too that it's the best light in terms of sheer brightness and visibility but for $100+ I expect better.

Going to give the Exposure Blaze a go. Have used their 'Joystick' for the helmet for a while now and am thoroughly impressed.

So- just a thought... do you have vaseline or better still , slicone gel helping to seal in your endcaps ?? Just curious.

[NhiTrac]

Snip...

Yea I get what you wrote and I've been chatting with David from NF. They've all been great with communication, warranty support and even supporting my request for a refund so absolutely no issues there. My only issue is that 3/3 units have failed on me - One square light and two cylindrical ones.

This in my view after spending $100+ on a light is a no no.

I'm just waiting for a call from David as he suggested we should chat so he can learn more about my usage and why they keep failing on me, which btw I thought was great of him to do and I wish I could still support the product. However I can't afford to be sending them back after a few months of use (or two days with my latest one).

Re lube, my replacement light which I've used for two days was very well lubed from factory. My first cylindrical RZ was lubed with vasaline.

Lastly, for the benefit of you RZ owners out there, I had asked David which type of lube to use (before my unit failed) and he responded with:

"We have had good success with c r c-808 silicone spray...

You don't need to do this often. We have been testing the c r c version for 6 months with just the single application. You may need to re-apply every year or so?"

For now, I'm a happy camper with my Exposure Blaze

[nigel1963]

I've had mine a year now, still very happy with it. Regularly get comments about how bright it is, even during the day. (I run two lights front and back all hours. 2-3 days week, 40 min each way. Probably why im at the back most days ) Haven't seen a light that i consider more functional. Unusual for me to be in the wet, but have occassionally been there. Based on a couple of these instances, i dont think the easy-on easy-off slit in the end cover is a great idea. In the wet there is usually a temperature reduction to ambient, and it pulls some moisture to the inside. Drying it is necessary. Mine is lubricated with a PTFE/silicon diving equipment lube, once off (left over from deep time). Reckon should just lubricate the end cap and push on, pull partial-vacuum-off with no slit.
Probabably buy another for the to-uni riding son, unfortunate that it is risky to do so. Drat. Great concept. Come-on-Aussie-come-on.

From China? You get what you inspect, not what you expect.

[DavidTomic]

Well ... my RZ8 has just started dying on me today as well.

I went through 4 of the old rectangular RZ4's in under 12 months (all replaced under warranty), so I was REALLY hoping that the new model would be more reliable, but I guess not ... *sigh*

Right now it's sitting at my desk just flashing randomly at me, which is exactly how all of my other lights started their death spiral.

What a shame!