# Commuting light



## scribble79 (Aug 29, 2012)

Looking for recommendations on a new light for riding. I usually only get out when it's dark so lights are my only way to ride.


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## brucew (Jun 3, 2006)

IHMO, your question is far too broad and open-ended.

Is your ride urban, suburban, rural? 
Road, bike path, or < shudder > sidewalk? 
In the street, or on the shoulders?
Streetlights?
When you park, is the area secure or do you need QR--or the opposite strategy--bolt-on lights? 
How long is the commute? 
How often? Daily? Only occasionally?
How fast do you ride?
Are you good about charging batteries regularly? Frequently? Or only after they die?

Most important, what's the budget?

Without knowing any of this, all you're likely to get are fanboy recommendations of things we like ourselves, which may not be appropriate to your situation.

I freely admit I'm a fanboy of dynamo lights. But they're not for everyone. (And I secretly own battery headlights for my roadie.)

Every light I own fits in a little different place in the matrix outlined above.


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## scribble79 (Aug 29, 2012)

I ride mainly for health reasons, on streets and bike paths. Dimly lit or no lights. I don't park it anywhere I'm worried about theft with.price -150


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## CliffordK (Jun 6, 2014)

brucew said:


> I freely admit I'm a fanboy of dynamo lights. But they're not for everyone.


Uhhh...
Not those canister shaped generators that grind the sidewalls off of your tires. They put out a lot of light, but are just miserable to use.

But, I agree there are a lot of options.
There have been at least 3 different threads about bike lights that have been active in the last week.
http://forums.roadbikereview.com/general-cycling-discussion/school-me-lighting-330175.html
http://forums.roadbikereview.com/general-cycling-discussion/stopped-motorist-330357.html
http://forums.roadbikereview.com/ge...85-lqqking-4-insane-bicycle-light-330246.html

Thinking about generators, for a light to be seen after dark, with a set-it-and-forget-it, the Reelight is hard to beat. It hardly uses any energy to make it work, but doesn't illuminate your path.

You can find little silicone dual LED lights that are easy to strap around a handlebar or seatpost (white or red) and are durable and dirt cheap.

There are several models of Chinese LED CREE headlights that put out a lot of light, perhaps too much light.

It never hurts to have backup lights in case your primary light fails.


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## kjdhawkhill (Jan 29, 2011)

brucew said:


> IHMO, your question is far too broad and open-ended.
> 
> 
> Most important, what's the budget?
> ...


Fanboys with strong opinions? not on this board.


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## brucew (Jun 3, 2006)

CliffordK said:


> Uhhh...
> Not those canister shaped generators that grind the sidewalls off of your tires. They put out a lot of light, but are just miserable to use.


Uh, no. Welcome to the new millenium. We use hub dynamos now. They have 'em for disc brakes and everything. 










Lights these days use high-power LEDs, focused through nice German optics creating beam patterns like comtemporary car headlights.

Oh, and don't forget the ambient light sensors so I don't have to suffer the "misery" of flipping a switch when it gets dark. 

All those modern conveniences, along with bolt-on security and no batteries to charge.

You really need to get out more.


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## headloss (Mar 3, 2013)

I find 300 lumens sufficient for town and bike path in the dark. I like having a second 300 lumen light on my helmet so that the light follows my eyes in addition to lighting up the path in front of me. The expense of a dynamo hub setup is not necessary if riding a couple of hours each night (USB charger is a very nice feature in a battery powered light). That said, I do use a dynamo on my touring bike when nightly recharging isn't an option.


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## CliffordK (Jun 6, 2014)

brucew said:


> Uh, no. Welcome to the new millenium. We use hub dynamos now. They have 'em for disc brakes and everything.
> 
> Lights these days use high-power LEDs, focused through nice German optics creating beam patterns like comtemporary car headlights.


Even though I ride classic Italian Iron, I'm a closet weightweenie. Since I've used, and didn't like the old generators, and the new hub generators look HUGE, I've avoided them. Perhaps I should take a second look. 

I did mention that I was impressed with the ReLights which take very little energy to use for blinking.

Perhaps I should look at some of the big brand lights again. My Chinese (battery) lights have the Fresnel lenses for a wide beam, but don't truly dip right or dip left.

======

I've been a dry weather rider for a while.
But Mother Nature decided that today would be a good day to practice my wet weather riding.

Anyway, I had about an hour of riding in the drizzle. Then this evening I was ready to come home... and NO LIGHTS. Well, at least no bright lights. 

It turns out the battery pack for my Chinese lights got wet and went bad. And, I wasn't carrying a spare battery pack. There was a piece of cardboard in the bottom of the battery pack that got drenched. The cardboard needs taping, protection, or replacement & sealing.

Anyway, if having lights is important, it never hurts to have a backup. I made it home with a little 6 LED silicone lamp. It puts out some light, but more light to be seen, than to really see by.

I did notice that when I'm pushing 6000 lumens, the cars will almost always dim their lights (which I also do). With < 100 lumens, I'm often blasted with high beams.


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## brucew (Jun 3, 2006)

CliffordK said:


> Even though I ride classic Italian Iron, I'm a closet weightweenie. Since I've used, and didn't like the old generators, and the new hub generators look HUGE, I've avoided them. Perhaps I should take a second look.


I don't have a gram scale so I don't have objective measurements, but subjectively, the incremental difference between between one of my dyanamo wheels and a non-dynamo one is about the same as the weight of a battery pack for a Magicshine. Maybe a wee bit more, but not much.

What I do like is that the weight is down at the other end of the fork. Thursday I rode my Litespeed to work, MS on the bar and battery on the stem, first time since April. I immediately noticed the difference in handling. Made me think (briefly, before coming to my senses) that maybe a third dynamo rig would be in order. 



CliffordK said:


> I did notice that when I'm pushing 6000 lumens, the cars will almost always dim their lights (which I also do). With < 100 lumens, I'm often blasted with high beams.


I'm hoping you meant 600 lumens...

I too find that that's about the point where drivers respect me as a vehicle. Less that that and it's still, "Eff it. Just some guy on a bike."


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## jrm (Dec 23, 2001)

Im using a L&M TAZ 1200 - throughout the winter. USB charging so i can charge @ work. 3 modes -solid-pulsing and race (which i never use). Kinda pricy but its nice to be scene.


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## Aushiker (Mar 23, 2008)

As a commuter (42 km each way), tourer and occasional randonneur my preference now days is to use dynamo lights. In my case I have three hub dynamos, a SON 28 on my touring bike, a Shutter Precision PD-8 on my randonneur and a Shimano Deore XT DH-T785 on my off-road touring bike.












In terms of lights I run Busch & Muller both front and rear. The front lights are a Busch & Muller Lumotec IQ2 Luxos B 179B on my touring bike, Lumotec IQ2 Luxos U 179U (70/90 Lux) on my randonneur and a Busch & Muller Lumotec IQ Cyo Senso Plus front light, model number 175QCSNDi now on my mountain bike.


The rear lights are a Busch & Muller Toplight Line Plus rear carrier light, model number 323ALL, a Busch & Müller Toplight Line brake plus 323 and a couple of Busch & Muller Secula Plus LED Rear Lights running in parallel.


All up pretty happy with the whole setup.


Regards
Andrew


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## greggJ (Jun 30, 2006)

*Cygolite*

O.k., I admit, I am a fanboy, but........I commute everyday (and have been for years), and ride at night all winter rain or shine. Used a lot of different lights, and like this company the best. Check out the Streak 310, 310 lumens (plenty for the street), USB rechargeable, and 90 grams. 

Cygolite Bicycle Lighting Systems - Engineered to Shine


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## froze (Sep 15, 2002)

Does the $150 budget include both front and rear or just front?

If front only you can get really nice lights for that price. Here is a light comparison place with photos, see: Bike Lights Buyers Guide

Depending on how long you need the run time for 1.5 hours is usually more than enough for commuting, so with that in mind I like the Cygolite Expilion because there is no separate battery pack to contend with. I disagree with 300 lumens being adequate, I've seen that range of light on the streets where I live and their barely noticeable in the background of car lights, I think a person needs at least 500 to stand out better. In light of that thought this light: Amazon.com : Cygolite Expilion 800 USB Bicycle Headlight : Bike Headlights : Sports & Outdoors fulfills that and more for less money than you wanted to spend. See more specs here: Expilion 800 USB And this battery is user replaceable so if the bat should ever not take a charge you can order another one ane replace it yourself instead of having a sealed battery that can't be replaced. Heck you could even buy a spare if you wanted.

With the money left over you could buy a front flasher to add to your visibility such as this: http://www.amazon.com/CatEye-Reflex...1411232676&sr=1-7&keywords=cateye+front+light 

Or if you need a rear light with that $150 budget then instead of the flasher (which you can add anytime) then consider the Cygolite Hotshot, see: Amazon.com : Cygolite 2014 Hotshot 2W SL USB Rechargeable Tail Light : Bike Taillights : Sports & Outdoors

Just thoughts, read the other thoughts here and decide which is best for you.


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## John Public (Sep 26, 2014)

I recently purchased a new light set up, the light is a serfas true 250, and it seems okay, the light to bracket transfer is clunky and the usb charging port cover already fell off.

What I am quite happy about however is an accessory called a Lite Beam, it is a peg that mounts on the bottom of the fork so your headlamp can ride down low next to the road and put the light on the road bed, which is my primary concern.

Lite Beams - Put Your Light Where You Want It


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## froze (Sep 15, 2002)

John Public said:


> I recently purchased a new light set up, the light is a serfas true 250, and it seems okay, the light to bracket transfer is clunky and the usb charging port cover already fell off.
> 
> What I am quite happy about however is an accessory called a Lite Beam, it is a peg that mounts on the bottom of the fork so your headlamp can ride down low next to the road and put the light on the road bed, which is my primary concern.
> 
> Lite Beams - Put Your Light Where You Want It


Getting the light down low as you have done use to be a wise thing to do in the days of dim lights, and in your case with just 250 lumens it's the best thing to do if you want more light to see the road with, but modern and brighter lights at least 450 lumens this stunt is no longer needed. I think they still do the low on the fork stunt with some of the dimmer generator lights. The only problem with the light being low like that is it will get lost in the road glare faster than if it were higher on the bars. But I say do this way for now, later if you get the urge to buy another howbeit brighter light than simply keep the old light and mount it to a helmet if it has the straps for that, if not simply keep it where it is and put the brighter on on the bar.


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## John Public (Sep 26, 2014)

Thanks for the input, apparently light purchases have the potential for second guessing and buyers remorse after the fact.

In all I am okay with the set-up, the main thing for me is assessing the road bed for potholes etc and the set up seems to work okay for that so far, I stopped by a shop today that was pushing a product with what they deemed to be superior optics which had me second wondering even before I read your post.

It is a difficult purchase to make because most stores do not have a dark roadbed inside for testing.


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## froze (Sep 15, 2002)

John Public said:


> Thanks for the input, apparently light purchases have the potential for second guessing and buyers remorse after the fact.
> 
> In all I am okay with the set-up, the main thing for me is assessing the road bed for potholes etc and the set up seems to work okay for that so far, I stopped by a shop today that was pushing a product with what they deemed to be superior optics which had me second wondering even before I read your post.
> 
> It is a difficult purchase to make because most stores do not have a dark roadbed inside for testing.


Be careful of LBS's and their wonder products, some of those wonder products are wonders of junk! If you have a brand name of the light we can check it for you if you can find it yourself on the internet.

There are some really expensive lights on the market but seriously you, or I, or most people, don't need 1000 plus lumens unless your average speed is 45 mph!

Here is a good run down of mostly affordable lights and most are still on the market; see:2012 Bike Lights Shootout – Backyard Beam Pattern Photos - Mtbr.com
And here's one from Performance Bike (on line bike retailer); see: Bike Lights Buyers Guide

Probably the best light for the money, and not one of those ultra cheap made in China 2400 lumen el cheapos for $35 that actually put out 800 lumens with a crappy battery that won't hold a charge long or last long. Cygolite makes one called the Metro that puts out 420 lumens for $70, 420 lumens is more than adequate on well lit city streets, but out on unlit roads and paths it may be shy by about 200 lumens, BUT, that depends on the optics, if you look at the photos in the 2012 MTB light shootout there was a light called the Philips Saferide that was rated at 400 lumens or something close but put out a light pattern that rivaled 1000 lumen lights. Having said that Amazon has it on closeout sale for only $11 more than the Cygolite I mentioned earlier and the Philips is a far superior light; see: http://www.amazon.com/Philips-BF48L...d=1412906339&sr=8-1&keywords=Philips+saferide

I own the Philips light and it is amazingly bright, In the two years that I rode with this light at night I haven't come across anyone that had a brighter light on the road. The batteries are user replaceable too, just 4 AA 2450ma NiMh batteries, simply replace with same type of battery with at least the same ma rating.

If you get a rechargeable light (this is true with any rechargeable battery item) is to first charge it for 24 hours regardless if the fully the fully charge light comes on 2 or so hours after plugging it in and before using it, discharge it completely and recharge, but this time you can stop it when the fully charge light is on, do this for a total of 3 times; after that you can discharge it to whatever level you want before recharging it. I did this with my phone and I get 7 days between charging, my wife who doesn't like to be bothered with such silliness has to charge hers every 3 days. Some owners reported only getting an hour of runtime on high then auto switches to low for another hour, that's because they didn't do the charging cycle, I get 2 hours on high and then the light auto switches to low and get another 2 hours.


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## Christine (Jul 23, 2005)

Rode home with the NiteRider helmet light last night, first time using it for the entire ride. Barely needed it in many spots (street/path lighting was sufficient), but it was wonderful. The lowest setting (out of three) was plenty. Easy to adjust the angle, easy to stick on/remove from helmet, lightweight, and sleek.


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## froze (Sep 15, 2002)

6000 lumens is just plain stupid, I'm sure he meant 600. 

There are a lot of great lights but you have to find a balance between cost vs brightness vs quality. You can get on E-bay 2400 lumen lights that are way overrated in their lumens by at least 75% but they can be had for cheap at around $40 and their quality is lower. Or you can get a name brand like Cygolite makes a 500 lumen Metro for just $70; however Amazon does have the Philips Saferide light for just $77 and this light puts out the equivalent to 1100 lumens due to aimed optics that throws the light onto the road instead of tree tops, but it does not have a flash mode which doesn't bother me since my helmet light has flash mode. The Philips is in my opinion the best deal for a bike light, this thing is so bright that I rarely use it on high unless it's raining out and I'm on unlit roads and streets during the rain. I do combine that light with a Cygolite Mitycross 480 on my helmet but that stays mostly on flashing mode when I'm on the street. I like helmet lights because I can aim it at cars windows and or windshields to get their attention.

A word of advice concerning rechargeable batteries as relayed to me by Philips. When you get any rechargeable item new never turn it on first, instead charge it for 24 hours even if the charging light says it's charged, then use the device till the batteries are completely dead and recharge again but this time it's ok to stop charging once the finish charging light comes on, repeat the fully discharge and fully recharge cycle a total of 3 times.


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## davidka (Dec 12, 2001)

froze said:


> A word of advice concerning rechargeable batteries as relayed to me by Philips. When you get any rechargeable item new never turn it on first, instead charge it for 24 hours even if the charging light says it's charged, then use the device till the batteries are completely dead and recharge again but this time it's ok to stop charging once the finish charging light comes on, repeat the fully discharge and fully recharge cycle a total of 3 times.


There is no reason to attempt charge past the point the indicator light trips to "done". At that point the charging circuitry is no longer passing current into the battery. You would need to re-set the charger by disconnecting to start it again. 

Cycling is an OK idea, especially with batteries that have been dormant..


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## froze (Sep 15, 2002)

davidka said:


> There is no reason to attempt charge past the point the indicator light trips to "done". At that point the charging circuitry is no longer passing current into the battery. You would need to re-set the charger by disconnecting to start it again.
> 
> Cycling is an OK idea, especially with batteries that have been dormant..


Say what you want but since the information was given to me direct and personal by the battery company itself I tend to think they know what their talking about so I'll follow their instructions. By following instructions like how to care for a Brooks saddle written by Brooks, or how to care for rechargeable batteries as given directly by a technical person who has first hand experience in batteries has allowed me to have max life out of those and other products. Funny because I've talked to people who only got 45 minutes to an hour out of the Philips Saferide on high even though the specs say 2 because they didn't know about the battery treatment stuff, and yet I indeed get 2 hours.

I did ask about the charging thing past the charge indicator, they said that all chargers still put in a very small trickle into the battery to maintain it even though by appearance it looks like it's done charging, but it is not wise to leave any device on a charger permanently because that trickle charge will shorten the life expectancy of the battery. This is why my home phones batteries do not last long because we store them on the charging cradle, small price to pay for not having the phone fall over just standing on it's own.


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## nsfbr (May 23, 2014)

froze said:


> Say what you want but since the information was given to me direct and personal by the battery company itself I tend to think they know what their talking about so I'll follow their instructions. By following instructions like how to care for a Brooks saddle written by Brooks, or how to care for rechargeable batteries as given directly by a technical person who has first hand experience in batteries has allowed me to have max life out of those and other products. Funny because I've talked to people who only got 45 minutes to an hour out of the Philips Saferide on high even though the specs say 2 because they didn't know about the battery treatment stuff, and yet I indeed get 2 hours.
> 
> I did ask about the charging thing past the charge indicator, they said that all chargers still put in a very small trickle into the battery to maintain it even though by appearance it looks like it's done charging, but it is not wise to leave any device on a charger permanently because that trickle charge will shorten the life expectancy of the battery. This is why my home phones batteries do not last long because we store them on the charging cradle, small price to pay for not having the phone fall over just standing on it's own.


Just to be clear this is NOT what you do for *Lithium* systems. What you recommend *is correct for Nickel Metal Hydride *(like the typical AA rechargeable cells.) NiMH have a relatively high self discharge rate, and like most other batteries can be equalized if the cells are in series by using the fact that the charging efficiency tends towards zero as they get fully charged. So the trickle charging at the end of the first charge cycle equalizes the cells. The also have a memory effect, due to the Nickel, like NiCads did. That is why you are cycling them.

Lithium cells on the other hand have incredibly low self discharge rates, and any imbalance that develops is either addressed the by the onboard electronics in the battery pack (think laptop computer) or best left alone. They charge at 100% efficiency from a current (but not power) perspective, which is why you must not trickle charge them - they will eventually charge to a voltage that is dynamically unstable and explode or at the very least burst open with hazardous material being ejected. Also, there is no memory, so there is no benefit to deep cycling them. Finally, you can charge them partially and randomly without ill effect.


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## nsfbr (May 23, 2014)

John Public said:


> I recently purchased a new light set up, the light is a serfas true 250, and it seems okay, the light to bracket transfer is clunky and the usb charging port cover already fell off.
> 
> What I am quite happy about however is an accessory called a Lite Beam, it is a peg that mounts on the bottom of the fork so your headlamp can ride down low next to the road and put the light on the road bed, which is my primary concern.
> 
> Lite Beams - Put Your Light Where You Want It


I've wondered what people who mount their lights out of reach do with regard to the courtesy shielding that is common on bike trails. I imagine there is a tradeoff between the light source being less likely to be in the oncoming rider's eyes at close distances and the fact that you probably haven't pointed the light angled downward if it is already low. What is your experience with using the Lite Beam?


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## davidka (Dec 12, 2001)

froze said:


> I did ask about the charging thing past the charge indicator, they said that all chargers still put in a very small trickle into the battery to maintain it even though by appearance it looks like it's done charging, but it is not wise to leave any device on a charger permanently because that trickle charge will shorten the life expectancy of the battery. .


 Any battery and charger expert would know better than to make a blanket statement about all batteries and chargers, especially those made by other manufacturers. Not all NiMh chargers switch to trickle charge, some only produce enough current to be considered trickle chargers. At any rate, your batteries perform well because you cycle them (discharge fully, re-charge) frequently and take care of them, not because you trickle charged for 24 hours.

As nsfbr points out, lithium battery chemistry (the predominant type in modern rechargeable lights) does not respond favorably to extended charging and the chargers used to charge them don't allow users to try it.


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## TurboBikeGeek2 (Mar 3, 2015)

I found a light set on Amazon that was "Cree" lighing. Said 1,200 watts--not sure if that is true, but it blows my 750 watt nighthawk out of the water (cost about $99). It was $18! Took a few weeks to arrive (from China)--but amazing. Long cord, I stash the batter in my seat bag. Cannot lose out for the cost and light up the entire road.


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## froze (Sep 15, 2002)

davidka said:


> Any battery and charger expert would know better than to make a blanket statement about all batteries and chargers, especially those made by other manufacturers. Not all NiMh chargers switch to trickle charge, some only produce enough current to be considered trickle chargers. At any rate, your batteries perform well because you cycle them (discharge fully, re-charge) frequently and take care of them, not because you trickle charged for 24 hours.
> 
> As nsfbr points out, lithium battery chemistry (the predominant type in modern rechargeable lights) does not respond favorably to extended charging and the chargers used to charge them don't allow users to try it.


When it comes to this charger and trickle charge business, look, I don't know anything about that stuff, all I know that this is what Philips said theirs does. I do know on my Ridgid tool battery charger that the charger will shut off automatically when the processor senses the battery is full, but if you leave the battery in the charger for months the processor will sense when the battery has depleted a bit and recharge then go back into sleep mode. However my wife's Kindle has no such feature and she damaged her battery by keeping it plugged in most of the time. 

All I'm trying to say is that Philips told me how to treat their Philips brand batteries and that's the instructions I'm going to following, and after 2 years of use the batteries are still going strong.


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## nsfbr (May 23, 2014)

TurboBikeGeek2 said:


> I found a light set on Amazon that was "Cree" lighing. Said 1,200 watts--not sure if that is true, but it blows my 750 watt nighthawk out of the water (cost about $99). It was $18! Took a few weeks to arrive (from China)--but amazing. Long cord, I stash the batter in my seat bag. Cannot lose out for the cost and light up the entire road.


I think you mean Lumen, not Watts, right? 

I'd be interested in having a link to that on Amazon, or the search terms and name details to find it.

Thanks.


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## TurboBikeGeek2 (Mar 3, 2015)

nsfbr said:


> I think you mean Lumen, not Watts, right?
> 
> I'd be interested in having a link to that on Amazon, or the search terms and name details to find it.
> 
> Thanks.


Sure, let me check and get back to you. 
Amazing deal, great light


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