# Magicshine RN3000 self-contained light impressions



## bergsnj (Oct 2, 2018)

I bought a Magicshine RN3000 during the recent black friday/Christmas sales and had a chance to try it tonight. I'll say that it is really good for an all in one light. I rode with it on full blast for 90 minutes and it was still on "green" and didn't take very long to charge back to full. It is plenty bright to be your only light but probably would be best on a helmet as it is pretty much a spot light. I'm used to my monteer 8000 on the bars so this was no where near as bright as that. But it is by far the brightest all in one that I have ever seen. On low it is pretty dim for fast riding, but on the highest and second highest settings it is plenty bright. I think the battery life is going to be the best attribute for this all in one. Here are some pics:

















Fits on an out front mount with the garmin computer behind it




















For comparison here is my MJ-906 on high(5000 lumens) on my helmet:










and the RN3000 on high in the same spot (also on my helmet):


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## MRMOLE (May 31, 2011)

Still waiting for mine to arrive (ordered from Aliexpress to save a little money). A little surprised at your beam shot results as MS rates the RN to have more throw distance/higher cd value than either the 906 or 906s but wouldn't be the first time I've seen inconsistencies in actual performance and claims between their different models. Will no doubt be doing the output testing when I get the light which should help fill up the time till it warms up some and I'm more motivated to take the bike out at night. 
Mole


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## bergsnj (Oct 2, 2018)

MRMOLE said:


> Still waiting for mine to arrive (ordered from Aliexpress to save a little money). A little surprised at your beam shot results as MS rates the RN to have more throw distance/higher cd value than either the 906 or 906s but wouldn't be the first time I've seen inconsistencies in actual performance and claims between their different models. Will no doubt be doing the output testing when I get the light which should help fill up the time till it warms up some and I'm more motivated to take the bike out at night.
> Mole


I'll look forward to your findings. The RN3000 is not brighter than the 906 but i wouldn't expect it to be with less battery and less LEDs. The 906 is my go-to helmet light and is really bright. Been using that one since 2018 and really love it.

New lights and gadgets are good motivation to get out and ride when it is cold and dark.


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## Biggs427 (Dec 8, 2017)

I bought this light 2 months ago with an Allty 600 for my helmet and the combo is great except for one problem.

The problem is the mounting system. The quarter turn attachment on the RN3000 and the mount broke after a crash. I can easily find a mount on MS website but was not able to source the part that broke on the light. 

This is problematic with the RN3000 as it is quite heavy and the attachment is the weakest part but it can't be found anywhere...

I sent an email to MS and never heard of them since. 

Does anybody know where I could find replacement parts for the RN3000 and Allty 600?

If it is not available I will try to find a 3d model to make it on my CNC or 3d print it...


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## bergsnj (Oct 2, 2018)

Biggs427 said:


> Does anybody know where I could find replacement parts for the RN3000 and Allty 600?
> 
> If it is not available I will try to find a 3d model to make it on my CNC or 3d print it...


I think this is what you need: MJ-6259 Magicshine® Garmin adapter for MJ series bike lights

EDIT: actually thst might not work. I would contact magicshine at: *[email protected]*


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## Biggs427 (Dec 8, 2017)

The MJ doesn't fit the RN3000.

I finally found this on MagicShine USA website: Magicshine® Ray Series Bike Lights Garmin Mount Base 

It is not available on the canadian website so I will have to order from the US webstore and pay omport fees...


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## MRMOLE (May 31, 2011)

Biggs427 said:


> I bought this light 2 months ago with an Allty 600 for my helmet and the combo is great except for one problem.
> 
> The problem is the mounting system. The quarter turn attachment on the RN3000 and the mount broke after a crash. I can easily find a mount on MS website but was not able to source the part that broke on the light.
> 
> ...


As time goes on I'm seeing more of this type of mount failure. Any type of mount is susceptible to failure in a crash but could be indicative of the need for a more durable solution. Replaceable Garmin adapters are great for the RN/MJ/Monteer/Ray and lower powered Allty series lights but owners or those considering the purchase of Allty 1000/1500/2000 models should consider that this type of failure would require a light replacement as the Garmin interface is molded into the lighthead body (bummer).
Mole


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## wayold (Nov 25, 2017)

Would it be worth machining one of these mount interfaces out of Aluminum, or does that just transfer the weak/breakable point to the mounting threads (which are much less easily repaired if stripped)? I guess that just replacing these plastic parts as needed may be the best solution short of re-engineering the whole mount.

BTW. This was the main reason I got the Ray 2600 instead of the RN3000, which costs about the same and in some ways looks like the more capable bar light. The 2600 is just enough lighter that I think I can keep it from snapping off its mount in regular use (ask me again after a few months of riding).


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## MRMOLE (May 31, 2011)

wayold said:


> Would it be worth machining one of these mount interfaces out of Aluminum, or does that just transfer the weak/breakable point to the mounting threads (which are much less easily repaired if stripped)? I guess that just replacing these plastic parts as needed may be the best solution short of re-engineering the whole mount.


Plastic bar/helmet mount would give way before alloy Garmin adapter IMO. 
Mole


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## Biggs427 (Dec 8, 2017)

The weakest link of the system should be replaceable and affordable which the Ray 2600 and RN3000 base are. 

7$ for the base is ok as long as the availability is there which is problematic in Canada but ok in the US at the moment.


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## mb323323 (Aug 1, 2006)

Biggs427 said:


> The MJ doesn't fit the RN3000.
> 
> I finally found this on MagicShine USA website: Magicshine® Ray Series Bike Lights Garmin Mount Base
> 
> It is not available on the canadian website so I will have to order from the US webstore and pay omport fees...


Is this the whole base just w/o the strap. Mine is not broken but knowing they might always be available, I may just go ahead and order a few as back ups. 

Thx


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## MRMOLE (May 31, 2011)

mb323323 said:


> Is this the whole base just w/o the strap. Mine is not broken but knowing they might always be available, I may just go ahead and order a few as back ups.
> 
> Thx


It's the Garmin interface adapter that screws on to the bottom of the lighthead body. I looked at a couple of the MS sites but only found the adapters on the magicshine.com and magicshineusa.com locations. Still haven't received my RN3000 yet but Aliexpress tracking says 1/7 estimated delivery so hopefully in a few days. 
Mole


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## bergsnj (Oct 2, 2018)

wayold said:


> BTW. This was the main reason I got the Ray 2600 instead of the RN3000, which costs about the same and in some ways looks like the more capable bar light. The 2600 is just enough lighter that I think I can keep it from snapping off its mount in regular use (ask me again after a few months of riding).


They both seem to be very good options. I can say that I had the RN3000 on an out front mount and rode on very rough trails and jumps and it didn't have any flicker or noticeable vibration/shaking. But like you said, time will tell. In the meantime I just ordered one of those spare garmin mounts


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## MRMOLE (May 31, 2011)

wayold said:


> BTW. This was the main reason I got the Ray 2600 instead of the RN3000, which costs about the same and in some ways looks like the more capable bar light.


I have to agree that the optic setup + available remote are advantages over the RN and its more appropriate for output much larger battery capacity and heat-sink mass. In the end the $85 deal I found on the RN was the deciding factor for me though the fact that I do a lot of 3-5 hr. rides and live in a very warm climate probably make the RN a better fit for me anyway.
Mole


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## MRMOLE (May 31, 2011)

Ran across this Youtube video with some decent ride footage for the RN3000.
Mole


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## froze (Feb 5, 2011)

Biggs427 said:


> I bought this light 2 months ago with an Allty 600 for my helmet and the combo is great except for one problem.
> 
> The problem is the mounting system. The quarter turn attachment on the RN3000 and the mount broke after a crash. I can easily find a mount on MS website but was not able to source the part that broke on the light.
> 
> ...


Geez, I guess MagicShine is still up to their old tricks. I had one of their first lights they ever sold, and the darn thing failed while under warranty, they told me to send it back, so I did, never heard anything more! I think the original owner died or something during the time I sent it back, but that sort of sucked, regardless of death of an owner or not they should have kept up with their customers and honored the warranty.


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## MRMOLE (May 31, 2011)

froze said:


> Geez, I guess MagicShine is still up to their old tricks. I had one of their first lights they ever sold, and the darn thing failed while under warranty, they told me to send it back, so I did, never heard anything more! I think the original owner died or something during the time I sent it back, but that sort of sucked, regardless of death of an owner or not they should have kept up with their customers and honored the warranty.


Of course your welcome to hang on to quality and distributor issues that existed with Magicshine 10 yrs. ago but as time has moved on things have changed. A few mount failures from crash damage is something to keep an eye on and could potentially prove to be a durability issue but also could just be a few isolated cases. Overal IMO current Magicshine products have equal to or better quality and performance compared to anything offered by the name brand products typically seen at your LBS.
Mole


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## froze (Feb 5, 2011)

MRMOLE said:


> Of course your welcome to hang on to quality and distributor issues that existed with Magicshine 10 yrs. ago but as time has moved on things have changed. A few mount failures from crash damage is something to keep an eye on and could potentially prove to be a durability issue but also could just be a few isolated cases. Overal IMO current Magicshine products have equal to or better quality and performance compared to anything offered by the name brand products typically seen at your LBS.
> Mole


Not sure about today's stuff for MagicShine, but back when I bought mine evidently there were a lot of issues, some people got them resolved but some did not. Now we're hearing about mounting issues that are going unresolved by MS pushing the IGNORE button. 

And I doubt MS is better than other top brand stuff, I have an old Phillips Saferide 80 light and compared it to a friend's MS light that was supposedly about 600 lumens brighter than mine, except in the test with his on bright and mine on bright mine was noticeably brighter. So maybe the lumens quoted may not be so accurate as they state it to be. This test was done about 3 years ago, so newer MS lights may have improved?


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## MRMOLE (May 31, 2011)

froze said:


> Not sure about today's stuff for MagicShine, but back when I bought mine evidently there were a lot of issues, some people got them resolved but some did not. Now we're hearing about mounting issues that are going unresolved by MS pushing the IGNORE button.


Older Magicshine lights weren't built with the best quality components but those less than top quality $80 400ish lumen lights provided a popular alternative to the typical $4-500 600ish lumen brand name sets available at the time. They also forced the other Manufacturers to reconsider their profit margin policies making night riding more affordable no matter what light you used (except maybe Lupine). Ghosting the guy (if it was intensional) on his email is an issue but I don't think I'd consider crash damage a mounting issue.



froze said:


> And I doubt MS is better than other top brand stuff, I have an old Phillips Saferide 80 light and compared it to a friend's MS light that was supposedly about 600 lumens brighter than mine, except in the test with his on bright and mine on bright mine was noticeably brighter. So maybe the lumens quoted may not be so accurate as they state it to be. This test was done about 3 years ago, so newer MS lights may have improved?


Don't think that I blame you because of your past experience and the fact that Magicshine hasn't always had the best reputation for quality. Just sharing my opinion of the many lights I've had the opportunity of testing. As for your Saferide vs. Magicshine comparison total lumen output and brightness/intensity are two different things. I don't know which MS light you compared the Saferide to but if it was something like a 858 that probably has 4 times the coverage area it would need 4x the output to have the same brightness. Claimed lumen output on the older MS lights were always considerably overstated. The newer models I've tested are much better.
Mole


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## Biggs427 (Dec 8, 2017)

froze said:


> Geez, I guess MagicShine is still up to their old tricks. I had one of their first lights they ever sold, and the darn thing failed while under warranty, they told me to send it back, so I did, never heard anything more! I think the original owner died or something during the time I sent it back, but that sort of sucked, regardless of death of an owner or not they should have kept up with their customers and honored the warranty.


I'm not blaming MS at all for the broken mount. Heck I'm glad I broke only the light mount!! 

As for MS quality vs other lights brands, I only have two other to compare to which are: 


Bontrager that have better mounts but the run time on MS are generally better and the optic is miles ahead of any Bontrager.
Evolva that is a Chinese cheap light that is inferior to MS in every aspect.


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## froze (Feb 5, 2011)

Biggs427 said:


> I'm not blaming MS at all for the broken mount. Heck I'm glad I broke only the light mount!!
> 
> As for MS quality vs other lights brands, I only have two other to compare to which are:
> 
> ...


I'm sorry, but I won't buy a MS after the experience I had, and then finding out others had similar experiences. MS is a Chinese owned company called MinJun Electronic, and if they chose not to honor a warranty issue there isn't a damn thing anyone is going to do about it, because Chinese companies do not have to abide by western laws, and no western lawyer is going to be able to do anything either.

The biggest problem with Chinese made stuff is that they over rate their lumens, and battery run times, in addition to that their batteries life expectancy, not run time but how many years will the battery last, is typically dismal compared to Japanese made batteries. This has been the focus of much discussion on flashlight forums for years, that Chinese made batteries won't last even half as long as Japanese made ones, so you have to buy new batteries more frequently. I bought a set of rechargeable AA bats made in China for Batteries Plus Bulbs, and after 2 years of using them, the bats no longer will take a charge, yet I have several sets of Japanese AA bats that are 5 years old and still going strong, also the Chinese batteries, though rated at a higher AmHr rating would hold a charge for less than half the time the Japanese ones do.

By the way, speaking of rechargeable AA batteries, the best ones are from Ikea called Ladda, these are made in Japan, they are far better than even Eneloop! The crazy thing about those Ladda bats is that you can get a 4 pack for $8 for 2450 mAh bats at Ikea, but don't buy them from Amazon because Amazon will charge you twice as much.


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## bergsnj (Oct 2, 2018)

Magicshine's product quality is top notch as is their customer service. I have used a lot of bike lights from all of the major brands, expensive boutique brands and cheap Chinese lights. Magicshine is better than most of them. They have grown a lot since their humble beginnings.

Anyway, I've been using the RN3000 as my bar light and I am impressed. The mount is very sturdy, no issues whatsoever. And I like how easy it is to just grab the all-in-one and slap it on the bars and go. No external battery or wires to deal with. This light is bright enough for me as a bar light (and i'm used to the monteer 8000 as my bar light). Other all in one lights have not been bright enough for me until now.


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## MRMOLE (May 31, 2011)

Yesterday I finally gave up on my Black-Friday ordered RN3000 and ordered another one. Technically I can't file a dispute till 2/10 but there had been no Aliexpress tracking activity since 12/03 of last yr. and the final carrier (USPS) has shown "seller preparing shipment" since then too. Ironically there was an email in my inbox today saying the original order had fianlly arrived in the destination country though no change on the USPS site yet. Pretty sure I'll be able to cancel yesterdays order but one way or the other I should be adding my impressions of the RN3000 + my usual output/runtime testing info and am quite looking forward getting to try this light out!!!
Mole


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## MRMOLE (May 31, 2011)

RN3000 was in my mailbox today! Smaller than expected and typical premium appearing RN finish. Haven't done much with it yet other than some initial turn on mode level measurements and a very impressive max lux reading.
Mole


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## RS VR6 (Mar 29, 2007)

Interseting that the Magicshine made Olight BFL 1800 and 900 have different mounting systems. The strap that holds the mount to the bar is the same. The Olights use a snap in mount vs the quarter turn system on the MS lights.

The Olight mount is pretty clever. It just snaps in and push the blue lever to release. If you ride in wet weather...the lever seems like it could get gunked up.


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## MRMOLE (May 31, 2011)

RS VR6 said:


> Interseting that the Magicshine made Olight BFL 1800 and 900 have different mounting systems. The strap that holds the mount to the bar is the same. The Olights use a snap in mount vs the quarter turn system on the MS lights.
> 
> The Olight mount is pretty clever. It just snaps in and push the blue lever to release. If you ride in wet weather...the lever seems like it could get gunked up.


I think the Olight BLF series mount is the same design that Magicshine used for the no longer produced Monteer 1400. It works pretty well for bar application but also complicates using the 1800/900 for helmet application. Magicshine makes several different Garmin adapters so there may be one that would fit the BLFs but its just a single screw so lots of Gopro adapters that should also work. 
Mole


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## MRMOLE (May 31, 2011)

*RN3000 FIRST RIDE*

Most powerful first impression is for a bar light this thing is a thrower. Even in the lowest hybrid setting (400 lumen) the beam has very good range. Beam width is OK but for off-road it's still a little on the narrow side of ideal. The 32mi. loop I did included side streets, canal banks, MUP, and a little dirt (very mild). For most of the ride I used the 400 lumen hybrid setting and a little in the next highest mode but for all but the dirt (or I imagine in heavy traffic) doubtful you'd want (or need) to operate in the 2 highest modes considering the RN3000 isn't very friendly to oncoming traffic even with the deflector optics at the top of the lens. I did run the higher settings on the dirt and as expected they were very bright but surprisingly didn't suffer too much from reflective glare. Overall I'm pretty happy with the first ride results. Only negative I found so far is in the high beam light meter testing the RN3000 only lasted 1:45 before stepping down to approx. 150 lumens so usable runtime is quite a bit short the 2:10 claim.
Mole


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## MRMOLE (May 31, 2011)

*OUTPUT TESTING*










Here's the High/Med. High mode results for just turning on the light and running it till it steps down to limp back home levels. How it reacts to mode changes remains to be seen so full power may be accessible deeper in the runtime simply by cycling through the different modes or by shutting the light off and on again. I've seen this behavior on other MS lights so likely this will be the case with the RN3000 resulting in runtime inconsistencies depending on the frequency of mode changes and shut downs. Will update with this information when I get a chance to experiment some more.
Mole


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