Canyon Endurace: Front and Rear Light Mounts

Although the Canyon Endurace frame is very nice, one problem is finding a proper place to mount front and rear lights. Usually, the rear light is mounted on the seatpost, while the front light is mounted on the handlebars.

However, for this bike, the seatpost is a special VCLS suspension seatpost which needs to flex. As such, I cannot wrap the mount or rubber strap around the suspension area or it will restrict the flexing of the seatpost.

As for the front light, it cannot be mounted on the handlebar as it is an integrated handlebar with no round section to mount the light clamp.

First, let's work on the rear light. I have a Moon Comet rear light which comes with a saddle rail mount, let's see if it can fit.

Weight of the modified Cateye saddle mount with Moon Comet bracket 

Weight of the Moon Comet rear light without any bracket or mount

Installing the Moon Comet rear light onto the rear of the Fizik Aliante R3 saddle, using the saddle rail mount.

Another view of the light installed under the saddle

Light is mounted vertically so that it looks better. Good location for a rear light.

Installing the rear light is easy, as it can be mounted under the saddle. However, for the front, there is no easy solution as the handlebar cannot be used to mount the front light. Luckily, from my experience of working on other bikes, I know that I can actually mount a front light on the fork legs. On the Avanti Inc 3, I managed to mount a Moon Nebula W front light onto the front fork leg, using the new type of mount.

I do have a couple of Moon Comet front lights, bought a few years ago when they were first launched. Even now, they are still working fine, and I really like the glowing LED strips. What I need is the new mount which allows mounting on non-cylindrical surfaces.

Bike31 is the official distributor of Moon lights in Singapore, and they do sell the mounts separately. Once I get the new mounts, I will be able to use them to install Moon front lights onto the front fork legs of the Canyon bike. One thing to take note is that the mount does not come with the rubber strap. This is no big issue as I have many spare rubber straps from the many sets of D-Light front and rear lights.

New type of Moon mount, which enables mounting on non-cylindrical surfaces, such as the bladed shape of a front fork leg.

2 new mounts on top, with the 2 Moon Comet front lights. Rubber straps are from the D-Light lights.

Each set weighs 51 grams, which means a total of 102 grams for a pair.

With the angle adjusted, the pair of Moon lights have been mounted on the front fork legs of the Canyon bike.

This is the only place I could think of to mount front lights on this Canyon bike, due to the integrated handlebar.

With the Moon front and rear lights mounted on the Canyon Endurace, this bike is now ready for night riding. I am especially pleased with the placement of the front lights, because they look good as a pair, with the wide illumination angle ideal for good visibility.

Moon Nebula W Front Light

After upgrading the Avanti Inc 3 to Alfine 11 Di2 with drop bars, I have been struggling to find space on the handlebars to mount a proper front light. Since a drop bar is narrower than a flat handlebar, there is just not enough space to mount a front light properly, together with the other accessories.

I always prefer to have two sets of rear and front lights, to act as backup in case the other one suddenly runs out of power. Depending on the route and traffic conditions, I will sometimes run one set on blinking mode, while the other set is on steady mode for enhanced visibility.

Since there is no more space on the handlebar, I have to find other places on the bike to mount a front light. I wanted to run D-Light front lights on the stem spacers like on the Merida Scultura 5000, but the hydraulic hoses will get in the way. Alternative  mounting points would be on the front fork or QR axle (by replacing the QR nut).

While browsing at a bike shop, I came across the Moon lights. I have always like Moon lights as the glow is really nice and the mounting system is so versatile. This time, I spotted the new Moon lights that have a different mount, which mean that it may work on the front fork!

Moon Nebula W front light, very bright with 240 lumens in such a compact package!

Beam angle and brightness

Battery runtime depending on mode chosen. Noted down here for easy reference next time.

The array of features on this light

All the contents of this light package.

This is the innovative mount that I wanted. Instead of having a fixed radius, both ends can swivel to conform to a non circular mounting point, such as an aero seatpost or the front fork legs.

Angle adjustment is also possible with the ratchet to firmly hold the selected angle.

Maximum tilt angle possible

The light itself. Has a full array of Chip-On-Board (COB) LEDs to give that wonderful glow instead of a beam or point lighting

Standard Moon mount which allows for positioning 90 degrees apart

Uses a Lithium-Polymer battery

Charging port has been changed to the more common Micro-USB type, instead of the Mini-USB type used on the first generation of Moon lights

Lovely ring of glowing LEDs

How to switch from steady mode to flashing mode

Weight of light alone

Weight of light plus mount and rubber band

Mounted on the front fork of the Avanti Inc 3! With the innovative mount and the tilt angle, this light is able to shine straight forward.

Slim profile of the light does not protrude out from the fork leg

Moon Nebula W front light mounted on the bike

With the new mount from Moon, I am able to mount a front light on the front fork leg of the Avanti Inc 3 with great results. In fact, it looks quite good and I am quite tempted to buy another one to make it a pair. However, this light is quite expensive and so I will just wait and see.

By the way, the other front light on this bike is from the Cycliq Fly12, which combines the front camera and front light.