Blue Lug / Nitto strut light mount hack

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Brian Turner

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Feb 4, 2023, 8:46:33 AM2/4/23
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I was looking for a better way to mount my Koma rear light onto my Gus, but still keeping the light high enough to see, AND using the original light hardware for ease of unscrewing it and charging it each time.

Then I found this neat little hack on Blue Lug's site and decided to try it. Allows you to mount a light anywhere along the length of a Nitto rack strut, and it's pretty unobtrusive-looking. I know the Nitto (left and right side) light mount does the same thing, but it was too big and unwieldy (and pricey) for this purpose. Plus, I like how this mount allows me to tuck the light cleanly up under the rack platform, so it's not sticking out very far.

All you need is the Minoura Gamoh rack adapter (sold as a 2-pack), found here through The Inconvenience Store: https://the-inconvenience-store.com/collections/blue-lug/products/gamoh-rack-adapter
...and an extra Nitto daruma bolt (strut bolt).

Optional: lop off and file the unused tab and voila! A clean, simple, light mount for your Koma light!
IMG_4420.jpgIMG_4419.jpgIMG_4422.jpg

JohnS

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Feb 4, 2023, 1:12:26 PM2/4/23
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Thank you BB for sharing. Nice, clean mounts for rear lights can be hard to find/improvise. How do you like the light? I'm not familiar with that one.

JohnS

Brian Turner

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Feb 4, 2023, 1:25:11 PM2/4/23
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Thanks John! The light itself is perfectly fine. Not crazy bright or fancy, but serves its purpose. These are lights that Blue Lug introduced a few years back, and they fit the whole Blue Lug / Rivendell / Crust aesthetic perfectly. The battery life isn’t as good as some other USB rechargeable lights I own, but I wouldn’t hesitate to put these on other bikes. Cheap. Easy. Looks great. Can’t ask for much more than that!

On Feb 4, 2023, at 1:12 PM, JohnS <shar...@gmail.com> wrote:

Thank you BB for sharing. Nice, clean mounts for rear lights can be hard to find/improvise. How do you like the light? I'm not familiar with that one.
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J

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Feb 4, 2023, 1:40:38 PM2/4/23
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Looks nice. You would also need to have a spare Nitto or the likes, daruma available $12-$14.

Brian Turner

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Feb 4, 2023, 1:43:41 PM2/4/23
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Yes. Spare daruma bolts are key. I think if you’re a Nitto rack user, it’s always a good idea to have a couple of these laying around as spare… but also if you have an unused Nitto rack laying around in your parts bin.

On Feb 4, 2023, at 1:40 PM, J <illum...@gmail.com> wrote:

Looks nice. You would also need to have a spare Nitto or the likes, daruma available $12-$14.

Peter Adler

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Feb 4, 2023, 4:04:57 PM2/4/23
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I don't see any reason it couldn't be used to mount a headlight the same way, if you've got a handlebar bag rack with Nitto-sized struts. If you don't want to hacksaw the unneeded extra tab off, you can rotate the mount downward to avoid interference with the rack's mount point, although you reduce the risk of tire injury by removing the extra one off.

Peter Adler
Berkeley, CA/USA

Brian Turner

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Feb 4, 2023, 4:11:27 PM2/4/23
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You’re right, Peter. In fact, the Blue Lug page that talks about this “hack” shows them using it to mount a front Koma light (clear lens). One thing to note; the Koma light mounting brackets are all M5, rather than the M6 standard for most dyno headlights. That’s why this tab works so well - one hole is large enough for the daruma bolt diameter, and the smaller tab holes are perfect for M5 bolts.

On Feb 4, 2023, at 4:05 PM, Peter Adler <divis...@gmail.com> wrote:

I don't see any reason it couldn't be used to mount a headlight the same way, if you've got a handlebar bag rack with Nitto-sized struts. If you don't want to hacksaw the unneeded extra tab off, you can rotate the mount downward to avoid interference with the rack's mount point, although you reduce the risk of tire injury by removing the extra one off.
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Michael Baquerizo

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Feb 7, 2023, 10:30:17 AM2/7/23
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my guess is in lieu of a having that extra (expensive) daruma, you could have not taken off that extra tab, opened up its hole with a drill, and used the daruma thats already at that fastening point. in my experience there's enough bolt for a little more to be sandwiched in there. the angle looks like it would have been close to if not exactly the same as where you currently have it.

either way thats a nice bit of hardware as the nitto mount is quite expensive. 

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