Kickstarter

Thanks for the mention!

Beacon Bike Lights

We've all done it, locked our bikes in a pile around the old willow tree or onto the gas meter outside the bar. The night's filled with chaos and fun, until it's time to roll home... and your lights have been stolen. 

Join our forgetful team (the one that's sick of droppin $ every time you forget to take your lights off your bike) and check out Beacon! Each light has 2 LEDs and attaches to your bicycle using a slender grey zip tie. A white light for your handlebar and a red light for your seat post will have you rolling around in law abiding style.  

When your batteries die after 150+ hours of blinding flashing, pick up a replacement pack of batteries accompanied by new zip ties at your local bike shop or on our website. Simply snip the old tie and pop in some new power. 

We are raising funds to assist with the expensive costs associated with turning plastic from small pellets into amazing lights! These radical little lights are no more expensive than the silicone blinkers you've been replacing for years and we promise they'll bring you ages of happiness and peace of mind. Best of all, they're made in Canada! 

----------
The decals are here!

----------

The Beacon tee has been conceived, check out the new reward levels if you want to snatch one up. Silk screen on American Apparel cotton.

----------
Also new to the reward levels are the Beacon Battery packs. Each one has 4x CR2032 batteries and 6x zip ties. Add them onto any of your current pledge levels!

-----------

-----------

Cycle Toronto (Toronto Cyclists Union) Members! · We will donate 1 pair of Beacon lights to Cycle Toronto for every 2 pairs bought by a member on Kickstarter. Cycle Toronto will use the donated lights for local safety advocacy. Please send note to us if you're a member.

----------

A Little About Us

Taylor Martin and I (Steve Tam) have been avid city cyclists for years, whether it's cruising around campus or rolling down to the lake after work, we know how often you either get caught without your lights on your bike or end up with someone lifting them from your handlebar.

After years of working in the cycling industry using a variety of lights at a number of price points I think I've been able to find the perfect balance between function and affordability (with a cool design to boot). Now I'm in a design and marketing position with a bicycle company and decided it was time to come up with a solution to a problem I had with all the removable lights from nights past; a light attached to my bicycle with a zip tie would be perfect! I tossed the idea around with some friends at different bike shops and everyone was on board. I took to the sketch book and worked on some designs I thought would compliment a plethora of handle bars. 

This is where Taylor comes into the picture. Having a Masters in engineering, he was able to take my sketches and concept and turn it into a radical CAD drawing that we could take to a 3D printer to have our first prototype made. His experience with sourcing materials and designing products and my marketing and design background have led us towards this awesome new project. We have been working closely with a number of electronic suppliers and have secured a sample that is bright and lasts longer than you'd expect. We have been spreading the Beacon word between friends from city to city and the excitement is growing. 

Manufacturing Plan
Our ducks are all in a row. Once we tested out the 3D printed light on a number of bikes, both in and out of the rain, we were able to finalize the design and submit our drawings to the injection molder. Our electronic boards have been finalized and sourced from a reputable manufacturer and the little screws that hold our lights together are coming from a charming factory in Spain. 

This is where YOU come in! The costs of going ahead with our injection mold are quite high (almost $8000)... We have squirreled our pennies away, but need to raise a bit more money to have the mold made. The money that you support us with will help with that initial investment and allow the small plastic shells we need for our lights to be pumped out! 

The small ties and packaging will be sourced from a local supplier and our design work is done in collaboration between myself and a good cycling friend with a quick finger in Illustrator. 

Once we reach our Kickstarter goal we will be able to give the injection molders the go ahead and have small plastic Beacon bodies in our hands. From that point it should only be 2-3 weeks before the lights can be assembled and shipped to your bicycle! Our first production run will be fully completed within a month of the injection mold being created and we will have enough lights to supply all of our awesome supporters and then hopefully some bicycle shops all around. 

No more stolen lights = No more sad nights 

A huge thank you to Jesse Milns for our awesome photos! www.jessemilns.com