Nothing is worse than freezing hands especially when you have to cycle to a site before you are able to begin observing, and don't believe all you are told, NO gloves will keep you warm with the freezing wind blowing over them while you cycle.
Well for less than £5, try this.
Get two pieces for corrugated plastic from an art shop, six cable ties and use a hole punch.
It is so easy looking at the photographs is easier than trying to explain how to make the.
Why is it when other people have nice warm indoor hobbies most people interested in Astronomy have outdoor pursuits, Cycling, Photography, Fishing, all where you get WET.
Anyway the good thing about Astronomy is that like cycling you can combine the two.
Many people I know carry a small pair of binoculars in/on their bike so when they are out, returning late from work they can stop off and enjoy the Moon or something else for a while.
What I suggest is that when you buy lights you never rely on just one front and back, batteries fail, lights pack up, two or more allow spares.
Here I have two LED Lenser P7 200 lumens (on loan for a couple of months) on the front £40 each and two 3w (£5 lights again from China), the Lensers stay on and the 3w are set to flash. This is a good setup for those unable to afford proper expensive off road lights.
The Lensers are so bright they come with a laser sticker and warning NEVER to look directly into the light.
On the back are three RSP, the two on the lower sides flash and the one near the seat is on all the time, £10 each.
The Topeak large bag at the rear is ideal for carring binoculars upto 8x30 which is more than suitable for the odd stopover for viewing the Moon.
Today I wanted to try and fit a Helmet light, you can pay so much for them it is silly, so here is what is possible with a £5 light with 8 flasing and one still mode and 10" of velcro. It has since been replaced with another RSP.
Remove the clip as seen in picture 1, in picture three when the light is VERY securely velcroed in place the switch is on the velcro, this allows a quick press of the "light unit" to turn it on/off or change it without removing it, final light in pic 2.
The whole job INCLUDING taking the photographs, editing them and placing them here from start to finish took 10 minutes.
Fit a helmet cam......
Two cameras, one facing front the other rear and you can video problems which may arise from both directions, note the cling film waterproofing, total cost £18 inc. velcro and cling film.
The quality is so good you can make out a car number plate from a still from the camera, the camera is from China, and arrived within ten days on Ebay £8 including postage, yes £8, the IDENTICAL camera from Maplin Electronics is £30. If you are riding off road in mud or in the rain a very good way to rainproof the camera is cling film, it works perfectly.
Not only is it ideal for recording your off road experiences, you never know, you may one day need it if you are ever involved in an accident. It records for seventy minutes and you can record upto four hours on one 8gb micro SD card.
At just £8 each it is easy to carry two or three even, if the battery runs out simply place the card in the next camera.