Today’s bike lights come with many safety features, and there are plenty of models that don’t cost a fortune. According to the most recent data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 52 percent of fatal cycling accidents involving cars and trucks occurred in low-light or dark conditions.
#CATEYE BIKE LIGHTS DRIVERS#
A good set of headlights and taillights lets you see what’s ahead and alerts drivers and others of your presence. Apart from the large jump between the high and medium settings, there isn’t anything that left me wanting.Just like helmets, bike lights are critical safety gear for every cyclist. And, as mentioned above, brightness and clarity is top-notch. Swappable battery packs are a nice bonus, especially for bikepacking. They get high marks on form factor, build quality, and ease of operation. These two Volt lights from CatEye have a lot going for them. I would suggest 800 lumens for the medium mode, or alternatively, adding another brightness level to the mix. However, 500 lumens isn’t quite enough, even for tame trails. It’s overkill for flat sections or climbing. In my experience, 1600 lumens is only necessary on the most demanding descents.
It drops from 1600 lumens on high to 500 lumens on medium. The only drawback I found is the jump from the high to medium settings is too large, particularly with the Volt 1600. While the power button turns red when the battery is low, there isn’t a meter like you find on some other lights. By toggling through the light modes–as I do with any light–I could easily make it through a 3-hour night ride. I found the run times on both lights to be true to CatEye’s claims. Luckily, I was able to use CatEye’s FlexTight mount on the helmet mount you have to use with Smith’s Forefront helmet For instance, if the light was in the medium setting when you turned it off, it would still be in the medium setting when powered back on. Thankfully, the CatEye lights remember which mode they were in when you turn them off. Switching between modes is done with a quick press of the power button. Pressing and briefly holding the power button turns the lights on or off. Both offer good coverage of the trail, but unsurprisingly the dual-beam 1600 trumps the 800.įinding the power button was easy–even when mounted on a helmet and wearing gloves. There were no distracting dark spots in the beam. The light from both units is white, bright, and clear. Also, the helmet light is only needed to help see through corners, so it doesn’t need to be as bright. I tried it the other way around as well, but the additional heft of the larger light was noticeable. My typical setup while using these lights was to put the brighter Volt 1600 on the handlebars and the Volt 800 on my helmet. The low-profile helmet mount uses a velcro strap to feed through the vents. CatEye’s adjustable “FlexTight” bracket should fit handlebars of any diameter. Handlebar and helmet mounts are simple and functional. Prices for the additional batteries are $45 for the 800 and $107 for the 1600. It’s slightly more involved with the 1600: there are three allen screws that hold the battery pack to the light head. Removing the battery is easy on the 800: it simply unscrews from the light head. Interestingly, spare battery packs are available for both lights. Run time: 2-15 hours (up to 100 hours flashing).Five light modes: High (1600 lumens), Medium (500 lumens), Low (200 lumens), two flashing modes.Run time: 2-8 hours (up to 80 hours flashing).Five light modes: High (800 lumens), Medium (400 lumens), Low (200 lumens), two flashing modes.
#CATEYE BIKE LIGHTS SERIES#
All of the Volt Series lights–save the Volt 6000–are self-contained units, meaning the light and battery are integrated. The Volt lights all use rechargeable batteries and brightness ranges from a commuter-oriented 80 lumens up to a “holy-shit-is-that-a-helicopter-following-us?!?!” 6,000 lumens. SpecsĬatEye sent over two lights from their Volt Series. One brand we hadn’t yet tested, though, was CatEye. We’ve tested a bunch over the years–expensive lights, cheap lights, lights from major manufacturers, and even some hand-built units.
That’s assuming you can see what you’re doing though, as no single piece of gear will impact your enjoyment more than the light you choose. Practically speaking, if we didn’t ride at night, we wouldn’t get nearly as many miles in. We here at Singletracks are big fans of mountain biking at night.
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