therh

What are you current favorite tail lights for daytime road riding under $75?

I am looking to purchase a new LED rechargeable tail light for daytime riding as mine is not able to be charged any more.

What taillights are you using?

Thanks,
RH

10 Wheels

DAYTIME RED Taillight - DAYTIME ONLY TAILLIGHT seat post, seat stay, chain stay or rack mount ? DiNotte Lighting USA Online Store

10 Wheels

OR

400R RED Taillight - seat post, seat stay, chain stay or rack mount ? DiNotte Lighting USA Online Store

DrIsotope

Cygolite Hotshot PRO 150, $42 @ Amazon

It is eye-scaldingly bright. I've had people roll down their windows (during the day) and say, "Man, that is the brightest light I've ever seen on a bicycle. I could see you from like a mile away."

And I always respond, "That's the idea!"

therh

I'm not sure I want to annoy people, but I want to be seen for sure.

Now as for the price, that I can live with. How is it to plug in and all?

RH

kingston 

Anything with an off switch is fine during the day.

therh

Haha, what funny...

Seriously what lights are you guys using?

10 Wheels

I had a Hot Shot and gave to an area runner.

Tail Lights: Four Dinottes on my Night Trike.
Two Dinottes on my Day Trike.

DXchulo

https://www.serfas.com/shop/products...50-150-lumens/


I'm using this at the moment. It's pretty bright and the battery life is outstanding. I do 6+ hour rides at least once a week, so battery life is huge for me.


Its weakness is the mount. First, it doesn't come with a clothing/bag clip. Second, it doesn't mount on my chainstay very well. For some reason it always wants to move to the side where it's not as visible. Maybe a little roll of some old inner tube will fix that. The seatpost mount is fine. That's where I have it most of the time.

DrIsotope

Recharges through USB micro. Average battery life on flash is around 10 hours, in my experience. Comes with seatpost and seatstay mounts. I had the 2W version prior to the PRO, it worked every bit as well, just trading brightness for battery life. The PRO is easily twice as bright, but the battery in 2W would last up to 24 hours.

My thinking is, to annoy someone they have to see you first. So in reality, at least for a few moments, we do want to annoy people.

canklecat

Cygolite Hotshots are a best buy in daytime visible taillights. The DiNottes are great but cost more than my bike.

Re: @DXchulo's tip: Looks like Serfas has addressed my one complaint about Hotshots -- the ability to dim lights on flash modes. The Hotshots can be dimmed only in steady mode. They still peak at full blast on any flash/strobe mode, so I can't use them on nighttime group rides. I've been toting an extra taillight that's dimmer just for those occasions. But the Serfas Spectra appears to be adjustable from bright to dim in flash modes as well.

DrIsotope

If I rode in groups, or cared about people's feelings, I would probably just make a diffuser to go over the Hotshot for use at night. No such thing as too bright, IMO. Just redirect the light to make it more visible from more angles at night.

speshelite

This is way off topic but do runners/walkers use a specific belt or mount to clip the light on to?

I don't think clipping in to your shorts would be a secure way to mount a light.

01 CAt Man Do

I'll go along with the recommendation for the Cygolite Hotshot 150. I don't use mine in the day but I'm sure it's bright enough to be seen well in the later part of the day.

The Serfas tst-150 Spectra looks like a nice option. I own a couple of the earlier versions of the Serfas's and those too are very bright lights. Nice to see that Serfas upgraded to a 150 lumen version. If I didn't already own a Hotshot 150 I'd buy one of those.

Things that need to be mentioned; Not all the modes on the Hotshot offer the highest output. I use the adjustable ( timing ) fade in and out mode. That mode is one of the ones with maximum output. One of the other flash/pulse modes is also max but some of the others ( including adjustable steady ) are not.

With the Serfas 150 only the Daytime flash mode is 150 lumen. That said I'd like to see one in action just to see if I like the flash sequence. I checked Youtube but don't see any reviews of it yet. At lease with the Hotshot's you can adjust the timing of some of the flash and pulse modes and I like that.

BTW I do carry something for daytime use but I rarely use it. It is torch mounted under my seat on one of the seat rails ( Velcro'd in place ) The torch uses a very bright amber XP-G2 drop-in that is custom set to use about 1500ma. I don't know what the actual output is but it is very, very bright. maybe somewhere in the 350-400 lumen range. The driver is set-up with a wide variety of flash modes. I have it set-up on a triple pulse / pause mode. I love it but since I have the Hotshot 150 I've thought about removing it since I don't use it that much. It's real hard to set-up though so that's why I can't bring myself to remove it.

rm -rf

Yes, the Hotshot 150 works great. It's 150 lumens on the short flashes, 90 lumens on the longer flashes or on steady. I got it specifically for better daytime visibility.

I use the "single flash", slowed down to about 2 bright, brief flashes per second for daytime use. I'm trying to get drivers to notice me when I'm still far down the road.

Solo at night, I use the "wah wah" / "fade" medium speed blinking that doesn't flash, instead it smoothly increases and decreases. I expect it's less annoying and less confusing to drivers, but still grabs attention.
The light is aimed slightly below level, but still lights up reflective signs way,way back. I can see the red pool of light on the road if I look back. That's bright!

There's 5 different blinking modes, really too many choices to cycle through.

For group rides, the steady light mode can be dialed way down to "quite dim". The dim, steady light is much nicer for the following riders, and there's enough lights (some flashing), and various reflective bits to make the group really visible anyway.

DXchulo

I might make a review video later this year. I've only had it for a few months.


The flash sequence on the daytime mode is basically two quick flashes, then some dead time, then two quick flashes. There's kind of a long time between the flashes. I'm sure that's why the battery life is so good in daytime mode.


I can say that I do believe their battery life claims. I did a 400-mile ride with it using daylight mode during the day and just a regular flashing mode at night. I didn't run out of battery and that ride took me almost 30 hours.

a1penguin

Another happy customer of the Cygolite Hotshot Pro 150 lumen light. I also have the original Hotshot. And then I upgraded to the Performance house brand Axiom Pulse 60. My only complaint with that light is that the thing on the back was shorter than other lights and I had to create an extra tie down so that I would not lose it off the seat bag.

All of these lights are USB rechargeable and the newer ones use the micro USB and the older ones use mini USB.

canklecat

The Blackburn 2'Fer would be a versatile light for a jogger or pedestrian. It was my first bike light in 2015 and I still use it as a helmet rear light. It's the best value I've found in a to-be-seen light, and reading light.

• Very lightweight and compact.
• Clip secures to the provided mount, a belt loop, belt up to 1" wide, saddle bag light mounting loop, shirt collar or front pocket, backpack or shoulder bag, hat band, inside a camera/handlebar bag for nighttime use, etc. It has a well designed backup retention hook to minimize the risk of it popping loose.
• Better side visibility than the Cygolite Hotshot.
• Four modes: steady red; flashing red; steady white; flashing white.
• Steady white mode is very even and suitable for reading maps, illuminating the inside of a tent or small room in an emergency. But it's not a headlight to see the road by unless you ride slowly.

I mention the Blackburn 2'Fer often because it's a great value for what it does well -- a versatile to-be-seen light, and reading light. It may not seem competitive with the Cygolite Hotshot, which is the best value I've seen in a bicycle taillight. But at roughly the same price it's not confined to that niche role. That's why I have both. And the 2'Fer is available in a two-pack for a discounted price.

01 CAt Man Do

That sounds promising. "Can you estimate the length of the pause". I thought the 25 hrs on Daytime flash was a type error but if the pause is long enough ( hopefully not too long ) then the 25 hrs should be about right. These newer versions have 9 different modes so that allows for longer usage if using the lower powered modes. Did they do away with the "flicker mode"? They use to provide that mode on the older models but in my opinion it wasn't something that was useful.

therh

The Hot Shot 150 looks like something to look into.

GeneO 

I have a 60 lumen Serfas I like a lot, have been told by coworkers they can see me from quite a long way off. I am thinking about maybe trying a Cygolite Hotshot Pro 150.

noglider 

I don't ride where the difference between my speed and that of other road users is great, so I use one of the lower level Hotshots. I pretend it's not on and rely on my body language to convey how I will act, and I use my mirror to predict how others will act. Maybe this is not the best strategy for survival, but so far, I'm still alive. I do a lot of squiggling, though, to assist others in noticing me, when I think it will help. I don't ride at the edge of the road unless I believe I've been seen first and we have an agreement as to who will go where. Without that agreement, I often take the middle of the lane.

EricSteven5

For under $75:

+ 1 Cygolite Hotshot 150

They also make a Hotshot 100 (or they used to anyway).

I have a Hotshot Pro 80 and I would say for daytime use, it is moderately effective.

Don't bother with anything under 50 lumens if daytime visibility is what you're after. So many times I will see riders that are using blinkies in the middle of the day, and you cannot even tell they have one until you are within 5-10 feet of them. Just a waste of batteries/electricity.

Hotshot Pro 80 from a little ways back in full sun:

https://www.imgur.com/a/4GI44

01 CAt Man Do

I see the same thing all the time. Usually it's someone using a cheap AAA powered blinkie who not only is using half dead batteries but has the thing aimed off camber as well. If it weren't so sad it'd be laughable. Then again if someone hits them ( assuming they live and the offenders were caught ) they get to go into court and tell the judge, "Yes Your Honor, and I was using a rear light too".

Just the other day I saw a lady riding a bike on a heavily traveled road about the time the sun is setting in the sky. I was going the opposite direction and noticed first her very bright front strobe/blinker... ( +1 for the lady ) ...but as I passed I looked in my mirror and noticed that she had just the type of rear light we are now talking about. Turns out I saw her two days in a row. If I see her again I just might turn around, pull off the side of the road and give her one of my older rear lamps. On the road she was riding she needs it badly.

Greyhounds

I have a Knog Blinder Road R70 Rear Bike Light. 70 Lumens, 5 red LEDS, 5 modes of flash, steady, and chaser. Awesome light for both day and night. Very reasonable price and great battery life. Knog.com