We use Lezyne lights (lite drive 700xl) that have a GoPro mount adapter. No external battery, but USB rechargeable and works well enough for my purposes (commuting and full on night rides up to ~3 hours).

can you use them upside down?

I bought a Garmin Varia UT 800 a few weeks ago, and I really like it. I am not sure that the auto-dim and auto mode features are worth a premium. But, they are super cool, and they do extend the battery. Its mount is fantastic, and a big part of why I like it. I put their stock mount on my road bike, and I have a temporary clamp-on GoPro type mount for my TT bike.

It is very bright and gave me great visibility. I did a TT ride in the darkest of dark (no moon on a tree canopy road) at well over 20 MPH with no fears at all. It was totally slick seeing it shift from headlight mode into flashing mode when the sun rose.

all the decent lights (like $50+) come with some sort of a quick release mount

Idk if you're supposed to or not, but I do and they seem to work fine.

https://www.mec.ca/en/product/5058-060/Metro-Plus-800#reviews
I bought this one and was even able to rotate the mount to work upside down under my aerobars (you just had to unscrew the upper part from the lower part, twist it, and screw it back together)

ok,
looks like it works. But honestly, I thought more light might be needed. I had previously B&M IQ but they all just have handlebar solutions.

thats an interesting approach... never thought about that. thanks

I would go with a Niterider lumina light (no external battery) and a gopro mount. I got one from china off ebay for $6 (free shipping) that keeps the quick release intact for easy removal to charge. The k-edge niterider mount means you have to undo the gorpo mount screw to remove the light which makes it a PITA to charge unless you have a charging cable right next to where you store your bike.

For a TT setup, I don't know why you would want an external battery. Where would you mount it? Seems like it would just make your cockpit a mess and I would guess you're not planning to ride 4+ hours at night on your TT bike?

I like cycliq's front lights. Bright enough for a dark trail ride and with a camera for the times on road.

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808 > NYC > PDX > YVR
2024 Races: Taupo

Big fan of Bontrager Ion and flare RT. Bright. Long lasting, and can control w garmin (auto start).

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http://www.TriScottsdale.org

Agreed - cycliq is the way to go

Lumina is a great little light. Awesome bang for the buck, and just works.

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float , hammer , and jog

x2

I bought an Exposure (Race model) brand light out of the classifieds about eight months ago and it has totally changed my perspective on cycling. Before, I had used a number of cheap, AA battery powered lights but never really sprung for anything that really lit my way. Now I have no hesitation at all about riding at night. It has lots of modes, but I generally just use the one that has a High, Med and Low beam option that lasts either 2, 6, or 12 hours. The high beam is so bright that I can wear my sunglasses at night when it is windy and still see well enough to ride at speeds up to 15 mph off-road.
On the road the bright beam lights enough of the road that I will bomb down descents with only a slight bit more caution than I use during the day.
Early morning rides are no issue either because I can roll out off road on gravel and not have to stay on the road and chance the occasional pothole I can’t see. Running out of daylight? Not a problem. The quick-release clip takes about one second and has been really solid.
Now, I paid $150 for a $400 light, which may cloud my perspective, but when it dies, eventually, I am sure I will buy another. Certainly out of the heaps of money I have spent on bikes, it is not a purchase I regret.

K-edge sell an adapter for Lumina, where you have your garmin on the top and the Lumina under-mounted. The OLED Lumina 1100 is a fantastic light, with a small display that tells you when it will run out of charge. Worth a look.

Question for folks: do the headlights mentioned cover all your needs, or do you also think a helmet light would be useful?

There seems to be a forest full of creatures on my bike commute, many of which chose to run in front of me. It might be nice to be able to turn my head and see some of the stuff my peripheral vision catches moving.

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To breathe, to feel, to know I'm alive.

Or just by the all in one solution, the Fly12.

https://cycliq.com/bike-cameras/fly12ce/?utm_source=google&utm_campaign=usa_search_fly12&utm_medium=cpc

When riding through pitch black areas, I always found it easier to ride with a helmet light (in addition to a handlebar light). It gave me much more confidence to ride at speed knowing I could scan around with my head rather than just relying on where my bars were pointed. If you have a super bright handlebar light though...(1500 lumen plus) then it might not matter.

Cool, thanks for the reply!

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To breathe, to feel, to know I'm alive.

i do the same for mostly the same reasons; but i also like to have 2 reasonable headlights knowing that i could make it home with one if i had to and am not going to get stranded in the event of one malfunctioning

I definitely like a smaller self contained helmet light and a larger lumen light for the bars. When you are in traffic and you want to signal with your hands, pointing the direction of your head towards the turn, helps light up your arm and direction you want to go. If a car at a cross intersection appears it might be getting ready to turn in front of you, pointing your helmet light towards the driver to get their attention, is nice to be able to do.

I like the light and motion urban 1000 for a lightweight helmet option at under 130 grams, and I also like the cateye 500 XC, which has nice solid and flash options and weighs under 100 grams.

Handlebar lights- the cateye volt 1700 is fantastic and Lupine makes some really, really nice stuff, if you want to spend some money.

The last two seasons I have done a lot of rides at night on a gravel trail here around Denver - The Highline Canal Trail.

I have a couple of combinations I use, all NiteRider.

The 2500 Lumen Dual bulb remote battery light on the Bars, and either the Luminara 1100 or 95 on the Helmet. - When I turn everything on High - it lights up the trail like daytime !

The other way I go is the 1100 on the helmet and the 950 on the bars with the K-edge go-pro/garmin mount. The light goes upside down with a NiteRider adaptor. It works great.

I really think it is important to go with two lights - the one on the bars shows you where the bike is going all the time, and you can use the one on the helmet to see things in the bushes, or point at cars to let them know you are there. I loaned out some lights to a friend and only have the one lately and I miss not having two.

db

Those niterider lights look badass!! May have to invest.

Do they swivel/rotate on the mount? I’d like to use on tri bike, and have integrated front end so would have to mount on the aero bar sideways. Which would mean it’s either facing to sky or ground unless I can rotate it forward.