Nite Hawk Cycling Light Review Reviewed By:Tim Cameron Reviewed On: January 2, 2004 Product Page:Nite Hawk Price: $129.95
The Test
I charged the battery completely before using the light which took eleven hours. After completing the battery charge I decided to turn on the light to see how bright it was. It was very bright in total darkness and fairly bright in a lighted room. The light comes with a handle bar mount and also a helmet mount both of which are made of sturdy plastic. I mounted the light on my handle bar and the battery was placed in my saddle bag because there was not a convenient mounting place on my bike. The handle bar mount has two rubber bushings that are inserted into the plastic portion of the mount. This allows little or no movement of the mount once it has been properly secured to the handle bar. It has a thumb type screw that allows for easy tightening onto the handle bar. I found that after properly attached there was no movement at all. I rode a total of 34 miles on the Creeper Trail in Virginia and only once had to tighten the thumb screw. Next I wanted to try the helmet mount. It has a Velcro type fastener that wraps around the air holes in the front of a helmet. Next, I mounted the light on my bike helmet, which was not so easy. I mounted the light head piece easy enough but the on/off switch did not have long enough Velcro to go all the way around the slot in my helmet. I did manage to attach it at the back of the helmet which is not necessarily the best place. I would recommend to Nite Hawk that they include Velcro that is somewhat longer for all the different applications. The total mount on the helmet took about 8 minutes from start to finish. I also noticed the helmet was not as comfortable with the Velcro against the top of your head not to mention the extra weight. It does give you a little more light manageability with it on your head.
It was more comfortable with it mounted on the bike but a little easier to see where you want with the light on your head. I found that it was very secure but the cord was a little awkward running up beside your chest. It took a little getting use to after having it on the handle bars. I believe you have more control of your lighted area with it on your helmet because where ever you looked, there was light. Both mounts seemed very stable.
I then went for a night ride. After unloading my bike and attaching the head piece on the handle bar I turn the light on. As I was proceeding on the bike trial the light went off. I noticed that when I moved the wire that plugs into the bottom of the light, the light would turn off. I went back to my vehicle to investigate further. I found that inside the female plug on the light housing a good connection was not being made. I had to take a small pointed screwdriver that was small enough to fit inside the plug and try and bend a piece of metal that was for the voltage ground connection. I was successful after several attempts. Just imagine being several miles from your vehicle without a tiny screwdriver to make the repair. This one probably slipped by the final testing at the factory.
Conclusion:
I would recommend the “Phoenix One Touch” to anyone looking for a good light at a fair price. It has allowed me to get some extra miles in at night during those hot summer months in Alabama. I would like to thank Nite Hawk Bicycling Lighting for helping make this review possible.
Update After using the Nite Hawk Lite for some time now I cannot honestly in good faith recommend the light to our readers. I continue to have problems with the connection or plug and the Nite Hawk Company will not respond to emails. To me, service is everything and if a company will not respond to customer complaints they have a problem. I believe they could make quality products but this is not one of them. Hopefully they will come up with modifications that will correct this problem, if they do I will certainly put that information on the review as well.
Pros
Battery last 2 plus hours
Bright light
Minimal weight
Cons
Need adjustable beam
Need longer Velcro for mounting around parts of helmet
Need a way to mount on a non A-Frame full suspension type bike
