From: "Stu Olson" Subject: Nite Hawk Lighting System Comments (Long) Date: Sat, 2 Jan 1999 13:36:45 -0700 Message-ID: <000201be368f$9cd3c4e0$113f1d26@n7qjp.earthlink.net> I purchased a Nite Hawk Pro lighting system a couple of days before Christmas. It arrived Christmas Eve and I've had a chance to try it out a few times since. My overall impression......I like it. It is a 12V 2.6AH SLA two lighthead system. The MR-11 lamps are rated at 10W, 10 degree beam and 20W, 35 degree beam. The lamp housings are a plastic material and quite compact in size. (I've noticed no "melt down" problems.) There is a 5.5mm x 2.5mm power receptacle in the lower rear of the light head. Light Heads - The light heads can be mounted in several ways. Each head comes with its own conventional handlebar bracket, which attaches with two screws. You can attach both brackets to the handlebar and mount the light heads on top (typical). The bracket also provides for attaching the light heads from the bottom side. An extender is supplied for each bracket that can be attached to the lower side. The light head can then be attached to the extender. This positions the light below the handlebar clutter of shifter and brake cables. If you are tight on handlebar space, you can opt to install a single bracket, and mount both light heads on the one bracket (nice touch). The light heads can be adjusted vertically by rotating the bracket on the bar. There is no provision for side to side adjustment. (This is not a problem for my setup, but it could be for other riders.) Cables- The wiring seems to be quite good. It is 18 gauge two conductor (zip cord). All of the plugs are strain relieved (nice touch). A single cable assembly provides power from the battery bottle. Near the light head end, a molded Y splits the cable into individual power leads for each light head. The cable to each light includes a waterproof toggle switch (no, I've not submerged them to verify this) on the end of a 12" pigtail. The back of the switch is designed to mount on a curved surface. It has an attached rubber pad (nice touch) to provide a good grip. The switch is held in place with a generous Velcro strap (replaceable). They mount well on the handlebar or the stem. Battery - The 2.6 AH SLA water bottle battery provides a single 5.5mm x 2.5mm power receptacle. (It has room for a second jack but it is not installed. A phone call to Nite Hawk confirmed that they would build a battery for me with twin jacks if I desired one.) They did include a power splitter (Y-adapter) as part of the system. While on the phone with Nite Hawk, I also found that they would sell me (~15$) an empty bottle if I wished to do any further customization, build up my own, etc. The Pro is supplied with a 350 mA smart charger, that allows for plug-and-forget charging. After the high charge LED went off, I measured the float voltage at 13.6VDC (+/- accuracy of my DVM). Nite Hawk claims 8-10 hours to charge a 100% discharged battery. I've not verified this but it seems reasonable. Obviously, you can charge the battery at any point in the discharge cycle. The wall-wart type charger has three LEDs that indicate high charge, float, and short circuit. The battery bottle also contains a resetable fuse. Extras- I also received the helmet mount (and appropriate power cable) with my purchase. It is my understanding that Nite Hawk is running this as a special (I do not know for how long) when you order the Pro, so you get these as an extra. I've not tried them yet, but they should work fine. The cable construction is the same, except that it has a 2nd connector to allow you to easily disconnect from the bike and leave the battery connection and switch on the bike. Other comments- I found Nite Hawk to be very responsive both via their e-mail and toll free phone number. There was no hint of "attitude" and they were willing to talk through any questions/problems I had. The claimed weight is 1388 grams (3.05 lbs). Their website contains a good description of their systems. They also offer individual sales of light heads, bulbs, brackets, cables, straps, etc. I have several 12V 2.5AH Cyclon batteries that seem to work well with the Pro charger. Carrying one of these as a spare should provide me with adequate backup should the need arise. In summary, I have found this $139.99 system to easily satisfy my lighting needs. Furthermore, I greatly appreciate Nite Hawk's efforts to provide a reasonably priced 30 watt lighting system. If you really do not wish to spend $250+ for a lighting system, I would suggest giving the Nite Hawk Pro a try. Best regards....Stu Stu Olson N7QJP Phoenix, AZ DM33vm N7QJP@earthlink.net http://home.earthlink.net/~n7qjp Developer of VKE Digital Voice Keyer