Headlight/taillight recommendations
 

I'm looking for a rechargeable headlight and taillight that are:
* waterproof
* bright enough to help with visibility (> 250 lumens)
* can recharge without removing them from the bike
* black in color

I currently have the Gator 390 set but the headlight is a blue color that doesn't match my bike and the taillight has to be removed to be recharged.

Does anyone have a set of lights they would recommend?

Welcome to electronics

when I commuted, I used to charge my magicshine on the bike. I store the battery in my rear trunk. brought bike to basement, plugged charger in hanging wall socket. unplugged extension wire on battery from headlight & plugged it into the charger. left it over night. that brand now makes a rear strobe & a "Y" connector so both lights run off the same battery

I'm not sure why this is an issue. Any bike light that is rechargeable can be charged while still mounted on the bike but really why does that matter. (?) To me recharging while on the bike is usually more difficult. Of course that all depends on the type of connector being used, the type of charger and the various extensions you might need to get the job done ( on the bike ). If your lamp is "Quick release", it's no big deal to slide the lamp off, walk over to the charger and charge ( assuming a self-contained lamp ) . Now if you have a battery mounted to the bike then the issues changes a bit depending on how you have the battery set-up on the bike. One of my bikes has a battery inside a frame bag. On that bike I use an extension and charge the battery while still in the bag. Otherwise batteries are generally easy as hell to remove if just Velcro'd to the frame.

Anyway, Raveman CR500 is black ( with self-contained battery ) and makes for a decent road lamp ( and yes you can charge it on the bike with a phone charger or slide it off the quick release and walk it over to the charger....whatever makes your day )

* waterproof Check, good enough for heavy downpours.
* bright enough to help with visibility (> 250 lumens) Check, probably double that.
* can recharge without removing them from the bike See pic below.
* black in color I think the bezels come in different colors.

https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7297/...99c5f74d_z.jpgBrompton parked in the lockerroom by 1nterceptor, on Flickr

Having a light that is rechargeable while mounted on the bike is important to me because I have an exceptionally bad memory and I will nearly always forget my lights unless I'm leaving the house when it is already dark.

Not really much of an issue if you have the correct USB charging cables and they are long enough.

You can recharge from an external USB battery if it's more convenient. I do that with my Light & Motion Urban 500 on long nighttime rides. I leave it hooked up to the bike, and just run a USB cord to a largish Jackery battery that can recharge all of my devices before the battery itself needs recharging -- iPhone, Cygolite Hotshot taillight, both small helmet lights, Ion Speed Pro video camera.

My hybrid bikes have small pouches Velcro-strapped across the handlebar to hold my USB battery and other stuff. On my road bike I just put the Jackery or other USB battery in my helmet, hanging from the handlebar, while I'm resting with friends for a snack, beer, coffee, whatever.

So, no big deal if your bike isn't parked near a computer, outlet or handy source for USB recharging. A Jackery or similar high capacity battery costs $15-$25. I have a few cheaper, smaller and lighter batteries but they're good for recharging one device, once a night. The larger batteries last longer between recharges. Get one with two or more ports and you can recharge all your devices at the same time while you're at work, wherever.

Oh, regarding the lights themselves, visit REI if possible, or any store that lets you handle the lights. That way you can see which have readily accessible USB ports. (And buy from that store if their prices are reasonable -- I bought my lights from REI after playing with their toys because they have a great display board for customers.)

The Cygolite Hotshot USB ports are easy to reach, on the bottom of the lights. The Hotshot 50 uses a supplied mini-USB port. Some of the others use the smaller micro-USB port. For awhile I had my Hotshot mounted so that it couldn't be easily detached -- it was nearly butted up against the bottom of the saddle so releasing the quick release clip still wouldn't clear the saddle. I'd just recharge the light on the bike.

The Light & Motion Urbans have a USB micro port under the front of the barrel. Fairly easy to reach without detaching the light.

I also use, and like, my Blackburn 2'Fer light on the back of my helmet, but it must be detached to access the USB port. The Vivo Bike Illuminati I use as a front helmet light can be accessed without detaching it -- much handier. But it's not really bright enough to be a sole headlight.

Same here with one of the clones; battery on the stem, and lean the bike against my workbench where the cord will reach. Haven't seen a taillight I like that wouldn't have to come off to charge, so I've stuck with the Radbot 1000.

Still want something that will run both off, say, a 2s8p 18650 pack, with switches (individual plus a master on/off) at the battery pack so I can turn them all on, off or switch modes from the same place, plus only having to worry about one battery pack.