I have a couple of basic Cateye LED lights and was wondering if they are okay to use when it's raining. There don't seem to be any big gaps in the case that would let a lot of water in.

If I'm going to be riding in heavy rain, do I need to cover the lights with something? Are there lights specifically for riding in the rain?

All the cateye light are rain-proof, as any bike light should be.
A few of them you can scuba dive with too.

when riding in the rain, you may want to add a light that has a flashing mode, just to be seen..

I have couple of older Cateye AA LED lights that I still use as side blinkies in the rain or fog. They held up well in the rain.

One thought to keep in mind is that the same light that worked well in ideal condition will be much less in performance in a downpour. My setup is overkill in a clear day and I run them on Low or MED but when it is downpouring, I have to run them on Hi to get the same effect.

Thanks for the replies!

just one note - most of the lights meant for rain or weatherproof will typically have gasket seals. if the batteries require replacing, always just check that the gaskets are seated properly when closing back the unit to ensure no leaks. i screwed up one light, i was rushing to put a fresh set of batteries in the dark, and did not notice the gasket was snagged. luckily water leaked did not cause any damage, but there was some moisture in the battery compartment, and i mangled the gasket.

Several cat-eye models I owned were damaged in the rain. They continued to work, but one developed a bad switch and other showed rusty like staining on the battery case contacts. I did "fix" the sticky switch by lubing it.

My Planetbike Blaze half watt headlite and Superflash taillite has been through plenty of rainy commutes
and they seem to be doing fine. But now I'm adding flashlights for more visibility. Here's a cheap flashlight
from Costco that I submerged in a bowl of water for over 5 minutes twice and seem to work ok afterwards:

Very good advice. I will add that I put a very minute film of silicone grease on these gaskets and it really helps them seat properly and keep the water out. This is the norm for rubber seals used in industrial settings, Scuba diving, etc...

I've used my Spiderfire flashlight from DealExtreme right through this very wet Victoria British Columbia winter, every day. Lots of torrential rides - no issues. With the velcro flashlight holder. Awesome light output. I'm getting another one.

I had a pair of Cat Eye $20ish lights that I used for a very rainy 24hrs of Canaan (back when it was actually in Canaan Valley) and those little buggers worked for many years after that, even after I moved on to bigger brighter lights.

If you were looking to get completely water proof lights Baja Designs Strykr and Strykr Pro lights are both completely waterproof to 33ft - definitely no worries about about rain. The company also has a Trade-Up program for your old lights, $100 credit towards a new Strykr or Strykr Pro, you'd never need to be concerned about rain again

Shannon

Cbad, are you still thinking about Camino Real?