Is it safe to add lights to the helmet? The alert LED light to alert car drivers.
Will the light interfere with the safety function of the helmet?
Thank you
by unigr33n
Is it safe to add lights to the helmet? The alert LED light to alert car drivers.
Will the light interfere with the safety function of the helmet?
Thank you
by unigr33n
20 Comments
In general, only if you use screws/bolts through the helmet materials to affix the light would it inhibit the safety of the helmet.
One like what you have in the picture should be OK because it’s just velcro/tension strapping through the vents. No structural changes to the helmet required.
No. In case of an accident the light could potentially cause the helmet to fail.
Just watch out for low hanging branches.
That’s what we use when we race at night during 24 hour races in the woods.
https://preview.redd.it/bbdcbj3mxbef1.jpeg?width=1137&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=0d1d9631ba66b204ad0533a1b624c86a3f9932f3
There are bike helmets with lights built in. Both front and rear.
It can catch on something or ground and cause excess head rotation. Can also create a hard point on impact to break through the helmet.
Probably not as safe in a crash but safer in terms of preventing a crash, so might be safer on balance.
Has the potential to create point impact however, everyone seems to use them.
Definitely not
[Night lap at Old Pueblo](https://youtu.be/b6pn6w_M1RM?si=-GCtnBNAs5jFtXH2)
Putting your head down will block the light from behind
You could ask former F1 driver Michael Schumacher if it’s a good idea to stick something on your helmet, but you migth not understand the reply.
I have a Bell sixer helmet with a anchor point for a
ligth or a Gopro, it’s desinged to break off easily to prevent damage .
You get better visibility of terrain when the light is offset from your view point.
Hadn’t Schumacher have a camera on his helmet when he had the accident?
It’s perfectly fine. Anyone who night rides mountains bikes uses a helmet light and bar light. Shouldn’t cause you any problems.
The back light is a gimmick as you will look at terrain and that backlight will be all over the place rather than properly pointing towards the back. Back light I recommend to just put on the bike.
Front light on helmet is pretty common for night rides while MTBing but would recommend something that is more mounted towards the front and closer to the helmet. Note that you can easily blind people with those setups.
However if you have nothing else available it will be safer than having nothing.
Ure gonna lose 50W on this
No, you can put a rear light on the rear of the helmet (that’s not protruding). And a front light anywhere else. These lights are a bad idea in case of a crash.
Off road sure i guess, but i dislike blinding the people that should not overrun you aspect of headlights.
I wouldn’t add a light personally as the bike mounted ones are more than enough for road riding for me however I did ride with a helmet cameras while commuting for evidence and safety. The BBC [commissioned a small study](https://www.bbc.co.uk/safety/resources/safetynews/helmet-cams) testing the claims of causing helmet weakness or extra stresses on the head from the impact and actually found it didn’t really make any change to rotation or cause extra helmet damage, surprisingly in some cases the mount even absorbed some of the impact. The fitting was designed to snap off but this didn’t always happen depending on impact angle and they did emphasise that it’s not a conclusive argument on safety, just that it’s not as bad as people claim.
Not in the city because you will blind anyone that you look at even briefly.
I would not. They said that a helmet mounted GoPro contributed to Michael Schumacher’s condition.
I would go with helmets that have inbuilt lights (I have Unit1 Aura and it delivers ok)