Tenere 700: Cyclops Tuff Light Full Flex Turn Signals
Cyclops Tuff Light Full Flex Turn Signals
Cyclops Adventure Sports acquired Extreme Dual Sports & Tuff Lights in 2023, renowned as the original nearly unbreakable blinker & completely updated the LED function & operation creating what Cyclops promotes as the most robust, water & impact resistant signals for adventure & dual sport bikes. They sent me one of the early production ready signals to replace my existing Cyclops Multifunction 3.0 units which had experienced reliability issues because of manufacturing issues outside their control & are now discontinued.
Owner Darryl VanNieuwenhuise & team Cyclops have set the bar extremely high for product performance, quality & customer service/support as demonstrated by them not only replacing my faulty Multifunction 3.0 signals last summer to tie me over for the riding season until they were production ready with the new Tuff signals this year (have heard similar testimonials from other Cyclops customers), but also because product issues are taken very personally & highly motivated them to develop a superior product which led to the Extreme Dual Sports/Tuff Light acquisition & subsequent updates/features in their quest to meet their high standards for performance & durability while being 100% waterproof & backed by a 2 year warranty. There are 4 areas of seals to prevent water damage & Cyclops have tested them in a pressure chamber down to 60 feet below the surface for a 2 hour period...I wonder how many other lighting companies test their products to that extent?
- Spring loaded rubber stalks capable of bending 360 degrees while still being stiff, durable & nearly unbreakable. It is too soon to tell, but the spring incorporated design & stalk material should resist drooping over time, something that plagues many signals;
- 5 larger & brighter LEDs vs the Multifunction 3.0 signals smaller rows of LEDS & many other low cost alternatives;
- The lens design is indeed unique. Its effective irradiation (how much usable light is directed from the lens) is up to 95% effective. Most blinkers and Cyclops older Multifunction 3.0 LED signals come in at approximately 20%. The new Tuff Lights are lower in wattage, but its light beam can emit very long distance at the effective area since they feature Linear Optical Design...a lens optimized for maximum visibility that offers a different pattern in the various optics (the outside LEDs look to be a wide angle flood design with the middle 3 LEDs being a narrower spot configuration, similar to that used on auxiliary light bars). This helps the emitters to be seen from different angles and makes for a larger footprint, allowing the light to appear larger than what it is;
- Slightly longer stalks for improved separation & recognition from the headlight & tail light;
- Came prewired with Yamaha oem plug-n-play & positap connectors for my Tenere 700 (the bike specific kits include LED compatible flashers & block off plates);
- Front signals have bright white running lights (my preference would be for amber for improved conspicuity) & amber turn signal function;
- Rear signals have amber signals & the option of either red running and/or brake light function (I opted to wire for both functions) of which the Tuff Light signal brightness matches the oem tail/brake light output very well & are highly visible, even in direct sunlight. The sequential operation of the previous Multifunction 3.0 signals has been replaced with all LEDs blinking on/off together...which, imho, provides improved conspicuity in this application.
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