Can I hook my Cateye HL500 Micro II lamp to an external 6V battery?
Note that the bulb in the Micro II lamp is rated at 4.8V, such that connecting it to a 6V source will cause the lamp to prematurely fail, possibly within a few hours or minutes. See Section 6.2 for more info. The astute reader will notice that the four 1.5V alkaline AA batteries that are typically used in the Micro II add up to 6V. However, due to the internal resistance of alkaline batteries under load, in fact only about 4.8V to 5.2V are supplied to the bulb. This can be verified with a simple voltmeter. Using alternative batteries, such as NiCads, does not damage the bulb either, because NiCads are actually rated at 1.25V, and so supply only about 5V under load. Users have also reported successfully using Lithium batteries, though the FAQ holder has no actual data concerning these. Though in the past Cateye advertised the availability of an external battery pack for the Micro II lamp, to date none is available. However, Cateye has announced the release of a new Micro halogen lamp wi
