Volvo LifePaint -- Be seen at night

[Danneaux]

Hi All!

Carmaker Volvo has developed a retroreflective paint that can be applied to cycling-related items to improve rider safety at night. Called LifePaint, it is currently available on a trial basis at select shops in Greater London and Kent, UK. If you like near the Peloton store in Spitalfields, you may be able to snag one of the 200 cans they are giving away. See: http://www.volvolifepaint.com/ , starting at the 1:05 minute mark.

Unfortunately, this product is only temporary, water-soluble, and must be renewed weekly.

I understand the *bicycles* featured in the video have not been painted with LifePaint, but instead with a different but related product from the same Swedish paint manufacturer, Albedo: http://www.albedo100.co.uk/ Unfortunately, it is not permanent but "durable". A product that falls halfway between these two is this one, suitable for pets(!): http://www.amazon.co.uk/Albedo100-Reflective-Spray-Horse-Pets/dp/B00JM7PYHG/ref=sr_1_1?s=pet-supplies&ie=UTF8&qid=1427485865&sr=1-1&keywords=Albedo100

Seems like a great idea if they can overcome the durability problem.

Best,

Dan.

[Andre Jute]

Actually there was a permanent high visibility paint, used by Denmark's Biomega on at least some of their models. But this paint was available only in one color, called Buttermilk IIRC (this was about 10 years ago), and appears to be no longer listed.

Today they have much duller bikes, except one that is interesting, which I'll give a thread of its own, and the high viz feature is a glow-in-the-dark fork described as "The front forks have Nightglow Effect: This effect lies in a special paint treatment that store light when exposed to it. It increases your bike’s traffic safety & general visibility by night. How long the effect works depends how long it has been exposed to light."

Current Biomega bikes can be seen at http://www.biomega.com/?country?country#!/products/bikes

[jags]

have a look at this .

http://bike-paint.dailymegabyte.com/they-spray-bikes-special-paint-gets-dark-into-this/.

[energyman]

Brilliant - now to find where I can get some !!

[jags]

  never thought of that 

[fossala]

It's free at some London cycle shops. Other than that I don't know as I live in Cornwall (quite far from London).

[John Saxby]

Looks good -- I'll search for it in Ottawa & Toronto.  I avoid riding at night, but this would surely help at dusk as well on grey/misty days. 

Thanks, jags, and welcome back!

[AndyE]

If you ride in city traffic at night you need to have your wit's about you. ridding in to the back of a car is idiotic! even if the driver pulls up sharp!   

[John Saxby]

Seems that it's available only in London and surrounds, according to www.volvolifepaint.com.

And the debates have started already: http://road.cc/content/news/147529-volvo-life-paint-comes-under-fire-while-freebies-fly-shelves

Conspicuity is A Good Thing; but on most days when I'm on two wheels, a driver tries to kill me, sometimes unwittingly, sometimes (it seems) deliberately. The most recent example: my hi-viz gear had no deterrent effect whatosever earlier this week on a driver of a 3/4-tonne Dodge pickup, about the size of two rhinos mating: he ran a "yield" sign as he came down off the crosstown freeway onto the suburban street where I was riding.  Never even lifted his foot, blew through the sign at about 70-80 kms, I'd guess. I knew he'd do that, of course--the behaviour of drivers of such vehicles is fairly easy to predict--but if I had continued along my course, expecting him to observe the "yield", well ...

[jags]

John be carefull there lunatics everywhere.people change when they get behind the wheel of a car or truck ,always seem to be in a hurry and god help u if u get in there way.

[geocycle]

Could have hours of fun making 'creative' reflectives!

[Danneaux]

[Topics merged for continuity. -- Dan.]