Fyrlyt, all hype no substance?

http://fyrlyt.com/

Can anyone make any actual, technical, sense out of that site? I'm interested in the lights but I smell alot of early Lightforce style hype/bashing of the competition.
I'm especially dubious of the ability to change from spot to spread beam simply by repositioning the bulb, sound familiar?
I thought about getting a pair but not really sure about them, that I don't think they would fit properly on my car!

Please keep this on topic.

irsa76 said:

http://fyrlyt.com/I'm especially dubious of the ability to change from spot to spread beam simply by repositioning the bulb, sound familiar?

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As familiar as a Maglight.

Their words dance on the page like David Copperfield's hands as he holds up a chess piece and explains how ordinary this chess piece is (just before it turns into a flock of doves).

They speak of a 150W bulb they developed with OSRAM, but no close-ups of this bulb to be seen.

They brag about the stainless steel fasteners they use (ooh, I mean "austenitic stainless steel" which sounds super-futuristic but was patented in 1912), but I'd rather use brass for certain fastener applications where exposed to the elements.

Their site is full of "everyone else is WRONG" but doesn't quite go into the detail of why they are right.

And then there's their "testimonials" page. The human eye and human brain are easily fooled, so testimonials about lights really mean nothing.

Thanks, but no thanks.

I just found what is supposed to be their 150W bulb, with a bi-pin base, and it has very large coil, transverse filament. I'm pretty sure beam focus isn't going to be a strong point.

No, thanks.

I have a friend with some who knows even less than me about lights who thought they were fantastic.
To my eyes I thought they were nothing special. Nice colour compared to cheap HID'S but nothing else.
Apparently the bulbs are only rated for 8 hours too.

Sent from my GT-I9305T using Tapatalk 2

Actually, now that I look at this website with a clearer head (somewhat -- I have an awful case of the flu), I see I was mistaken at first glance. I (obviously) haven't seen or tried the lamps in person, but so far on the site I'm not finding any shaky claims.

irsa76 said:

http://fyrlyt.com/

Can anyone make any actual, technical, sense out of that site? I'm interested in the lights but I smell alot of early Lightforce style hype/bashing of the competition.
I'm especially dubious of the ability to change from spot to spread beam simply by repositioning the bulb, sound familiar?
I thought about getting a pair but not really sure about them, that I don't think they would fit properly on my car!

Please keep this on topic.

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I shared the same interest and concerns as you. Sure they throw out a ship load of light but there is a complete lack of beam pattern information available. I contacted Fyrlyt who made many promises about providing beam pattern shots and light distribution diagrams, which they never delivered. I bought a pair of Hella Rallye 4000 FF lamps and couldn't be happier. Compared to the IPF 800s I was running, they are one serious light. Just pick the spread for the type of driving you do.

Cheers

William Cowan

I saw a mention on another forum that one of the guys was involved in Lightforce in the early days. I believe it due to similar design ideas and the bashing of rivals, "We do eveything better but won't show proof why". I wonder if it's the same guy who told me my Cibie Oscar SC were complete garbage and I must love burning my cash, with out actually showing me why Lightforce were better beyond being lighter weight.

wcowan said:

I shared the same interest and concerns as you. Sure they throw out a ship load of light but pattern control is not one of their strengths. I contacted Fyrlyt who made many promises about providing beam pattern shots and light distribution diagrams, which they never delivered. I bought a pair of Hella Rallye 4000 FF lamps and couldn't be happier. Compared to the IPF 800s I was running, they are one serious light. Just pick the spread for the type of driving you do.

Cheers

William Cowan

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I've seen a couple of photos showing the beam pattern, nothing actually meaningful though, and I honestly couldn't tell the difference between their spot and spread beams. For the money I would be happier running another set of my beloved Oscar SC, or a similar Hella product.

irsa76 said:

For the money I would be happier running another set of my beloved Oscar SC, or a similar Hella product.

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Why-Oh-Why did Cibie stop making the Oscar SC????? That had to be about the best driving light in that size class.

I've never made any secret that I'm a bit of a Lightforce fan. Their lights though are lasers compared to Cibie and Hella who manage to distribute the light much better. The Fyrlyt has had me fascinated for some time though. Reading through all the marketing hype, it does appear to be a light that is well constructed and made, with some interesting and useful features. The beam, such as can be judged from their pictures and videos appears to have addressed the shortcomings of the Lightforce beam (except for the Genesis which I believe to be a true competitor for the Rallye 4000 spot).

A bulb with an 8 hour life is a pretty serious failure, although I understand that a lower output bulb, with longer lifespan but still good output, is available.

It does seem that all the development that went into what could be an excellent light, is wasted with hype at a level that even the average bogan could see through it. Never over-estimate your target though. There are more than a few four wheel drivers who would lap this up and if that translates to sales then the hype has done its' job. Once they have their lights out there judgements can be based on real world experience and that is starting to happen. There is talk amongst the fraternity on these lights and the reports seem to be fairly positive.

Halogen optimised reflector. Love that one!

wcowan said:

Why-Oh-Why did Cibie stop making the Oscar SC????? That had to be about the best driving light in that size class.

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I believe it's still in production, just no Australian importer. They did have a short coming in that they didn't cope with 100w bulbs, my set had discolored reflector and burnt/discolored bulb holder. I noticed several years they were being sold in pairs in a blister pack, with 100w bulbs.
I'm amused that the 3 Australians in this thread are all from Canberra, small world.

irsa76 said:

I'm amused that the 3 Australians in this thread are all from Canberra, small world.

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I guess it's the large number of skippys so close to a city of a couple of hundred thousand that keeps us interested in lights. Where I used to live in Melbourne I'd never have thought of upgrading my lighting.

NFT5 said:

A bulb with an 8 hour life is a pretty serious failure

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If this were true, the buyers would soon catch on.

Cheers

William Cowan

The 8-hour bulb lifespan is for a medical-equipment bulb used in some Lightforce lamps, which is not the same as the bulb used in these Fyrlyt lamps.

I've had overwattage bulbs fail pretty quickly in the past. The best one was when I had just fitted a pair of 100w bulbs in my Cibies and then pretty much drove all night with them on, flicking them on and off when required for traffic. By the time I got to my destination I had to buy another pair of bulbs, went back to 55w and never replaced them again until I got rid of the lights. By the sounds of things with these lights I would have the same problem with the added trouble of actually FINDING a replacement bulb on the road, it's was almost impossible to buy new bulbs for my old Rav4 as it was, HB4/HB3.

irsa76 said:

I've had overwattage bulbs fail pretty quickly in the past. The best one was when I had just fitted a pair of 100w bulbs in my Cibies and then pretty much drove all night with them on, flicking them on and off when required for traffic. By the time I got to my destination I had to buy another pair of bulbs, went back to 55w and never replaced them again until I got rid of the lights. By the sounds of things with these lights I would have the same problem with the added trouble of actually FINDING a replacement bulb on the road, it's was almost impossible to buy new bulbs for my old Rav4 as it was, HB4/HB3.

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They wont be the kind of thing you find in a servo or truckstop thats for sure.
Chances are they will have to be specially ordered from Fyrlyt themselves, or from your local bulb specialist (yes they exist, and even then they dont have all bulb types and may have to order one in)

i did look at the Fyrlyt site and very quickly saw that there was a lot of hype, but no real facts about the lights, or how they compare to others.
personally i will be bolting hellas to the front of my forester (once i get a bar made, and figure out which ones i want)

i also keep spare bulbs in the glovebox - just in case one goes out in the middle of nowhere
its not much fun trying to spot kangaroos with just one headlight

The lamp is actually an Osram 12.8 volt x 150watt x 5000 lumen lamp x 300 hours nominal.

Thanks
Gmac

MacG said:

The lamp is actually an Osram 12.8 volt x 150watt x 5000 lumen lamp x 300 hours nominal.

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What's 12.8V times 150W? What's 150W times 5000lm? The "x" as a delimiter doesn't work for me

Do you have an Osram part number for the bulb you reference? 5000 lumens out of a 150W bulb should mean a fairly short life.

Again, using a bulb designed for a veterinary surgical lamp in an automotive lamp is a recipe for failure.

MacG said:

The lamp is actually an Osram 12.8 volt x 150watt x 5000 lumen lamp x 300 hours nominal.

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Thanks for posting the specs.

Do you have a link to a datasheet for that bulb, it would make an interesting read.

Cheers

William Cowan

wcowan said:

Do you have a link to a datasheet for that bulb, it would make an interesting read.

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I'll bet there's that same bulb over the surgical table in a veterinary clinic I frequent. Probably at least the basics on the box itself-- or I can check the medical catalog they use to order their stuff.

irsa76 said:

I'm amused that the 3 Australians in this thread are all from Canberra, small world.

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This my 3rd tour of canberra - but I have worked for long periods and in all the other states.. I spent 10 years working overseas and got too homesick