My Opinion on Lamin-x headlamp protective films

[Gleno]

After a four week wait my lamin-x arrived in the mail on Tuesday. Thanks to VRX_Pete for letting me know about these protective films.

Applying the film can be a bit of a pain and patience is a must. Pretty much make sure the headlamps are free of dust and dirt etc, and spray a bit of water before applying (same as vinyl)

Aligning the protective film can be a bit tedius, but you can re position it a few times until you have it in the right place.
The fog lamps are a lot easier to do as it's a smaller area to apply. However silly me should of taken the fog light surround off first because when you have to chrome surrounds, it's almost impossible to fit it in there without having to trim a bit of the circumference of the yellow fog lamp protective cover.
The 6% tint looks nice and I do have a few air bubbles here and there that can be burst with a sewing needle or similar.
The issue I'm having is the light that is being projected since installing the lamin-x.
No doubt with the 6% tint, I have found that my car is not lighting up the road like it was before and I'm using the Narva Arctic headlamps which are
3900k. So it feels like I have stock headlamp globes in again.
Also i have noticed that I'm seeing grainy type things when the headlamps are shining on a wall and on the road. I'm hoping this is because the film needs a few weeks to cure and hopefully that will go away in time.
All in all a great product, looks good on The car, just my main concern is the change of brightness the light is omitting.
If that's a concern for you lamin-x can supply clear film as well which is suppose to be even thicker.

Cheers
Glen

[LZY_EYE]

The best way to think of the headlight film is like window tint.

The darker the tint you go, the less light you will get to light up the road. The Narvas are probably about 10% brighter than stock, so it almost cancels out the benefit.

[Chubb]

I have clear on my car (Lite Skins brand) and it was a real pain to put due to it being damn thick.

[Gleno]

So true Shane so not so sure if I would have stock headlamp globes with 6% tint. Glad I have the Narvas now

[eshanes]

I got the 12% tint from Lamin-X and I had a grainy effect for a while, especially on the peripherals. It disappeared over time, though I really need higher power bulbs now. Still have stock bulbs and 12% tint, if there's another car around I can't even tell I have my headlights on!
I love how it looks from the outside though!

[Gleno]

@Shane well maybe the grainy effect will go soon like you said. On the instructions it did say it needs a few weeks for it to settle.
Is it possible you could post a
pic up of your 12% tints? I'm keen to see how they look.

[Life]

Be careful putting overwattage bulbs in, they create a lot more heat and are known to damage plastic lense headlamps.

[eshanes]

These are my 12% tints, took the photo straight away so you can kinda still see that tabs that I've now cut off.

That's a good point Dean, I hadn't even thought of that. Thanks for letting me know!

[Gleno]

Yeah looks good shane, i have 6% tint like i said before.Now the Narva arctic plus globes i have are 50W. They state there suppose to give you 50% more light,now with the 6% tint i should be down to 44% more light,however i feel that rule of thumb does not apply,as now i feel my headlamps are back to projectiing the stock globes output.

[klvru]

[img:4ed9325a6a]http://www.clubcj.net/img/images/1323235668_312053_10150357977446442_602001441_8601623_214273847_n.jpg[/img:4ed9325a6a] These are my 12% tints, took the photo straight away so you can kinda still see that tabs that Ive now cut off. Thats a good point Dean, I hadnt even thought of that. Thanks for letting me know!

Looks good, the bright spot on the passenger side is the one without the tint? Does it have a significant difference for the look? I have HID so hopefully the 12% would not cut out much light and probably reduce some glare:P

Glen, is it possible for you to post a pic of the 6%? Really interested here! Anyone did the rear light? And how long is the posting from lamin-x?

[eshanes]

[quote:3b82f7108c=eshanes][img:4ed9325a6a]http://www.clubcj.net/img/images/1323235668_312053_10150357977446442_602001441_8601623_214273847_n.jpg[/img:4ed9325a6a] These are my 12% tints, took the photo straight away so you can kinda still see that tabs that Ive now cut off. Thats a good point Dean, I hadnt even thought of that. Thanks for letting me know! [/quote:3b82f7108c] Looks good, the bright spot on the passenger side is the one without the tint? Does it have a significant difference for the look? I have HID so hopefully the 12% would not cut out much light and probably reduce some glare:P Glen, is it possible for you to post a pic of the 6%? Really interested here! Anyone did the rear light? And how long is the posting from lamin-x?

In the first picture, it's just the sun reflecting off the passenger side headlight that makes it look like it's not complete.

Here's a photo I took to better illustrate the difference, left = untinted; right = tinted:



I guess different lights are going to react in different ways with the tint so it's probably going to work on more of a trial and error basis to getting the light output perfect, which isn't too much of a problem for me. Just as long as it improves from how it is now.

[Gleno]

Glen, is it possible for you to post a pic of the 6%? Really interested here! Anyone did the rear light? And how long is the posting from lamin-x?

Heres mine with 6% with yellow fog lamp overlay,took around 3 weeks to get here

[timdawes]

is it legal? i'd like to do it, but not if it's gonna cause me dramas