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***Introducing Blackbird Lighting Solutions 98+ Firebird Proj. Headlight Retro GP***

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Old 04-17-2010 | 08:21 PM
  #341  
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Just sharing some pics
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Old 04-17-2010 | 10:01 PM
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@ starfire

I got 2" screws as well, and with the thread even with the nut and the adjustment screws fully tightened im still like 1' low at 25'..

go adjust yours already
Old 04-17-2010 | 10:40 PM
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Originally Posted by staticx57
Just sharing some pics
Is that 5000k?
Old 04-17-2010 | 11:01 PM
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It's 4500K. The foglights are supposed to be 4500K as well but it's way to blue to be 4500K.
Old 04-17-2010 | 11:06 PM
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Ok cool. Im just trying to figure out if I want 5000k or 6000K. My fogs are 6000K, and I want the lows to match, or be slightly whiter. Dont know how the 55watt and the projectors would affect the color.
Old 04-17-2010 | 11:55 PM
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I ordered the 4500K foglights from DDM and unless they sent me the wrong color then the 55watt is much whiter than the 35watt of the same color temp.
Old 04-18-2010 | 01:24 AM
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5000k in 55w will look very similar to 4300k in 35w.
Old 04-18-2010 | 01:38 AM
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Originally Posted by staticx57
Just sharing some pics
Great pics!! Love the vert as well

Regarding the color temp question, 55W kits will be whiter than 35W kits at the same temp.
Old 04-18-2010 | 05:07 PM
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so im gonna finish adjusting tonight.. but i thought this was a funny comparison.

silverstar fogs, bls lows, 6k. (iphone quality)

and another from last night of the highs/lows
Old 04-18-2010 | 08:42 PM
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Got my kit installed today. Thanks Brian. No pics yet, but all the others speak for themselves- it was worth the wait.

Last edited by WS6Jim; 04-19-2010 at 08:06 PM.
Old 04-30-2010 | 09:51 PM
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Originally Posted by Irish350
@ starfire

I got 2" screws as well, and with the thread even with the nut and the adjustment screws fully tightened im still like 1' low at 25'..

go adjust yours already
I got the same thing. So I put in the 2 1/2" screw and I'm getting closer, but I'm still loose on the screw, so when I'm driving I can see the headlight moving slightly. Not crazy about that. I'm trying to figure out what all I need to do to get it working. I haven't had much time in the last two weeks (just picked up a 2010 Subaru WRX Limited -- with HIDs). I haven't even looked at my TA in the last week.

So now I'm getting back to the TA. I looked at skorpion's install and I see that he put the spring on the front side of the mounting bracket... I hadn't thought of that so I went and tried it and I couldn't even get them on because he bracket hits the top cover (outer cover) on my headlights.

I'd love to figure out why I'm so close but just can't get things right on this. I had them pretty darn good before when I physically pulled the lower "inner" corners out on each headlight. Though once I got my new Subie, the HIDs on that are much better at the lighting and aimed properly. It's like night and day the difference between the two cars. So I know I still have something not quite right.

Plus the Subie has a very small cutoff angle to it so it covers a lot more ground.

Oh well back to the drawing board, I think I'm going to take the headlights out again and start a few steps back and try to figure out why I can't get this right.
Old 04-30-2010 | 10:01 PM
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Originally Posted by StarFire
I got the same thing. So I put in the 2 1/2" screw and I'm getting closer, but I'm still loose on the screw, so when I'm driving I can see the headlight moving slightly. Not crazy about that. I'm trying to figure out what all I need to do to get it working. I haven't had much time in the last two weeks (just picked up a 2010 Subaru WRX Limited -- with HIDs). I haven't even looked at my TA in the last week.

So now I'm getting back to the TA. I looked at skorpion's install and I see that he put the spring on the front side of the mounting bracket... I hadn't thought of that so I went and tried it and I couldn't even get them on because he bracket hits the top cover (outer cover) on my headlights.

I'd love to figure out why I'm so close but just can't get things right on this. I had them pretty darn good before when I physically pulled the lower "inner" corners out on each headlight. Though once I got my new Subie, the HIDs on that are much better at the lighting and aimed properly. It's like night and day the difference between the two cars. So I know I still have something not quite right.

Plus the Subie has a very small cutoff angle to it so it covers a lot more ground.

Oh well back to the drawing board, I think I'm going to take the headlights out again and start a few steps back and try to figure out why I can't get this right.
First, congrats on the new purchase. STi's are fun cars, especially with some bolt-ons.

Second, the install posted by Skorpion was incorrect as the springs were in the wrong position. When I saw the pics, I mentioned this to him so he could correct it. The first page and install guide does show a picture of how the spring should be oriented.

The adjustment of these will be a bit different than the Subies since it uses a different projector and it likely has a smaller "step". With that said, height is your main issue while keeping the raised portion away from oncoming traffic. Regarding the movement, assure you have everything secured but with most pop-up lights, you may get some movement regardless. It's much more noticeable with these headlights only because you can actually see the defined pattern much more easily.

My LT1 setup is literally bolted to the factory buckets so there is zero movement however I still get a shake on some rough pavement. Nature of the beast but it can be improved.

Let me know if we need to discuss this further and I will be happy to assist.
Old 04-30-2010 | 10:30 PM
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I havent had a chance to post pics, but heres what i did




when mine were tightened enough to hold it there was too much screw, and when the screw didnt hit the radiator support the lights moved way too much.

There are 2 springs there, with a washer in between. I grabbed 4 springs to try two, not realizing how much space there really was. Installing these wasnt any harder than just the screws, and it seemed to stop the jiggling. The different springs turned out to work pretty well. Using the stiff one on the outside allowed me to compress them easily while installing the nut, and the spring on the inside (which is way less stiff, and moved too far left/right to use on the outside) allowed the whole thing to compress without it being a PITA.

One thing that had me baffled (especially cause i have to hunt for a suitable area to align every time) was that after i adjusted them, i went home, reinstalled the headlight fuses, and the next time the lights came on they were WAY off. this happened again (to a much lesser degree) after putting on the shroud.

Hope this helps; ill include it in a thread whenever i get around to making one (i wanna get good pics)
Old 04-30-2010 | 11:10 PM
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I'm not as talented as Irish... I couldn't find any compression springs that would work. Granted I didn't take a ton of time looking either. I just decided to create my own adjustable (albeit a little bit of a pain to adjust) pivot point using 3 extra 10-24 nuts.

In my expertise with engineering, I think this should work. Hopefully I can get some time tomorrow to work on it a little bit further.

Attached Thumbnails ***Introducing Blackbird Lighting Solutions 98+ Firebird Proj. Headlight Retro GP***-img_0412-800.jpg  
Old 04-30-2010 | 11:43 PM
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hahaha, that should work starfire.

just hope you have small hands like me, gonna be shpinnin those nutsa bit.

(btw, those nuts/bolts are hilman too; the springs i got at ace.. really surprised they had them)
Old 05-02-2010 | 06:25 PM
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This works PERFECTLY!

Holy crap, since I did this, I have almost COMPLETE adjustment to the headlights. I put them in, and without even tightening the adjustment screws (just made them tight enough that the spring tension keeps them perfectly in place) I'm almost perfect with the alignment. Now granted I haven't done the alignment (again rain all weekend), but when I line the Subie and the TA together and turn on their lights, I'm almost exactly the same height (which was one of the problems) and I haven't really started adjusting them.

For the bolts you don't need small hands or anything, I just put these bolts on first, then stick the headlight in. I put on the first bolt (after the metal bracket) so that it is close, but still loose against it. The 2nd and 3rd bolts I put them in and tightened the one down against the other (so they don't move at all). Not a ton of force, just used a scew driver and a 3/8 wrench and tightened a little bit. The picture shows you how far I put them in on the screw.

This created a perfect (at least for me) pivot point for the headlighs and allowed complete movement in adjustments for them.

I can't wait for final alignment, but I don't think I'll have much work to do, if any at all. The only thing I could see is a slight adjustment on the "pivot" screw... but I highly doubt that at all.

Oh yeah, the headlights are ROCK solid now. Now movment...well okay the EVER so slightest movement since I didn't really tighten the nut that is against the metal bracket.

If anyone chooses to do this, these measurements are pretty precise, but there's plenty of "play room" to adjust for yourselves. I figured this would give a good starting point for anyone wanting to do this. I would guestimate (lol love that word) that I removed and reinstalled each headlight about 3 times figuring out this measurement so it should be a very good starting point for people. This measurement works on BOTH headlights.

I'm a happy man! Even on a "school night" I think it's time to

Attached Thumbnails ***Introducing Blackbird Lighting Solutions 98+ Firebird Proj. Headlight Retro GP***-img_0413-1024.jpg  
Old 05-02-2010 | 06:34 PM
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I also want to say the default bulbs that come with the HIGH beams are pretty darn good.

I replaced the 6000K bulbs with the regulars and found the high beams light up so much better it's insane...the 6000Ks even though they look much better, just don't have the light output that the regular bulbs have.

If I was to do it again, I wouldn't change those bulbs at all.

Sorry Brian, I don't mean to "loose profit for you" by not selling those bulbs, but as a functioning high beam that lights up everything, these are the better choice.

Now I just need to pull my fog lights out as the bulb that was in it finally died... UGH. This is a never ending process. Though I shouldn't complain, that's about 5 years for the bulb (always used with my headlights... even the HIDs).

Now I just hope I remember how to get them out since it's been so long since I put them in! lol

Last edited by StarFire; 05-03-2010 at 09:38 AM.
Old 05-02-2010 | 07:07 PM
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last night i had the pleasure of being cut off, so i got to try out my new highs.

pretty damn satisfying
Old 05-02-2010 | 07:28 PM
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Originally Posted by StarFire
I also want to say the default bulbs that come with the HIGH beams are pretty darn good.

I replaced the 6000K bulbs with the regulars and found the high beams light up so much aread it's insane...the 6000Ks even though they look much better, just don't have the light output that the regular bulbs have.

If I was to do it again, I wouldn't change those bulbs at all.

Sorry Brian, I don't mean to "loose profit for you" by not selling those bulbs, but as a functioning high beam that lights up everything, these are the better choice.

Now I just need to pull my fog lights out as the bulb that was in it finally died... UGH. This is a never ending process. Though I shouldn't complain, that's about 5 years for the bulb (always used with my headlights... even the HIDs).

Now I just hope I remember how to get them out since it's been so long since I put them in! lol
I'm glad you were able to get these working for your car so you are able to enjoy the lights. Regarding the halogen upgrade lamps, you will get more light output from the standard lamps but some people prefer a little bit whiter color. All depends upon your preference and I make next to nothing off the lamps so no worries on posting your opinion on these. I actually have 2700K lamps for the high beams in my G8. Some don't like the color but I'm more about function over looks in some cases.

Originally Posted by Irish350
last night i had the pleasure of being cut off, so i got to try out my new highs.

I'm sure that person will never forget it! LOL

pretty damn satisfying
Old 05-03-2010 | 09:33 AM
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Originally Posted by Irish350
last night i had the pleasure of being cut off, so i got to try out my new highs.

pretty damn satisfying
Ha ha ha!!! I like that!!

Yeah Brian,

I didn't think you made a ton on the high beams, I just didn't want you thinking I was trying to rip you off or anything.

I would highly recommend looking in to providing the extra 3 washers (really only for the lows, the highs work fine as they are) and having people create this pivot point to allow for adjustment. The costs for those are minor in relation to the ease of adjustment now for all future purchasers.

I also added a washer to the back side between the spring and the aluminum mounting plate to keep the spring from working its way into the "U" and getting hard to adjust. So I have two washers (one on each side of the "U") around the aluminum mounting bracket on all the stock adjustment screws. You loose EVER so slight extremes on adjustment...but one will never need to go there. I didn't put any washer on the stock threaded mounting point as the sping locks into place nicely on it... I was thinking about it, but didn't feel like taken them all apart again just for that. lol

But now they are working very well. Tomorrow night will probably be the first night I can pull the car out (hasn't even been started in 2 or 3 weeks now) and take them for a spin. But considering how close to identical they are right now with the Subaru... I'm guessing there will be VERY little in the way of alignment (The bulbs are almost identical on vertical height as well)... so I can't be too far off. Though I'm sure my right/left adjustment will need tweaked.


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