OK... here I go. This is the control environment. I put a laptop outside the car with computer generated straight lines:
Photographing RikeCool Solar Film Problem
- Thread starter nottipiglet
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Then, when I took the picture through the RikeCool film... this is what I get:
Note how distorted the lines are now? This is doubly bad with stereovision because the light will be entering 2 of your eyes from different points of the film. So you can actually see 'lines' of distortion. At night, the light will be very distorted and I feel like I need my eyes checked. Driving around with these film for a while makes me a little giddy.
I strongly discourage people from installing this RikeCool film (currently called the Clarity Package available from Kah Motor).
Note how distorted the lines are now? This is doubly bad with stereovision because the light will be entering 2 of your eyes from different points of the film. So you can actually see 'lines' of distortion. At night, the light will be very distorted and I feel like I need my eyes checked. Driving around with these film for a while makes me a little giddy.
I strongly discourage people from installing this RikeCool film (currently called the Clarity Package available from Kah Motor).
And thanks to everyone who helped me with this shot. I couldn't have done it without you all. The aperture size has to be very small as suggested by Ortega. So, the DOF will be much wider and I don't have to worry too much about the focal point. The straight lines as reference was absolutely necessary to illustrate distortion. Plus, I set up my tripod outside the car for extra stability. That did the trick. 
Then, when I took the picture through the RikeCool film... this is what I get:
Note how distorted the lines are now? This is doubly bad with stereovision because the light will be entering 2 of your eyes from different points of the film. So you can actually see 'lines' of distortion. At night, the light will be very distorted and I feel like I need my eyes checked. Driving around with these film for a while makes me a little giddy.
I strongly discourage people from installing RikeCool.
It looks quite bad (look at the LCD frame near the top right) and I agree with both eyes it would be quite dizzying.. I think it can be quite dangerous to be driving with distortions like that. I think the distortions would be even more obvious if you reduce the line width by half and the grid dimensions by half to get 4 times as many grids. ;p
I just went down to RikeCool today to show them this problem I have with the film. The owner met me himself to explain why the film has this distortion. Very very friendly and genuine guy... and the the products they offer in their shop are great. He gave me a demo of all the films they have and their performance. I was quite impressed.
Apparently, Kah Motor has an arrangement with RikeCool to get this type of film with the distortion I photographed. RikeCool puts this type of film only on Honda cars bought through Kah Motor. This film is thicker at 2 microns instead of the usual 1.5 microns. So, when it is moulded by heat to fit the shape of the front windscreen, the distortion occurs. I think they are still trying to figure out how to stick this film on the windscreen without getting this distortion.
Also, this film has rather poor heat rejection. UV rejection is good, but heat rejection is poor. I remember feeling very hot the day I collected the car. It seems that this film will not meet most people's expectations.
I think the problem does not lie with RikeCool. They seem to be honest and genuine business people. They just supply whatever product Kah Motor requested for. But when I bought my car, I was told that I will be getting RikeCool films. A reasonable man would expect that I will be getting regular RikeCool films, and not these substandard films. So, I still feel a little cheated by Kah.
So... if you are buying a car from Kah Motor, do not agree to accept so readily if they they offer you free RikeCool films. You have to check that the package is indeed what walk-in customers at RikeCool are getting. RikeCool has names for their packages like Premium 63, Premier 28, etc. Each package has its unique characteristics. They are all reasonably good, and none of them are like the ones offered by Kah. Kah currently calls their package the RikeCool Clarity package. If they offer it to you, REJECT it. Not only do you run the risk of getting distortion like the effect I photographed, the film is actually quite poor at heat rejection. So, it's better to drive without films than to have those on. I'm quite pissed off with Kah for stealing 1 week of driving pleasure from me. So you see... how to trust these car dealers? :angry:
Now I have the Premium 63 package on my car. I had to pay extra to put this package on... but so far, it's been worth it. No more distortion, the tint looks good, the heat rejection is good and driving has been a pleasure.
Apparently, Kah Motor has an arrangement with RikeCool to get this type of film with the distortion I photographed. RikeCool puts this type of film only on Honda cars bought through Kah Motor. This film is thicker at 2 microns instead of the usual 1.5 microns. So, when it is moulded by heat to fit the shape of the front windscreen, the distortion occurs. I think they are still trying to figure out how to stick this film on the windscreen without getting this distortion.
Also, this film has rather poor heat rejection. UV rejection is good, but heat rejection is poor. I remember feeling very hot the day I collected the car. It seems that this film will not meet most people's expectations.
I think the problem does not lie with RikeCool. They seem to be honest and genuine business people. They just supply whatever product Kah Motor requested for. But when I bought my car, I was told that I will be getting RikeCool films. A reasonable man would expect that I will be getting regular RikeCool films, and not these substandard films. So, I still feel a little cheated by Kah.
So... if you are buying a car from Kah Motor, do not agree to accept so readily if they they offer you free RikeCool films. You have to check that the package is indeed what walk-in customers at RikeCool are getting. RikeCool has names for their packages like Premium 63, Premier 28, etc. Each package has its unique characteristics. They are all reasonably good, and none of them are like the ones offered by Kah. Kah currently calls their package the RikeCool Clarity package. If they offer it to you, REJECT it. Not only do you run the risk of getting distortion like the effect I photographed, the film is actually quite poor at heat rejection. So, it's better to drive without films than to have those on. I'm quite pissed off with Kah for stealing 1 week of driving pleasure from me. So you see... how to trust these car dealers? :angry:
Now I have the Premium 63 package on my car. I had to pay extra to put this package on... but so far, it's been worth it. No more distortion, the tint looks good, the heat rejection is good and driving has been a pleasure.
My view is this...
Singapore is very hot, especially if you drive out for lunch. A good solar film is a worthwhile investment, especially if spread out over 10 years.
I think you should go down to RikeCool's office to view their films. There are 3 packages currently available: The Premier 28, Premium 63 or the Platinum 50. The Platinum 50 is the best. If you want that one, then you must top up even more. 28 and 63 are their standard. Each package has its unique characteristics (like tint, heat reflection, heat absorption, etc.), but they are all good. If you want a special arrangement, like this panel this film, that panel another film, etc.. it can all be arranged if you talk nicely to them, which is not hard because they are all nice people.
You should also tell RikeCool who your SE is, what model the car its, etc... so that they can tie up with the SE. Then, tell the SE what you want so that he can bring the car (which is unregistered) to RikeCool to get it done.
But I think the best arrangement would be to tell the SE to leave the films undone, but arrange for you to go down to RikeCool yourself on a certain day (after you have collected the car) to do the films. This way, you can communicate with RikeCool directly to minimise any mistakes and time wastage. With an appointment, it takes a couple of hours for the films to be done. In the meantime, you can ask RikeCool to send you to a nearby place for kopi/shopping, and then pick you up when it is done.
My view is this...
Singapore is very hot, especially if you drive out for lunch. A good solar film is a worthwhile investment, especially if spread out over 10 years.
I think you should go down to RikeCool's office to view their films. There are 3 packages currently available: The Premier 28, Premium 63 or the Platinum 50. The Platinum 50 is the best. If you want that one, then you must top up even more. 28 and 63 are their standard. Each package has its unique characteristics (like tint, heat reflection, heat absorption, etc.), but they are all good. If you want a special arrangement, like this panel this film, that panel another film, etc.. it can all be arranged if you talk nicely to them, which is not hard because they are all nice people.
You should also tell RikeCool who your SE is, what model the car its, etc... so that they can tie up with the SE. Then, tell the SE what you want so that he can bring the car (which is unregistered) to RikeCool to get it done.
But I think the best arrangement would be to tell the SE to leave the films undone, but arrange for you to go down to RikeCool yourself on a certain day (after you have collected the car) to do the films. This way, you can communicate with RikeCool directly to minimise any mistakes and time wastage. With an appointment, it takes a couple of hours for the films to be done. In the meantime, you can ask RikeCool to send you to a nearby place for kopi/shopping, and then pick you up when it is done.
So which is the model which gives the distortion?
The films that give distortion are known as 'Clarity'... which is a complete misnomer. I call it the Crapity film. ;p
It's a unique film courtesy of Kah Motor. They specially selected this film because it's cheap... and they think that their customers won't know any better. [They think we are Carrot Head... and they certainly made a Carrot Head out of me.]
If you want this film, you will need to go to Kah Motor and request for it because RikeCool does not supply this film to their walk-in customers. I was told that the rolls of 'Clarity' films are paid for by Kah.
You want?
The films that give distortion are known as 'Clarity'... which is a complete misnomer. I call it the Crapity film. ;p
It's a unique film courtesy of Kah Motor. They specially selected this film because it's cheap... and they think that their customers won't know any better. [They think we are Carrot Head... and they certainly made a Carrot Head out of me.]
If you want this film, you will need to go to Kah Motor and request for it because RikeCool does not supply this film to their walk-in customers. I was told that the rolls of 'Clarity' films are paid for by Kah.
You want?
Haha.. no definitely not. I'm using Ultramax from Nissan. ;p Just want to see what's the name of the crap film so that the others know what it's called. But I'm glad that RikeCool doesn't offer this to their walk in customers.
Yes... I guess it's only fair. It's a bit time consuming to take these pictures. So, I'll probably do it over the weekend.
So any updates on the new pic? I agree the boss is a friendly guy..I was there when I was driving my previous ride...He even sent me to the MRT himself as I did not want to wait...
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