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Firewire LED's spark new life into Optimus Prime
April 16, 2019
POP QUIZ!. What do all Cybertronian bots run on? What is the fuel that gives them life? What are both the Decepticons and the Autobots constantly searching for on Earth?
If you said "energon", you would be correct! Energon is the life blood of all Transformers. And while there are different forms and colors of energon, most bots run on the standard blue.
When this replica of Optimus
was built in 2016, one of the first things the owner (Joe Fiduccia) wanted to do is add blue lighting to it. Not just along the bottom, but throughout the truck from top-to-bottom.
"For starters, I wanted lights inside the vents, the upper stacks, and the grill", says Fiduccia. "I wanted to make it look like Optimus was truly running on energon from the inside."
Over the winter, Fiduccia researched lighting options and even purchased a few lighting kits from several companies. He wanted to test the waters on quality while seeing for himself which lights would produce the best effect. But unfortunately most of the products did not meet his expectations.
"There was something wrong with everything I tested", says Fiduccia. "Either the lights were too dim, too bulky, or just too complicated to install. Others had the brightness and ease of installation I was looking for, but the short shelf life or poor online reviews turned me off immediately."
In the midst of his search, one of the first major events Fiduccia drove Optimus to was a World of Wheels expo in March 2017. Vending at the same expo was a gentleman named Brian Rogers, CEO of Firewire LED's. The two got to talking, and immediately hit it off.
"The lights he set up at his booth seemed to be very high quality. They were bright, flexible, simple to install, and were covered by an excellent warranty. But it helped that Brian was also into the truck and loves Transformers", joked Fiduccia.
Fiduccia explained his needs to Rogers, and the pair agreed to do a trial test run of the lights on Optimus. A few weeks later, Rogers built a few sample kits for Joe to install inside each of the six stacks. And the success of that install kick-started a partnership for years to come.
Fiduccia's replica of Optimus now contains over 130-feet of Firewire LED energon lighting, scattered across several different areas of the truck. His replica also sports Firewire headlights and auxiliary Firewire brake lights. He says a few strips have needed replacement over the years, but Firewire has stood behind their warranty and provided exactly what he needed in record time.
"I'm not done", says Fiduccia. "I have plenty more lighting I want to add. And when it's time, Firewire will be the first place I turn to for help."
When asked about his partnership
with Fiduccia, Rogers explains it has been very rewarding thus far.
"Working with Optimus Prime has been very special.. It's a great feeling to see the joy when kids see it. When it lights up a night, everybody's in awe."
To see an explanation and demonstration of this setup, we invite you to watch the following videos on the Optimus Is Here YouTube channel. And if you would like to learn more about Firewire, please visit www.firewireleds.com.
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