Hybrid and I have had a private discussion on this matter over the past few days. He has agreed to take new clones and start a new thread where all the variables listed by concerned members have been corrected. I applaud him for this and also for extending an olive branch to me privately. It takes a big man to do what he has done, and you have earned my respect in the process. It's my turn to earn yours.
It is not my intention to have an attitude here, nor is it my intention to argue with any of the members. I apologize for how strongly I came down on Hybrid. It's not fun when you have 5 or 10 people calling you out or voicing concerns against what you're doing, which I know better than anyone. I am sorry you had to deal with that and for my part in it. Forums should be a place where we build each other up and agree to disagree, not one where we are pitting ourselves against one another. And as someone who was supportive of me when I got here, who acknowledged the influence I've had in this industry over the past decade, I'm sorry for how I handled our disagreement.
I do see that the plants have been made quite even via whatever methods were used; however there is a big reason why I want all tests with our lights to showcase plants from seed/clone through harvest which I hope members here will understand. I also want Hybrid to be able to keep our lights at the end by meeting the requirements for doing so. He deserves that reward for his efforts.
No one has more to prove to all of you right now than I do, mostly because of the claims I make. I make the claims I do prior to tests, because once the test is complete and the claims are verified it proves I know what I am talking about, which will hopefully earn the respect of members here who think I'm bat shit crazy. I made a prediction based on my own scientific equation that we would yield at least 40% more (I think that's what I said) than HLG based on a scientific analysis of both spectra. It is my intention to beat them by a significantly higher margin, which requires a full cycle.
While it is healthy to be a skeptic, the information I am sharing now is based on 10 years of people running our lights. Clones tend to root faster with less stress under RB (or in our case RGB) light compared to full spectrum white (HID, CFL, LED). This gives our plants an advantage from literally day one. As Hybrid has already confirmed, our lights produce some explosive growth during veg. In fact at the end of a traditional 4-5 week veg cycle, our plants typically have double the nodes of plants grown under competing fixtures. Our plants also grow more compact in veg with tighter nodes. The more time a plant has under our light in veg, the greater the difference in nodes will be. We all know that the more bud sites you have, the better chances you have of getting a high yield. If the current test were to be carried out, the plants would not have sufficient time to produce enough additional nodes to give our lights the advantage we need going into bloom to beat HLG by the margin I predicted. And well, I already get enough flack from the trolls as it is.
My intention is not simply to beat HLG or do so by a small margin. As a sponsor who has something to prove to you all, I want to make sure that Hybrid's test is as conclusive as they get (which will also help prevent him from getting flamed after). I also want to make sure that we beat HLG by such a large margin, that no one in their right minds would want to sacrifice that kind of yield to put HLG lights in their garden (no matter how much you like Stephen as a person). Business should not be personal, it should be about results.
Thank you Hybrid for your dedication to removing the variables and making this test as scientific and conclusive as it can be. I look forward to seeing the next thread begin with the variables removed and fresh clones ready to give us all a great show.