Is the range of the Phlogistinator actually longer than the range of the other flamethrowers?

Solution 1:

I tested this on 1/17/12 - results may change in the future.

A friend and I went out to the bridge on 2fort. We used a teleporter as the marker, and a dispenser as the target. I incrementally moved the dispenser closer and closer to the teleporter, while he puffed at it with the Phlog. When the dispenser started taking damage, I left it there, and he switched to the standard flamethrower.

When he got back, the flamethrower blast didn't reach the dispenser, but, when I moved it one more step forward, it did.

Since a teleporter is more than one step wide, and we probably didn't get the positioning exactly correct, I am going to put this down to measurement error.

Results: There is no practical difference between the range of the Phlog and the standard flamethrower.

(With more accurate measurements, I am certain we would find that there is no actual difference either.)

Solution 2:

I think you should look at the stock Flamethrower's video before you start making assumptions about the Phlogistinator's range being bigger. These are the two shots of the maximum range shown by the two videos:

Note the position of the hazard stripes on the floor; the position of the Pyro in the Phlog's video is not significantly farther away than the one in the Flamethrower's (could be closer, could be about the same, it's hard to tell exactly).

So while there may be a difference in range, the video you're pointing to can't prove anything about the Phlog having a longer range.