Laser/Radar Detectors

The Valentine drove me nuts with false alarms, although the arrows were kinda neat. I now have an Escort Passport 9500ix and it's fantastic in every regard. Around $500 and it has paid for itself over and over.

Escort & Valentine are the long range leaders for radar. The Valentine is about twice as bulky so fitting it in a Pantera so you don't get a phoney ticket for "obstructed vision" is a challenge. For the increasingly popular (among cops) laser speed guns, there are other choices. Autoweek recently did a short comparo on both radar and laser detectors and Beltronics Pro 500 did well against some lasers. Autoweek said that if you're willing to pay $300 and up, most radar and laser detectors at that price work well. The problem is, cops are not dumb: they intentionally mis-tune radar guns so they are slightly off-frequency. The gun itself receives the poor signal but not the detectors. And there are now two different laser gun frequencies; what works against one sometimes skips the other. Some police departments buy the latest detectors and test them, too.... A third option is the websites run by both Escort ( ($50/yr) and Cobra (free). There are other sites too- like Trapster and Waze. The war continues as broke cities try to increase funds any way they can- including some found illegal.

Laser? I don't think anything will come close to providing advance notice, period. From what I understand, there is just not enough scatter from a targeted car in front of you to warn you. If you are out there solo, forget about it.

I do use Valentine for X & K band radar, love the arrows.

When I did all the research some years back I settled on the Beltronics RX65 and it has been reliable and a great investment.

That said both radar gun and detection technology keeps advancing, new radar guns are digital, use wideband Ka and have super quick response, so your detector needs to be able to monitor a wide range of wavelengths and provide an even quicker response. The Escort Redline is one of the best rated detectors currently for open road. If you are driving around town and red light cameras are a concern then the Bel Pro 500 offers some advantages.

Julian

I have the Valentine One and have been nabbed twice. Both were minor tickets, but the point is that you can get them (even with protection). The reason (at least in these parts) is that cops and sheriffs are now standing at the side of the road with laser guns. They wait until you get into range and then zap you.

Your only protection in this case is a laser jamming device like the Escort 9500ci, which will run you north of $2,000 (installed).

So, go ahead and spend thousands ... and then wait for a smart cop to "instant on" you with their Ka band system. I tell ya: it just isn't any fun out there anymore. Best idea is to pay someone to "scout" the roads for you!

Thanks for the input guys! Boy, things have changed since the days when I was out on patrol. Simple radar back then, always transmitting (fishing) until something good came up and you locked it. The old ones were found to cause cancer and we switched over to laser before I left the department. Even the lasers were one frequency and we didn't mess with them. Now they are tunable? Seems the only solution is cruise control.

Does anyone know anything about the Blinder Laser Jammer?

Not specifically, but two things from the past: first, jammers seldom work at all, and 2- when they do and the cops notice you blazing by while their meter says '0', you can wind up with a federal summons for an "unlicensed transmitter" from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). Possibly an urban legend, but the story goes, a long-haul salesman accumulated a bunch of tickets in radar-trap areas that was unfortunately part of his territory, so he went to an electronics whiz for a 'legal' jammer that worked. The whiz intentionally mis-tuned a portable microwave oven that sat on the dash of the car. When a disappointed radar cop stopped him for having an illegal jammer, the salesman reached over and offered the officer a fresh toasted-cheese sandwich....

That's a great story! But the trick with effectively using a jammer is to be aware and react quickly.

The instant you hear the jammer alert indicating your are being tagged by a police laser you immediately hammer the brakes and turn off the jammer. That way instead of getting no reading and knowing you have something worth investigating, there's just get a slight delay in the police acquiring a signal. This could easily be attributed to the lack of flat surfaces on a Pantera making the officer think (hey, what is that - a Lambo?) as he moves around on your front nose). By the time a second or two passes he gets a reading and you had maybe 2 seconds to slow. Which should be enough to get near the speed limit in most circumstances. It's the way to go, but there is poor info on most of these devices' web sites.

quote:

Originally posted by David B:
...Which should be enough to get near the speed limit in most circumstances...

But not ALL.

Mark

Shouldn't those cuffs be pink and furry?!?

I have experience with the blinder m40 and more recently the laser interceptor. Both products work and work well. Most police laser guns will "punch through" the jammer as the vehicle gets closer to the speed trap, but as stated in a previous post, if you're vigilant and quick with your brakes it may be the difference between cuffs, a ticket or nothing at all. Just a quick caution, these jammers are not legal in every state.

quote:

Originally posted by David B:
Does anyone know anything about the Blinder Laser Jammer?

I've used a Blinder system for many years here on Oahu with great results. I have one for both my vehicles. The latest system is software updatable.

Go to Radarbusters.com. It has tests and comparisons to other units on the market. It also has sections for radar detectors and listings on legality of radar units by state.

For example: Nevada


Nevada Radar and Laser Jammer laws
Radar laser detectors and laser jammers are legal to own and operate in passenger vehicles in the state of Nevada.
Currently the only state that it is illegal to operate a radar detector is Virginia and Washington D.C.
Laser jammers are illegal to operate in the states of: Nebraska, Minnesota, Utah, California, Oklahoma, Virginia, Colorado and Washington DC.
Radar jammers are illegal to own and/or operate in all 50 states per the Federal Communications Commission.
Radar detectors are also illegal in commercial vehicles weighing over 10,000 pounds in all fifty states, per Title 49 Transportation Act.
Radar detectors are also illegal to operate on any military base.

In South Carolina the troopers are "trained" to visually see the speed of a vehicle. They can tell how fast you were going within 3 mph "just by looking at the vehicle" The cops don't need radar because of their "extensive training" They can make it stick in court too. Don't ask me how I know this. Next time they try and pull this shit on me, I'm going back to court.

quote:

The cops don't need radar because of their "extensive training" They can make it stick in court too.

A CHP officer's visual estimation of speed holds up in court in the People's Republik of Kalifornia as well.

People's Republik of Kalifornia

HA HA HA thats the truth.

No wonder I left the golden state in 1977 . . .