[Rollin3G]

Hey, i was just wondering if radar jammers were worth a damn, or if they work, but if you get caught you have some steep punishment....like your balls removed or something worse? Just trying to figure out if i even want one. Any one with any advice is greatly apritiated

 

[Rhoades]

What state do you live in?

 

[Rollin3G]

Florida

 

[DOCRADLEY]

A few points:

For starters all radar (not laser) jammers are a violation of FCC regulations so using one is a federal offense. This is true even of the passive devices that claim otherwise (several years ago the FCC ruled that they do transmit and hence violate the rule).

Second, passive jammers do not work. You won't find a single independently conducted test that proves they do anything. In fact several test shave shown them to increase the vehicles radar signature via their antennae. Those who claim they do work will give you an unsubstantiated story about how their cousin, brother, father, etc. is a cop and they tried it with a radar gun and it worked great. Funny that no independent test can ever produce that result. You'll also hear the "I drove by one of those "check your speed radar units" by the side of the road and it didn't read my speed or it was significantly off." I pass them all the time where I live and the same thing happens and I'm not using a radar jammer.


Third, active jammers do work. But they are bulky, expensive, will set off other peoples detectors, interfer with legitimate uses of radar and may not help since most only cover X and K band not Ka band. Newer radar speed guns have jamming detection that can identify interference.

Bottom line is get a good detector. Use it as part of a package of tools such as paying attention, knowing how traffic radar works, where the locals set speed traps etc. to help you avoid a ticket.

Don't waste your time or money on these scams.

Chris
1994 VR4

 

[Rollin3G]

your the man

First of all thank you for responding, second thanks for using good facts. Since you say i should know how a traffic radar works, could you explain it? I beleive i know but i dont wanna look dumb. lol . thanks for all your help again
Scott

 

[jamb53]

My 2cents

Docradley oughtta change his name to Docradar Nice explanation guy.

Rollin3g: I think all Docradley meant is you should know how speed is derived from the use of police radar. That'll help you know what distances you need to scan ahead before exceeding posted speedlimits. It's also helpful to really examine the local and state LEO's equipment (like when their cars are parked at the donut shop, heheh). That'll tell you what they're using and how sophisticated their technology is. You should also observe how the LEO's use their stuff. It's often more important to know how they monitor traffic than to know what they're using to do it. (Do they hide or stand in plain sight? Do they only use radar at night? Do they use radar in teams of 2/3 cars? etc)

 

[DOCRADLEY]

jamb53 hit the answer you were looking for. Thanks for the compliment.

I have the luxury of working around equipment that is used to make police radar and laser units (MPH, Kustom) and to make radar detectors (equipemnt for assembly of electronics). Our Aerospace & Defense group also builds components used in a variety of commerical and military radars. Our Electro Optical group works with laser based systems in addition to building all the periscopes for the free worlds Navy's. I also worked around radar in the US Navy some years ago.

Still, I use every chance I get to examine the choices made by the local police, county sheriffs and state police. When I get a chance I talk to the police about their cruisers, radars, speeders, etc. (use your head here you can't be too obvious). You can learn a lot from a friendly conversation. A nieve question such as "You can't run the radar while the cruiser is moving, right ? Because you wouldn't be able to tell how fast the car was moving could you ?" Can get you a complete explanation of how rolling radar works plus a bits of information like "We always run it that way in town, but not out the interstate."

You want to know what equipment they are running and then how do they run it ? When you know what they run you can do some homework (most manufacturers have web sites) and see what the equipment is capable of. How they run it (rolling vs. stationary, continuous on vs. instant) helps you to know what to expect.

I find that the detector is an excellant tool but knowing what the police do is even more valuable.

Chris
1994 VR4

 

[RUFF RYDER]

Anyone here familiar with the Valentine 1 radar detector? If so, is it as good as they claim to be?

 

[DOCRADLEY]

The Valentine 1 (V1) is a very good detector. As is the Escort 8500 and the top end Bel units. I've not been happy with the two Bel's I had because they seemed overly prone to falsing while not reacting well enough to actual threats.

I like the V1's direction indication and would probably use this one except I live in Virginia and detectors are not legal. So I use a k40 remote. It also provides direction indication and is the only unit I've ever found that I felt outperformed my V1. You pay a lot for this though. It is quite a bit more expensive than the V1 which is already a pricey detector.

The new Ecsort remote is getting high marks but it is also expensive.

FYI- if you go to radartest.com be aware that their results contain numerous errors and that the site has been criticized as biased. The owner/author consults for some of the manufacturers and the supposed test results seem to favor the companies he consults for. Speedzones.com is a more trustworthy source.

Chris
1994 VR4