Radar detector

[greg the pole]

the tpx will never compare to the other radar companies.
For what I need it for TPX 2.0 (always over the speed limit, but by a small margin 15-20km/h max,
it has worked for me on several occasions. Ideally that and a laser jammer would be totally tits.
but I'm cheap, so no jammer installed.

It is water proof, tested in california for extended runs.
Again, for half the price of a TPX you could have a car radar, that works better. You just need to be a bit more dilligent with the weather.

It's perfectly useless for instant on. If it pings you, it just means you got a ticket.
I'm familiar with the areas that I ride, so I'm always on the lookout.
same for new roads etc..

As a rule of thumb, the local coppers (rural RCMP, and rent a cop sherrifs) are too lazy to use instant on while moving. Parked up, laser is used heavily.

Another good reason to take the path less traveled.
I have yet to see the fuzz parked up on the side of a gravel road doing radar. they need a steady flow of customers, so in turn stick to well travelled roads.

 

[toompine]

"IMHO, an Escort 8500 X50 paired with a Marc Parnes "Visual Alert" bright LED module is the best solution for easy-on/easy-off radar detection on a motorcycle" ::026::

That's my setup and I figure any warning is good, sometimes even as a wake up. Nice to have the validation that it is good equipment

 

[Thunderwear]

Most....granted not all...departments have switched or are switching from radar to laser....for just this reason. Yes, radar does put out errant waves which are easily detectable by a radar detector. Laser does not....it's a beam. Which means the millisecond that it hits you and gets back to the officer is the same millisecond that your detector notices. Too late. Yes, a laser point does spread out over a distance, and your detector might pick it up if you are close enough...but if you are that far away, they aren't pointing it at you yet. Agreed on the point about a smaller target....totally true...but I've seen laser pointed UNDER an approaching vehicle and still read the one behind it....no joke...especially when working vehicles cresting a hill.

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[Thunderwear]

Time to paint everything in the front of your bike flat black and baffle your exhaust to hide heat signature...ha ha ha!!! Stealth mode.

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[Dallara]

Most....granted not all...departments have switched or are switching from radar to laser....for just this reason. Yes, radar does put out errant waves which are easily detectable by a radar detector. Laser does not....it's a beam. Which means the millisecond that it hits you and gets back to the officer is the same millisecond that your detector notices. Too late. Yes, a laser point does spread out over a distance, and your detector might pick it up if you are close enough...but if you are that far away, they aren't pointing it at you yet. Agreed on the point about a smaller target....totally true...but I've seen laser pointed UNDER an approaching vehicle and still read the one behind it....no joke...especially when working vehicles cresting a hill.

I dunno'... I beg to disagree. At least here in Texas.

Lots of local police departments are getting a few laser units, but our state constabulary - the Texas Department of Public Safety, or DPS, as we call them here - have seem to avoid laser altogether. They seem to overwhelming prefer good ol' Ka band radar units, and probably for some of the more obvious reasons...

Laser looks great on paper. Fast, reasonably accurate - i.e. more of a *rifle* approach as opposed to the rather *shotgun* approach of radar - and would, on the surface, seem more difficult to defeat. But in the real world there are lots of downsides, too. Weather is one. Laser is almost useless in rainy or foggy weather... Times when perhaps speed enforcement is more important than any other. And any laser operator has to be stationary, and out of the car, since laser doesn't work correctly through auto glass. No "moving laser" has been invented, at least not yet. That severely limits the LEO's area to operate. He's stuck in one spot, sniping. OTOH, radar operators can be moving, and therefore can scan lots more traffic while at the same time being more readily available for other calls. They can also "blend in" with other traffic, sometimes making them nearly impossible to see. Often times laser requires two officers, and two vehicles... One to operate the laser, often even from a tripod to help aiming, and another for pursuit in the event a perpetrator doesn't just obediently pull over when the laser shooter waves at him. That's usually not a problem in a city environment, but in a state like Texas, with large sections of highway needing to be patrolled by as few of officers and vehicles available, it's a real liability. Laser also has some fundamental issues with certain other environmental conditions, like looking in any way into a direct, low-lying sun... I could go on, but you get the idea.

And laser has another another problem in getting universal acceptance among constabularies... While it is against federal law to try and jam radar, which is why you no longer see any of the wonderful radar jammers that used to be available, it is 100% completely legal to jam laser. And despite the claims of many laser gun manufacturers and constabularies currently available consumer laser jammers are remarkably effective. It doesn't take long to find all sorts of tests showing just how effective they are. Are *good* laser jammers expensive? Yes, which is why you don't see more of them. Are they a bit finicky to set up? Yes, but not nearly as tough as it used to be. Do they need a really, really good (read ***expensive***) radar/laser detector to work effectively? Absolutely, which is another reason why you don't see more of them.

But the lack of those laser jammers out there is another indication of how few laser guns are really out there. While radar detectors are almost ubiquitous, it's rare to see laser jammers. But trust me, if laser guns ever do start proliferating in excess of radar guns, you'll see more and more laser jammers, and the price will come down while their effectiveness will improve exponentially.

But enough about all that...

I had to take a little trip yesterday to see Ed Cook and the boys at AF-1 Racing up in New Braunfels, TX, and during that one 350 mile ride alone my radar detector *saved* me no less than 4 times! One county sheriff using K band, one small town police department LEO using Ka, and two Texas DPS cruisers using Ka. I also had three other *real* alerts, with one an "instant on" Ka encounter with a Texas DPS officer... He would have had me, radar detector or no, as I was the only guy out on that section of 181 at the time, but I saw him well before he pulled the trigger, so that just goes to show you that whether you opt for a radar detector or not you still have to pay attention to avoid citations.

Here's a picture I took of my detector set-up while I was on the ride:

Note how the detector is set to show system voltage, which is a cool, usable feature on the Escort/BEL detector models.

And I passed a small milestone during the ride home from New Braunfels, turning over 39,000 miles on my Super Tenere while still about 50 miles from home:

And I've loved every mile riding it! ::001::


Dallara




~

 

[S10Pilot]

I bought the TPX, I have it mounted behind the windscreen on top of the speedometer having made a plastic wedge so that it sits level to the road.
All I can say is that it spots radar before I do and it even has an extra connection for laser too (purchased separately) it comes with a very bright led to indicate detection but I also bought the HARD in helmet wireless led detector.

It is a neat little unit easy to install and is purpose built for the motorbike.............no complaints from me.

Been using the H.A.R.D. setup for years - back to the '03 VTX 1800 day. In combination with the Passport X85 8500, I have no idea of how much loot I've saved in tickets that haven't been written!
As with many subjects, this one can be over-analyzed. All I know is the thing works great for me and I'll continue using it.
I too use a baggie for foul weather and never had a problem.

 

[S10Pilot]

I bought the TPX, I have it mounted behind the windscreen on top of the speedometer having made a plastic wedge so that it sits level to the road.
All I can say is that it spots radar before I do and it even has an extra connection for laser too (purchased separately) it comes with a very bright led to indicate detection but I also bought the HARD in helmet wireless led detector.

It is a neat little unit easy to install and is purpose built for the motorbike.............no complaints from me.

Hey Kiwi, could you post some pics of your mounting? I'm "KLR" cheap (got a blue '09 model!) and don't really want to spring for a Madstad - have NO buffeting problems with the OEM windshield. Just haven't figured out where to mount the Passport.

 

[greg the pole]

Hey Kiwi, could you post some pics of your mounting? I'm "KLR" cheap (got a blue '09 model!) and don't really want to spring for a Madstad - have NO buffeting problems with the OEM windshield. Just haven't figured out where to mount the Passport.

why not ramball it? cheap and effective.
instead of spending money on expensive mounts I went the ramball mount route for everything (radar, gps, go pro)

 

[HDFlyer76]

I dunno'... I beg to disagree. At least here in Texas.

Lots of local police departments are getting a few laser units, but our state constabulary - the Texas Department of Public Safety, or DPS, as we call them here - have seem to avoid laser altogether. They seem to overwhelming prefer good ol' Ka band radar units, and probably for some of the more obvious reasons...

Laser looks great on paper. Fast, reasonably accurate - i.e. more of a *rifle* approach as opposed to the rather *shotgun* approach of radar - and would, on the surface, seem more difficult to defeat. But in the real world there are lots of downsides, too. Weather is one. Laser is almost useless in rainy or foggy weather... Times when perhaps speed enforcement is more important than any other. And any laser operator has to be stationary, and out of the car, since laser doesn't work correctly through auto glass. No "moving laser" has been invented, at least not yet. That severely limits the LEO's area to operate. He's stuck in one spot, sniping. OTOH, radar operators can be moving, and therefore can scan lots more traffic while at the same time being more readily available for other calls. They can also "blend in" with other traffic, sometimes making them nearly impossible to see. Often times laser requires two officers, and two vehicles... One to operate the laser, often even from a tripod to help aiming, and another for pursuit in the event a perpetrator doesn't just obediently pull over when the laser shooter waves at him. That's usually not a problem in a city environment, but in a state like Texas, with large sections of highway needing to be patrolled by as few of officers and vehicles available, it's a real liability. Laser also has some fundamental issues with certain other environmental conditions, like looking in any way into a direct, low-lying sun... I could go on, but you get the idea.

And laser has another another problem in getting universal acceptance among constabularies... While it is against federal law to try and jam radar, which is why you no longer see any of the wonderful radar jammers that used to be available, it is 100% completely legal to jam laser. And despite the claims of many laser gun manufacturers and constabularies currently available consumer laser jammers are remarkably effective. It doesn't take long to find all sorts of tests showing just how effective they are. Are *good* laser jammers expensive? Yes, which is why you don't see more of them. Are they a bit finicky to set up? Yes, but not nearly as tough as it used to be. Do they need a really, really good (read ***expensive***) radar/laser detector to work effectively? Absolutely, which is another reason why you don't see more of them.

But the lack of those laser jammers out there is another indication of how few laser guns are really out there. While radar detectors are almost ubiquitous, it's rare to see laser jammers. But trust me, if laser guns ever do start proliferating in excess of radar guns, you'll see more and more laser jammers, and the price will come down while their effectiveness will improve exponentially.

But enough about all that...

I had to take a little trip yesterday to see Ed Cook and the boys at AF-1 Racing up in New Braunfels, TX, and during that one 350 mile ride alone my radar detector *saved* me no less than 4 times! One county sheriff using K band, one small town police department LEO using Ka, and two Texas DPS cruisers using Ka. I also had three other *real* alerts, with one an "instant on" Ka encounter with a Texas DPS officer... He would have had me, radar detector or no, as I was the only guy out on that section of 181 at the time, but I saw him well before he pulled the trigger, so that just goes to show you that whether you opt for a radar detector or not you still have to pay attention to avoid citations.

Here's a picture I took of my detector set-up while I was on the ride:

Note how the detector is set to show system voltage, which is a cool, usable feature on the Escort/BEL detector models.

And I passed a small milestone during the ride home from New Braunfels, turning over 39,000 miles on my Super Tenere while still about 50 miles from home:

And I've loved every mile riding it! ::001::


Dallara




~

Dallara, I like your set up. What is the mounting system that you are using? It looks like a ram mount, but is that mounted on the brake reservoir and how is the unit itself mounted to the ram mount? Also, how are you mounting your GPS unit? Is that mounted to the handle bar? Looking to do something very similar to yours. Thanks, mark


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[Dallara]

Dallara, I like your set up. What is the mounting system that you are using? It looks like a ram mount, but is that mounted on the brake reservoir and how is the unit itself mounted to the ram mount? Also, how are you mounting your GPS unit? Is that mounted to the handle bar? Looking to do something very similar to yours. Thanks, mark


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

The radar detector is mounted on a RAM ball. The RAM ball on the brake reservoir is a leftover from my '06 FJR1300, and it's a brake reservoir cap that replaces your stock one. It's made by a guy named "Motorcycle Larry", and you can get one here:

http://www.motorcyclelarry.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=2_5&products_id=34

Here's a pic of just the reservoir cap (though mine didn't have the engraved letters):

It's a bit more expensive now than when I got it back in '06, but there is a less expensive alternative. It's not as clean and tidy, but it works. It's RAM's own reservoir mount:

http://www.rammount.com/CatalogResults/PartDetails/tabid/63/partid/082065077045066045051052054085/Default.aspx

As you can see I use a standard RAM ball spring-loaded arm from the reservoir to the detector base, and that attaches to one of RAM's standard round bases. Bolted to the base is one of these:

http://www.rammount.com/CatalogResults/PartDetails/tabid/63/partid/082065080045051048048045049085/Default.aspx

I've had the same couple of these for years and being used on different bikes, so I have longed since stopped using the magnetic part of this. The magnet that sticks to the bottom of your radar detector is a real b*tch to get off once it's stuck to something, so I started using industrial strength velcro. I put a piece of the "barb" side of the velcro on the RAM base in the little rectangular depression of the base, and then stick a like-sized piece of the softer, "hair" side of the velcro to the bottom of the detector. The detector sticks quite well to the RAM base with the velcro, but I still worry about it coming loose at speed so I also wrap a couple of cable-ties around the base and detector, and I use a bit of duct tape over the top of the detector to keep the cable-ties from scuffing up the detector. You can see that pretty readily in my pics in the previous post.

On top of the detector is a Marc Parnes "Visual Alert", available here:

http://www.marcparnes.com/Visual_Alert.htm

I've had the "Visual Alert" for years, and it has worked flawlessly. I have it mounted to a standard Escort windshield mount... The same one that comes with an 8500 detector. I pulled the suction cups off one of those mounts, stuck the "Visual Alert" to the top of it with some velcro, and it just sticks into the little slot it normally goes into the detector when it's mounted to the windshield of a car. The "Visual Alert" plugs into the earphone jack on the Escort detector, and plugging it in silences the detector, but instead the various audio warnings of the detector are flashed via the bright LED's. The volume control on the detector controls the intensity of the LED's, and when turned full bright they are easily seen in daylight, but you can turn them down in brightness at night. Works great.

I have a detector power cord hardwired to the bike, and it just runs up the bar to the RAM reservoir mount, winds around the RAM arm, and plugs into the detector. Anytime you you want to take the detector off the bike, say to lock it up in your side cases like I do, you just unplug the power cord, loosen the thumbscrew on the RAM arm, and pop it off all as a unit from the "Motorcycle Larry" brake reservoir base. Comes off in seconds.

As for the GPS, it's just the standard Garmin ZUMO base mount bolted up to one of these:

http://www.techmounts.com/products/index.php?page_function=detail&product_id=149

It's just a plain, black TECHMOUNT mounted up in the center of the handlebars. I have the Garmin ZUMO base hardwired to the bike, and with that base you can easily pop the GPS on and off the bike.

Hope that helps, but if you have any other questions just let me know!

Dallara





~

 

[HDFlyer76]

Dallara,

Thanks for the outstanding answer and the detail to allow me to go directly to the source. Your responses on this forum are so detailed and well thought out. I really appreciate your efforts for us rookies when it comes to the modifications for the Tenere.

Thanks again,
Mark

 

[Tremor38]

I disagree with the one poster who said detectors are useless. They certainly aren't as useful as they once were and I've had several tickets with one mounted on my windshield. However they still do save my bacon on a regular basis. You'll catch a LOT of the signals of highway patrol cars who cruise up and down the interstates with instant on Ka band. They can't use laser while in motion. Since I speed all the time it certainly doesn't take too may saves to justify the detector.

I have 2 Valentine 1's and love them. The directional arrows are a game changer. However I'm hesitant to put them on the bikes though since I don't want to have to remove it every time I walk in a store or gas station. They're targeted by thieves. I also don't want to risk getting them wet. I like the idea of a robust, weatherproof detector for a bike. I'd want to be securely fastened but easily transferable. I haven't looked to see if it's bluetooth or not because $400 with a bracket put me off a bit.

Yup. They will use a RADAR while in motion as well as for longer range (like other-side-of-the-hill previews) speed traps. RADAR can also be used in conjunction with laser. The radar will give a heads-up that somebody you can't yet see is speeding, then the laser gets them dead to rights once they crest a hill, etc. A good RADAR detector can catch the long-range scatter and give you time to slow down. I have one that's integrated with my bike's GPS. The antenna is hidden so all that is visible is the GPS unit. The GPS has all of the fixed RADAR and camera stations in its data base, so you get plenty of warning for those.

 

[Kiwi Graham]

Hey Kiwi, could you post some pics of your mounting? I'm "KLR" cheap (got a blue '09 model!) and don't really want to spring for a Madstad - have NO buffeting problems with the OEM windshield. Just haven't figured out where to mount the Passport.

Here you go;
The wedge pictured I made too small so made the larger one fitted. The wedge is fitted using the double sided sticky pad supplied with the detector and another double sided pad fixes the mount to the top of the wedge, all easily removed when the time comes.

 

[talreli]

Kiwi - how does this TPX unit working for you as far as detection and false alarms?


----
12 Yamaha Super Tenere
04 Kawasaki Vulcan 750
84 Suzuki DR500

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[Kiwi Graham]

Kiwi - how does this TPX unit working for you as far as detection and false alarms?


----
12 Yamaha Super Tenere
04 Kawasaki Vulcan 750
84 Suzuki DR500

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

To be honest I'm still getting used to it and haven't ventured out of the city limits with it yet. You can turn various filters on to reduce the alarm rates according to the instructions but in the mean time I now know who has electronic door openers in their shops and garages etc andwas alerted to a motorway cop with a radar gun before I came across him in fiarly heavy traffic.
I made this purchase based on a friends recommendation and the user friendly bike orientated features. all of my infringements have been out on the open highway so it wont get this test for a couple more weeks.

 

[talreli]

~

Ah yes! Radar detectors...

I've been a radar detector addict & fanatic since the early 1970's. My first one was the original Autotronics Super Snooper. Then I went through all the original Fuzzbusters of various iterations. But then truly fell in love with Mike Valentine's first detector - the original Cincinnati Microwave Escort. It was a quantum leap ahead of anything before it, and stood at the top of the heap until Mike Valentine designed the incredible Escort DSP just before Cincinnati Microwave pushed him out of the company he started. The DSP was beyond phenomenal... So good, in fact, that it is still competitive on X and K band to this day, but it was so expensive to produce then only made it for a short time. I still have examples of all of these.

Then Valentine started another company and came up with the Valentine 1, which was developed from his ideas that had made the DSP, but carried to a different level. And he still makes them to this day, updating the design over the years to include Ka bands, and then laser, too. The Valentine 1 is still the "No. 1" best detector out there to a lot of folks, and if you're driving is out strictly on the highway and you're willing to take a very active role in it's operation it's an amazingly effective device for the task.

Cincinnati Microwave still had many of the patents to some of the best ideas the company hatched, and they developed some great detectors, too, with their most developed and long-standing design the almost ubiquitous Escort 8500. First made in the 1980's it is still produced to this day, in the form of the 8500 X50. I have an example of one of the very first ones, and it still does a great job today. Along the way Cincinnati Microwave acquired BEL detectors, so now models from both BEL and Escort essentially share features, and often even styling (particularly in their built-in style, "hidden" detectors). Escort has added models that now incorporate GPS chips so they can tell you where "speed cameras" are and also allow you to "mark" locations where things that cause radar "falses", like X- and K-band automatic door openers on stores, etc.

For pure performance Escort's Redline and BEL STi series are considered among the very best, and I use a Escort Redline in my CTS-V and a BEL STi or RX65 in my Suburban. On my bikes, though, I use Escort 8500 X50's. To me they are the very best "bang for your buck" detectors out there, and rival the Redline and STi's on Ka-band, which is the one that's most deadly these days in the hands of LEO's.

I've tried Adaptiv's motorcycle radar detectors twice now, and ended up selling both of them. Compared to Escort/BEL's products they are... well... substandard. There is simply no other way to put it. Yes, the Adaptiv detector is waterproof, and has nice motorcycle mounts, bright & loud alerts, etc., but it just can't even come close to the detection performance of the Escort/BEL or Valentine detectors. It's no contest.

IMHO, an Escort 8500 X50 paired with a Marc Parnes "Visual Alert" bright LED module is the best solution for easy-on/easy-off radar detection on a motorcycle. If you want the absolute ultimate one of Escort's built-in, "hidden" detectors with the LED lighting and "screamer" alert add-on's from "Radar Screamer" is pretty much state-of-the-art.

Just my two centavos... YMMV.

Dallara



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Any thoughts about PASSPORT 8500 X50 blue vs. red ? what is the difference.

 

[Dallara]

Any thoughts about PASSPORT 8500 X50 blue vs. red ? what is the difference.

Just the display. There is absolutely no performance difference between them. The "blue" uses some different type of LED so it's more expensive, but I like the "red" display better anyway, so it's never been an issue for me. Besides, the "red" display on my 8500 X50 Black matches the red LED's of my Marc Parnes "Visual Alert"... ::025::

I have a friend who has one of the "blue" display models... He got it because it better matched the blue lighting on the instruments of his car (he swaps it between his car and bike), but he says it's much harder to see the "blue" display in bright sunlight on his bike than the "red" on mine.

Just FYI...

Dallara



~

 

[hANNAbONE]

why not ramball it? cheap and effective.
instead of spending money on expensive mounts I went the ramball mount route for everything (radar, gps, go pro)

CAN'T BEAT RAM MOUNTS...I too, use them for everything

 

[Bigbore4]

@ Dallara and others with Ram Mounts

I have Velcro (type product) on the bottom of my detector. Rather than stick the metal plate for the Ram Mount to the detector I put the mating Velcro on it so I can pull it off. I stick the detector to the dash of my vehicles with the Velcro, the plate for the ram mount is easily removable.

General commentary:
I am just gonna stick with Escort and Valentine, they are the standard. Ya'll can make your own decisions. You can defeat instant on with AGGRESSIVE braking (if he's moving, if he's stopped you're caught), but it takes quick reaction and you have to get below the posted on braking. He knows you're braking, but if you get it down to 56 in a 55 and he gets s lock... You get a ticket. If you get it down to 54 and he gets a lock he aint got shat.... I have 'sperience in these matters.... You better have all your other ducks in a row though cuz he's gonna stop ya and ask all them dam questions.... Brake aggressively every time, then check speed, surroundings etc, but brake first!

Anyone know where my Marc Parns LED rig I loaned to my son is?

<edit>
my first...
http://www.radardetectormuseum.com/whistler_re55xk.html

 

[talreli]

Just placed an order for a refurbished red Escort X50 from eBay (Dallara thanks for the tip !)
Bigbore4 - is the Velcro good enough or you are securing it with something else to the Ram base?

Looking for a way to connect the detector to a junction box/ battery rather than using the 12V port. Would the 'Escort PASSPORT Direct Wire Power Cord' ($6.99) do the trick ?