Radar detector preference

[jack]

Couldn't find this specific question addressed via 'search'. I can get a factory refurbished,(from Escort), Model 8500,(not the X50), for $150, or save my money for a while and spend around $350-$400 and get a Valentine 1. My riding is evenly divided between City and highway travel in and around the Kansas City area, with trips planned to Arkansas, Colorado and other western states.

Any advice, suggestions, guidance etc. is much appreciated.

Thanks,

Jack.

 

[snikr]

I scored a used 8500 X50 from Ebay and it and the V-1 are the ones to use.

Tom

 

[Bounce]

Save your cash and wait for the V1. I didn't get one for a while because I thought they were too expensive. All it took was 1 ticket and that would have bought me a V1 and avoided the deferred adjudication, LD phone calls, and 6 months of hassle.

 

[ionbeam]

Couldn't find this specific question addressed via 'search'...I can get a Model 8500...get a Valentine...Any advice, suggestions, guidance etc. is much appreciated.

:blink: Boy, I would have thought someone or a few people would have discussed radar detectors at least once on this forum.

Good search terms: +radar +detector -- 8500 -- Valentine -- "best radar"

 

[Ignacio]

Couldn't find this specific question addressed via 'search'.

Maybe it's because you didn't actually ask a question....not one single question mark in your post.

Regardless, I find tons of discussion when I search on v1 8500 site:fjrforum.com and other terms at Google and what ionbeam suggested.

 

[keithaba]

My 8500 has saved me from performance awards many a time!

 

[Scab]

I don't need no stinkin' radar detector...I ride behind JeffAshe.

 

[twowheelnut]

I don't need no stinkin' radar detector...I ride behind JeffAshe.

So, what's your ERA?

:lol:

 

[lnewlf]

Been using an Escort 8500 since it came out-best farkle ever and it follows me from bike to truck. I have a H.A.R.D on my helmet which also works great..I welded up a locking mounting bracket using the mirror hole on the left clutch mount and a rubber mirror vibration damper. Took power off the glove box outlet. Velcroed the H.A.R.D. transmitter to the top of the clutch master cylinder. Saved my arse more times than I can count and I don't know if the newer units are much more effective..anyhow

 

[HaulinAshe]

I don't need no stinkin' radar detector...I ride behind JeffAshe.

Not any more! My next farkle is going to be a brush guard mounted up front. I'm pushing everybody ahead of me so they get the ticket.



No sir officer, I was not speeding. It was that guy on the red bike ahead of me. I ran up behind him and he suddenly took off like a bat-outta-hell! I saw your radar come on with my 8500 X50, so I kept it at a nice, even 55 mph.

 

[Scab]

Nice theory, there, Jeff. YOU, ride in the back?

Pfffft.

 

[jack]

I don't need no stinkin' radar detector...I ride behind JeffAshe.

So, what's your ERA?

:lol:

Lot of posts on radar detectors, but I was specifically asking for feedback from members on the relative merits of the two units and whether I should save my money for the V1.

 

[charismaticmegafauna]

<snip>....I can get a factory refurbished,(from Escort), My riding is evenly divided between City and highway travel in and around the Kansas City area, with trips planned to Arkansas, Colorado and other western states. Any advice, suggestions, guidance etc. is much appreciated.

'snikr': I scored a used 8500 X50 from Ebay and it and the V-1 are the ones to use.

I've been an Escort (Cinci M/wave) user in the past -- but, if I were in the market today, I'd be looking at the Adaptive Technologies unit with the wireless headset. I need the sound in my ear for it to be effective. In the past I've run a cord up to a plug in the helemet wired to a speaker in the helmet and fussed with that cord all the time. Wireless (sound) would be the deal, for me.

Detectors can be a real aid/tool -- but, if you're the only one out there and the man shoots you and recieves a hit before you see/notice him; well... you're probably done (detector or not).

 

[ionbeam]

Which do you like best, Microsoft or Apple? Miller or Bud Light? V1 or 8500. Any of these choices are good, you will find the V1 owners feel they bought the best, the 8500 owners feel they bought a great detector.

By the numbers the V1 has a little performance edge in some areas, but trades some falsing to get it. The V1 owners would throw their detectors away if the arrows quit working, even if the rest of the electronics were ok. V1 owners live for the arrows that show the direction of the threat and don't know how anyone could live without them.

I own a 8500, its performance is so close to or better than any of the top detectors that I consider it a tie. I've never been in a situation where the V1 arrows would have made any difference, you get an alert and you slow. Perhaps the difference between the units and the appeal of the arrows is their application in the wide open western country vs the congested east coast area. Dunno.

If you want to buy one of the best detectors made, buy a 8500. If you want to buy one of the best detectors made, buy a V1. If getting a valid alert well in advance and slowing down isn't enough, buy a V1 so you know in which direction to look for the threat(s) while you slow down. The 'arrow people' will be along to say that a detector without arrows is useless

In some of the earlier detector threads there are links to sites that do testing, you may want to browse some of these sites. I would suggest you labor through >>THIS ENTIRE THREAD<<.

I always like following a 'rabbit' out in front to bring out the bears. Thinking of you Jeff, as we were zipping along to dinner and went past that bear in the woods :lol: Thank goodness it was his doughnut break!

 

[El Toro]

Anything is better than nothing.

I like the arrows and the two antennae approach of Valentine....but this is more because its fun than because its necessary.

One's budget might influence whether or not the fun was also a good value.

 

[HaulinAshe]

Ionbeam summarized it the best I've seen.

But just for the record... Rabbits are soft, and cuddly, and shy, and loveable. Everybody knows that just ain't me!

I like my 8500 and can't imagine often having the time to react differently based on the arrows. Buy either one and understand that you are adding information to your decision process, IF you are lucky enough to get an advance warning. I've heard that out in Utah they just aim, fire and collect. Somebody else find out for a change.

 

[Sherman]

Read and learn Grasshopper.

 

[jack]

Read and learn Grasshopper.

Thanks for the help. I will probably save towards the Valentine, as it appears the difference between it and the 8500 could be a ticket with my name at the bottom.

Jack.

 

[El Toro]

I like my 8500 and can't imagine often having the time to react differently based on the arrows.

That's a key issue with the Valentine. You get used to the idea of seeing the number of bogies and their relative position. Its not as useful on a bike as it is in the car or truck though. On a bike you really can't be looking for the display. You just have to slow down when you get the warning and hope it was early enough to make a difference.

The V1 is great at picking up stuff from reflections far in advance of being in the actual gun's beam, but there really aren't enough reflections with laser, so if they're running laser, you can be screwed no matter what sort of detection you have.

I've mentioned it before, but my limited study of the front of the FJR says that its overly generous in its reflection back to the gun. Not much to do about this except be even more careful when riding an FJR.

One thing that helps with the bike is an H.A.R.D. accessory (waiting now for the clips on this one). Helmet Assisted Radar Detection turns your buzzer/bell report into an LED response to a light in your peripheral vision that you've installed in your helmet. It allows you to have a warning without taking your eyes off the road. You could probably forego this and just pipe the audio to your helmet too, at less cost.

Hey, I don't use my radar detector to speed.... I use it just to learn more about where the bogies are . Its always nice to have data about your riding environment.