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Fairfax Underground
Welcome to Fairfax Underground, a project site designed to improve communication among residents of Fairfax County, VA. Feel free to post anything Northern Virginia residents would find interesting.
Welcome to Fairfax Underground, a project site designed to improve communication among residents of Fairfax County, VA. Feel free to post anything Northern Virginia residents would find interesting.
what's the best radar detector for someone who lives in Fairfax, but drives to NYC often?
Posted by:
RhondaE
()
Date: September 17, 2008 05:26PM
what's the best radar detector for someone who lives in Fairfax, but drives to NYC often?
(obviously I know it's illegal to use it within Virginia. I only plan to use it between Maryland and New York City, mostly I-95)
Thank you for any suggestions!
(obviously I know it's illegal to use it within Virginia. I only plan to use it between Maryland and New York City, mostly I-95)
Thank you for any suggestions!
Re: what's the best radar detector for someone who lives in Fairfax, but drives to NYC often?
Posted by:
trogdor!
()
Date: September 17, 2008 08:44PM
Depends on how much money you want to spend. The Valentine One is very expensive but has a hardcore following. To me it looks like a 1970's Fuzzbuster.
Consistently, Bell radar detectors have been rated the best. Pick one you can afford and I'm sure it will be great.
http://www.beltronics.com/
http://radartest.com/
Consistently, Bell radar detectors have been rated the best. Pick one you can afford and I'm sure it will be great.
http://www.beltronics.com/
http://radartest.com/
Re: what's the best radar detector for someone who lives in Fairfax, but drives to NYC often?
Posted by:
hey
()
Date: September 18, 2008 01:03PM
I did some research on this the only one that the radar detector detectors wont see is the Belltronics STI.... Its about 500 dollars but may be worth it for you
Re: what's the best radar detector for someone who lives in Fairfax, but drives to NYC often?
Posted by:
formerleadfoot
()
Date: September 18, 2008 01:34PM
try driving the speed limit. safer and cheaper too.
Re: what's the best radar detector for someone who lives in Fairfax, but drives to NYC often?
Posted by:
SBS
()
Date: September 18, 2008 02:54PM
hey Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I did some research on this the only one that the
> radar detector detectors wont see is the
> Belltronics STI.... Its about 500 dollars but may
> be worth it for you
Who cares if a detector detector detects it? He said he's going to use it from MD to NY, where they are perfectly legal.
-------------------------------------------------------
> I did some research on this the only one that the
> radar detector detectors wont see is the
> Belltronics STI.... Its about 500 dollars but may
> be worth it for you
Who cares if a detector detector detects it? He said he's going to use it from MD to NY, where they are perfectly legal.
Re: what's the best radar detector for someone who lives in Fairfax, but drives to NYC often?
Posted by:
ry
()
Date: September 18, 2008 03:38PM
Beltronics STI has the best range to!! best one on the market
Re: what's the best radar detector for someone who lives in Fairfax, but drives to NYC often?
Posted by:
Lurker.
()
Date: September 18, 2008 04:01PM
The high end one, $1099, also claims to block lasers from front and back.
http://www.beltronics.com/rx75plus.html
http://www.beltronics.com/rx75plus.html
Re: what's the best radar detector for someone who lives in Fairfax, but drives to NYC often?
Posted by:
expert
()
Date: September 18, 2008 06:29PM
valentine one
Re: what's the best radar detector for someone who lives in Fairfax, but drives to NYC often?
Posted by:
trogdor!
()
Date: September 18, 2008 11:34PM
Lurker. Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> The high end one, $1099, also claims to block
> lasers from front and back.
>
> http://www.beltronics.com/rx75plus.html
Wow..that's the first time I've seen that. Looks like it has laser transmitters you have to install. Looks like it's mostly hidden too.
For the budget minded, this looks like the cheapest Bell http://www.beltronics.com/vector940.html
-------------------------------------------------------
> The high end one, $1099, also claims to block
> lasers from front and back.
>
> http://www.beltronics.com/rx75plus.html
Wow..that's the first time I've seen that. Looks like it has laser transmitters you have to install. Looks like it's mostly hidden too.
For the budget minded, this looks like the cheapest Bell http://www.beltronics.com/vector940.html
Re: what's the best radar detector for someone who lives in Fairfax, but drives to NYC often?
Posted by:
Ol' Dog
()
Date: September 20, 2008 06:36PM
formerleadfoot has it right. Try the break pedal. Officers in this area have radar detector detectors. Additionally, any experienced officer can not only defeat your radar detector but catch you with it. If he doesn't activate the beam until you pass, when you hit your breaks you tell him that you have a detector and give him probable cause to search your car for it. You get two tickets. One for speeding and one for the radar detector. Start a fad, drive the limit.
Re: what's the best radar detector for someone who lives in Fairfax, but drives to NYC often?
Posted by:
pgens
()
Date: September 20, 2008 06:42PM
How many times does the original poster have to say it? There is no intent to use in VA or DC, hence no issue about device detection. He's simply asking for the best quality unit because what he may run into between MD and NYC.
Re: what's the best radar detector for someone who lives in Fairfax, but drives to NYC often?
Posted by:
RESton Peace
()
Date: September 21, 2008 04:31AM
pgens, this is the same asshole who does his public safety morality posts in any traffic-involved thread. Just let him be holier-than-thou, as it is his constitutional right to behave asshattedly like, and move on.
Re: what's the best radar detector for someone who lives in Fairfax, but drives to NYC often?
Posted by:
strates
()
Date: September 21, 2008 04:50AM
OP, have you driven much between VA and NYC yet? On most days speeding will not be a concern, as there won't be an opportunity. My experience on that stretch of 95 has been similar to a 400 mile parking lot.
Re: what's the best radar detector for someone who lives in Fairfax, but drives to NYC often?
Posted by:
inocente
()
Date: September 25, 2008 01:40AM
http://www.k40.com/home_main.html this shit is good and it works, type in your zipcode and it will give you mechanics that will install it. its worth the money
Re: what's the best radar detector for someone who lives in Fairfax, but drives to NYC often?
Posted by:
KristaD
()
Date: November 05, 2008 05:05PM
As far as I know Fairfax County religiously uses laser. A RD is pretty much useless there.
If you live in Fairfax and drive to NY often the best would be the Beltronics STI.
STIR is you want it directly installed in your car.
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/05/2008 05:12PM by KristaD.
If you live in Fairfax and drive to NY often the best would be the Beltronics STI.
STIR is you want it directly installed in your car.
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/05/2008 05:12PM by KristaD.
Re: what's the best radar detector for someone who lives in Fairfax, but drives to NYC often?
Posted by:
Bob
()
Date: November 05, 2008 11:00PM
formerleadfoot Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> try driving the speed limit. safer and cheaper
> too.
Radar detectors are good for people who drive the speed limit, too, you know. I know it's easy to generalize and stereotype rather than give some thought to things, and just assume that only speeders want radar detectors.
My grandfather always had his radar detector on in his car. His reasoning was that if the police want to monitor his driving, it was his right to know that they were doing so. His other reasoning was that sometimes you might not realize you are going a little too fast, and hearing the detector go off is a good safety device to prevent you from blithely driving into a speed trap unaware that your speed had crept up a little too much. He rarely exceeded the speed limit by more than 5 mph, but he said that the radar detector warned him to check his speed and on a few occassions on long trips, he'd get up to 10 or 12 miles per hour over the speed limit, so the radar detector saved him from getting a ticket on some occassions, and the false alarms also prevented him from continuing on at that speed on other occassions.
Plus, because radar doesn't tell the police officer which car was doing what speed, having a radar detector can let you know to get out of the left lane in case someone up ahead is speeding. I've seen people get pulled over when I just passed them on the right, because when the cop looked up after his radar gun beeped, he saw a car in the left lane and a bunch of cars in the right lane, so he went after the guy who he assumed had to be the culprit. It's a good defense against being mistakenly ticket.
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/05/2008 11:17PM by Bob.
-------------------------------------------------------
> try driving the speed limit. safer and cheaper
> too.
Radar detectors are good for people who drive the speed limit, too, you know. I know it's easy to generalize and stereotype rather than give some thought to things, and just assume that only speeders want radar detectors.
My grandfather always had his radar detector on in his car. His reasoning was that if the police want to monitor his driving, it was his right to know that they were doing so. His other reasoning was that sometimes you might not realize you are going a little too fast, and hearing the detector go off is a good safety device to prevent you from blithely driving into a speed trap unaware that your speed had crept up a little too much. He rarely exceeded the speed limit by more than 5 mph, but he said that the radar detector warned him to check his speed and on a few occassions on long trips, he'd get up to 10 or 12 miles per hour over the speed limit, so the radar detector saved him from getting a ticket on some occassions, and the false alarms also prevented him from continuing on at that speed on other occassions.
Plus, because radar doesn't tell the police officer which car was doing what speed, having a radar detector can let you know to get out of the left lane in case someone up ahead is speeding. I've seen people get pulled over when I just passed them on the right, because when the cop looked up after his radar gun beeped, he saw a car in the left lane and a bunch of cars in the right lane, so he went after the guy who he assumed had to be the culprit. It's a good defense against being mistakenly ticket.
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/05/2008 11:17PM by Bob.
Re: what's the best radar detector for someone who lives in Fairfax, but drives to NYC often?
Posted by:
Bob
()
Date: November 05, 2008 11:02PM
Ol' Dog Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> formerleadfoot has it right. Try the break pedal.
> Officers in this area have radar detector
> detectors. Additionally, any experienced officer
> can not only defeat your radar detector but catch
> you with it. If he doesn't activate the beam until
> you pass, when you hit your breaks you tell him
> that you have a detector and give him probable
> cause to search your car for it. You get two
> tickets. One for speeding and one for the radar
> detector. Start a fad, drive the limit.
You should read the post, not just the subject line. He said he knows it is illegal in VA, and plans on only using it from MD to NY.
-------------------------------------------------------
> formerleadfoot has it right. Try the break pedal.
> Officers in this area have radar detector
> detectors. Additionally, any experienced officer
> can not only defeat your radar detector but catch
> you with it. If he doesn't activate the beam until
> you pass, when you hit your breaks you tell him
> that you have a detector and give him probable
> cause to search your car for it. You get two
> tickets. One for speeding and one for the radar
> detector. Start a fad, drive the limit.
You should read the post, not just the subject line. He said he knows it is illegal in VA, and plans on only using it from MD to NY.
Re: what's the best radar detector for someone who lives in Fairfax, but drives to NYC often?
Posted by:
Bob
()
Date: November 05, 2008 11:12PM
KristaD Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> As far as I know Fairfax County religiously uses
> laser. A RD is pretty much useless there.
>
> If you live in Fairfax and drive to NY often the
> best would be the Beltronics STI.
>
> STIR is you want it directly installed in your
> car.
That's not true. LIDAR does disperse. At something like 1,000 yards, the beam is something like 15 to 25 feet wide, and it bounces off of things like guard rails, etc, so detectors can pick up reflections, and the huge diffuse beam from far away, outside the range where the officer can determine your speed.
When I lived in Bethesda, I had a detector that detected all the microwave bands and also lidar.
There was a state trooper who always sat at the DOT yard on the side of River Road running LIDAR. I know he ran LIDAR because I got a ticket before getting the detector, and it said (lidar) next to the speed on the ticket. The detector works, but not perfectly, and not always in time to avoid being in his range, but it is still better to have a little insurance than to have no insurance. I only once drove past his speed trap without getting a signal until I was well within range, but that was at 1:30 in the morning and I was the only car on the road.
You should never rely on a radar detector to allow you to speed and as your only defense against getting pulled over. It is a tool that should be one of many in your tool kit.
First, you need to learn how to use it. Don't just open up the box, stick it on your windshield and race around town thinking you're immune from tickets now. Drive around at the speed limit for a month or two and learn to understand what it can and cannot tell you, and learn patterns of where cops are most likely to be, and if you find a place that falses all the time but looks like a good place to hide, don't just ignore that false, cops will hide in areas that have false signals hoping to catch people who have learned to ignore that alert. Also, you need to learn how much distance/time between getting a signal and when you see the police car. Adjust your speed accordingly, so all you have to do is take your foot off the gas or downshift in order to enter his range at the legal speed.
Second, you always have to be aware of the road conditions -- if traffic is really light, you're at a higher risk of instant on radar. If traffic is really heavy, you can be more certain that you won't stumble upon a speed trap without getting a warning well in advance.
There's all kinds of articles on the internet that go into detail discussing the fine art of using a radar detector properly.
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/05/2008 11:15PM by Bob.
-------------------------------------------------------
> As far as I know Fairfax County religiously uses
> laser. A RD is pretty much useless there.
>
> If you live in Fairfax and drive to NY often the
> best would be the Beltronics STI.
>
> STIR is you want it directly installed in your
> car.
That's not true. LIDAR does disperse. At something like 1,000 yards, the beam is something like 15 to 25 feet wide, and it bounces off of things like guard rails, etc, so detectors can pick up reflections, and the huge diffuse beam from far away, outside the range where the officer can determine your speed.
When I lived in Bethesda, I had a detector that detected all the microwave bands and also lidar.
There was a state trooper who always sat at the DOT yard on the side of River Road running LIDAR. I know he ran LIDAR because I got a ticket before getting the detector, and it said (lidar) next to the speed on the ticket. The detector works, but not perfectly, and not always in time to avoid being in his range, but it is still better to have a little insurance than to have no insurance. I only once drove past his speed trap without getting a signal until I was well within range, but that was at 1:30 in the morning and I was the only car on the road.
You should never rely on a radar detector to allow you to speed and as your only defense against getting pulled over. It is a tool that should be one of many in your tool kit.
First, you need to learn how to use it. Don't just open up the box, stick it on your windshield and race around town thinking you're immune from tickets now. Drive around at the speed limit for a month or two and learn to understand what it can and cannot tell you, and learn patterns of where cops are most likely to be, and if you find a place that falses all the time but looks like a good place to hide, don't just ignore that false, cops will hide in areas that have false signals hoping to catch people who have learned to ignore that alert. Also, you need to learn how much distance/time between getting a signal and when you see the police car. Adjust your speed accordingly, so all you have to do is take your foot off the gas or downshift in order to enter his range at the legal speed.
Second, you always have to be aware of the road conditions -- if traffic is really light, you're at a higher risk of instant on radar. If traffic is really heavy, you can be more certain that you won't stumble upon a speed trap without getting a warning well in advance.
There's all kinds of articles on the internet that go into detail discussing the fine art of using a radar detector properly.
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/05/2008 11:15PM by Bob.