What radar/laser detectors have you owned?

[GET 1T DONE]

Audi Quattro (original thread starter)

This should be a fun drive down memory lane.

this is my list.....

Valentine $400
Passport 8500 $275 x2= $550.00
Bel V995 $299.00 (best buy and dont even say it...lol) ( CURRENT )
Passport 8500 $100 (craigslist and sitting in glovebox)
Whistler 1780R (cordless) $100 but took it back to radio shack

Older Units.

Misc. Bel Vector's
Bel Vector 3
Other bel's (too long ago to remember)
Misc. unidens
1-2 Cobra's

2 Radio shack units back in the day.

Im 20 years old, and my first and only RD is my CURRENT RD..........
(Hardwired Passport 8500 X50 Rev 5 Blue: + .>(love my scanning dot), X off, POP off)

Sorry to rain on your parade man, I just had to say it

in 15 or so years and just remember my post here and think...*BEEP* how many radar detectors and how much have I spent on this addiction. You have a fine 1st RLD as your partner...Enjoy.

x2, same age and same rd (Passport 8500 x50 Rev. 5 Blue)

in 15 or so years and just remember my post here and think...*BEEP* how many radar detectors and how much have I spent on this addiction. You have a fine 1st RLD as your partner...Enjoy.

I love it, I wasnt going to be a dumb Highschool kid with a Cobra going 30 over all the time, I was going to spend my money right the FIRST time, with the most expensive thing I could get my hands on.also the one my buddy also had and I saw every day and even so I never break like 15 over unless im REALLY PI$$ED

all in all, ive had it for a year, and NEVER looked back

Original Escort
Original Passport
Escort DSP
Whistler Spectrum III SE
Escort 4500
Escort 4600
Escort 5000
Escort 6800
Bel 980
Bel rx55
Valentine One x2
Passport 8500
Passport 8500 x50
Bel RX-65

I am sure there were others I can't remember or too embarrassed to admit I owned.

Maxon Micro Trouncer (X, K only), 1988, was a piece o'cr@p and then got stolen

Micronta Road Patrol XK, 1989-1991, X and K only, nice detector for its time, saved me many times

Uniden Stalker, don't remember the model, but it had "wideband" Ka and laser, 1991-1997.

Bel Vector STi, 1997-2000, had great sensitivity but had an annoying tendency to false. Drove over it with my car and got a V1 next.

V1, 1.7, 2000-2004, worked great but threw "E" codes after jump-starting my car one time (fried a chip).

V1, 1.8 (3.813), 2004-present, currently in use

Escort 8500 X50 red, 2005-present, currently in use (usually keep in wife's car)

my first detecetor was a snooper sd815i which we had in 1998.

and over the years i've studied detectors and i know whats what, so i got a valentine this year, its not really for the radar i brought it for, its for the laser detection.

1. Whistler Radar Eye (non superhet. Kleenex box size)
2. Original Cobra Trapshooter (modeled after and performed like an original Escort)
3. Second generation Whistler Spectrum
4. Original Passport (I also had a Cincinnati microwave add on laser detector attached to this)
5. Second Generation Escort (last of the Cincinnati Microwave ones also with "add-on" laser device attached)
6. Second generation V1 with laser (had two of these which I upgraded/traded to the following two)
7. V1 3.821 (updated to 3.826)
8. V1 3.824 (updated to 3.826)
9. Bel 895
10. I have just purchased an original Fuzzbuster as a curio

I still own the last four.

Walmart $40 Whistler
Walmart $80 Whistler
Walmart Cobra (sucked so I gave it to my ex :twisted: )
Best Buy $100 Cobra (sucked so I sold it to some kid at school)
After this cobra I joined this site, then bought my V1
Valentine 1 1.7 2.909 (great RD sold it for my 3.851)
Valentine 1 1.8 3.851

After seeing the light of the top 3 RD's I will never go back.

1. $40 Cobra- SOLD
2. $75 Cobra- SOLD
3. Red Passport 8500 X50- SOLD
4. V1 3.824- Upgraded
5. V1 3.825- Upgraded
6. V1 3.826- SOLD
7. Passport 8500 (non X50)- BACKUP
8. V1 3.851

26 years of owning an RD, with several years without one, wow

first, the fuzzbuster of course
then the trapshooter,
Some uniden 360 laser deal with a remote rear laser sensor
Now the V-1

My first was a gift from my dad...when he bought an Escort:

1981 - Fuzzbuster in my '79 6.6...black box with a cone shaped light and made a haunting "oooooooohhhhh" sound. Sammy Hagar's "Standing Hampton" in the 8 Track....

1983 - Dad gave me his Escort, my first "real" detector.

Whistler
Cobra (I usually don't admit to owning these 2)
Bel 840i
Bel 985
Valentine One (still have)
Escort X50 Blue - testing out.

Well im 19 and i have own all these. Some a few days,some a few months. The two i was most satisfied was my x50<red> and V1<3.851>.
I guess im addicted to this hobby and have to try almost everything and always have to have the best. :!:

V1 3.851 after selling on one on ebay. $400
Bel Rx-65 Rev M4 6.1 $300
Escort x50 "Blue" $300
Escort x50 "Red" $300
V1 3.819 upgraded to 3,826 $400
Whistler Pro 73 $140
Whistler Pro 58 $99
Bel Rx-65 rev. 3.6 $329
Bel 895 $199
Bel Vector 965 $229
Radio Shack $119
Cobra 9700 $120
Cobra esd 9210 $99 <<<<<Original RD>>>>>>>

Current: Valentine 1
Past: Bel RX65 / Escort 8500 X50 / Bel Vector 995 /
Bel Vector 945 / Bel Express 925 /
Whistler 1670 / Bel 725i /

within the last 4 months

Escort 8500 X50 blue High and hardwired
Escort 8500 X50-Red(returned)
Belv995 (returned)
Bel v955 (returned)
Bel E795- Vg-2 off (returned)
Whistler xtr-280 cordless (sold)
Cobra xrs 797 (sold)
Cobra esd-7000 (for the hell of it) ....SOLD


and about 3 years ago, I had a couple of cobras, and a whistler.

Whistler 1540 (1997-2006) - Christmas Gift (basically my introduction to RD's) ... ~$100 (only problem is that it detects X-band as K and vice versa... but sufficient protection nonetheless)
Whistler 1793SE (2006-present) - $100 (only complaint is the falses from Cobras )

In my 14 years of driving I've only owned 3 detectors. Each has served me well at that point and time. I believe that you learn over time and each step you make is considered progress. I really didn't know to much about detectors until I found this forum. This forum has educated me about what makes a good detector and makes a bad detector. When I had just started driving, I had heard that Escort made an outstanding detector but the price was way beyond what a 16 year old could afford. So, I turned to Whistler. I can't remember the make and model but I do remember it being one of the cheaper ones in the line up. I believe I may have paid $50 dollars for it at K-Mart ( This was way before Wal-Mart had become popular and one was on every corner ). The detector had X, K, and I believe KA. Laser was only offered in a stand alone unit at that time. I remember you would have to daisy chain the Laser detector to your normal radar detector. After about a year or so I retired the Whistler and purchased a Uniden "Stalker" model: LRD 2000. It was a good unit and had Laser built into the detector. I used this detector from 1992-2001. Yeah, that was a long time to keep a detector. Well, one day for some reason K band just would beep for no reason. Even sitting in my driveway it would just constantly beep. I guess it had fallen out of tune or something. By this time I had become older and learned more about detectors and could afford something better so I decided to go Escort. I must say the X50 is the best detector I have ever owned. When it arrived I was astonished how nice the detector was. I noticed it's long radar range and ability to filter out false signals right off the bat. I plan to keep my X50 for a long time but I may buy a V1 someday just to see the difference in detector. Thanks for the trip down memory lane everyone .......

Whistler
Uniden "Stalker" ( Model: LRD 2000 )
Escort 8500 X50

35$ whistler 3 weeks this was actually better then i thought but then got sold on cobra
130$ cobra 2 months
300$ escort 8500 2 years
400$ valentine 1 current

Original Fuzzbuster
Fox XK
Escort Solo
Valentine one (older thick one)
Escort 8500
Escort Solo2
Valentine One (just sent in for 'e' problem)

BEL 995 (current)
WHISTLER XTR-425 (returned)
COBRA ESD 6200 (in glove box)

Now let's continue the drive!

[jerry540i]

1. Fox XK with the plastic rods pointing forward

2. Micronta Road Patrol XK (Radio Shack unit that was identical to Uniden RD9 and Cobra 3160--back when Cobra and Uniden actually made decent units)

3. Uniden RD9xl (tiny unit--winner of C&D test one year)

4. Bel 966ST (first unit to defeat VG-2)

5. Bel Express 3

6. Another Bel (with shadowtech)--can't remember model #

7. Throw away Whistler (because while on cross country roadtrip the unknown model # Bel froze up)

8. V1 no pop--no problems--

This is probably a 20 year list. I remember that first Fox while in highshool in the mid 80's...

J.

J.

[Invasion1]

1. Beltronics (980 Vector) crapped out and was sent to be serviced by bel

2. Beltronics (985 Vector) still have it use it locally but not that often

Future:

3. Beltronics STI is on my Wishlist still as im waiting it out to see how you guys do with the first few production runs.

[Ray]

This is a trip down memory lane: my list is in my signature line minus my radar and Galaxy CB. I did have a Passport I keep forgetting about. I bought it in '93. I believe it was their first Ka superwide band and laser was a separate unit that you velcro'd to the RD. I forget about it because it had got stolen. My fault. Left it up one evening, I was tired. Busted my driver side door window out to get it :x . I'm hoping someone can tell me what model that was, I would appreciate it. I can't remember.

[midd]

I had a huge Radio shack detector back in the day.

Next came the Bel Microeye

Bel Vector

Bel Vector 3

Bell 966W (first wideband Ka detector)

Bel 645 Sti

Valentine 1 1.7 (no rear laser)

Valentine 1 1.8 (sold the 1.7 on ebay and bought this one)

[RadarRick]

bels mainly. started out with my first one over 10 years ago. how ever, it's product name i can't remember exactly but it was a AU/NZ spec vector. then some years after i had an up-grade to antoher vector, again, it's name i can't recal through years of mispent youth. today i sport the new sti driver xr and i love it more then jimbonz loves radar roy
rr