very first post

**nomis** · 06-22-2005, 02:20 PM

hey everyone,
ive been reading this forum for about a month now after i got a X50 for my birthday. It has worked very well the whole time ive had it. the only times i worry is when i pass a cop on the highway and nothing happens.

so after reading a lot of different posts, i can say that to be comfortable i will need...
my x50, lasershield, and veil.

I live in NJ and i will travel to and from PA for school.(4-5 hours) i will prob invest in some viel and lasershield b4 my long commute.

i have a question on mounting, i know that mounting high is highly reccomended, but i am sometimes worried it might not be straight. sometimes if i stand in front of the car i see that it is toward the left or right and i have to finely adjust it. I thought of a solution but i dont know if it is a good idea...
if i tape a laser pointer to the bottom of the RD, and say im a good distance from a flat wall, the laser should be level to my RD, right?
i know that if the RD is slightly off a few cm, down the road could mean a bunch of ft or yds.

btw, this is a great forum and its been a lot of help.

o another thing, i was in a parking lot and i saw anoter x50 on a crappy car. i got closer and i see that it says SERVICE, and im thinking to myself what good is it having such a great RD and not getting it fixed...haha, o wel

**Hessen** · 06-22-2005, 02:29 PM

Welcome to The Forum....

**crazyVOLVOrob** · 06-22-2005, 02:31 PM

Welcome to the forum...

Radar detectors are not COP detectors, they only detect cops that are running radar.

NJ does use laser but PA does not laser they use instant-on K-band(only PA state troopers and stationary, yet after passing many i PA state troopers none of them were running radar. Police in PA mainly use VASCAR and your detector will not protect you against that,

For radar detection mounting high will give you the best detection but mounting high will signifigantly reduce your laser detection

**kpatz** · 06-22-2005, 02:36 PM

Originally Posted by nomis

hey everyone,
ive been reading this forum for about a month now after i got a X50 for my birthday. It has worked very well the whole time ive had it. the only times i worry is when i pass a cop on the highway and nothing happens.

Welcome aboard, Nomis. You'll find that this place is addictive.

Cops aren't always running radar or even looking for speeders. This is why you can sometimes pass a cruiser and not get any alerts at all.

i have a question on mounting, i know that mounting high is highly reccomended, but i am sometimes worried it might not be straight. sometimes if i stand in front of the car i see that it is toward the left or right and i have to finely adjust it. I thought of a solution but i dont know if it is a good idea...

As long as it's reasonably level and straight you should be fine. Being a few degrees off might lose you a second or two warning on a distant radar source, but you'll still have way more than enough time to slow down. Radars are almost always shot from the side of the road, from a median, etc. so they're almost never straight on anyway. Thus, detectors have a wide enough field of view that being a little bit off in placement won't affect their performance.

Mounting high will usually help with radar sensitivity, but it also increases the chance of missing a close-up laser hit if the cop has good aim. He could hit your plate or headlights and completely miss the X50. But then, the best defense against laser is to keep your eyes open for a trooper or cruiser on the side of the road or in the median, not to mention Veil, Laser Shield, and Blinder.

**nomis** · 06-22-2005, 03:54 PM

yea i know they arent cop detectors, but it just seems weird that they are hiding in the median. once at night, another one was just on his brakes hiding.

vascar and laser.......what a duo :?

**crazyVOLVOrob** · 06-22-2005, 04:33 PM

Most of the police will sit and wait for someone to blow by, Police are trained to visual estimate speed before they even use their gun so they use those skills

**robert** · 06-22-2005, 07:29 PM

Welcome to the forums! Glad you like your X50. You should find it will serve you well as long as you drive smart. Check this thread for some great tips.

One thing to point out:

Originally Posted by crazyVOLVOrob

For radar detection mounting high will give you the best detection but mounting high will signifigantly reduce your laser detection

Good advice, though Outrun's video shows the X50 is competent even mounted high (though above the rearview might be cutting it.[/url]

**robert** · 06-22-2005, 07:31 PM

Originally Posted by crazyVOLVOrob

Most of the police will sit and wait for someone to blow by, Police are trained to visual estimate speed before they even use their gun so they use those skills

right.... and they can look for other infractions like aggressive and/or reckless driving to get you. but if you blow by too fast they can hit you from behind with the radar or just chase to get you for something else.

**N3T_K1LLA** · 06-22-2005, 07:37 PM

Originally Posted by nomis

yea i know they arent cop detectors, but it just seems weird that they are hiding in the median. once at night, another one was just on his brakes hiding.

vascar and laser.......what a duo :?

CHP do that here, they'll be on the side of the freeway or road and if a person is going to fast, rather than stop them they'll give them a warning by appling their brakes.

**compu44** · 06-22-2005, 08:04 PM

If you have no protection from laser on your car then mount the X50 high. If/when you choose to get a lasershield and/or veil, mount it just above the wipers.

Glad you like the detector. It will serve you well.

In regards to the "service" message. It can sometimes be from leving the detector in the sun to get too hot. Take a lesson from the other person's mistake and don't leave yours in the hot sun.