Radar Detector Models and Mounting Methods

[tigertime]

Last week I mounted a Uniden r8 with a Blendmount (BR7-200R) and a Blendmount mirror tap kit (MTX-1045). It came out pretty good me thinks.

I was concerned that it may be a distraction or have me rubber necking to see around the blind spots, it's a large detector. Luckily, after removing the additional link on the mount, it tucked up fairly tight under the mirror and doesn't cause me any blind spot grief.

It's a straight forward install but I'll share this. I had to us magnifiers to get the tap blades into the harness correctly. Tiny wires and a very small harness. On mine, it had three wires, orange with pink stripe, solid pink and black. Solid pink was hot when the ignition was on and cold with it off. Black was the ground.

It's already saved my bacon a few times. In another stroke of luck, all of the threats seem to run always on KA in my area. Haven't seen a tricky IO or laser yet.

I find the r8 extremely sensitive on real alerts. I'm seeing two mile plus notice. One thing that sets the r8 apart from others in it's class is the ability to detect very short bursts of radar which should help with those pesky troopers nailing people with instant on, but I haven't been able to test this claim yet.

What is your set-up? Preferred brand, model, mounting and power source? Throw a pic up if you are so inclined.

​

​

 

[MikeD1]

Looks clean, I've not seen an R8 in person & had no idea they were that large !

I'm still running my old DFR7's, which have been fine for this area but things are changing. Locals used to sit around blasting K band and on occasion Ka. State boys are mostly Ka, some instant on and laser but they seem to be doing more of the IO lately + the locals seem to be experimenting with it.

Never mounted mine, just plop them on the dash with one of those sticky pad things. Makes it easy to hide the unit when parking in a questionable area !

 

[tigertime]

MikeD1! Good to see you are still around the scene.

Thanks! I'm happy with it. It's a big mama but looks decent in a big car I guess lol... It does look larger in the pics I believe.

It's crazy how it's mostly about figuring out how the different branches like to use their tools to take us down. I haven't had a single K hit of any kind yet. Luckily most of the laser cycle cops are not in my area. They seem just the right kind of lazy around me.

If you have IO showing up, look at the r8 when the time comes. Even the redline seems to struggle with quick blips at distance. The new V1/2 looked cool but wanted something more set an go, they seem to be solid for the extremely dedicated but require an app full time.

It's pretty quick to release the clip, unplug and remove with this set-up. I told myself that I would remove it when parked. Alas, the gambler in me seems to win out every time and there it stays.

 

[BULL]

"It's so big..."

 

[tigertime]

"It's so big..."

That's the down side of only having one urinal in this bathroom... Please knock before entering Bull. lol

 

[tigertime]

"It's so big..."

Plus one of the display settings does the Knight Rider trailing light. That makes the size well worth it.

 

[Stormtrooper1320]

I have a Whistler CR90 that's about 7 years old now. It works really well and has excellent reception. Lots of LIDAR and IO radar around here and it does pretty well at picking those up. It has front and rear facing antennae.
It came with a suction cup windshield mount. I have it positioned as low as possible in the center of the windshield so it can also rest on the dash. The roads in my area are trash and the detector would bounce around too much for my liking when I had it mounted higher.

 

[GNBRETT]

I have the R7 and the R6 and the R7 is a LOT bigger. Sorta wish I bought the R6 again but I like how the R7 is angled towrds ur eyes.

 

[tigertime]

I have a Whistler CR90 that's about 7 years old now. It works really well and has excellent reception. Lots of LIDAR and IO radar around here and it does pretty well at picking those up. It has front and rear facing antennae.
It came with a suction cup windshield mount. I have it positioned as low as possible in the center of the windshield so it can also rest on the dash. The roads in my area are trash and the detector would bounce around too much for my liking when I had it mounted higher.

Nice man! You're straight up getting your moneys worth out of that bad boy.

 

[tigertime]

I have the R7 and the R6 and the R7 is a LOT bigger. Sorta wish I bought the R6 again but I like how the R7 is angled towrds ur eyes.

I damn near went with the r7, It can be had for a great price and is probably the best bang for the buck overall. There was a feature or two that pushed me to the 8 but just barely. Honestly, I don't mind the size.

 

[GdBye]

I use an Escort Redline that I need to update. The false signals from lane change radar are annoying as hell. It's really like analog vs. digital in comparison to some of the newer models. Was looking at Escort's latest model that has a built in dash cam also. Haven't pulled the trigger yet because of some of the negative reviews and may wait until they get some of the bugs worked out. I do like the Uniden set up though. A lot of Ka band, IO and occasional laser around here. I'm definitely going to wire it directly into the rear view mirror though. Escort does make a laser shifting device also that is tempting but really expensive. You can easily drop $4k for the top of the line detector and the laser shifting device (front and rear). These cars are so fast that you can go from Ho Hum to Jail in the blink of an eye. I"m personally not fond of the Jail thing and/or having the car impounded.

 

[TraxMoe]

Upgraded from the Valentine 1 Gen 1 to the Valentine 1 Gen 2 here, blend mount in the car and the suction cup window mount in the truck. I have the remote display so the radar detector doesn't light up when it sees a radar hit , It also has blutooth for remote display on my smart phone.

 

[vortecd]

How fast is anyone driving that they need one? Back in the 80's I remember them being popular but didn't think they were much of a thing anymore. I travel 75-77 mph for the most part on the highway

 

[Stormtrooper1320]

How fast is anyone driving that they need one? Back in the 80's I remember them being popular but didn't think they were much of a thing anymore. I travel 75-77 mph for the most part on the highway

Speed limit around the Baltimore beltway is 55, most people doing 75+, and even at 75 you've got people riding your ass and zipping in and out of lanes. Prime pickings for the MSP.

Speed limit on 95 varies between 55 and 65. Most people doing 75+ and whipping lane changes. Prime pickings for the MSP and Toll Facilities cops.

Toll Facilities cops need to justify their existence so they are big radar users and some will snag you for 5 mph over, but most seem to have a 10 mph over threshold.

County cops love to set up in areas where the speed limit is 30 and catch people doing over 35.

Of course all of their efforts increase toward the end of the month when they have to meet their "performance goals".

Plus we have speed camera trucks at construction zones enforcing speed limits there, even at night when no one is working in those zones. Strictly cash grab on their part.

It pays to have an alerting system around here if you're gonna speed.

I've had a radar detector since the 80's. I'm on my 3rd or 4th one now. Those detectors have saved me many times over the years, including this past Saturday night. The Toll cops love to sit at the bottom of a particular bridge where there used to be toll booths. The speed limit drops from 55 to 45 going through that area. The booths have been removed and it's all EZ Pass and video tolls now, but the 45 speed limit sign has not been removed for some reason, even though the lanes go straight through now. So the Toll cops can sit there, using their LIDAR and pick off people coming off the bridge at 65 or so and nail them when they hit that 45 zone.

 

[TraxMoe]

How fast is anyone driving that they need one? Back in the 80's I remember them being popular but didn't think they were much of a thing anymore. I travel 75-77 mph for the most part on the highway

It's not about driving fast for long distances. But it keeps me from doing something stupid at the wrong place and time. Like doing a full throttle pull to well above the speed limit. You just never know where they can be lurking

 

[Old Mopar Guy]

Ive got to look a bit closer at my Uniden R3 with BlendMount set up. Maybe I can loose that link as well but I still need to fit my finger between the unit and mirror to access the top buttons. Hate screwing with it though as the wiretap into the mirror was a delicate pita.

 

[MikeD1]

^^^ 1st good use for a face mask (now detector mask) I've seen yet !!

 

[MikeD1]

Speed limit around the Baltimore beltway is 55, most people doing 75+, and even at 75 you've got people riding your ass and zipping in and out of lanes. Prime pickings for the MSP.

Speed limit on 95 varies between 55 and 65. Most people doing 75+ and whipping lane changes. Prime pickings for the MSP and Toll Facilities cops.

Toll Facilities cops need to justify their existence so they are big radar users and some will snag you for 5 mph over, but most seem to have a 10 mph over threshold.

County cops love to set up in areas where the speed limit is 30 and catch people doing over 35.

Of course all of their efforts increase toward the end of the month when they have to meet their "performance goals".

Plus we have speed camera trucks at construction zones enforcing speed limits there, even at night when no one is working in those zones. Strictly cash grab on their part.

It pays to have an alerting system around here if you're gonna speed.

I've had a radar detector since the 80's. I'm on my 3rd or 4th one now. Those detectors have saved me many times over the years, including this past Saturday night. The Toll cops love to sit at the bottom of a particular bridge where there used to be toll booths. The speed limit drops from 55 to 45 going through that area. The booths have been removed and it's all EZ Pass and video tolls now, but the 45 speed limit sign has not been removed for some reason, even though the lanes go straight through now. So the Toll cops can sit there, using their LIDAR and pick off people coming off the bridge at 65 or so and nail them when they hit that 45 zone.

We have a lot of that same garbage here too. Stupid low speed limits (40 mph on a 4 lane, divided hwy), long stretches of 2 lane with no traffic, step downs from 55 to 40 in a few thousand feet - all with cops lurking off the side of the road or right in the median if there is a hill. It's all about the $$$ !!

 

[2ndAmend]

How fast is anyone driving that they need one? Back in the 80's I remember them being popular but didn't think they were much of a thing anymore. I travel 75-77 mph for the most part on the highway

If you do any long distance driving at night you will find troopers on the median far ahead in the dark waiting for someone taking advantage of the empty road. The RD will save you.

Not to mention the 30 zones with the surprise around the bend, very common on my street.

 

[2ndAmend]

Also, I do not like things blocking my vision, I even hate poorly placed inspection stickers. I like my RD tucked up tight above and to the right of the mirror. Also, better not to advertise.