Read somewhere that, with parts commonly found in a microwave oven, you can construct a gadget that will set off radar detectors in cars around you. As usual, a nasty trick that I find to be desireable on occasion. What I want is this British gadget that looks like a cell phone but, when activated, disconnects all cells in a 30' diameter from its user. Illegal in the US but I want one badly. :cool:

Between the headlights, parallel to the road, as close to the license plate as possible. In other words, exactly where your driving lamps are ;)

Yes I know. I meant specifically. And of course I've seen yours for a good example. Except that mine are (I believe) much wider and deeper than the blinder units. And yes my driving lights...they should work fine just to the outside of each but the rear hits the radiator in my testing. I wanted to make things easier by mounting them instead on the bumper at plate-height (This IS a mini after all, not a truck, so they should be effective in most places) but after removing the bumper that space is immediately taken up by the steel crash bar. Don't worry, I'll find a spot and make sure it looks good too. :)

I have the rear one one, but not crazy about the fact that it covers most of the Mass lettering...I don't like to give them anything to complain about. I may modify my MOP frame so it fits around it and makes it less noticeable. We'll see.

Yes I know. I meant specifically. And of course I've seen yours for a good example. Except that mine are (I believe) much wider and deeper than the blinder units. And yes my driving lights...they should work fine just to the outside of each but the rear hits the radiator in my testing. I wanted to make things easier by mounting them instead on the bumper at plate-height (This IS a mini after all, not a truck, so they should be effective in most places) but after removing the bumper that space is immediately taken up by the steel crash bar. Don't worry, I'll find a spot and make sure it looks good too. :)

I have the same problem - I'm trying to decide how and where to mount the driving lamps :)

I've also seen the FX phenomenon....thought I was going crazy...I think Mercedes have a similar system as well.

I also find it interesting how the portable electric signs broadcast on the X-band....wonder if that's intentional or not?

There thousands and thousands of smart dummy Radar units being fitted to everything from school busses to fire trucks to men working signs the are set to look just like instant on radar guns to detectors and are about the size of a can of soda thet radar gun makers are building them and they are selling like hotcakes,,, private folks that want to slow things down on their street are buying them too

just like the arms race in the cold war.... stroke and counter stroke

I also find it interesting how the portable electric signs broadcast on the X-band....wonder if that's intentional or not?

I think it is part of the Safety Warning System feature, which allows the road signs to transmit a warning to detectors that support it such as mine. Which is really a nice feature if it were used (in all my life I've seen it used exactly once). Of course you can just turn them on with no message so they slow traffic. But signmakers can at least market it as SWS capable.

I don't mind those so much as they are always K band, and of course you can see the sign easily from afar. But that's when it's nice to have a V1 or escort that will tell you how many sources, in case a cop is also hiding nearby and you are ignoring the warning.

I don't mind those so much as they are always K band, and of course you can see the sign easily from afar. But that's when it's nice to have a V1 or escort that will tell you how many sources, in case a cop is also hiding nearby and you are ignoring the warning.

Seen that on the NY Thruway, in a construction zone with signs blasting out K or X signals. Cop or Cops sitting just past it out of site. Yes I am grateful for the source or "Boggy" counter on the V1 as it saved me paying to NY. And worst of all this was at like 1am in the morning, with out the V1 I would of walked right into their payment trap.

Winslow
:eb:

Seen that on the NY Thruway, in a construction zone with signs blasting out K or X signals. Cop or Cops sitting just past it out of site. Yes I am grateful for the source or "Boggy" counter on the V1 as it saved me paying to NY. And worst of all this was at like 1am in the morning, with out the V1 I would of walked right into their payment trap.

Winslow
:eb:

Interesting you mention the NY Thruway. I went to a relatives house for thanksgiving.
Thanksgiving Day not one, not one, trooper sighted for the entire four hour drive to stone ridge ny. The next day however I sighted sixteen, yes we counted, in the short hop to the Massachusetts border. Once I made the border however it was clear sailing all the way home with no mass state troopers in sight . Now that was a fun drive. In ny we were laughing at the number of targets on the V1.

A couple of years ago, Car & Driver ran a series of tests. The only passive cover that worked was called Alpha something or another. Within the year it was off the market - DuPont forced the guy making the covers out of business, because they didn't like the purpose their material was used for....


If I were in charge of DuPont, I'd have sent him an 18-wheeler full of raw material for free...

If I were in charge of DuPont, I'd have sent him an 18-wheeler full of raw material for free...

You near Dallas? Crikey, I have great stories about that town back in '70.

I'm not very close to Dallas, but I have heard of it. I'm in the very NW corner of GA. Here, our local thugs, oops, brave fearless lawmen regularly drive like maniacs at over 100 mph just to go to the store, wear military BDU type uniforms, are extremely rude and hateful, and dispense tickets like they were candy. It'd be funny if it weren't true.

These guys aren't public servants, they're simply a gang of bullies and thugs.

Rawhyde

Well here's yet another "spray your front plate" item, dated Dec 6th, so it's "current", ya wonder if it works better than previous ones, huh?

http://www.engadget.com/entry/1234000033022775/

Well here's yet another "spray your front plate" item, dated Dec 6th, so it's "current", ya wonder if it works better than previous ones, huh?

http://www.engadget.com/entry/1234000033022775/

First, it's designed to reflect back the flash of a photo camera - therefore it's ineffective against lidar or radar. Even then the "spray your front plate" reflectors are not very effective, because modern enforcement cameras will adjust the exposure - if they use a flash at all.

Boys and gals mark your calendars. Today is the first day of another federal mobilization, this time featuring "sobriety checkpoints" rather than "safety checkpoints" (either way, in normal English they are called 'roadblocks.')

"What's wrong with that?" I hear you ask. Well, in order to collect the federal loot, the police officers must document they ticketed more cars "during the grant period than in the same time period in 2003-2004." And what better way is there to ticket more cars than to write more speeding tickets?

The staties are out in force on the ramp here at the airport. I saw two people pulled over in tugs last night. I imagine it is to slow people down because of the Delta guy that got killed last week.

Boys and gals mark your calendars. Today is the first day of another federal mobilization, this time featuring "sobriety checkpoints" rather than "safety checkpoints" (either way, in normal English they are called 'roadblocks.')


No kidding, so that is why I saw 7 Staties on Rt.3 from the NH line to 495. All but one had someone pulled over. Saw cops all over 495 and Rt.2 as well. In NH my radar kept going off but I never saw anyone, but there was a nasty accident in Nashua this morning, so I bet there will be Staties and Nashua PD out in force tonight on my way home.

YEAH more enforcement...I think I will take 93 home tonight...

Winslow
:eb:

Boys and gals mark your calendars. Today is the first day of another federal mobilization, this time featuring "sobriety checkpoints" rather than "safety checkpoints" (either way, in normal English they are called 'roadblocks.')

"What's wrong with that?" I hear you ask. Well, in order to collect the federal loot, the police officers must document they ticketed more cars "during the grant period than in the same time period in 2003-2004." And what better way is there to ticket more cars than to write more speeding tickets?
Thanks for the heads up, do you know when it's supposed to end? I was on the hwy today, coming home on the MP and not one mountie to be seen, very odd. This was even about the same time / place I got bagged. I've been a good boy, not exceeding 70 and all.

Got my hearing date for March, puts off the inevitable :rolleyes:.

Thanks for the heads up, do you know when it's supposed to end? I was on the hwy today, coming home on the MP and not one mountie to be seen, very odd. This was even about the same time / place I got bagged. I've been a good boy, not exceeding 70 and all.

It ends January 3, 2005.

Got my hearing date for March, puts off the inevitable :rolleyes:.

No, no, that's not the right attitude... Did you know half the people who contest their tickets get the charges dismissed?

It ends January 3, 2005.



No, no, that's not the right attitude... Did you know half the people who contest their tickets get the charges dismissed?
Encouraging to hear, any tips? I'll check out your NAMA site...

Encouraging to hear, any tips? I'll check out your NAMA site...

Start here (http://www.motorists.org/ma/oldmanews2.htm)

Boys and gals mark your calendars. Today is the first day of another federal mobilization, this time featuring "sobriety checkpoints" rather than "safety checkpoints" (either way, in normal English they are called 'roadblocks.')

"What's wrong with that?" I hear you ask. Well, in order to collect the federal loot, the police officers must document they ticketed more cars "during the grant period than in the same time period in 2003-2004." And what better way is there to ticket more cars than to write more speeding tickets?


I'm driving to NYC Saturday am, honme Sunday. Any advice?

I'm driving to NYC Saturday am, honme Sunday. Any advice?

Don't speed?






;)

I'm driving to NYC Saturday am, honme Sunday. Any advice?

Use a radar detector. Keep your eyes open, check your rearview often. Try to blend in. Think where they could be hiding. (They like downhills and where they can't be seen from the opposite direction.)

Don't speed?






;)

Doesn't always work... does it? ;)

Doesn't always work... does it? ;)

I've never gotten a speeding ticket when I wasn't speeding. ;)

I wish there were more cruisers out on rte 122 at night. I work 2nd shift and there are MANY nights when I am either in front of or behind someone that is really drunk and it makes me nervous. The road on half the way home isn't really good to pull over and let someone pass because it is all woods. :mad:

I've never gotten a speeding ticket when I wasn't speeding. ;)

Not to speed (especially on Interstates) is about as easy as losing 20 lbs. ;)



I wish there were more cruisers out on rte 122 at night. I work 2nd shift and there are MANY nights when I am either in front of or behind someone that is really drunk and it makes me nervous. The road on half the way home isn't really good to pull over and let someone pass because it is all woods. :mad:

Cops should be pulling over all kinds of bad drivers. Instead, electronic gadgetry used to enforce unrealistic speed limits provide an easy source of revenue and roadblocks with dozen officers inconveniencing hundreds of people provide high profile publicity.

Sad thing is most drunk drivers tend to drive nice and slow and unless they are really driving extremely erratically, you will still be the faster one and get pulled. I've certainly come across some and done all I could to get around and away from them, certainly breaking the limit passing. Guess who would get a ticket in the interest of "safety"

Ivan thanks to your most recent link to the news archives I think I spent an hour on the MA NMA site last night soaking everything up, somehow I missed maybe the toc page or whatever that links off to all that. Great stuff. I also wrote a long email and linked it off to one of my friends, who greatly agrees and could also use that help (He has for example got a ticket for doing 45 on an off ramp! Yellow sign is not official!)

Also came across the fact that mass charges $27 for their Fast Lane, and NY's EZPass is free. I rarely use tolls but it is a pain whenever I do sitting in those lines. Free means why not have one? I went over and signed up on the NEW YORK site. I hope mine comes wrapped in a yankees logo!

Sad thing is most drunk drivers tend to drive nice and slow and unless they are really driving extremely erratically, you will still be the faster one and get pulled. I've certainly come across some and done all I could to get around and away from them, certainly breaking the limit passing. Guess who would get a ticket in the interest of "safety"

Ivan thanks to your most recent link to the news archives I think I spent an hour on the MA NMA site last night soaking everything up, somehow I missed maybe the toc page or whatever that links off to all that. Great stuff. I also wrote a long email and linked it off to one of my friends, who greatly agrees and could also use that help (He has for example got a ticket for doing 45 on an off ramp! Yellow sign is not official!)

Also came across the fact that mass charges $27 for their Fast Lane, and NY's EZPass is free. I rarely use tolls but it is a pain whenever I do sitting in those lines. Free means why not have one? I went over and signed up on the NEW YORK site. I hope mine comes wrapped in a yankees logo!


Hey, thanks Josh for the promo :D

The important thing is for people to join NMA. The more active members the organization has, the more seriously it will be taken by the policymakers. Look at AARP and getting old people an insurance discount for being safer drivers :confused:

Finally a minor correction: Recently E-ZPass started charging $1 monthly "maintenance fee."

Are you sure? There was no statement of that in the application process or the fine print (http://www.nyezpass.com/static/signup/ind_app_terms.html).