Bel 550.....a round of applause.

[johnny senna]

Well having just got an NIP for 63 in a 50, I decided that I must get my broken Bel 550 back out of the drawer and in the car.
It only had a worn out power cord connection I believe. I sent it back to the manufacturer...Comtech in Bolton, and they have sent me a brand new replacement free of charge with no quibbles.
I think this is a great service and they deserve credit for it.....and a plug on here.
I have no affiliation with them etc etc.

[kurgis]

No.. in a world of moaning and gripe - its nice to be polite and give a bit of applause for good/decent service - kudos to you.

[bongomania]

On a similar note Road angel replaced my unit with no questions when I was having trouble with it.

Excellent service.

[Web Watcher]

Don't forget if in the UK.

X band = OFF (No longer used)
Ku band = OFF (No longer used)
K band= ON (Gatsos, New Style Mini Gatsos, Handheld radar).
Ka band = OFF

It can take a bit of doing, but mount your Bel on its side rather than having it flat/horizontal. You will get more range.


Cheers.

Web Watcher.

[rawsy]

Is that definitely true about mounting the detector on the side rather than flat ??? Never heard of this before.

How does this work then ?????

Cheers

[Web Watcher]

It is true. The radar emitted from Gatsos is Polarised, and by having your dector (Windscreen mount or "Remote" under the bonnet) on its side you get about 1/3 more range.

ie. Flat 200 yds

On side 300 yrds.


A simple test is to drive towards a "Live" Gatso and hold the detector on its side and as soon as it beeps pull over. Now twist the detector so its flat and it will stop beeping !! Twist is on its side and it will start beeping !! Twist it back to flat again and continue driving towards the gatso and eventually it will start beeping.

Check out...

http://images.flitsservice.com/rpics_2002/18092002/330verticaal/5_t.jpg


Cheers.

Web Watcher.

[Web Watcher]

Rather than auto linking, if you "Copy and Paste" the address above you should see the photo.

Cheers.

Web Watcher.

[hertsbiker]

Good theory, will have to try it.. but a tad sceptical that the manufacturers won't have mounted the sensors in the appropiate way so that when the unit is in normal position, it gets best range..?

[Web Watcher]

Bel products are designed/made in America, where the handheld radar ISN'T polarised, so you could have your "bel" at ANY angel over there and it won't make a difference. However in the UK/Holland etc. Gatsos are polarised, so having your unit on its side does increase its range.

Cheers.

Web Watcher.

NB. Checkout:......


www.target-automotive.com/en/rd_faq_ant3_en.php

and look at No. 3 (by vertical them mean on its side, not horizontal/flat).

[johnny senna]

kurgis said:

No.. in a world of moaning and gripe - its nice to be polite and give a bit of applause for good/decent service - kudos to you.

Cheers.

[johnny senna]

Web Watcher said:

Don't forget if in the UK. X band = OFF (No longer used) Ku band = OFF (No longer used) K band= ON (Gatsos, New Style Mini Gatsos, Handheld radar). Ka band = OFF It can take a bit of doing, but mount your Bel on its side rather than having it flat/horizontal. You will get more range. Cheers. Web Watcher.

That is very useful, thanks. Which band do most of the false alarms come from, eg electric doors? Will setting the Bel up in the way you say help prevent some of these?

[Web Watcher]

Sadly as well as "K band" being used for Gatsos, New Style mini Gatsos and Handheld radar, it is also used for electronic doors, so the false alarms from Petrol stations, super markets etc. you will still get.

However mounting your bel on its side will reduce these a little. The main thing is though turning off X,KU and Ka, which will massively reduce the number of false alarms overall.

Cheers.

Web Watcher.

[johnny senna]

Web Watcher said:

Sadly as well as "K band" being used for Gatsos, New Style mini Gatsos and Handheld radar, it is also used for electronic doors, so the false alarms from Petrol stations, super markets etc. you will still get. However mounting your bel on its side will reduce these a little. The main thing is though turning off X,KU and Ka, which will massively reduce the number of false alarms overall. Cheers. Web Watcher.

Thanks. I'm very grateful.

[buckshee]

I've got a Whistler Laser/Radar detector. 3 weeks ago, it went ballistic with a Laser alert when I was going along the downhill stretch towards Havant on the M27, I managed to get down to a respectable speed before the alert quit. I've not had a NIP so the detector must have saved my bacon. I know it's said that Laser guns get a fix and a reading within 0.3secs which gives no time for taking action, but my detector was mental for at least 5 secs so I am assuming that if I was the target, the operator was having difficulty in getting a fix on me, or alternatively, I was picking up scatter from a car being targetted in front of me.

Question. If I turn the Whistler vertical to increase the range of radar detection, will it have any adverse effect on Laser detection?

[Web Watcher]

In a word, no.

Cheers.

Web Watcher.

Ps. I do access from time to time to an LTI 20.20 Marksman laser gun. Drop me an email if you would like a play. [e-mail]