Smokey Beaters?

Any radar detector is illegal. Is it worth a fine of $1,000.00?

 

cheaper, easier and safer just to use cruise and watch the big guage

 

Don't the cops still sell those things at their propery auctions?

 

They can still be used for personal use

 

They are illegal in CMVs by federal law, not states, right?

 

When you cross a state line you are subject to federal laws.

All motor carriers are subject to FMCSA rules. See 392. Radar detectors are specifically listed.

 

I used to run a radar detector. Nine times out of ten, the only thing it warned me about was when I was about to receive a speeding ticket.

Nothing worse than the feeling you get when you're cruising along, at 10 over, late at night, only one on the road... and BLEEEEEEEEEEEEP—your bird dog goes nuts 'cause the trooper just let the trigger fly on his Instant-on.

I'd like to say, save yourself the trouble and do the speed limit... but you probably won't listen. It'll come with age and experience. See my post here about why speeding five or ten over really doesn't save you much of anything: http://www.thetruckersreport.com/tr...ices-additives-will-save-fuel.html#post358090

The basic gist of the post... in order to keep cutting your travel time in half, your speed increases exponentially to a point where it is no longer efficient to do so.

Lets use a 60 mile trip at 30 mph for example:

At 30 mph, the trip takes 2 hours.

At 60 mph, you can cut the time in half... one hour.

In order to cut your time in half again, to 15 minutes, you must now travel 120 mph.

To do the trip in 7.5 minutes, now you have to travel at 240 mph.

Graph it in Excel or on a TI-85 and you'll see an inverse curve. The line on the graph quickly rises to a point where it is near vertical—insane speeds for very little gain in time.

Do the math... you'll see speeding is not worth it... not even 1 mph over. Just keep in mind that this is not the Indy 500—you don't win a prize for being first.

Ok... down off my soapbox.

 

A radar detector won't do you any good if you don't know how to use it.

I run the best detector on the market in my 4 wheelers. The Valentine One.

You should never speed when you're the only one on the road, instant on is a killer. But with a good radar detector with good range and a decoy, instant on isn't a problem. With good range you can detect them shooting at Joe Schmo 1/2 mile ahead, and you have time to slow down. With a cheapo like a Cobra, you probably won't detect it and you're next. Of course, there are many more variables, but the main problem is people just don't understand how radar works, thus they don't understand how to use the detectors when they have them. They're not fool proof. Especially against laser.