I had a Federal PA Lite on my 1973 Dodge Coronet patrol car. Our agency had them on 1972 cars, and a year or two before that if my memory is correct. Nice equipment. My favorite light of all was the Federal Twin Sonic with the split mirrors, giving reflections to the front and rear. It would light up the world. Personally, I like rotating beacons better than strobes. They light up the surrounding area will doing their basic job. A strobe, including LED strobes, flash quickly and don't steadily light up the area around the vehicle.
Estou montando uma pequena coleção aqui no Brasil, já tenho alguns é entre eles o mais procurado pelis amantes do hobby, a sirene torpedo da rontan.... Parabéns pela coleção amigo.
I have something that looks like the 1976 federal vitalite 121A Series B1 beacon but mines is a galem and it looks completely identical to that one u have
Fantastic light collection. Love all the Federal Signal products but I especially love the S&W L-11 pancake light. They're kind of rare and it's hard finding them in good condition and even more rare to find one with the eye shield or 'hood'. This is usually the first thing people lose with dash lights. I have an SVP pancake but those are nothing compared to an S&W L-11 or the federal Signal version.
I bought the S&W at JC Penney in 1980. Used it on my dash for about 10 years. Took good care of it. had to fix the wire in it a few years ago as I placed it in my display (there is video of the repair). It is one of my favorites for sure.
Which one is your favourite? My favourite was the Aerotwin 24R Candy Cane lightbar. Man, watching stuff like this makes me want to go out and buy some stuff like that.
I do love my Aerotwin, it was the first Lightbar i added to my collection. But for historical interest I have to say the Federal Twin Visibar. it was the first lightbar ever used. I have studied the designs of Earl Goswieller, who designed for Federal and the history and design intent is way more than just a simple bar. it's history is very fascinating and how each bar grew from the other with the Twinsonic, then the Aerotwinsonic into the Aerodynic.
We had these on a couple of our Ford Type I ambulances around 1985 ish . People could see us coming from a good distance at night and hear the Federal Signal PA 200 that sounded like the old Washington DC police cars in the '80s .
The 184 was particularly effective with a clear done and alternating colored and clear lights. It had a problem with the rubber drive belt slipping in cold weather. Should have been gear driven.
The 184 Powerlight was direct drive, I believe the driver belt was designed in the CJ 184 to make room for the siren speaker in the base. I have seen some ingenious alterations to make that belt tighter and increase the spin. I am sure modern belts would work perfectly on that design today.
Skulldigger Thanks for your information. I'm working from memory from 40+ years ago. SHP apparently used the CJ184 at that time. I can remember them complaining about belt slippage when very cold. But they were light years ahead of the roof mounted Federal siren with a flashing blue sealed beam in the front and rear.
iluvmusic62 the light your speaking of is a grote the bulb is hanging upside down the federal 121 looks almost identical except the bulb is mounted upright position.
it is the basic design. the Model 14 is a motor driven rotator and a single unit. The Twin 11's are basically the same design except the motorized beacon has an axle that extends below the bucket and has a gear on it to turn the chain that is inside the Visibar. The other end is has a gear that rotates by the chain and is a slave drive with not motor of it's own.
Fantastic collection thank you so much. How do you run these from 110 outlet? If you don’t mind sharing in other words how can I run mine on house current?
You can't run straight from house current. You would need a converter to step down to 12v. I use a Black & Decker portable power station to power everything. The collection has grown a whole lot since this video.
@@Skulldiggers Yeah what I was wanting to know was the best adaption converter cross over to 12 V from House correct. Thank you so much for the reply Travis in KY
The SOSF did use the Vitalite. We researched that for a video specifically on the Vitalite. Took quite a few screen shots and was able to prove. The Vitalite went through several changes over he years.
I have always used a Black and Decker Portable Power Station. I will do up to 1200 peak amps, which is more than the wiring in my display will hold. You can power up to the rating of your wire, just have to do your math. My collection has grown considerably, but I can only power 5 or 6 lights at a time still.
I recently purchased a Napa 488 Gumball light. Trying to get it to run. I tried connecting a red wire to my car battery with no success. There is no negative wire that I can find. Please help. Thank you.
@@templar1288 The wire is the positive, the ground is through the frame of the light. Just attach the negative wire somewhere on the metal and see if that works for you. If not there may be several issues to check. Let me know.
All of these except the S&W were found in antique shops. I bought the S&W in 1980 from JCPenney. The collection has grown considerably since this video was made.
