A slightly different Streethawk?

ur20v

Member
Feb 3, 2017
571
Northern Virginia
I got this and two other Streethawks today, and this one caught my attention... In addition to the big ol' TCL in the center, I discovered the two forward-facing lower-level lights aren't flashers, but strobes. The J30 strobe power supply label under the blue dome and the high voltage warning on the other side caught me off guard. I don't think I've ever encountered a Streethawk in this configuration before.

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JohnMarcson

Administrator
May 7, 2010
10,971
Northwest Ohio
Before they offered cuda lower LEDs they offered lower level "Federal Signal quality" strobes as lower light options. They were significantly less effective and more expensive than regular flashers.... So very Federal Signal. They are a pretty rare option, so it's a cool find.
 

Pete L.

Member
May 21, 2010
2,575
Virginia (south/central)
Those damn things were a pain in the ass :rolleyes:
They use a 2 wire system instead of the normal 3 wire system for the strobes.
The bulbs had electronics in the silicone of the base and were expensive.
The strobe bulbs had the same base as the 795/796 bulbs.
The J30 supply could be set to 1 or a pair of strobes by moving the jumper under
the black plastic cap on the box.
 

RS485

Supporting Donor
Aug 5, 2019
369
Central MA
Those damn things were a pain in the ass :rolleyes:
They use a 2 wire system instead of the normal 3 wire system for the strobes.
The bulbs had electronics in the silicone of the base and were expensive.
The strobe bulbs had the same base as the 795/796 bulbs.
The J30 supply could be set to 1 or a pair of strobes by moving the jumper under
the black plastic cap on the box.
patented in '84
 
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JohnMarcson

Administrator
May 7, 2010
10,971
Northwest Ohio
People think of the 3 wire system as standard but there were several different takes on the concept that never took hold. Federal had this 2 wire system, code 3 tried capacitors on the bulbs, and Weldon had a hybrid system while Whelen and Lectric Lites stuck with aviation style "standard" style. All three if the companies who tried the alternative designs ended the "strobe era" going back to the 3 wire style
 
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Scoot163

Member
Nov 15, 2013
848
Tacoma, WA
I have an all blue Streethawk with blue forward facing strobes. My department used them for two years before moving on to the MX. Maybe not the most effective but it was a cool looking bar for the time.
 

stansdds

Member
May 25, 2010
3,533
U.S.A., Virginia
I have an all blue Streethawk with blue forward facing strobes. My department used them for two years before moving on to the MX. Maybe not the most effective but it was a cool looking bar for the time.
The Streethawk was a cool looking bar, it was also the first bar to feature two levels of warning lights, rotators/sweeps on the top level, stationary lights on the bottom level.
 
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