A Really neat Edge 9M - Factory 14 Strobe

ford-dealer

Member
Sep 2, 2010
857
San Antonio
In my never ending quest for the unusual... I ran into this brand new Gem of a 55" 9M. (2008 Build) It is the only one I have ever seen like it.  It is a factory built 14 Strobe 9M.  It utilizes 2 9M4S power supplies to run the 8 blues, and a 9M6TA power supply to operate the 6 strobe traffic advisor.  The TA is a 2 wire system.  I have seen the install manual on a 9M6TA power supply, but until this morning, I had never seen on.  To beat all, it is brand new.  I pulled her from the box!   

.... Like I REALLY needed another lightbar in the collection!  :rolleyes:

ai147.photobucket.com_albums_r302_ford_dealer_20140603_174327_zps7d676634.jpg

ai147.photobucket.com_albums_r302_ford_dealer_20140603_174256_zpscbe8eedf.jpg
 

wmreader

Member
Aug 3, 2012
253
ETex
I also have a 14 strobe Edge 9M, and it is factory built, but it is a 50" model. I traded for it earlier this year from a local guy who bought 3 decommissioned patrol cars from the Temple Terrace, Florida PD. He is going to use two of the cars for a security company and is keeping the bars on them. The car my bar was on has some motor issues, so it will be a parts car, and he let me have the bar from it in exchange for two dual Dashmisers and some clear and amber lenses for the other two bars so he could run them legally. This bar looks like an ordinary 9M bar at first glance and I thought it was a basic 8, 10, or maybe 12 strobe bar, but I was pleasantly surprised when I found out it had 14 strobes. It's the best trade I've ever made LOL.

Mine has the same three power supplies as the OP's bar, and it has the standard 4 corner strobes, with a pair of takedowns and 4 inboard strobes in front, and the rear 6 strobe traffic advisor has a regular warning option that is set to a unique "knight rider" style zigzag pattern when it is not being used as an advisor.

I am considering a slight modification to the rear, as I just acquired 6 brand new 400 series strobe/LED split modules that I may substitute for the 6 strobes used for the traffic advisor since it will give me an additional warning option. I could add the correct internal wiring to use the LEDs for flashers, in addition to using the 6 strobes for the advisor, or I could add an external controller and internal wiring and use the LEDs as the traffic advisor exclusively and keep the 6 strobes in the zigzag pattern fulltime. However, I feel it shows too much amber and is blinding when in this pattern because of the multiple amber outer lenses, so if I use the split modules under clear outer lenses with different colored half size filters over the strobes and amber half filters over the LEDs, it would really set it apart and be effective. Decisions, decisions....

You can see an online pic of the actual bar I have while it was in service on unit 133 in the very first picture at www.flickriver.com/photos/formerwmdriver/sets/72157625147723765/ and further down that same page, in the 8th, 9th and 10th pictures, are some of the decommissioned cars with the lenses removed from their bars and a close up of the front of a 9M bar just like mine without the lenses and endcaps. Enjoy!
 
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ford-dealer

Member
Sep 2, 2010
857
San Antonio
 rear 6 strobe traffic advisor has a regular warning option that is set to a unique "knight rider" style zigzag pattern when it is not being used as an advisor.
Does your zigzag continuously?  Mine alternates between 2 x 2 x zigzag x 4 x 4 x zigzag x 2 x 2 ......
 

wmreader

Member
Aug 3, 2012
253
ETex
Does your zigzag continuously?  Mine alternates between 2 x 2 x zigzag x 4 x 4 x zigzag x 2 x 2 ......
Yep, that's the pattern. I called it zigzag for lack of a better term, because that's pretty much what it looks like, especially from a distance. It's very unique and effective and I get lots of good comments about it. However, I personally think it's way too much activity for that much amber and feel that it tends to blind traffic approaching from the rear, especially on 2 lane roads. That's why I'm contemplating the modification to the 400 series split strobe/LED modules to replace the full strobes, and if I do, maybe using only half of the module for that pattern will cut down on the intensity just a little bit.

I'm also considering putting a pair of 400 series split strobe/halogen modules for the alley window in the colored endcaps and moving two of the front strobe outlets to them. Using a clear alley side strobe, along with the pair of colored corners alternating on either side of it, would give me a dual clear/colored side flash and still allow me to have a halogen alley light option too. Think that would be pretty effective?
 
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nerdly_dood

Member
Jun 15, 2010
2,312
Georgia
I think Whelen would prefer to say it's an 8-strobe with a strobe traffic advisor. I don't think they counted the TA as regular warning strobes.
 
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Sparky_911

Supporting Donor
May 15, 2013
2,656
Central Illinois
Video video video!!!. 
 

Jman423

Administrator
Sep 10, 2010
3,391
United States
Yep, that's the pattern. I called it zigzag for lack of a better term, because that's pretty much what it looks like, especially from a distance. It's very unique and effective and I get lots of good comments about it. However, I personally think it's way too much activity for that much amber and feel that it tends to blind traffic approaching from the rear, especially on 2 lane roads. That's why I'm contemplating the modification to the 400 series split strobe/LED modules to replace the full strobes, and if I do, maybe using only half of the module for that pattern will cut down on the intensity just a little bit.

I'm also considering putting a pair of 400 series split strobe/halogen modules for the alley window in the colored endcaps and moving two of the front strobe outlets to them. Using a clear alley side strobe, along with the pair of colored corners alternating on either side of it, would give me a dual clear/colored side flash and still allow me to have a halogen alley light option too. Think that would be pretty effective?
Did you get my PM?
 
May 10, 2012
156
New England
OP: Any idea what application/agency ordered that?

I ask because the original PD I worked for-- granted it was quite some time ago-- had a hodgepodge of lightbars because the town took a really cheap approach to purchasing. When it came to everything but radios, they would take whatever the outfitter had sitting around as overstock or serviceable used items and put those in the cruisers, Thus, we had one car with a bar that looked (to my untrained eye) just like that one. I believe it was also really wide when viewed from the side, at least 1.5" wider than any other strobe bar in use at the time.
 
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firebuff17

Member
Mar 28, 2011
776
CT
Thus, we had one car with a bar that looked (to my untrained eye) just like that one. I believe it was also really wide when viewed from the side, at least 1.5" wider than any other strobe bar in use at the time.
That sounds like it was an edge 10000 BLINK bar. I could see that it would look the same but just wider. Do you happen to remember if on the top there was a black panel? That would be a tell tail sign that it was a BLINK.

*Tale. Not tail
 
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