Federal Signal Vista Bars

[PinballCharlie]

Hi group:


What does everyone think of Federal Signal Vista bars?? I have an opportunity to pick up some NOS lenses but do not want to do so if these bars get no love.


Thanks in advance!!


PinballCharlie

 

[chief1562]

Well personally I've had a few. In rotor and Strobe and combination of all including with leds.


Didn't have a problem with any of them when it came to warning power.


I stll have 2 36" ones 1 6 rotor and 1 8 strobe.


With both red and blue domes.


Sold my 14 strobe in the last few months


All though they are bulky I like em


got I full set of rotors to make a 6 rotor setup or sell to somebody who wants 2 do it themselves. Either way 36-44" with the extra rotors in there a whole lot of warning power.


How much for the NOS? And what color?

 

[PinballCharlie]

Well personally I've had a few. In rotor and Strobe and combination of all including with leds.
Didn't have a problem with any of them when it came to warning power.


I stll have 2 36" ones 1 6 rotor and 1 8 strobe.


With both red and blue domes.


Sold my 14 strobe in the last few months


All though they are bulky I like em


got I full set of rotors to make a 6 rotor setup or sell to somebody who wants 2 do it themselves. Either way 36-44" with the extra rotors in there a whole lot of warning power.


How much for the NOS? And what color?

Hey Chief: I believe the guy only has red lenses. I will have to go and see what he wants for them.


Thanks


Charlie

 

[chief1562]

Hey Chief: I believe the guy only has red lenses. I will have to go and see what he wants for them.

Thanks


Charlie

It's not that I need lens. I have enough of red and blue for bothe bars I have.


I was just wondering what color they were and how much.


This place KommerceServer - Product Detail NEW has end domes R/C/B/A for Z8583006A Dome, VISTA, Outboard (Clear) $83.75


and NEW center R/C/B/A/ Z8583007A-03 Dome, VISTA, Center, (Blue) $70.00 and a green center for Z8583007A-04 Dome, VISTA, Center, (Green) $50.50


Just so you know how much.

 

[Pete L.]

VISTA........Wow.....around here they are called the surf boards.


I couldn't move any so I parted them out.


Good luck,


-Pete

 

[CrownVic97]

I think they look like giant footballs. Ewwwuuagh. :ugh:

 

[foxtrot5]

They may be enormous and bulky, but I actually kinda like them... Maybe I'm just weird.

 

[Mustang302]

I like these bars they are funny looking but very bright..I had one on my patrol car at work..It gave me great light protection at night and day..ours had red/blue ha


lagen rotators.. rear halagen amber flashers in bottom.. take downs and front red and blue flashers on lower deck to front..a clear center for traffic clearing light..these lightbars had a bottom traffic clearing light to the front side but we didnt have them...I found LAPD had the same bar on a vic....Wash.DC has them too..

 

[nerdly_dood]

Wash.DC has them too..

They've phased the rotators out completely, and they don't have many of the strobe bars left either. The strobes are dim enough that I'm not sad to see them go, but the rotators were really bright and will be sorely missed.

 

[jdh]

VISTA........Wow.....around here they are called the surf boards.

I couldn't move any so I parted them out.


Good luck,


-Pete

Yep, thats what I did with them. They are as useless as the vectors/visions as far as resale value due to there shape, size and weight.

 

[ChargerLighting]

Yep, thats what I did with them. They are as useless as the vectors/visions as far as resale value due to there shape, size and weight.

What he said. I bought 4 of them (R/B rotator versions with Signalmasters & long cables) for $50 earlier this year.


However I DID bubble wrap one & send it usps & it was under the size limit.

 

[Stampeed Valkyrie]

wow no love for the Vista bars... lol


There are several of these in various condition sitting in the garage. They were tossing these, MX7000s and StreetHawk bars in the trash.


I scavenged what I could with the little notice I had but nobody has any real interest in them.

 

[WireKing]

Only problem I've ever had with them was the exposed wiring under the domes. Jet streams, jetstrobes and vista had the same issues. The wiring bundle is uncovered and visible throughout the whole bar, so the sun bleaches the wiring and dries out the insulator sheath, which cracks off in a million pieces.


I had a 98 Crown Vic come in one day for service on the siren and the officer was complaining about a smell coming from the vista lightbar. I took the domes off and discovered the entire bundle of wire on the passenger side of the 10 strobe vista was a shiny steel color because the insulation had fallen off. The bar worked except for 2 strobes, and there was intermittent shorting when the car was moving and vibration was forcing the wires together. It had been happening for some time and the officer's fix before seeing me had been to put larger and larger fuses in.


The cost to completely gut and reverb the bar with one of my custom in-house made wiring harnesses was going to be a bit more than the bar was worth. So we upgraded him to an in-stock bar.


Anyway I'll never forget that vista. I've got a photo somewhere of it with it's all silver wiring.


When we had buyers come to purchase bars like the vista, jetstrobe, etc I had black 7 year vinyl cut to fit the upper surface of the domes to mask the sun from the wiring. The code 3 2100 and Excalibur bars had the same issue so we covered those as well. The county sheriffs dept here was having the same issue so we tried using Bed liner material to spray coat the flat 2100 domes. Worked even better than the vinyl.

 

[Lightbarnut]

I have a buddy that had about 8 rotator Vistas that he wanted parted out, and in payment for the work, he was going to give me 2 of them if I wanted them. I liked that idea, since I wanted to make a MPDC replica bar out of at least one. Well after I had parted them all out, the 2 that I wanted had issues. I did notice the wiring issues like WireKing stated, but the real problem was a messed-up intersection light like on the MX7000.


I quickly became of the opinion that they are flat-out junk. To replace the intersection light, you have to unscrew that whole end of the lightbar just to access one part. Extremely non user friendly. From that point on, I turned against them and went ahead and parted the remaining ones out. I have no interest in having one in my collection. Ever.

 

[ChargerLighting]

I should add they bite. Literally.





That particular one was parted via hammer if I recall.

 

[Pete L.]

I should add they bite. Literally.



That particular one was parted via hammer if I recall.

DAMN, Mike..............That picture brought back reallllllllllllllllllly bad memories. Been there-done that-hurts-like hell.

 

[CrownVic97]

Another very good reason why I don't like these lightbars. If they can do that while putting them BACK together, then no thank you.

 

[ChargerLighting]

Sorry to be a bit on the nasty side, but I keep that picture in mind whenever I decide to fix Vista(s) or more specifically change lower outers in one...

 

[Zapp Brannigan]

Hi group:

What does everyone think of Federal Signal Vista bars?? I have an opportunity to pick up some NOS lenses but do not want to do so if these bars get no love.


Thanks in advance!!


PinballCharlie

They may be enormous and bulky, but I actually kinda like them... Maybe I'm just weird.

:yes: :yes: :yes:

Yep, thats what I did with them. They are as useless as the vectors/visions as far as resale value due to there shape, size and weight.

:iagree:

 

[jdh]

Here is the "insert joke here" thing. I have one for sale, or will have for sale. Anyone want a clear almost fully decked out vista?

 

[chief1562]

Nope. Got 2 36"ones need to get rid of. Then I'm done unless I'm building a Arjent.

 

[JohnMarcson]

The lower portion, if filled, can be pretty effective... the upper rotators weren't bad really. The upper strobes are simply invisible if there is anything in the lower deck. The 4 leds in the bottom of the Ohio model bar over washed the upper strobes until aprox 20 feet away.


These were designed to compete with the MX7000 or at least to compete with the true unobstructed lower level concept. The streethawk was the first major dual level bar, but had no lower lights at the 45 degrees. The MX did, and then so did the Vista. In halogen, I used to accept these or an MX7000 on the same spec. These are solid bars in halogen if the reflectors and domes are nice. but just like the MX, stay away from the strobe version. The market is really flooded with them, many large depts have been upgrading over the last 5 or so years and these like the MXs were slowly replaced. They honestly were being given away free plus shipping here at one point. In halogen, I'd take one or a and MX over a poor quality LED bar or split fail nightmare.


Here's the mini-catalog I have:

 

[chief1562]

I had a 14 strobe i built.


Put 4 lowers strobes in the bottom. They had more punch thean the uppers and used them alot. Other than the top.


Especially one when parked. Put the uppers in frt. cutoff pattern and let the lowers do the job.

 

[JazzDad]

... They honestly were being given away free plus shipping here at one point. ...

Anyone here? I'd be interested if the shipping wasn't too much. (One way to start a collection, eh? PM?)

 

[chief1562]

Anyone here? I'd be interested if the shipping wasn't too much. (One way to start a collection, eh? PM?)

Jazz I sent my 44" 14 strobe fully loaded with 2 control boxs the box weighed in at 60lbs and cost $34.24 USPS to VA.


PM'd

 

[JohnMarcson]

It was a few years back someone posted a lot of 10 strobe vistas "pre-dumptster" on craigslist. The guy did "you pay shipping" for a while, then got burned on a fake MO and trashed them all.

 

[Firefly Berlin]

I have a red blue halogen one in my collection and I like it for it's kind of rare over here.


And if anybody has a clear domed fully loaded red/ blue strobe version as in Johns catalog in a decent collectible condition please let me know, but the last ones I saw were all "dumpster candidates".

 

[ERIC6913]

I have a red blue halogen one in my collection and I like it for it's kind of rare over here.

And if anybody has a clear domed fully loaded red/ blue strobe version as in Johns catalog in a decent collectible condition please let me know, but the last ones I saw were all "dumpster candidates".

And i have a few nice European only Vama ones here as well

 

[denko3]

i love the LAPD or LASD vista versions with CAL steady burns in lower deck and center half cylinder filters.all bar is halogen and very bright.


speaking of vista half cylinder filters any one have maybe some amber and blue need them hard?


fedsig has stop offering them if i am correct.....hmmmm