I found some New in the Box MARS Skybolt (US Army) lights with new blue domes. Are these fairly old and if so what do you think they are worth?
MARS Skybolt
- Thread starter ostat
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dmathieu
Lifetime VIP Donor
crescentstar69
Member
If they are the 24 volt models with the plastic speckled finish bases, probably not very old or worth too much.
crescentstar69
Member
12 volt helps a lot. I've seen them new for $50 to $75. Grey base is probably late 80's or early to mid 90's. Got pics? Are the domes smooth inside or do you see ridges? What is the diameter?
I got the exact one you have for $100.00 from Ford Dealer long ago. Trilite still manufactures the same model
except its not the US Army kind, its got a chrome plated short base regular.
except its not the US Army kind, its got a chrome plated short base regular.
JohnMarcson
Administrator
I bought one from "coleman surplus" store like 5 years ago for $30... shoulda bought more. They go from $50 to 100
crescentstar69
Member
patrol530
Member
dmathieu
Lifetime VIP Donor
JohnMarcson
Administrator
Are they 10" in diameter or 8"?
If it is 10", it was made about 1986 for the US Army.
The colour of the base of the standard version do not indicate the age. The standard colour was gray, yellow, white, red and silver but chrome coloured base was a higher price.
The contemporary version has black as standard colour.
The hight of the base is a better indicator to the age.
If it is 10", it was made about 1986 for the US Army.
The colour of the base of the standard version do not indicate the age. The standard colour was gray, yellow, white, red and silver but chrome coloured base was a higher price.
The contemporary version has black as standard colour.
The hight of the base is a better indicator to the age.
kadetklapp
Member
Old thread. I just bought one of these from Coleman's after they got marked down again. Basically I paid for the 2 4416 bulbs inside it and got a new rotating assembly/base/dome for the $18 it costs to ship it!
Cant say much about that one, but I ordered two Mars Skybolts off ebay. Cheap enough but the quality sucks. Both arrived well packed but in pieces,the bulbs came loose inside the domes and beat them up in shipping. Sent them back to the seller. One bulb holder was made of wire, and the other a elastic type band. Sure seems to me that the heat of the bulb would surely melt that elastic retaining band. After reassembling them I put power to them and put the domes on and the Twist lock retaining ring on and turned it to lock it. The light quit turning at that point on both of them. Sent a letter to Tri lite about the quality of their product. The president sent me an email wanting the lights sent to them, however I had already sent them to the seller.
kadetklapp
Member
Hoser said:
Were they these?
mars,skybolt beacon rotation warning light | eBay
The one from Coleman's isn't really a Skybolt is it? The base and dome are completely different...
Hoser said:
I bought one of those and it was packed well. When I got it one of the bulbs fell out, It also was blown and yes it had the two elastic retention bands. It also makes a very loud grinding sound when it runs. I was very disappointed, I have always been a fan of Mars and loved there products. :hopeless:
I still have mine, I figure that it will cost me more to ship it back than the light. Hey Hoser can you PM me the info for that Tri/Lite guy?
Maybe he can help me with mine
Thanks
Here is the information, Mine sounded horrible. My garbage disposal runs quieter than those lights
"Robert Herling" <Robert_Herling@triliteinc.com
Bob Herling
President
Tri Lite Inc.
773-384-7765
773-384-5115 fax
This is his sec. email Kathy Mann" <Kathy_Mann@triliteinc.com
"Robert Herling" <Robert_Herling@triliteinc.com
Bob Herling
President
Tri Lite Inc.
773-384-7765
773-384-5115 fax
This is his sec. email Kathy Mann" <Kathy_Mann@triliteinc.com
kadetklapp
Member
Skip Goulet said:
That's what I was thinking. $18 shipping stung, though. Especially when their online shipping calculator was a few bucks cheaper...
With this thread about the Skybolts, I have to mention something. In 2002 I bought a '74 GMC VanDura Type II ambulance that came from a small town in OK, NW of OKC. It came with a pair of the two-lamp Skybolts up on the hightop. Both domes were badly faded, but I got two new domes from Tripp with no problem. The problem came with the clamp ring that hold the domes in place. It has a turn and twist mechanim to keep the domes in place. But for some reason I lost domes twice. That was enough! I replaced the two Mars lights with a pair of Junior Beacons that I had: one red, one blue. Did the trick! :yes:
kadetklapp
Member
Well these things are certainly built down to a price. Not very impressive build quality. Pulled mine out of the box and put power to it and I've got a dead bulb. So much for getting new bulbs!
The light pictured in the Coleman's catalogue is not a Skybolt. It is a light designed specifically to fulfill a Federal contract. Although made by Trilite/MARS, it does not carry the "Skybolt" designation. Let's call a spade a spade.
One more bit of info that some may find useful. When securing the lens ring to a skybolt, use a small self tapping screw or sheet metal screw through the ring into the lower section of the light to lock it in place. These rings very commonly vibrate loose.
John Dorgan
One more bit of info that some may find useful. When securing the lens ring to a skybolt, use a small self tapping screw or sheet metal screw through the ring into the lower section of the light to lock it in place. These rings very commonly vibrate loose.
John Dorgan
Here's a photo of the tag on one I bought from Colemans. The mounting diagram included is dated April of 1986. It's nothing like the Skybolts that I remember but, apparently MARS recycled the Skybolt name for these US Army versions.
kadetklapp
Member
I'm going to post over on SteelSoldiers and see if anyone there can tell me what application these were used on.
I know you are the vintage light authority, John, but these are indeed marked as "Skybolt" beacons. Obviously they share virtually nothing in common with a real skybolt (rotating assembly might be the same, IDK) but I see your point.
*ETA*
Someone on steel soldiers claims that these lights were used on MP Humvees.
I know you are the vintage light authority, John, but these are indeed marked as "Skybolt" beacons. Obviously they share virtually nothing in common with a real skybolt (rotating assembly might be the same, IDK) but I see your point.
*ETA*
Someone on steel soldiers claims that these lights were used on MP Humvees.
Last edited by a moderator:
kadetklapp
Member
kadetklapp said:
I think I might have found one....
Although it sort of looks more like a Tripp-Lite. I will continue digging.
kadetklapp
Member
And another possible-
[Broken External Image]:http://tig88.photos.military.com/Army/Field-Training-Excercises/MP-HMMWV/71786848_nDEUd-M.jpg
(If a mod wants to join those posts together since I'm unable to edit that would be ok with me)
[Broken External Image]:http://tig88.photos.military.com/Army/Field-Training-Excercises/MP-HMMWV/71786848_nDEUd-M.jpg
(If a mod wants to join those posts together since I'm unable to edit that would be ok with me)
Sirenman said:
Thanks for that info, John. I lost two new domes that way. They must've vibrated loose as you noted, as I wasn't driving fast when they "disappeared".
JohnMarcson
Administrator
kadetklapp said:
I gotta agree with ya. In spirit they aren't skybolts to me.... but they do say skybolt right on them. I guess it's like when I see the new version of a classic car I like..... to me it's not the same car...... to the manufacturer it's still that model.
kadetklapp
Member
JohnMarcson said:
A very good analogy, that.
I wonder why the regular Skybolt wasn't suitable to the .gov?
I found another pic of an MP Humvee, and this is definitely not a MARS light. I'm thinking Tripp-Lite still-
[Broken External Image]:http://militarypd.50webs.com/mp169.jpg
JohnMarcson
Administrator
kadetklapp said:
I have bought military surplus that was "not optioned" or made in small batch and presented to the army but the army went with something else instead. I wonder if this was the case here. I have never seen the coleman version of the skybolt on a military vehicle.
kadetklapp
Member
JohnMarcson said:
That's something I was sort of wondering as well. They probably put out some specs for bid, everyone submitted something and they went with one or the other. These got tossed in a shed at the DRMO lot and the rest is history. Ah well, makes an interesting conversation piece.
dmathieu
Lifetime VIP Donor
kadetklapp said:
I had 2 lights that dad the same shape as the one in the picture (iI believe). They were Military spec., and had a Tek-Lite brand, with a Julian MacDermott dome. Same plastic base construction as the Coleman.
On these, the rotator consisted of a plastic teardrop assy. with the base cut to fit under the dome. Extremely poor quality. I can't believe that our tax dollars pay for this crap. (Probably a good deal more than we pay for a real light.)
kadetklapp
Member
JohnMarcson
Administrator
kadetklapp said:
That would be my guess.... I still wonder what the specs looked like... and how they ended up with such an over-sized base.
JohnMarcson said:
I have to agree with you here, John. If they were true Skybolts, even the colored domes, they would have the true Skybolt fluting inside the domes that allowed for colored inserts inside the clear domes. The comes that I mention above that were lost were solid red and blue, and they were made the same way as to accept the inserts, although that wouldn't work with a colored dome, obviously. :crazy:
EL1998P71
Member
Since we are on the Skybolt theme.
I recently got one from Fleabay.
Do the newer ones accept the filters like the old ones?
Can you still get filters?
I wanted to add Red ones to the amber dome (the base is Black Plastic).
I recently got one from Fleabay.
Do the newer ones accept the filters like the old ones?
Can you still get filters?
I wanted to add Red ones to the amber dome (the base is Black Plastic).
JohnMarcson
Administrator
EL1998P71 said:
Adding red to the amber dome will make it look like a muddy dull dim blob. In order to add filters you need a clear dome.
To answer your question, yes. The clear domes and colored inserts are available new from Tri-Lite/Mars.