What is a true manufacturing company? Is it Code 3/Ecco?
- Thread starter Jman423
- Start date
John Smith
Junior Member
My old agency ran 2100 series LED bars on all of our cruisers. We had problems with every single one.
The 2100 looks great, it's one of the best looking bars in my opinion. And the LEDs were sufficiently bright, no complaints there. The lack of any sync ability sucked, but that's par for the course of that generation.
Now, the issues. The halogen takedowns and alleys sucked, were halfway blocked by the lense covers, and blew bulbs out left and right. The LED modules never had the same shade of blue module to module. From Green to purple, code 3 sent us every shade of blue except the same shade. And that's if the modules worked. Half of them either didn't work at all, or only worked halfway. The lense covers sucked, they all either yellowed and/or cracked, and the clips rust.
I'll never run a Code 3 bar again.
The 2100 looks great, it's one of the best looking bars in my opinion. And the LEDs were sufficiently bright, no complaints there. The lack of any sync ability sucked, but that's par for the course of that generation.
Now, the issues. The halogen takedowns and alleys sucked, were halfway blocked by the lense covers, and blew bulbs out left and right. The LED modules never had the same shade of blue module to module. From Green to purple, code 3 sent us every shade of blue except the same shade. And that's if the modules worked. Half of them either didn't work at all, or only worked halfway. The lense covers sucked, they all either yellowed and/or cracked, and the clips rust.
I'll never run a Code 3 bar again.
Code 3 is the brand that I am hoping pulls a comeback after years of stagnating. The pursuit lightbar looks great and the defender was always underappreciated though bulky looking in my opinion. We'll see how they do going forward, but I hope they regain some of their MX7k glory days.
I'll chime in here. I'm a C3 master dealer. I've seen the shit LED bars that c3 put out between the Mx and about 3 yrs ago.
The ledx is a bright head, but no sync and expensive as well. The Optix heads are bright but again no sync.
Now let's go to today. The xtp series of light heads are bad ass. The xtp4doublestack multicolor is one of the brightest heads for its size out there. And the xtp series is affordable. The cd5051 series is the slimmest light available and its bright. I can't keep the mega thin series of lights in stock. They are bright and priced right.
The light bars that c3 is pushing today are damn good. The 21trplus is a bar that can be fully sync'ed or semi random. Programmable. The TD and Alleys are nice and bright. It's also available is economy torus 3, torus4 heads, 6 diode linear, 9 diode linear, and dual colour. So theres ways to build up a bar that fits your budget.
Personally I'm not a fan of the 27 series lightbar. But the defender and pursuit bars are simply insane. They are very bright and effective.
The Matrix system is a few years behind whelen and blueprint, but once fully implemented will provide much of the same functionality.
Oh and tricolour lightbar in any combination you want, including green.
The ledx is a bright head, but no sync and expensive as well. The Optix heads are bright but again no sync.
Now let's go to today. The xtp series of light heads are bad ass. The xtp4doublestack multicolor is one of the brightest heads for its size out there. And the xtp series is affordable. The cd5051 series is the slimmest light available and its bright. I can't keep the mega thin series of lights in stock. They are bright and priced right.
The light bars that c3 is pushing today are damn good. The 21trplus is a bar that can be fully sync'ed or semi random. Programmable. The TD and Alleys are nice and bright. It's also available is economy torus 3, torus4 heads, 6 diode linear, 9 diode linear, and dual colour. So theres ways to build up a bar that fits your budget.
Personally I'm not a fan of the 27 series lightbar. But the defender and pursuit bars are simply insane. They are very bright and effective.
The Matrix system is a few years behind whelen and blueprint, but once fully implemented will provide much of the same functionality.
Oh and tricolour lightbar in any combination you want, including green.
OP
OP
Honestly, I haven't laid hands on a Code 3 product in several years. My experience prevented me from even being interested in their product line.
However, it is nice to hear some positive feedback from someone in-the-know. I'll have to bring myself up to date with their more recent products.
It's funny, of all of the people and businesses I know in the industry, Code 3 and Federal Signal are very rarely the dominant brand represented. That doesn't mean you're not out there, it's just rare to hear feedback from you. In terms of market share, of course they're 2/3 of the Big 3... but that's because of government contracts.
However, it is nice to hear some positive feedback from someone in-the-know. I'll have to bring myself up to date with their more recent products.
It's funny, of all of the people and businesses I know in the industry, Code 3 and Federal Signal are very rarely the dominant brand represented. That doesn't mean you're not out there, it's just rare to hear feedback from you. In terms of market share, of course they're 2/3 of the Big 3... but that's because of government contracts.
Here's something else to consider, C3 offers tri color in multiple types of light heads, the mega thin, the mr6, the Chase. Two power wires with three modes. The HBMicroPak is a nice flush mount light that can go lots of places and is nearly flush with the body. Single and dual colour.
Now for some negatives. I'll be blunt and say there are things that c3 doesn't do well, but is working on actively.
First is the Hideaways. I dont use them. I don't stock them and dont promote them. I dont like the flash and light spread
Arrowsticks and warning sticks. The megathin stick is the best thing they have. Its not as cheap as other products out there but it's a damn good light. Multiple lengths yo to 35 inches. Color combos are limited, but it's being improved upon. I dont carry the xt series of sticks, just too expensive.
The Supervisor I really like. 3 heads per side, but they are the same heads as in the 21tr. So they are big. Good flash. The citadel is a good spoiler mount light. same concept as the supervisor, just in the rear. Available in independent flash and synchronised with xtp or megathin heads. So theres availability to match your budget.
Ok truth time.
Yes some of their products are built outside the USA. Not going to deny that. But everything was designed and specced here. Does that mean it's a subpar light? No not in the least. Personally I dont give a damn where somethings built as long as the quality is there and the price point is right. This isn't speedtech bullshit guys.
I'll be happy to answer any questions you have about c3 to the best of my ability.
Now for some negatives. I'll be blunt and say there are things that c3 doesn't do well, but is working on actively.
First is the Hideaways. I dont use them. I don't stock them and dont promote them. I dont like the flash and light spread
Arrowsticks and warning sticks. The megathin stick is the best thing they have. Its not as cheap as other products out there but it's a damn good light. Multiple lengths yo to 35 inches. Color combos are limited, but it's being improved upon. I dont carry the xt series of sticks, just too expensive.
The Supervisor I really like. 3 heads per side, but they are the same heads as in the 21tr. So they are big. Good flash. The citadel is a good spoiler mount light. same concept as the supervisor, just in the rear. Available in independent flash and synchronised with xtp or megathin heads. So theres availability to match your budget.
Ok truth time.
Yes some of their products are built outside the USA. Not going to deny that. But everything was designed and specced here. Does that mean it's a subpar light? No not in the least. Personally I dont give a damn where somethings built as long as the quality is there and the price point is right. This isn't speedtech bullshit guys.
I'll be happy to answer any questions you have about c3 to the best of my ability.
OP
OP
You're the first person I've heard mention that, honestly. I'm interested to see what's ahead.
Imported is fine. Scamming consumers with subpar imported crap is another thing, especially when you have entire marketing teams dedicated to misleading the industry.
Just because it's made in the US doesn't mean it's the best product. The brand is responsible for for the quality of the product they sell, even if it's imported. That's why there are many dealers in our industry that do well with imported products... quality testing, quality control, consumer feedback all play a role in their product lines.
Honestly, I haven't felt that's the case with Code 3 since they stepped foot into the LED market, so I'm interested to see how it goes.
The last Code 3 product I owned was the Oscilaser. I think their strobe products were good too, though, and we know they did very well in the halogen market.
I can't tell you the exact products coming out, I was sworn to secrecy by factory reps. But i can say that they are developing new products using existing products. They are doing this to fill some holes in the product line.
There is also a new product in the works that will greatly ease the headache of exterior mirror and grill lighting. Think: no more angle adapters.
They factory reps have also bought items from my shop that were made by other manufacturers to model new products after.
There is also a new product in the works that will greatly ease the headache of exterior mirror and grill lighting. Think: no more angle adapters.
They factory reps have also bought items from my shop that were made by other manufacturers to model new products after.
