Valentine One Radar Locator

by Jeff Dean

Valentine One

The two small units in the photograph above, right, comprise the Valentine One Radar Locator. The larger unit, with the red LEDs, is the radar detector itself. The small unit, on top, is a remote audio adapter.

Motorcyclists nationwide claim that this detector is the finest on the market. I am not particularly knowledgeable about or experienced in the use of radar detectors, so I have taken the word of the experts.

I have mounted the detector on an RCU shelf, which I had to cut back so it would not block my view of the dashboard instruments. This does block somewhat the detector's rearward view. Some riders have chosen to mount their detectors above the handlebar to the right side of the windshield so this does not happen.

The two units above are connected to each other with standard telephone cords using ordinary RJ-11 modular telephone connectors. In order to have maximum flexibility, I picked up black phone cord, plugs, and a cord stripper/crimper from Radio Shack so I could make my own cords. The power cord to the Valentine One is also a phone cord, so I wired the power to a BMW plug with strain relief (the phone cord wires are very tiny). From the phone cord to the BMW plug, the red wire is "+" and the green wire is "—." Because I will use the detector on several motorcycles and in my pickup, I did not want a permanent, hard-wired installation, so I used velcro to attach the detector to the shelf.

    

Since writing the above, I have added a front power socket to my Valentine 1 (see right photo above). I did this so I can more easily disconnect it to fill my gas tank or move it between vehicles. I also changed the electrical switch on the tank bag electrification kit from a push-button switch to a rotary switch (left photo above) for more secure switching. I did this because I plug the Valentine 1 into the tank bag's interior socket, which is controlled by this switch, and I wanted to use it to turn the radar locator on and off.

Finally, I wired the remote audio adapter's speaker plug (a 3/32” jack on the adapter's rear panel) to a helmet speaker so I easily hear the Valentine 1 under all riding conditions.