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Dan_E_Root

Active Member
Being in the market for a replacement of my used (more like used up when I bought it) Whelen power supply, I notice that the overall shape and appearance of the CreativeAir unit is very similar to the units that whelen sells to emergency services folks. Has anyone researched/investigated the similarity?

If an emergency vehicle's PS has the output, we shouldn't have to pay extra for an "aviation" power supply. Obviously, there's something going on here that I don't know about, and I need to be enlightened.

Can someone please educate me?
 
I asked this question of Bill Vondane (Creative Air owner) at one point. The answer I got was that although his aviation units and the emergency vehicle power supplies are manufactured by the same people and have similar power outputs, his aviation units flash at a slower rate. Therefore the Creative-Air units have brighter flashes, less often.

I'm paraphrasing all of this and it's been quite some time since I last thought about it, so YMMV. Vondane's reasoning was sound enough at the time that I decided to buy his unit instead of the emergency vehicle one.

I don't think there is anything wrong with using the emergency vehicle units though. The choice is yours.

Guy
 
Flash rate

Guy Prevost said:
.......

I don't think there is anything wrong with using the emergency vehicle units though. The choice is yours.

Guy
Click to expand...

The units must meet the FAA flash rate requirements....

(c) Flashing characteristics. The arrangement of the system, that is, the number of light sources, beam width, speed of rotation, and other characteristics, must give an effective flash frequency of not less than 40, nor more than 100, cycles per minute. The effective flash frequency is the frequency at which the airplane's complete anticollision light system is observed from a distance, and applies to each sector of light including any overlaps that exist when the system consists of more than one light source. In overlaps, flash frequencies may exceed 100, but not 180, cycles per minute.

If they have the same light intensities, and are within the flash rate above... they should be OK... Check the commercial unit specifications...

FAR here....

gil in Tucson
 
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Strobe Power Supply

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On Monday morning, I called ACS to buy CreativAir's power supply, which was delivered at my doorstep two days later. Don't you just love it?

Neither the catalog description nor CreativAir's website do the unit justice as it is a direct replacement of the old Whelen unit. The mounting bracket holes are in the same place. The connectors are identical and are wired in the same manner. Unplug your old connectors, remove the four mounting screws, drop in the new unit, then plug your old connectors into the new sockets. If you use a powered screw driver, it will take you longer to read the installation instructions, than it will to make the actual swap.

If one desires to do so, you may install a switch to disable the wingtip strobes by wiring a remote panel switch to the dedicated socket. Otherwise, just snap that last plug into place after soldering two pre-installed wires together. If and when you change your mind, it's no big deal to retrofit a switch later.
 
Dan_E_Root said:
Being in the market for a replacement of my used (more like used up when I bought it) Whelen power supply, I notice that the overall shape and ...Whelens, Aeroflashes, Hoskins, and Grimes supplies can all be rebuilt. Look through trade a plane before you replace.
Click to expand...
 
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