FBII RM Keypads

I've still got a few of them out there but I've got back up hardware from jobs I've pulled out.

I don't think there is or ever will be such a simple, inexpensive workhorse panel as those FBI XL panels.

Gobbled up by the big ol Ademco/Honeywell machine .... never to be seen again.

When Ademco bought FBII they promised to keep the line forever in one shape or another of course once honeywell hoareded it ove they got rid of it

I was hoping Joe would see the post, but its too late now. I threw a couple thousand dollars worth of new and used (mostly used) keypads in the dumpster today.

Not surprising since it was ancient tech back then

I liked the XL-4s and the XL-2(series). The XL-31s wer a nice middle of the road panel, but they had a flaw with CID reporting I found out years later when I switched to my own lines and CID reporting to save a few bucks a month. Oddly enough some of those old XL-31s that had issues with CID on POTs worked just fine on cellular.

On the XL-31s... I started having random flaky issues with them in general about 8-9 years ago. I think there is some component in them that is just not managing to hold on after 10-15 (approaching 20) years in the field. Never had an initial issue with any of them though. Just on old, old panels.

Never mind that HC-41 abortion though. It was junk out of the box. I bought three of them, installed two, and then said screw this and called everybody in the industry to see who my new line was going to be, because it wasn't going to FBIDEMCO.

When the sales rep overnighted me everything I asked for, and was in my office two days later I went with Napco. That was a long time ago. When the Gemini line was brand new. The two HC-41s I installed were replaced with Gemini panels, and they are both still in service today.

I been prodding the boss man to give NAPCO a try.. He's went with the VISTA when they stopped making the XL-series.. {{I was an old Moose fan back from day one but we all know what happened to them..}} VISTA seems to work, but their panel security is a joke... same for the up/down loader software.. Their power supply is a wanta bee for sure. It's real easy to overload that control...

RTS

I think just about everybody maxes at 500 mills. I know the Napco will supply its full 500 mills though. I've only had one or two over the years I had to add a secondary power supply to.

The best setup I saw years ago was the NX8e which had expansion modules with their own power supply and backup battery. I installed a couple of them in places like schools and multiple building mfg plants. It was pretty nice, but when I was seriously looking at making the change they got bought up and I decided to wait and see what happened to them.

I'm getting out now so I don't really care.

Bob,

I personally stuck with the NX product line after Sentrol, GE and then UTC by out. I evaluated all the others and the NX fit my brain better than the others. I have some in doing some cool things beyond security. Could not have done with out the NX320E supervised remote power supplies.

There are some quirky things that all panels have in one way or another.

There are some improvements I would like made (have suggested -- fell on deaf ears) to make it better for the tech.

But, then you don't really care because you are getting out. :-)

Les

LOL (IRL)

I've been with Napco since the beginning. I've experimented with a few othe rs along the way (FBI, DSC ) but since I started with the Napco programming (which was considered difficult (and may still be by some)) I was able to evolve along with the newer panels. I like the over the top options in the programming and automation allowing me to be able to do what ever the cust omer wanted and since I knew how to program the Napco way .... the program ming of other panels was a cinch.

This message is just for Rocky and Les because we all know that Bob is .... .. well ...... you know.

SHORT....

ROFLMAO ++ Snicker!!! Sorry Bob, but you asked for it.

Les

Well when I started Ademco 1000 & 1004 were all the rage.. LOL then moved up to the big stuff, 342R then the 4080 4080-12 and the cream panel the 4080-12 black face.. LOL But along came Wade with his Moose line. sturdy stuff.. MPI-25, MPI-50, the 330's 775's 725 expanded, the Z700's Z900's, Z-1100's the E's and MPI-880's.. When he sold out, we started with the "Summit" stuff from Israel. But they had a lot of problems working in the American standards, 60 hzs, and the phone currents & tones.. they kept having problems with their clocks, data streams, line current fuses on their phones dialer's.. Did a few Adcor 6000 & 8000's along the way.. a few DSC 1520, 1550's but never caught on with our customers.. Then the FBII's, XL's 2T's 2P's, 31's a few 4's & 5's.. probably got a few hundred still out there.. and now doing the Vista's 10's 15's and a bunch of 20P's Not counting all the Firelite and Silent Knight fire panels..

and like Bob I been trying to retire for the last few years, but all these new kids who want to be installers, tend to change their minds when the work load gets a little hairy..

and the new boss kid, well he just doesn't have the gray matter for those old systems and all their little oddities .. ROFL....

RTS

others along the way (FBI, DSC ) but since I started with the Napco program ming (which was considered difficult (and may still be by some)) I was abl e to evolve along with the newer panels. I like the over the top options in the programming and automation allowing me to be able to do what ever the customer wanted and since I knew how to program the Napco way .... the pro gramming of other panels was a cinch.

....... well ...... you know.

Cripes Rocky, You could have made that a lot shorter by tell us what panels you didn't use.

About new kids .... I pretty much work alone now but every once in awhile I need someone to help snake and as a go-fer. I've got this kid (well, he's actually about 26 years old) with no experience and the other day I told hi m to carry the extension ladder around the other side of the house and set it up so I could adjust the camera. When I get there, the ladder is leaning up against the house but about 5 fe et short of the camera. So I told him to extend the ladder.

Are you ready ????

He didn't know how to do it. AND ..... couldn't figure it out.

I'm guessing that there isn't a video game that shows you how to extend a l adder.

After that, I'm pulling a new wire down from the attic with a draw string I left in the wall during pre-construction. It's tied to a pipe in the attic and sticking out of the wall in the equipment closet on the floor below. I pull the string up just far enough to tie the new wire on and tell him to listen in case we have to see-saw the wire to get it through the hole in th e wall. I go down to the closet, pull the wire through the hole pretty easy . I untie it and shout up "OK, I got it" and he pulls the whole string back up to the attic.

ARGGGGGh! Man ...... I was never that young.

All this reminiscing is bringing a tear to my eye. Been there done that. But I won't bore you guys with the details. :-)

I realize I must have been green once................?? Really just don't remember for some reason. Kinda think that when my egg was cracked I was the go to guy to figure it out.

Well, I do remember being told to clean and mop the restroom floors at the Howard Johnson's that I was working. So, wanting to do good job on the floor I put about 3 gallons of water in the mop bucket along with a bottle of Clorox and a bottle of Ammonia. WOW!!! Almost had to evacuate the restaurant. Good thing it was a metal bucket, today's plastic would have melted away. Well, you should have seen those grout lines!! They got REAL WHITE!! LOL

Les

LOL reminds me of the time the SGT (60's-70's) asked (LOL) me to make the office coffee.. Well I'd never made coffee before but the the equipment looked simple enough.. filled the 28 gallon tank full, added the can of coffee to the hopper and turned it on.. (oh did I forget to mention I filled the tank full of HOT water..) Well you guessed it the SGT wasn't happy.. seems the HOT water didn't start the brew cycle.. Coffee tasted kind-a weak.. LOL Silver lining though, I was never asked to make coffee again for the next 5 years.. ROFL.....

RTS

I love the string trick.. I got to where I use string and a fishing weight to drop it down in the "hollow" wall and the catch it with a bent "Picture frame wire" at the other end..

Longest single drop on my record was 3 floors along side an A/C duct. from the attic to the basement.

((good times)) LOL

RTS