The end of an era begins this month in St. Louis County, Mo.

[FedTB]

Since the St. Louis County EMA installed over 160 Whelen WPS-2910s this past year and the system is now in place and fully operational, this is the month that the removal of the old siren system consisting of Federal T-Bolts (single and dual-toned), 2T22s, and one Model 5, and Whelen 3016s, 2000s and 4003s, is scheduled to begin, according to the original plans.

It's a bummer to think about but it was inevitable, and in the end a lot of the older sirens had malfunctioned to the point to where they didn't rotate anymore or just didn't activate altogether. Since I'm 47 years old and my first memories of tornado sirens began with a T-Bolt 1000 located next to my elementary school, the T-Bolt is the siren I will miss the most. (The school and that old T-Bolt are long gone now!).

So hopefully this system of Whelens will last at least 30 years and then we'll see what the new and improved siren system will be by then.

As far as anyone wanting any of the old sirens, contact the St. Louis County Emeregency Management Agency.

[TboltTX1]

As far as anyone wanting any of the old sirens, contact the St. Louis County Emeregency Management Agency.

They will refer you to TGB inc. They are contracted for the removal and disposal of the old sirens. You can reach them at 314-664-4444. Or you can go to their website http://www.tgbinc.com. I have not successfully been able to contact them but I will probably try again.

[thewoog34]

Please try and get a hold of a Whelen 3016...at least the control board. We have enough T-bolts, but those are rare and are great sounding, they definitely beat the Siratone controllers.

[Crazywarriorman]

I've called them a time or two. Very nice helpful people, probably the best I've delt with when it comes to companies like this. She said she had a list of over 30 people wanting to get ahold of the old sirens. Good luck to anyone who wants one, I know I'll need it.

[thewoog34]

Well, as long as we know those old ones aren't being scrapped. It'd be nice if someone here got a Whelen 3016 though.

[Crazywarriorman]

Someone here does have a Whelen 3016 believe it or not. His name is Dan (Siren1000T1). He doesn't like to come on the board anymore, but he has some good videos of it on youtube.

[thewoog34]

Yeah, I saw him, but I'd love to see more on here. Way too many people have Thunderbolts (the most overrated siren in my opinion) so its nice to see diversity.

[Rick K]

Yeah, I saw him, but I'd love to see more on here. Way too many people have Thunderbolts (the most overrated siren in my opinion) so its nice to see diversity.

Have you ever heard a Thunderbolt in person? If so, you'd see what all the fuss is about. Sure, they have quite a few parts that can fail if not properly maintained, but it's one hell of a siren when kept up properly!!

I will agree on one thing though, most CD siren collectors have atleast one 'Bolt at their house. That does kind of surprise me though, because of how massive, heavy, and hard to move around they are.

When I got my first two Thunderbolts (at the same time from the same guy, mind you), and my car trailer was completely full, as well as the 8' bed of my truck, I asked myself "what am I getting myself into?!?!?!!!"

[thewoog34]

Yeah, I saw him, but I'd love to see more on here. Way too many people have Thunderbolts (the most overrated siren in my opinion) so its nice to see diversity.

Have you ever heard a Thunderbolt in person? If so, you'd see what all the fuss is about. Sure, they have quite a few parts that can fail if not properly maintained, but it's one hell of a siren when kept up properly!!

I will agree on one thing though, most CD siren collectors have atleast one 'Bolt at their house. That does kind of surprise me though, because of how massive, heavy, and hard to move around they are.

When I got my first two Thunderbolts (at the same time from the same guy, mind you), and my car trailer was completely full, as well as the 8' bed of my truck, I asked myself "what am I getting myself into?!?!?!!!"

I've heard many sirens in person, including the Model 5/7, Sentry 3v8, Sentry 40v2t (this one was really hard on the ears), the Thunderbolt and the ACA Hurricane. The 40v2t and ACA Hurricane certainly impressed me more than the bolt did. All of those sirens except for the Model 5/7 shook my entire body (especially the 40v2t) but the Hurricane felt at least twice as intense at the bolt did. Dual tone sirens have a very deep undertone (especially the Hurricane) which is probably what causes that intense feeling. My vision even started to blur when I was near the 40v2t on test day.

[Rick K]

I've heard many sirens in person, including the Model 5/7, Sentry 3v8, Sentry 40v2t (this one was really hard on the ears), the Thunderbolt and the ACA Hurricane. The 40v2t and ACA Hurricane certainly impressed me more than the bolt did. All of those sirens except for the Model 5/7 shook my entire body (especially the 40v2t) but the Hurricane felt at least twice as intense at the bolt did. Dual tone sirens have a very deep undertone (especially the Hurricane) which is probably what causes that intense feeling. My vision even started to blur when I was near the 40v2t on test day.

Oh, I'm not bashing any other big sirens, but I just wanted to make sure the Thunderbolt gets its praises.

That 40v2t is absolutely ginormous! I'd love to see/hear one in person. Too bad there aren't any around here...