Hey everyone,
So I was just wondering, how come Wheelock ZNS’s are so high priced/hard to find below $50 NIB (especially with Siemens branding, but I don’t really care about that)? Because if you look at the ZNS’s long lived counterpart, the NS, you can typically snag those NIB on eBay for a pretty good deal.
Now, this is all relevant because I might be purchasing a ZNS or a ZH soon so I don’t feel like paying that insane amount for it…so I might just get a ZH, ZRS, or a NIB NS instead of a ZNS unless I can find one for a good price. Mind you, most of my money’s in my bank account anyways and my parents like to get paid in cash after I buy an alarm off eBay; guess I gotta get more driving hours in for my license and drive down to the bank to make a withdrawl .
Now I do understand that the 2010 Exceder move killed off the ZNS, which I actually like the design better than the Exceder itself, but I digress. I think that was one sad move on Wheelock’s part to kill off one of their more popular products, but I can see how the benefits and drawbacks of the ZNS influenced the design of the regular Exceder, and now, the LED version as well (more like the EST Genesis influenced that).
The ZNS series is neither common or uncommon, high pricing may be more for asthenic reasons since they are very simple alarms with a pleasing look. I’ve also never seen a system with mixed alarms including ZNS’s so maybe they only are compatible with each other and the company is using this as a way to get $$$$. This series also may be the most purchased and installed of any series so why not raise the price right? Wheelock seems to be in desperate need of $$$ because of the LED series screw up. LED strobes would BURN on FWR power supplies and not a single one of these is up to Code due to the newer flash duration requirements. That’s why the LED versions are listed between $15-25 on eBay now. Who knows why the price of the ZNS is actually so high…
You just have to wait around for the right deal. I got mine (my first-ever signal) for about $15 back in 2011.
The ZNS might actually have been Wheelock’s shortest-running signal, seeing as it and the NS seem to have been sold concurrently. I don’t exactly know the specifics, but the ZNS line seems to have just appeared on their product lineup sometime between 2006 and 2007, and was discontinued around 2010 with the introduction of the Exceder.
we just threw away a case of these, someone ordered a bunch of high candela ones long ago and they’ve been sitting around forever.
also, usually someone installing wheelock devices are using going to use wheelock power supplies. only old equipment or super cheap equipment puts out FWR, it’s generally avoided by most manufacturers, its dirty and requires more current which is a massive downside on any sizable installation.
eBay prices for items are based heavily on the trending prices for similar items. If ZNS’s consistently sell for these elevated prices, sellers will continue to list at similar prices.
Additionally, most ZNS’s you see on eBay are new in box. NIB items usually yield a higher price when compared to the costs for used alarms we are mostly accustomed to seeing.
Yeah that’s what I’m wondering, as you can buy an NIB NS-24MCW FW for $29.99 on eBay and the NIB ZNS’s sell at $34.99 at the lower end. Wheelock branded NIB ZNS models can be less or more but I feel like the Siemens rebranded ones cost more NIB, which seems odd considering they’re a rebrand, and the only difference between them and the others is a different sticker and label on the back and the bottom.
Yeah I feel that prior to the Exceder’s release, the popular alarms were still the AS and NS. In my area, any install with Wheelock horn strobes is typically an AS, I’ve seen some NS’s and Exceders but never ZNS’s unless it was a Siemens system.
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