Kustom Signals: History, Ownership and Products

By I Go Cars · Updated October 29, 2026

Kustom Signals at a glance

Kustom Signals, Inc. is a manufacturer of police traffic radar, lidar, in-car and body-worn video, and speed display signs, headquartered in Lenexa, Kansas. The company dates its founding to 1965. Since November 4, 2014 it has been a wholly owned subsidiary of MPD, Inc., a holding company in Owensboro, Kentucky, which also owns MPH Industries. Its current radar and lidar models appear on the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) conforming product list (CPL), the federal list of speed-measuring devices that had been eligible for purchase with federal highway safety grant funds.

This profile records what official documents and the company's own statements say about Kustom. It does not rate the company or its products, and nothing here compares Kustom equipment with another maker's.

Legal name: Kustom Signals, Inc.
Founded: 1965 (company statement)
Headquarters: 10901 W 84th Terrace, Suite 100, Lenexa, Kansas, per a January 2025 New York State contract award
Manufacturing: Chanute, Kansas, as of November 2014
Parent: MPD, Inc., Owensboro, Kentucky, since November 4, 2014

From amplifiers to traffic radar

Kustom's own account of its origin begins outside law enforcement. In the 1960s the company made amplifiers that were popular with musicians, and it then expanded into radar, which led to the formation of Kustom Signals, Inc. "Our knowledge of electronics allowed us to branch out into the manufacturing of RADAR and car monitors," the company states. It also ran an avionics division that "began in 1979 and was sold in 1984"; the buyer is not named.

The founders are not named in any official source located for this profile, and the company's own record has one internal inconsistency. Its September 2025 post marking 60 years says the TR-6 radar of 1970 came "four years after" the company opened, which would place the opening in 1966 rather than 1965. The About page gives 1965.

The 60-year post lists a series of product firsts. These are manufacturer claims, and they are presented here as such:

1970: TR-6, described as the "first digital-readout RADAR"
1973: MR7, described as the "first moving RADAR"
1975: HR-8, a handheld K-band radar, and KR-11, a two-window microprocessor radar
1978: HR-12, a moving K-band handheld
1985: H.A.W.K., an all-direction radar with a stopwatch mode
1988: SMART, a speed-monitoring awareness radar trailer
1990: the company's first laser speed gun
2014: Raptor RP-1, with certification notification and an optional lockout
2018: Eagle 3, with wireless vehicle speed sensing

Two of those claims meet conflicting records. NHTSA's radar operator training manual dates moving-patrol radar capability to 1972, a year before the MR7. And Laser Technology, Inc. describes its 1991 20/20 Marksman as "the market's first commercial speed laser," while Kustom places its first laser speed gun in 1990. Both claims are recorded; neither is confirmed by an independent source. The post also cites patents in 2021 for AutoTrak, Certification Management and a wireless vehicle speed sensor, and a WSS module in 2022.

Ownership: PSE, then MPD

Before November 2014, Kustom was a subsidiary of Public Safety Equipment, Inc. (PSE), according to a transaction note from the investment bank that advised on the sale; that note is an adviser's record rather than an official filing, and the date PSE acquired Kustom was not found. On November 4, 2014, MPD, Inc. acquired Kustom Signals. MPD's announcement said Kustom would operate as a separate MPD subsidiary, with Frederick S. Perry as president, and described Kustom as headquartered in Lenexa with manufacturing in Chanute.

Kustom now describes itself in these terms: "KUSTOM SIGNALS INC is a part of MPD, Inc., headquartered in Owensboro, Kentucky." MPD, the company says, has seven wholly owned subsidiaries and more than 300 employees. MPH Industries' history states that MPD has been 100 percent employee-owned through an employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) since 1997.

The relationship with MPH Industries is often misstated. Kustom is not owned by MPH. The two are sister subsidiaries of MPD. In its September 2025 anniversary post Kustom said it is "integrating with sister company MPH Industries," with the brands remaining distinct. The post does not say whether the integration changes headquarters or manufacturing locations.

Product lines and what each device is

Kustom's catalog spans every major category of police speed equipment, plus video and traffic-calming products. A New York Office of General Services price list from September 2024, issued under a NASPO ValuePoint contract, gives a dated snapshot of the current lines.

In-car radar

In-car radar is a console unit mounted in the patrol car, with one or two antennas, able to measure from a parked or moving car. Kustom's in-car models on the price list are the Eagle II, Golden Eagle II, Directional Golden Eagle II and Eagle 3, all Ka-band, and the Raptor in K or Ka band, listed "with Same Lane" capability. Each is offered with a single or dual antenna. K-band and Ka-band are radio frequency ranges that NHTSA defines as 24.050-24.250 GHz and 33.4-36.0 GHz respectively.

Handheld radar

Handheld radar is a self-contained unit the officer aims. The price list sells the Falcon HR and the Directional Talon II as stationary handhelds. On the CPL, however, the Falcon HR and the Directional Talon carry a stationary-and-moving mode code, so the sale configuration and the tested capability are recorded differently.

Lidar

Lidar measures speed by timing pulses of infrared laser light. Kustom sells the ProLaser 4, a handheld lidar, and the LaserCam 4, a lidar paired with a camera. In NHTSA's terms the second is a lidar system, "a lidar device that incorporates additional equipment that is used to gather, process and/or record images."

Speed advisory and data products

Kustom also sells PMD 12 and PMD 18 pole-mounted speed displays, VMS message displays, SMART 12 and SMART 18 speed trailers and the StealthStat II traffic data unit. These are not enforcement devices. They display or record speeds for traffic calming and planning. The company additionally lists body-worn and in-car video and evidence management among its product categories.

Kustom on the federal conforming product list

NHTSA's CPL dated September 15, 2025 lists seven current-production Kustom radars in Part I. The entries are identical on the November 28, 2022 CPL that Georgia's Department of Public Safety posted as its approved device list. Mode "S" is stationary; "M" is moving.

Eagle II (Ka; S/M)
Golden Eagle II (Ka; S/M)
Directional Golden Eagle II (Ka; S/M)
Falcon HR (K; S/M)
Directional Talon (Ka; S/M)
Raptor RP-1 (K and Ka; S/M)
Eagle 3 (Ka; S/M)

Part II lists two current Kustom lidar models: the Laser Cam 4 and the Pro Laser 4. Part III, models "approved but no longer in production," is long. It includes the Eagle, the K-band Eagle II, Eagle Plus, Eagle Plus II, Silver Eagle, Golden Eagle, Golden Eagle Plus, the K-band Golden Eagle II, Falcon, HR-8, HR-12, HAWK, KR-10SP, KR-11, Pro-1000, Pro-1000(DS), Road Runner, Talon, Talon II and Trooper, plus the DTMS, Laser Cam II, Pro Laser II, Pro Laser III and Pro-Lite + lidars.

The band matters when reading those lists. The Golden Eagle II is both current and discontinued: the Ka-band version is in Part I and the K-band version in Part III. The original Talon and the Talon II are in Part III, while the current CPL entry is the Directional Talon and the 2024 price list sells the Directional Talon II.

A CPL listing has a defined meaning. It records that a model met NHTSA's performance specifications when first listed; NHTSA states that test results "do not represent product endorsement," and that third-party modifications not approved by the manufacturer void the listing. NHTSA retired the down-the-road radar CPL on November 21, 2025 in favor of an industry verification program based on IEEE Std 2450-2019. Whether any Kustom radar has been verified under that program was not established for this profile. The current list can be checked on the NHTSA CPL page.

State approvals, contracts and the record

State approval lists name Kustom equipment in several roles. Pennsylvania's December 29, 2018 list of approved speed-timing devices included the Kustom Falcon HR and Eagle Plus radars, approved for the State Police in stationary mode only, and an average-speed device listed as "Tracker by Patco (Kustom Signals)." Kustom also holds New York contract PC70502 under Award PGB 23348, which runs from January 9, 2025 to August 31, 2027. A contract governs how agencies may purchase; it is not an approval for evidentiary use.

Contract prices in that list, such as $2,088.09 for a single-antenna Ka-band Eagle 3 in September 2024, are dated figures under one contract and are not current prices. No court decision or regulatory action naming Kustom Signals was located in the official records reviewed for this profile.

Frequently asked questions

Where is Kustom Signals located?

Kustom Signals is headquartered in Lenexa, Kansas, at 10901 W 84th Terrace, according to a January 2025 New York State contract award. MPD's November 2014 announcement of its acquisition described manufacturing in Chanute, Kansas. The company's parent, MPD, Inc., is headquartered in Owensboro, Kentucky.

Who owns Kustom Signals?

MPD, Inc. of Owensboro, Kentucky, has owned Kustom Signals since November 4, 2014. Before that, Kustom was a subsidiary of Public Safety Equipment, Inc., according to the sale adviser's transaction note. MPD has been employee-owned through an ESOP since 1997 and also owns MPH Industries, making the two companies sister subsidiaries.

Are Kustom Signals and MPH Industries the same company?

No. Kustom Signals and MPH Industries are separate subsidiaries of the same parent, MPD, Inc. MPD bought MPH in 1988 and Kustom in 2014. In September 2025 Kustom said it was integrating with sister company MPH Industries while keeping the two brands distinct.

When was Kustom Signals founded?

Kustom Signals gives its founding year as 1965 on its company page. The company began in the 1960s making amplifiers before moving into radar. Its own 60-year post contains an inconsistency, saying its 1970 TR-6 radar came four years after the company opened, which would imply 1966.

Is the Kustom Raptor on the NHTSA conforming product list?

Yes. The Raptor RP-1 appears in Part I of NHTSA's September 15, 2025 conforming product list in K and Ka band, rated for stationary and moving modes, and it appeared the same way on the November 2022 list. NHTSA retired the radar list on November 21, 2025.

What lidar does Kustom Signals make?

Kustom's current lidar models are the ProLaser 4, a handheld laser speed gun, and the LaserCam 4, which pairs lidar with a camera. Both appear in Part II of NHTSA's September 15, 2025 conforming product list. Earlier models such as the Pro Laser III and Laser Cam II are listed as no longer in production.

Kustom Signals