Guys looking for some opinion and advice please.
Is a diesel military gen set really worth the extra cost over these gas consumer units?
I see you can pick up new gas units in the 6500w range for under a grand.
Considering a MEP002 likely but I have to ask this question of those in the know.
Military gen sets are made specifically as "prime power" units.
What this means is they are made specifically to run for weeks or even months on end, with the only shut downs being for regular maintenance, which is a lot less frequent than one you can go down and pick up at the hardware store or small engine store.
If your area only gets occasional outages, and never more than a few days a year, then no, it isn't really worth it. For the money you spend on one of these you can buy multiple cheapie gens and get them serviced.
Now, if your area gets hit by storms on a regular basis, or you run equipment that either your household wiring won't support or are too far from power to be economically feasible to run power to, then yes, you aren't likely to find better units at anywhere near the price point of these. Big plus is all the manuals are available, so you really can work on these yourself and not pay hundreds of dollars just hoping a factory tech will show up when they get around to it.
These military generators will last thousands, or even tens of thousands of hours with basic maintenance.
That 6500 watt gen for less than a grand will likely last a few hundred, maybe 1k hours or so if you take good care of it.
It all comes down to what you need and what you expect. If you need something that can run your house for weeks or months on end during an outage, then yes, these are for you. If all you need is a few hours or a couple days here or there every few years, then no, its not for you.