CB's?

[doc762399]

So what is the rough range of a store bought cb with antenna? i have always viewed cb as a short range vehicle to vehicle intercom? is this a correct assumption? Second is it just me or do people on the west coast not use cb nearly as much as midwesterners or those on the east coast?

[Kobayashi Maru]

Couldn't say about the west coast - if you've got a strong radio (a decent Cobra or equivalent) a solid antenna, high-mounted, & you're on flat terrain, you should get a few miles out of it.

Then again, if you're running a solid 500 watt Fatboy linear, a nice firestick antenna, and a souped up Cobra that's been peaked & tuned, and the atmospherics are good, you can talk up and down the eastern seaboard at night and before dawn from the cab of your BoV - especially on single sideband!

Uhmmm... not that I would have any knowledge of such things PERSONALLY, mind you... :oops:

:rolleyes:

[Howlingwolf]

Average on flatland with a good antenna could be 10 miles.

Wolf

[ak474u]

nice thing is, they're not all that popular anymore... Cell phones took the place of the CB in a lot of big trucks, used to be better than a radar detector in most areas, I drove from Dallas to Needles CA in 13 hrs once all because I tuned the CB to the trucker channel but that was the 90's, guess they're still in use, but not as much anymore. I still have one, need a good antenna, mine is goodish, but need a GOOOD one, might needa check out the firestick.

[alpmco]

The CB frequencies are 11 meters. Roughly 27 to 27.5 MHz.

This band is one of the most affected by the sunspot numbers. Right now we have just passed the lowest point of solar activity and the sunspots should peak again sometime 2012. (and start global cooling) ;)
During peak sunspot years, 10 & 11 meters can be open some days for 24 hours. Mostly it is a daytime band. When they are at the peak, the sunspots enable you to work worldwide with power as low as 5 Watts. In the low sunspot years, like now, the band can be closed for days. 10 & 11 meters can open for very short skip by sporadic E propagation during the summer months. Very short skip means contacts as close as 200 miles out to 1000 miles. Sporadic E propagation can suddenly occur without regard to the sunspot numbers.
Pretty much for now the frequencies are dead at night except for ground wave. It is now on the upswing though. IMO Your antenna is the most important component.

[doc762399]

Well i was at costco and they have Cobra CB's on sale. I can pick up two for 100 bucks. They are vehicle mounted ones. I am just looking for vehicle to vehicle com in a wooded are, I live in Washington, lots of woods and hills/mountains. BOV is in the hills. I'm thinkng SHTF no cell or land lines. SO that would leave ham/cb?

[kowalski]

I've been thinking of getting one, but haven't done any reseach on what's a good quality model for the money. Any suggestions in different price ranges?

My dad had one in his car when I was a kid. Other than truckers, or guys like my dad who buy all sorts of gadgets, I don't think they've ever been popular out here in CA. Although at that time before cell phones (1980s) the CA gangs supposedly used them a lot.

[Howlingwolf]

you can mount one on an old pack frame with a motorcycle battery and antenna for comm with the bol ops center.

Wolf

[doc762399]

Not a bad idea

[shovelnose]

i have also been looking at getting a handheld CB for my BOB and a fixed unit with my house. mostly to communicate with my shtf group. are they easily powered from a battery or will i need a more powerful source of power? any input is welcome, im totally dumb when it comes to radios.

[BobS]

CB radios are cheap for a reason. They fail from cheap components and will not take abuse. If you want reliable communications, get a ham Tech ticket and use Motorola, GE, or EFJ commercial equipment programmed for the ham bands. Look at who builds the military personal comm equipment.....it ain't Cobra. Personally, I use Motorola MT1000's on UHF with a base station repeater on the GMRS frequencies (yes-I paid for the licence for full power use-GMRS ain't FRS) and can cover a radius of 35 miles from the repeater with my MT's.

http://www.repeater-builder.com/motorola/genesis/mva/ntn6513-2.jpg

This is not my install, but is the same model equipment I use, installed into my trucks. 99channel MT1000, MVA, full DTMF on the MT and the MVA mic.

There is not enough money to get me to switch to toys.... :)

Best regards,

Bob

[alpmco]

Car to car in the woods ... Figure a mile to four miles. Throw in lots of woods and hills and decrease the range. A well tuned rig and antenna and add range.
A CB on a backpack frame and a 12V battery?? I once had one on a hand truck along with a 120VAC power inverter for other items. How do you plan on mounting an antenna on the backpack? You need a ground plain like a car roof / trunk. Not saying it can't be done. There are marine antennas available for fiberglass boats and cars. Another option is to make a portable antenna from a length of coax. take the coax and strip back 104" of the outside insulator. Here is the tricky part ... roll / peal the braide back over the outside insulator back down the coax. When you are done the one end will have the center conductor of the coax with its insulation exposed for 104" followed by the braid rolled down the coax for roughly 103". You are not cutting the braid off. When completed the ends of the center conductor and braid are the same length from UHF connector the plugs into the radio they just part company 104 inches from the end of the center conductor.
teh center conductor is the radiatign element and the braid is the other end of the diplole. Attaceh a string to the center conductor and hang from a tree. Trim wire to get you r best SWR then crimp an eye to the end so you can tie a string to it to hang in a tree or whever you need to hang it. The higher the better. Obviously not good for mobile.

[doc762399]

What about a cobra 75w SXt all in one CB?
Or would a GMRS radio set be better for vehicle to vehicle com?

[mitunnelrat]

You need a ground plain like a cat roof / trunk. Not saying it can't be done.

This has me curious about something. I see cb antennas mounted on the mirrors of semi trucks, and Humvee's have brackets at the rear of the vehicle.

Due to this I planned on getting two 102" antennas and mounting them at the rear of my Bronco on the tire rack mounting brackets (I'd move the lower bracket to the driver's side of the vehicle since I don't have the tire rack itself).

All of my research is indicating that dual 102" rig is the best antenna setup for a CB. I know your not saying that it can't be done without a ground plane, so how much do I stand to lose mounting my antennas like this? Is there a way to figure that out? The location is more convenient than my roof and also keeps them off my bumper.

[ak474u]

i want to mount one to the roof rack on my truck and be able to lay it flat while not in use and be able to lock it in the up position when needed.

[alpmco]

Your vehicle is the ground plane.
In theory if you mount an antenna on the left rear corner your greatest range will be toward the right front corner of the vehicle. If you mount it in the middle of the roof it would be equal radiation in all directions.
Center roof of a Suburban type vehicle or station wagon or van is the prime position for mobile but never ty to park in covered parking garages!
Dual antennas will make the radiation pattern bi directional. If you mount the whips less than a 1/4 wavelength apart, around 104", they will radiate out in to the left and right of the vehicle. If you mount them more they will radiate forward and backward. That is in theory. Other factors such as vehicle shape fits in too. You don't want the sheet metal blocking the antenna.

[RichieRiot]

problem i see with ham is the time & expense for the whole setup. I had a CB from about 15 years ago and just put it in my van with only about $30 in parts that i needed. In a few hours I had it hooked up and running. I see it as better than nothing at all should all the phones go out. Plus I don't need a license & they are very easy to use.

[dblnaught]

Skip land!!

[mndless]

There is a LOT of value in a CB radio, or any alternative type of communication. For example..

Lets say you have a locallized SHTF event... pick one... local chemical plant fire... tornado... local plant goes up in flames... anything will do...

What will happen is EVERYBODY in your area will get on their cell phones trying to reach their family, kids, etc... the cell towers are jambed and your calls will not go through....

Hand held radio, CB... anything, will work for reaching your loved ones... my kids carry these in the backpacks at school...

Cobra Radios (http://cgi.ebay.com/4-Walkie-Talkies-10-Mile-Two-Way-Vacation-Radios-VOX-NR_W0QQitemZ180312093943QQcmdZViewItemQQptZ2_Way_R adios_FRS?hash=item180312093943&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=72%3A1234%7C66%3A2%7C65%3A12%7C39%3A1%7C 240%3A1318%7C301%3A0%7C293%3A1%7C294%3A50)

My instructions to them... if anything happens out of the ordinary... turn them on and just listen for me...

Probably only a mile or two of range where I live... but enough for me to tell them to get there butts out of school and come to the parking lot....

But... any non cell phone backup communication is highly advised.....


Yes, yes... BobS... I will upgrade from the Cobra... but with all things, one step at a time... :D

[alpmco]

problem i see with ham is the time & expense for the whole setup.
Boy ain't this true!
So far, Since the end of October, I have about $2,000 into my HF setup! And I haven't even got the antenna up yet!!!!
A friend gave me a Titan DX multi band which runs about $400.00 new plus shipping. That has saved me a bunch but in will eventually want other antennas that I can use on the go. The Titan DX is a non-mobile 21' tall vertical base antenna. Well anything is mobile but it woudl be a pain in a bug out situation. Dipoles fold much easier and pack easier.

[Tdale]

just my 0.02, but i think you would get more use out of a UHF radio using the FRS/GMRS bands. Personally I have a few Puxing 888 Ham radios, 80 bucks shipped http://www.409shop.com/409shop_product.php?id=103076 they are great and xmit over a long didtance. I can talk to my wife over 10 miles away, much further if we use a local GMRS repeater. I have an amateur radio license, but she dosnt, so we stick to the FRS/GMRS frequencies.

I added a vehicle antenna for the radios, i'm sure our coverage distance would be less if we were using the stock rubber ducky.

the UHF puxing radios will operate from 400 to 470mhz which includes the FRS and GMRS frequencies. Or you can get the VHF radio version which covers from 136 to 174 mhz, but you would need an amateur radio license to legally operate on the 2 meter band.