Fulltimer

My base radio is a Galaxy DX-2547. One of only 2 true CB base radios made. It has been modified so that it covers all of the 11 meter band. On SSB, with 900 watts, I have talked all over Europe with it. But this is not really on topic.

The radio you want to mount in your truck just depends on what you want to be able to do with it. For trail use only a cheap radio would work just fine. I know some guys that use a hand held CB with a short rubber antenna for trail use. It does just fine. The receive quality will suffer in a cheap radio but that may be okay with you for what you want.

Terry

My base:


My mobile: Shown on what would be channel 96 if there was such a thing. Up close to 10 meters.

GovernmentMotorSuck

One of the most important parts of a CB is the antenna. Stainless Steel 102" whip is great for getting out there and a good magent unit like a Wilson 1000 is the best out there. Any Wilson antenna and Good coax cable like RG-8X will result in low SWR (standing wave ratio-A BIG MUST). you want 1.5 or lower. If it's above 1.5 it could burn out your radio due to the fact that the antenna is not matched to the radio.
I have a SS 102" whip with my Ranger VR-9000 swinging 50 watts w/15' coax results in almost near 0 swr which is Awesome SWR.
I can walk the dog and kick the cat and get out there in DX land. Break Break.

Check out Bells CB Radio Youtube videos.
http://www.bellscb.com/


http://www.youtube.com/user/bellscb?feature=watch

Hunttman01

I went with the cheap radio (cobra 19) and 2 ft dual antennas. Looking to upgrade this summer but It's a start.

sargeek1975

Ok guys.........OP here........lol

I think I got lost somewhere in the middle of page 2!!!!!!


Here's the deal:

I'm Active Duty Navy and currently don't have a permanent home......so a home set up ham radio isn't for me right now.

Flash: I like the way yours is mounted, but with my center console I could have never done the same.


As for the comment of a CB only reaching a couple miles down the road and only being good for convoy/group trips/driving: I have some Uniden walkie talkie type radios that I use for that. They get awesome reception well past two miles on a nice flat road with no obstructions/hills........so I can't see how a CB wouldn't reach further than that. If that's the case then it looks like I might ditch the idea all together of getting a CB.

I wouldn't mind a huge antenna........but it would need to be removable.


I understand that this isn't something I can throw 200 bucks and be happy; I get that. I'm willing to pay a little to get what I want. But if I can't get everything necessary (CB, antenna and nick nacks for installing it) for 1,000 or less I might again just scrap the idea completely.






I'm looking for something that I can reach out 10+ miles (at least) on flat ground with no obstructions. Can that be done with a CB setup without going crazy? Again; I have zero CB experience and will be learning as I go.

Hunttman01

Yes you can get that kind of range, but not legally. The fcc has very strict rules.

sargeek1975

well damn...........

amick218

I doubt theses laws are enforced....

kd5rcx

Amick, Don't know who you were responding to.... As far as running power or out of band: not unless you run a poor antennae, ungrounded, or a nasty poorly tuned rig that bleeds all over your neighbors electronics ( or interfere with businesses). Ham bands, commercial bands, or government bands: yes.

One night about 1 am I was sittin' in my car, talkin to a friend on sideband and needed a little more juice. I flipped on my amp, just a little 200 watt, without thinking. About 5 minutes later my wife of the time came out the front door. "What the hl are you doing?" "I forgot! I'm sorry!" "The dog's barkin', the baby's crying, and Brandon fell out of the bed!" I came over the stereo next to the bed!

kd5rcx

Sargeek, if you don't mind dual antennas you can make your signal more directional out the front and back of the vehicle without more wattage. That's with Properly tuned antennas. And GovernmentMotor is right. As I said before, a $1000 radio and a poor antenna won't get you far. Good grounding for the radio and antenna is a must, and a properly tuned antenna is also a must. 1/4 wave magnet mount antennas will let you talk the first mile, maybe two. A 5/8 wave, properly mounted, grounded, and tuned will yield far better results.

And there's gobs of mobile hams. If you create a good rapport (had to look that one up) with a local ham they might even loan you a rig and antenna. But you can definitely get started for under $200, thought it might be a used setup.

A ham in Desoto County, Mississippi was carrying on a QSO(conversation) with somebody with a weird callsign. It was in morse code and it was on the 160 meter band. The contact asked his QTH ( where he was ). After about 15 minutes an Apache circled the yard. His contact was an Apache pilot! Remember, morse code is no longer required, but it has it's perks!

And the face-plates of some radios can be removed so the radio itself can be placed under the seat, while the face-plate can be mounted anywhere convenient!

And outbanders: Pleeeeze consider getting your licence. Pleeeeze don't talk on the ham bands unless you do. It's a great experience! EVERY band acts differently. Every band is a different experience. And you can talk on almost all ham frequencies legally up to 1500 watts! Book, with answers, test, radio, and antenna (some of you have the last two already

http://www.ac6v.com/frequencies.htm
http://www.arrl.org/images/view//Reg...eb_29_2012.jpg

Flash!

The handheld FRS/GMRS radios can transmit 5 watts on the GMRS channels. Technically, you're supposed to have a license to use the GMRS channels or transmit more than 0.5 watts on the shared channels, but even fewer people follow that requirement than follow CB requirements. Legal CB radios are limited to 4 watts. There are lots of other factors of course, like antenna quality and frequency used, but ultimately the FRS/GMRS handhelds put out more power.

I put my CB in strictly for communicating out in the woods on the trails. Everyone here uses CB so it was it was an easy choice. I'd like to eventually put an amp on it (ideally something that was easy to turn on/off and with multiple power levels) just for more reach if I need it, but it accomplishes 99% of what I need at 4 watts just fine.

For what you're looking to accomplish it really sounds like you might be best off getting your HAM ticket and setting up a real radio. A lot of those radios have removable faceplates so you have a lot more flexibility mounting them.