Recommend a good CB

[TacticalDoc]

I'm looking for a good CB for my 2001 Silverado and like the Cobra 29

Three questions:
1. does it need to get tuned and is it worth 100 to 150 bucks to do it?
2. what Coax and antenna?
3. Where should I mount the antenna on my truck? ....see pictures below

I was thinking on the rear fender or in one of the holes along side of my fender.

http://i41.tinypic.com/x1eej9.jpg
http://i40.tinypic.com/5oxawi.jpg
http://i43.tinypic.com/2nbyu6p.jpg
http://i42.tinypic.com/2wrdgs7.jpg
http://i41.tinypic.com/9hmhkj.jpg


sorry but tried 2x to down load pictures ... its not working when I use add reply

 

[m16ty]

I've always been partial to a Cobra 29. I also had a Cobra 148 that I liked but unless you want sideband I'd go with the 29.

 

[TacticalDoc]

I've always been partial to a Cobra 29. I also had a Cobra 148 that I liked but unless you want sideband I'd go with the 29.

LX or LTD?

 

[Psywarrior]

If you are getting a Cobra, go with the 29 LTD and then take it to a CB shop. Have them put in big finals and peak and tune it.

As some one that uses CB's every day and actually depends on them, I recommend Ranger brand radios. They come with the big finals already in. ALWAYS have any new radio peaked and tuned. They get knocked out of whack during shipping and need to be fine tuned.

One that I am using right now (because it was a Christmas present from my lady) is the new Cobra with the digital display. It is an excellent radio with great range. It also has built in weather band and weather alert which would be great to have in your pickup. Mine is the 50th Anniversary edition, but the 29 LX is the same thing without the 50th logo. I was actually really impressed with the performance of this radio.

Basically, it all depends on what your objective is. The 29LTD is the workhorse of the industry taking on many modifications for improved performance. The Rangers are the Ferari's of the industry having tons of power but limited to add ons. The 29LX is the cadillac in that has some features and looks really great, but is not the cross country monster of the Ranger or modified LTD.

Finally, price for performance, the 29LX is probably your best bet. The rangers are high dollar, the LTD is cheap, but needs add ons to really perform and the LX is great, but not extreme right out of the box.

As for the Antenna, you want to have it as centered as possible. Use an 18' coax and properly adjust your SWR. If you have a topper or rack, mount the antenna to the front center of the topper or rack. If not, centered on the front of the bed (unless you have something else in the way). Centered on a steel tool box is also good. If you cant do that, check your post pockets. Some trucks have a 1/2" hole in the bottom of the stake pocket. That is the right size for an antenna stud. Install the stud in the pocket, run your coax up the inside wall of the bed and mount your antenna on the stud. Make absolutely sure you have the silicon washer properly installed to not short out the antenna or the SWR will fry your transmitter.

 

[quickfarms]

Suscribed

 

[deuceaid]

Ditto on Cobra and antenna, also the longer the antenna the better, the shorter coiled firestixs and such cut down on the range of the antenna.

 

[RedbeardTheZombieHunter]

When it comes to the antenna and coax, The 5 foot firestick has always been a great antenna and usually has a good SWR match without even trimming it. They can take up to and over 500 watts transmit power and aren't too horribly expensive. As for the coax, the best bet if you're not running a foot warmer (linear amplifier) would be RG-Mini-8 and make sure your length is in 3-foot increments, I.E. 3, 6, 9, 12, or 15 feet. As Psywarrior said, make sure your center conductor and antenna aren't shorted to ground or the finals in the radio will fizzle. Some antennas from Radio Shack come with the load coil shorted from the factory that was intended to keep the radio from transmitting farther than the old 3-mile FCC mandated limit. Anytime you set up a tranciever antenna, check it with a VOM to make sure you're not shorted out. I have an older Cobra 148 GTL, peaked, tweaked, and frequed. One of these days I'll get around to dusting it off and getting it re-tuned, but it's a great radio and it's talked half way around the world on many occasions.

 

[M813A1]

If you like a Good radio the Galaxy series is a good radio but are a bit pricey !! As said above the Cobra radios are a Good and Dependable series of radio. Any of the Wilson brand antennas are good . Some of the best antennas are just a plane stainless steel whip antenna about 110" long . Get a good quality coax to give you good reception and transmitting. !! I myself have a Galaxy D66 that is peaked and tuned with a 400 watt linear on it so I know it will reach out and touch someone !! Being here in OKC I can talk with friends down in FLA wityh my radio . Look into a good SWR Meter so you can get the lowest SWR reading 1.1 to 1 is the best you get bench tested but anything below 1.5 to 1 is very good. If you have your radio peaked and tuner at a Good truckstop radio shop they can also recommend a antenna and set it up and tune your radio for you .. Good Luck

 

[TacticalDoc]

WOW!!! I have no idea about half the things you're saying...tuned, coax and SWR...

I just wanted a good CB under 300 bucks.

 

[islandguydon]

I agree with DA and others, I recommend the Cobra 29 with dual antennas. The picture sux sorry about that but you get the picture. Cant go wrong for under $300.00

 

[Marlboro]

Duel antennas whippin in the wind lord there ain't a gear jammer that i can't tune innn. Lol had to do it.. Great thread tho.

 

[eagle4g63]

islandguydon:

Are those dual antennas military or civi?....they look great on there. Also can you hear your cb in the truck driving or do you have it integrated into something? I am installing a vic-1 this weekend in my deuce and have been wanting to install a cb for when I am out on the highway.

 

[doskiez]

I have a cobra 29 lx lcd in my truck with a high power final and a good tune. It is a great radio and aside from having to replace the screen I really haven't had any problems with it. I like the radio a lot. The other radio I like is an old midland from the 70's but that one belongs to my dad. I just have a few tips for the install.
use the right coax 18ft single or 75ohm co phase for dual antennas
The higher your antennas and closer to the center they are the better your range.
if you are not mounting the antwnnas directly to the metal body af the truck then make sure your mounting location is well grounded. I have mine mounted to a steel headache rack that is bolted to the truck bed and has a seperate grounding strap to the frame

 

[doskiez]

I have a cobra 29 lx lcd in my truck with a high power final and a good tune. It is a great radio and aside from having to replace the screen I really haven't had any problems with it. I like the radio a lot. The other radio I like is an old midland from the 70's but that one belongs to my dad. I just have a few tips for the install.
use the right coax 18ft single or 75ohm co phase for dual antennas
The higher your antennas and closer to the center they are the better your range.
if you are not mounting the antwnnas directly to the metal body af the truck then make sure your mounting location is well grounded. I have mine mounted to a steel headache rack that is bolted to the truck bed and has a seperate grounding strap to the frame
Also, if going with a fiberglass antenna look for one that is tuneable by way of a small steel or brass antenna that slides in and out of the top. That way if you have to change coax or make a mistake while tuning you can just readjust and you wont have to throw the antennas away because you trimmed too much wire

 

[ARYankee]

I just bought the same CB as islandguydon has pictured. I got it due to the Army edition and the built in SWR. I'm mounting it in my M1009 and using an AB558 base with MS-116, 117, 118.

 

[deuceaid]

Coax, the wire hooking the radio to the antenna, differnt kinds have different signal loss rated in db (decibels of loss per 100 ft) remember every 3 db of loss cuts Your signal in half. You get what You pay for.

Antennas , also have a db rating same rule applies a 3 db antenna should have twice the distance over a 0 db ( or unity) antenna.

Tuning, all radios need to be tuned at least once, but in the cb realm tuning- peaking-tweaking, means upping the power output as much as possible before too much distortion of the signal.

SWR-- standing wave ratio........a ratio comparing the amount of power transmitted by the antenna, and the amount of power which is reflected by the antenna back down to the radio. This is directly affected by the match of the length of the antenna to the frequency that is being transmited on. A poorly matched antenna is like a brick wall the power of the wave bounces off of it ,,, a better tuned antenna is like a sloping beach, that lets the power of the wave reach out as far as it can. The swr can best be tuned by antenna length , but other thing effect it too, such a capacitance and inductors etc,,, but thats more for ham radio.

 

[islandguydon]

islandguydon:

Are those dual antennas military or civi?....they look great on there. Also can you hear your cb in the truck driving or do you have it integrated into something? I am installing a vic-1 this weekend in my deuce and have been wanting to install a cb for when I am out on the highway.

I ordered off Epay: COBRA 29 LTD CLASSIC ARMY CUSTOM CB RADIO,"NEW IN BOX"PEAK/TUNED,CONNEX ECHO,TALKBCK & SWING KIT.
The dual antennas came with the package for $265.00


I like this seller he is an expert and fine tunes every radio for max effect. What I did to get the Hi & Low frequency's the whip is adjustable by 3', The drivers side is (LOW) and the passenger side is (HI) This seems to work well. I could not find the meter to check it but I was talking down to exit 44 and I am at exit 92. I recommend this set up to anyone. It's a bit pricey but well worth the money.

 

[eagle4g63]

Thanks.

 

[oilcan]

For the budget-minded folks... Don't forget to poke around yard sales and flea markets. Most of my CB radios were $5 and under, and almost all of them work just fine. The others that aren't an easy fix go into the parts pile.

One thing about Ranger/RCi - I really like mine, but they do NOT deal with vibration or harsh conditions very well. Dump truck drivers curse them because the cold-solders tend to pop loose. (My RCi 2900 had to be worked on several times to get all the bugs out)

 

[goatijoe]

if you want to get out and be herd get a 102in stanless wip. but if you dont want a wip that long go for a wilson 3000 to a 5000 loaded wip they are about 60 bucks but they are worth every penny . as far as a radio ive had them all cobra 29 is a good cheeper radio and will work great out of the box but get it tuned and peeked at the cb shop and it will make a world of diffrence. ive had the galaxy and the thing just quit. but the best radio is get a gen. lee or a conex and have them tuned peaked and modified i have talked over 100 miles on the gen. lee with just a loaded magnetic base wilson. but make sure you get your swr set the lower the better if you dont you just wasted a radio it will burn the finals up inside if you dont.
but that just my