CB Radios
 

Anyone have one in their car? Anyone use one when road tripping?



I have one, and am thinking of mounting it in my car for a roadtrip.....



Someone told me that the truckers are pretty active in terms of reporting police activity and traffic. Anyone know if this is true?

i had one in my 75. i dont have one in any of my current vehicles. i do know that truckers still use them, and do try to help point out the police.

my dad used to have a ham radio in his car. he plans to put one in his scout when i get it done.

CB radios are good for more than just finding where the police are hiding. You also hear about traffic conditions. Plus a bunch of truckers cussing up a storm. I could do without that part.

I haven't driven with one in years, but when I did, it was much, much more effective than any radar detector. And as a bonus, if the cop sees a CB radio in your car, it's not an automatic ticket. They stick it to you if you have a radar detector, because in their eyes, you are obviously trying to break the law.

Back in their heyday (mid 70's)...truckers did inform each other of police trap locations (known as "bears"). Traffic and weather information was also part of the chit chat, although modern technology (cell phones, satellite radio, GPS) has probably replaced much of that.

I suspect truckers were grateful that the CB craze diminished among us regular folk, as we clogged their channels with a bunch of drivel, while trying to emulate truckers by using their CB buzz words... :rolleyes:

My dad had a couple of CB radios when I was a teen...we mostly listened on the road rather than talk.

You could spend a pretty penny on a CB radio if you felt the need, and I cringe today thinking about that magnetic base 48 inch-long CB antenna planted on the trunk lip my dad's pristine 280SE. :(

I have old Cobra CB that I installed in my 280CE for a day or so. There was alot of activity on it still, most all were truckers....

I had a CB radio license when it was an FCC requirement. It was very helpful in smoking out the speed traps and rolling patrol; however, I found listing to it for too long would kind of get it stuck in your head, even in your dreams. I called it the CB syndrome. Like hearing the "get-er done" guy 24-7. Now a days I don't use one and pretty much just stick to the speed limit.

SSB, amp and a firestick . . . those were the days.

And don’t forget the (must have) “Raspberry” Roger Beep. :D

I still have a Cobra 21 (circa 1976ish) with a sub mounted frequency counter (made damn sure my “Breaker 1-9” was a break on 27.185) and a nice loud raspberry roger beep, on a shelf around here somewhere.

May have to dig it out after all this. Kids would have a blast with it.

- Shelby

Full 5W output Cobra, I'll bet. Now they are all 5W input, and about 4W output.

I started with a Royce 23 channel back in 1978. I still remember my license call sign KAHA 5741 because you had to say it all the time and it was a huge PITA! As I remember, traveling with it was quite a pain too because you had to listen intently to it all the time and try to make sense of the constant noise.

Around here, the guys use them for hunting communication and for vehicle to vehicle when traveling in a group. A lot of guys run linear amps too and if they transmit while passing by your house, the voice will come blasting right through the TV!

I may get another one some day. Definitely SSB!

I remember having one, but couldn’t remember what it was to save my life. Don’t recall ever really using it either. Everyone had their “handle” though.
I was at one time or another: Solo Pony. Shiney Hiney. AvGirl. …

I remember a base unit we had at an airport in AZ. Some big thing with I think it was called a Moon Raker 8 antenna that could be rotated. (??)
And something about being able to hear/talk a zillion miles in the evenings with something called “skip”. Is that right?

Wasn’t Royce the top-o-the-line back then? Cobras and I think Midland (?) were pretty popular too.

Never got into the side band stuff. By then I was flying airplanes and got to (had to) play with VHF/UHF communications.
(and a whole 'nuther set of FCC rules to play by :rolleyes: )


- Shelby

SSB is helpful for a single group, but otherwise nearly useless. I assume that the new radios automatically lock on the signal, but in the before time, it was fun to turn the tuning dial and change the voice pitch of the sender.

I didn't fully understand until twenty years later, while in school studying Fourier transforms and other related mathematical signal analysis, why the tuning dial should change the pitch.

Yep, Midland was very popular and well-made. I had an old one, made in the early seventies, which burned up in a garage fire just a few years ago. 23 channel, crystal controlled, full 5W output. You can't buy a 5W output CB transmitter today (legally).

Just went and found the old Cobra 21 in a box. :D
An old mag mount antenna that I have no idea where it came from. :confused:
(I was a big long steel whip on a bumper or roll bar spring girl myself.)
Freq counter still attached.
Wow…memories.

Have to fire it up and check if the roger beep (I loved the Raspberry one) still works.
I used to drive folks nuts with that thing. :D

- Shelby

I guess it’s time for me to be 10 - 7.
Or is it “10-10 on the side” ?

That’s two of maybe 4 that I may still recall ever using.


Cheers and good night all -

Shelby