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CB radio help

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CB radio help
I'm not sure as Sasquach mentioned about a ground plane versus a non ground plane antenna...........I only knew of one choice. Might be there is now some difference.
The ground plane theory is about what you have around your antenna to enhance it. Base Station antenna's with there tall vertical mast & horizontal legs are ground plane antennas at there very best.
4 foot is fine as long as the tip is a few inches higher than the roof..........and the 18' of cable I will correct myself is actually a 1/2 wave as my old memory now tells me that 36' is a full wave length at 11 meters. In either case wrap up the excess in the rear no kinks and you will be fine.
 
So what do you guys think of the kit they offer on that website?

CB Radio System for CJ YJ and TJ Jeeps

Seems like a lot of money, but is it? Would I need anything else or is that kit complete? Last weekend I went out with about 20 jeeps and everyone seemed to have a CB but me. The trail wasn't all obstacles and it was pretty clear at some points. I found myself sitting around by myself in the woods without knowing what was going on in front of me or behind me. I would really like to get a set-up. Thanks for the help. :chug:
 
diddy, Seems OK, a 5' antenna mounted above the tail light will not go in a garage too well if that's any concideration?

IO, A guy in my desert crew runs a no ground plane antenna and coax on his TJ and swears by it.
 
Sasquach said:
diddy, Seems OK, a 5' antenna mounted above the tail light will not go in a garage too well if that's any concideration?
Click to expand...

Good point. The Jeep barely fits in the garage right now after the lift. But, are these types of antenna flexible or easily removable so I could still park the jeep in the garage? :confused: I don't want to overly complicate things as it is just for use on the trails, but I don't want to cheap out to the point where it doesn't work well.
 
Ok I just did a little research...........and there is some use factors for a non-ground plane antenna.
See the article and make a choice.

:)
 
OK Lets try this again...........and see if this file will load up on the use of non Ground plane antenna's.

:chug:
 

Attachments

They do have quick disconnects for the antenna that you can take off and store.
 
Interesting PDF, it says mounting a GP antenna on the tire rack is a no-no. and a NGP antenna mounted to the tire carrier needs to be grounded?:confused:

you need a 3'x3' steel surface to mount to. This puts it right in the center of the hood?:D
 
Hey old buddy, did anyone say this was going to be easy?

In a technical since yes that nice flat piece of steel is great & grounds are always important. If you have steel bows in your top, ground them to your radio, can't hurt.

On my 65 Jeep I have a canvas top and used like I said a pair of 102" stainless co-phased whips mounted at the rear corners above the tail lights.
Co-phasing is two antennas with separate coax joined together electrically at the harness to the radio.
Mine has a steel body with canvas and the radio worked fine.

If I was you I would just do what you said before and mount it at the spare tire. Try it for a while and if it fits your needs for range and clarity your good to go. If you don't like it you can make adjustments in the hardware or antenna placement.

The difference between a good talking mobile and a average one is just that little extra bit of range both on the transmit & receive that allows you to talk with someone that others in your group can't even hear!
That is the only real test.
 
I have a 4' FireStik that I used to have mounted on the rear of the side, behind the fender flare with a ball and spring mount. Besides the connection catching all the road dirt, my reception was poor when my hardtop was on. I've since made a mount that attaches behind my tailight (Q-tec sells a similar product) and it works much better.

IO - Since I somehow lost my small Midland CB, I bought the Cobra 19 you linked to and it seems to work fine but haven't used it near what I did the other one. Radio Shack carries them and so does Walmart. And thanks for that link because I've been lookin' for a small exterior pa speaker to replace my old Johnson one I had mounted under my battery on the fender, and it had one shown for $17.
 
I have asked BusaDave before and got no reply but he has his mounted on the front bumper if I recall, looks a bit odd but may perform better? Busa you there?
 
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Radio wise I would suggest something along the lines of a Cobra 25.Its a quality unit with minimal features. I would steer clear of the smaller units like the 19 and that all in 1 handset type they make unless your really only interested in talking to people rite around you.
A peak and tune by a "reputable" shop is a good investment and will increase your transmit and receive distance but read on...
Any CB radio is only as good as the antenna system you feed it with.This includes the coax cable.Go for a good name brand antenna like Firestik or Wilson and only use a good quality coax cable such as Belden or Times Microwave.
In choosing an antenna theres almost always compromises to be made,a vehicle like a Jeep only makes it worse...especially if you plan on wheeling thru the woods with it.Generally speaking an antenna should be top dead center of its ground plane,which in this case is your vehicle.Not so easy on most Jeeps so you must compromise.There are however several other places to mount them on a Jeep so Id say just pick one that looks best to you and will give a good ground and order an antenna tall enough that its loading coil is clearly above the roof but not way above if its going to be used on trails with tree limbs.All antennas minus the 102 whip have some type of coil that helps make up the length needed to talk on 11 meter CB.Even a 102 whip will usually get a better swr match when used with a spring because 102 is actually 6 inches short of optimum for CB,but thats a topic for another day.My suggestion for this application would be a top loaded fiberglass whip.
A ball mount and a heavy duty spring when installed properly and in a good spot will give you a very sturdy mounting point and some extra flexibility to your antenna system.
SWR's...yes they need to be set,and meters can be purchased very reasonably.
 
I have a Cobra Nightwatch 29 CB mounted in my center console with a Mic connection in my dash and an external speaker under the dash. This keeps me from messing with the radio but I can hear everything and the mic is easy to grab. I also am a firm believer of the 102" whip, mine is mounted on the right rear corner where the spare tire bump stop would normally be. The set-up works great and I pick up a lot more people than my buddies ever do.
 
So I want a simple CB radio that has that classic look to it. I have read some reviews but the CB topic is confusing. There are so many models and features that I don't understand. As I want something simple, I am going to keep my question simple. Which Cobra CB should I get?

I was looking at this Cobra 21 LTD Classic:
Cobra 21 Ltd CLASSIC CB Radio ~ Cobra CB Radio ++ MINT ~ Used One Time for Test | eBay

Cobra 25 LTD Classic
Cobra 25LTD Classic AM Deluxe Mobile CB

Cobra 29 LTD Classic:
Cobra 29 LTD Classic 40-Channel Professional CB Radio

Is there anything to worry about with buying something like this out of the box, like with that Ebay add? I have read some good reviews about that Cobra 21, which is why I ask.
 
diddy,
don't try to over think your choice, any radio will work fine , just do a little research in your price range...........used I would stay away from unless there is a warranty since a new one is under a $100 bucks. Plenty of choices for antennas have already been talked about.
 
I have the Cobra 29LTD Army, it has more knobs than I know how to use correctly but it's not rocket science so I'll figure them out. As I said earlier I went with a 48" firestick mounted on my tire carrier with an 18' Wilson cable. I only have one trip with it but others in my group said they received transmisions like I was right next to them when they were not in sight. I did buy a Radio Shack SWR meter to tune the adjustable tip antenna, the Radio Shack meter is highly rated for the cost which was $49 if memory serves but the Cobra radio does have a built in meter so not entirely neccesary to buy. 217mxIaRR7L._SL500_AA300_.webp
 
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I have been looking at SWR meters and what they do, like for tuning and antenna length depending on the channel selected. Seems complicated. I think I might need to ask some buddies to help me install it when I get it. Some websites say that if things aren't tuned correctly I could kill the radio. Not good.
 
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