Cb?

[kylltz]

I have a 89 wrangler and my dad had it before me. He was the one to customized it. The only thing I hate is he has this red cb antenna on the rear on the passenger side. 4ft in the air and still the top broke off Its made of fiberglass so naturally it sucks when u touch it. I asked my dad what to do and he said to replace it. If I did what type should it be made out of. And my true question was does ANYONE STILL use CB radios? Thanks

 

[Jared]

In south east Texas a CB comes in handy. Get rid of the fiberglass and get a stainless antenna. You will want to put a spring on it. We use what's called a stainless 102. Its 102 inches. Also known as a whip. Add that to a tuned up cobra 25 with 400 Watt leaniard and you can really reach out and touch someone

 

[steady.foot]

Most of the people i wheel with have a cb. It comes in handy at times.
Jared. What chanel do you use? With 400 watts i should be able to hear you up hear in Maine.

 

[superj]

Isn't it illegal to put a linear amplifier on a cb though? Like the FCC will come and visit you and give you a fine?

 

[JPNinPA]

I have a 89 wrangler and my dad had it before me. He was the one to customized it. The only thing I hate is he has this red cb antenna on the rear on the passenger side. 4ft in the air and still the top broke off Its made of fiberglass so naturally it sucks when u touch it. I asked my dad what to do and he said to replace it. If I did what type should it be made out of. And my true question was does ANYONE STILL use CB radios? Thanks

Many ORV parks or Jeep groups require a CB. Firestick II FS are good antennas. Three foot off the rear tail light mount is common. And with a HD spring.
What ever you do be sure to tune and check the system out prior to transmitting. If the CB is older it 70-80's it may lack the protection circuits to keep from damaging the radio if the antenna is not tuned.

Here is some good reading. If you want or need help just ask.

Tech-Docs Index


Many Jeep groups or parks frown on the whips.

 

[Jared]

I'm not sure if they are illegal to possess in Texas however u can't buy them legally. I doubt it will reach main. I have reached out 45 or 50 miles before but the person picking me up wad on a base station. Its good for 20 miles if there CB is tuned up also.

 

[Jared]

Universal channel n Texas is 19 but most of us run ch 8

 

[kylltz]

Thanks guys but not really useful at least the tune parts. Its not in that I have a brand new cobra handy mount thing. But one other question. When I installed the cobra thing I went to the back of my jeep where it comes in from the antenna and I was trying to make it look newer but i had no idea that it call for a special kind of cable. Is there any sites out there for cb cables or wires?

 

[JPNinPA]

CB Radios & CB Antennas - Cobra, Uniden, Wilson, K40 & Firestik

Most truck stops and travel centers have them. Personally RG8 or called Mini-8 for the wire.
First if you have any antenna you will receive. If your near a highway you will hear some chatter. Channel 19.
Before you try to transmit use a multimeter for verify a few things. If you could follow the link you will be good. If not ask questions and I'll try to answer asap.
These items are crucial to keep from damaging the radio and to have a good time. Do it once.

Testing Continuity -- 1996 Firestik&#174 Antenna Company

 

[Jared]

The cable is called a coax. Don't opt out for a cheap one either because it will make a difference. U can get them at radio shack. (Not sure if u even have radio shacks). Once u get it all hooked up run it through an SWR meter to see if its right

 

[TerryMason]

I'd say that it depends on what you're using your CB for. I have no interest in talking on a CB on the highway - I only want it for trail rides, and really only need 2 or 3 miles max (normally I just need to reach the first and last Jeep in my group).

I have a small (2 foot) antenna mounted on the spare tire that just clears the roof. Works great for what I want.

The tall fiberglass antennas will break, and the metal whip antennas will do just that - whip the snot out of you and your Jeep.

 

[jfrabat]

I run both CB (with a 40W amplifier) and 2m HAM radio. Both antennas stick over the roof of the Jeep; the CB one is fiberglass and the 2m one is steel. The fiberglass one does not swing as much, but it has some scrape marks up top from dragging in parking lots. I would go with fiberglass, but use a quick connector, and simpli store it inside the Jeep when you are not using it. I am considering getting a quarter wave antenna for my 2M radio as well (and keep the half wave antenna in the Jeep for when I need to reach out to someone).

 

[Weylyn]

If you plan to use it for trail rides, any firestick will do. I personally use a 4 ft wilson 2000. Its a center load whip antenna. I run a Galaxy 33 that has been converted to 11 meter or CB band. I will say on the Linear, aka kicker, they are illegal in the 11 meter band. Yur radio is set at 4 watts and does fine in proper use. Use a Mini 8 cable, you can get this at truck stops, Radio Shacks, ebay. Make sure you have the SWRs set as close to 1:1. I also run a all mode Ham radio. Yeasu FT100D. With the few people I have ran trails with, most ran CB's and if we had a major accident, yes they do happen, a ham operator can easily reach help when cells phones are with no signal. Oh and 400 watts, if skip is going well, Maine is easily reached. I have spoken to Maine from California many times with a CB. I only pointed out that Linears are illegal for those who are not sure.

 

[Jared]

Ive seen a lot of radios tuned up and on some big linears. I've never seen one talk like that.

 

[jfrabat]

Ive seen a lot of radios tuned up and on some big linears. I've never seen one talk like that.

I have talked to truckers in FL and GA on good days...

 

[Turbogus]

"Betty" has been running a Uniden 538W with a Palomar 250 brick and the stainless 102" whip and stainless steel spring. Has to be stainless in these parts on account of the PacNW climate. If the whip ever starts flogging "Betty" I've just tied it down with non conductive line. In Oregon when I was OTR we used Ch. 17 for east-west traffic and 19 for north-south traffic. Since the FCC ruling about maximum output wattage on 11 meter radios is only 4 watts, but for trail ride with friends over 5 miles this is normally adequate. When running an amp one has to make certain the they don't overdrive it. The 250 I run will allow 4W input max. otherwise it'll burn up. So running a "peaked and tuned up" radio isn't always a good idea to join together unless your running a 800W+ amp that will allow more input wattage. However your milage may vary.