Uniden Bearcat 880

I got one of these radios last year with Pilot points. I like this radio, it is not an audio powerhouse but I think it gets out and receives as well as my Uniden pc68 and i get good audio reports from other drivers. The best thing is to get a good antenna and coax to make this radio perform the best it can.

 

Sure hope it last longer than my Uniden PC-68 Elite. Purchased in the middle of July, 2014 installed, tuned and was the best working CB I ever had. Last one was a Galaxy 959. it only lasted a few weeks also. The Uniden was loud, strong, clear with the Hustler antenna system. Finally though I had found a good one. 6 weeks later, no modulation, no dead key swing, no xmit...... Rec's great. Another $100 down the drain. Thinking of switching to the MURS fm system, but there are not alot of people using them...
Best of luck with the Bearcat...

 

I have a 980, which is the sideband version, and I love it. Don't expect it to do 50W and 200 channels, though. Just get your mic gain set up (with a good mic), and it will sound really good.

If you feel you just have to have more power, go outboard.

 

For those 2 radios to die in such short time tells me that something else is your problem. Like your antenna system may have a high SWR. Are you running an amp with a peaked radio?

 

The downside of doing a "tweak and peak" to your radio... you burn out the finals.

The output transistor on these radios is designed for 5 Watts. Yes, it's possible to drive it harder, and it will output more than 5W, but such operation will kill it.

A friend of mine had a 6 cell MagLite, and stuck a bulb for a 5 cell in it. Yes, it was insanely bright. It didn't last very long, though.

 

I tried to add a 700wt amp to a bc880 and the amp is no longer working. The radio works great still and I get amazing reach and talking ability. I have the weather band warning system activated so it's nice when you know severe weather is in the area. I just wish this didn't fry my amp and I have no idea who or what would fix it.

 

I had the 980. Really nice radio, to run at stock levels. Very finicky about antennas though...mine would not work through factory coax and a friend and I tried it on 3 different trucks. A 25' coax to a Wilson 2000 worked wonderfully. Never did push it, or use it to drive an amp, though.

 

I have the 980 also. I love this radio. I've had a lot of "big" radios before (still own a few), but I use my 980 exclusively now. If you're into seeing big numbers on the power meter, this may not be the best radio for you. I learned a long time ago that those numbers have very little to do with the actual performance of a radio in the real world anyway. However, I do like the "big radio" sound, so I bought a RF Limited 2018 noise cancelling power mic for it. I've heard it on the receiving end (taken recordings with my phone so I could set the mic correctly), and it sounds just like some of the most expensive exports out there. With a good antenna and good coax, it really gets out. I've also talked on 38lsb from Oklahoma/Texas to most states along the east coast and New England. No amp required or used.