New guy, dumb questions. Please don't #### on me...

I can hear an unpeaked and untuned radio for a half mile tops, and I got a good radio, Connex 3300hp and the Predator antanae,

 

The radio is only as good as the bench it was "tuned" on. Or the "tech" that "tuned" it.

 

Who converted the radio?

 

About 9 years ago the CB shop by McDonald's in West Memphis.
And I stand by getting any new radio opened up.
i got CB shop coax, Bob's CB shop tested it and it was still good.

but a radio is useless if the trucks going the opposite direction won't say a word about the big backup ahead (even the GPS didn't warn me)
I returned the favor and didn't say a word about the backup the other side was going to hit. Karma

 

If i may interject, some good info posted from others, but I have to disagree on a couple. Instead of going out and spending all that money on books, or anything else like that, just get yourself a small cb and hook it up. Walmart sells them for what, $33? Anyways, really all you need to know is the red wire is the hot wire, and black one is the ground. Just about every truck has color coded posts that you hook them up to. Be sure to pay attention to this, most radios have a reverse hook up safety built in but not all. Then just screw the coax in and away you go. I wouldn't recommend going out and spending $400 on a radio that you have no clue as to how to use to start, as the other poster put, wait till you get the bug to do that lol. Learn on a cheapie radio then work your way up as you progress. Not only that but truckers really don't ever turn their radios on anymore unless there's a traffic jam or accident. I have driven from california to missouri numerous times and not so much a peep on the radio. Gone are the days of truckers talking on the radio like in the movies, convoy, smokey and the bandit, etc. Just get ya something simple at first and work your way up to the big boy radios. Have fun with learning how they work etc etc. Hope this helps you.

 

I use a Uniden PC76XL, it has just enough to manage the noise over the radio to clean up the interference, squelch and so on.

Radios CB date back to the 60's in our Culture if not earlier. There was a time in Federal Laws there were restrictions on same. But today's culture has shown that those restrictions have not been enforced anymore.

Radios are very useful for convoy work, wreck warning and shippers and recievers. Some truck stops like the US Space Fuel Center at the Ohio/PA Line use the CB to gather company information at your fuel pump. With that said...

Radios are abused by hookers, deviant people, public exhibitors, spammers, foul mouthed people and just plain trash. Most of the time the radio is on low unless something comes up or I am number one of several or more trucks in convoy with me during a winter storm in the mountains. I would cooperate with everyone with information such as temp, traction etc.

My spouse as a second driver as a team did not use the radio very much at all because when a woman comes up on the air, there is a mass abuse from all sorts of crazy people. Not acceptable.

There is no such thing as a dumb question. There are however sometimes dumb answers.

Do not be in fear of being dumped on. This is a very ... rough industry and at the same time a very professionally rewarding one in several ways besides money.

Good luck.

 

Picked up a Uniden Bearcat 880 the other day for $80 new in the box. Never used one before & still haven't hooked this one up to test it out, but heard good things about them & figured for the price it will make a decent back up radio if nothing else. Retail on them is $150.