General Lee Ham Bands

I'd second 2m, especially with the cost of the handheld models so low. You can pick up a Baofeng for about $25. It won't be of much use on the highway, but if you're shut down near a city you can look up the local repeaters. My favorite band though is 20m. Great range and still works well with a reasonably small antenna. I've worked as far as Eastern Europe on a 4ft 20m mobile antenna.

 

Unfortunately 10, 11, and 12 meters are dead more than alive with voice activity. There's obviously more activity on 11 meters due to truck drivers using the band. Plus it takes more power to get out long distance compared to the 20 or 40 meter bands, unless the band's are up.
The 2 meter band isn't very active here in the mid-west where I live. The popularity of cell phones in the 90's killed most of the 2 meter activity, unless you live near a big city.
Not trying to be negative, but just simply telling the truth. I would encourage anyone getting a ham ticket, to study the General too. That way you can at least enjoy making contacts on 20 meters.
I personally don't spend any money on these export radios, I think the money is better spent on real amateur radios. Better quality and more features for the money. This is just my opinion. Now with that being said, the Lincoln radios have had a pretty good track record. You really need a radio with VFO mode (like the Lincoln's offer- I believe), if you want to take advantage of all the frequencies the radio is capable of using.

 

Thanks for understanding. The one bad thing about the internet, is sometimes my fingers don't type what my brain is thinking. Ha. If you are an over the road driver, 2 meters isn't a bad way to go with the technician license. I'm sure you would always hear some activity from time to time. But in the rural area it's mostly quiet.

Just FYI, if you do get a cheap 2 meter handheld radio (like others have mentioned), I would recommend getting one with a bnc antenna rather than sma. That way you can hook up the handheld radio to an external 2 meter antenna for better performance. I've used a 2 meter handheld radio in my truck as a 2 meter mobile by using an external speaker/Mic. Most HT's only run 5 watts on high power, but with a 19 inch external antenna, it still works pretty good getting into the repeaters. Anyway this could be another option for you to consider without spending a lot of money.

 

Ive had a General Lee 15 years. I only use (CB) D Band. Top quality radio.
I was looking at a Stryker but tech suggested the General Lee for 2 reasons..lower price and durability. Best bang for your buck. The Strykers at that time were constantly in the shop.

 

No, because 2 meter radio is VHF. The ham frequencies are144-148 MHZ. The 2 meter 1/4 wave antenna is 19-19 1/2 inches long. Since the CB 27MHZ frequencies are in the HF band, the Wilson antennas would be way to long. You could use the Wilson antenna to listen only, but the reception maybe poor due to the extreme mis-match between the radio and the antenna.

You could use a 2 meter antenna with the 3/8 x 24 thread that just screws into the existing CB antenna mount. Then run a separate coax to the handheld radio.

VHF 2 METER 144-150 MHz Mobile 1/4 WAVE WHIP ANTENNA PRE-TUNED 3/8" x 24T CB MT | eBay

 

Already answered about different, but sharing an example. On my old T-600 I had a Wilson on the driver side mirror mount for the CB, and put an NMO mount for thick surfaces with a dual band VHF mast on the passenger mount.

That said, I haven't got immediate plans to put my 2M, or any second radio in the new Mack. If anything, I may start packing the Yaesu HF just in case I get totally bored out of my mind somewhere. I literally just got done last night with enough CB wire fishing misery to cure me of any more radio install projects for a while. Short version: new Mack Anthem with the radio, wiring, and antenna mount all in the factory locations for a clean unmodified appearance.