CB radio recommendations please?

My thoughts are all 4 watt radios wont have much difference. Some of the newer ones have "cool looking" features like the Cobra 29LX.
I have always heard the inexpensive and simple Uniden 520XL with a tune up is a screamer of a radio.

But know matter what radio you get make sure you have a good properly tuned antenna.

 

First off welcome to this section of the board, plenty of radio gurus hang out in this forum and are more than ready to help anyone. Wow....30 years ago was 1982...almost 1983. A lot has changed since then.

If 1982/83 was the last time you had any type of a CB radio turned on, then be prepared to hear:

- people with their echo boxes on (makes them sound like their talking from the bottom of an empty well)
- roger beeps when they unkey
- cursing
- racial slurs
- other drivers (who see you) to ask you to "pull over and provide them with some company"...I'm sure you know what this means.

Not trying to scare you, just trying to point out the truth on what you might hear. Unlike 30 years ago the FCC has really jumped ship on CB radio enforcement. Now it's just a free-for-all, governed by rule, to anyone and everyone who can figure out how to key up a mic. In fact, some OTR truckers have even "had enough" of the kid stuff found now on CB and have ended up just keeping their radio turned off. So best of luck in your quest of finding someone who is worthy of carrying on a conversation with.

However CB radio is still a good thing to have, as you will find you find truckers (those that keep their radio on) will rattle off accidents a few miles up the road, and occasionally, they'll even rattle off where the cops are sitting , a few miles before you get to where the cops are....sorta like a supplement to a radar detector.

Anyways, back to your original question....since 30 years have passed, a multitude of radios have hit the market. I won't cover all of them but, presuming you are buying new, here's what I'd recommend....

1. Uniden PC 68XL: a well built radio with everything you need for a road trip. If you think you might want/need to know the local weather, then get the PC 68 LTW...it's the same as the PC 68XL, but with the addition of the weather alert

2. Cobra 25 classic: pretty much the same thing as back in '82 except internal board changed in the mid 90's...not as good as the older Cobra 25's in terms of durability but then again you're not in a big truck so shouldn't be a problem. If you need the weather version of this radio., then look for the Cobra 25 WX.

2a. Cobra 25 LX: a newer version of the original 25 that has weather, a scan feature, a full LCD screen, and it doesn't have the 70's look to it like the previous radios.

3. Uniden Pro 510 XL: a very compact, no frills radio that doesn't have the noise filtering capabilities as the previously mentioned radios, but it will talk with the best of them.

Then you have the famous Cobra 29 or Uniden PC 78 XL which are the same as the Cobra 25/Uniden PC 68's except they offer the built in inaccurate SWR meter and the useless Delta Tune knob....they're good too but IMO you are spending more money and not getting your money's worth.

4 watts of power, is 4 watts of power, regardless of what make or model of radio you have, and is the legal amount set by the FCC.

Make sure whatever radio you go with, that you couple it with a good antenna with a low SWR. For antennas, I strongly recommend a Wilson 1000 magnet mount. This antenna, when tuned to a low 1.5:1 SWR, will allow you to talk 8-10 miles and receive about the same, depending on conditions such as terrain and skip.

As for asking "how do you tune an antenna"...what you do is you buy an SWR meter. You place the antenna in the middle of the car's roof. Then you find an open parking lot and park the car away from trees, buildings, phone poles, etc.

Next you turn on the radio and key up the mic but you don't talk into it. (make sure your car radio is turned down too) You watch to see what the SWR comes out to be. If it comes out to be 2.0:1 or less, you're good. If it's 1.5:1 then you're really good.

If (when you key up) the SWR is more than 2.0:1 then you undo the set screw on the antenna and pull the antenna whip out just a little bit. Then you tighten the set screw and repeat the SWR reading. If the SWR reading starts dropping, then you keep repeating until you can get it as low as you can w/o pulling the whip completely out.

The trick is, you want to get the SWR it's lowest across channels 1 thru 40, however, you really want it the lowest on whatever channel you plan to use the most. I usually tune on channel 20, then check the SWR for 1 and 40 and that usually gets me pretty close.

I also forgot to mention, some SWR's meters, such as the Radio Shack 21-534 model, require you calibrate them before taking a reading, and the directions will show you how to do it. (it's the same concept as keying up the mic-not speaking into it) Overall, tuning a CB antenna is really easy to do, and when done correctly, will extend your radio's transmit range.

Hope This Helps

 

The only thing I would add to TurboT's post is if you want to save a little money for this one time use; the Wilson "Lil' Wil" mag mount does a good enough job for what you want. I have one I use when traveling in the wife's vehicle and have been happy with it. You can pick one up at most any fuel stop. Of course the Wilson 1000, being longer, does work better, but it cost about twice as much as well. As far as radios go, any radio that is in working order will be fine. Don't be surprised if you drive hundreds of miles without hearing anybody. Of course, if they hear a lady on the airways, you will probably get a comeback, perverted though it may be, but hopefully not. It certainly is not like it used to be out there!!

 

What they said. I would go with a Cobra 19, about $50 at WalMart, and a Lil Wil, or a K30 Magnet mount with built in coax. About $20 on ebay including shipping. I use this setup on my Maxima with excellent results. I did have the antenna tuned. Really helped the transmit, receive was already great. Had to cut about 3 inches off the whip. Many good bargains on ebay if you have the time. I use a New Old Stock Realistic from the 80's I got off of ebay fo less than $25. It performs almost as well as my main Cobra 29 with a Francis antenna.

 

The Cobra 19's, Uniden 505,510, and 520 are nice small no frill radios and not bad if your only going to use the thing once or twice...and they can be tuned up a bit. But they are what they are. and don't have very good filtering which means you'll be picking up lot's of static and/or engine noises...specially with todays car's and all their electrical stuff.

For a little bit more you can go with the Cobra 29lx or Uniden 880 and have a much better radio with better filtering...

Sometimes you get what you pay for!

As for antenna's...The magnet mounted Wilsons are not bad...with the exception of the "Lil Wilson" which IMO is a waist of money...It's just too short to be any good...You would be much happier with the Wilson 1000 or 5000...antenna's 4' and shorter just don't receive or transmit very far.

 

No they don't, but they work good enough for a single road trip and cost half as much, as does the 510 et al you mentioned. You know if she would just go ahead and buy a Galaxy 99, and a 500 watt amp and mount a steel whip in the middle of her roof, she can talk even further.