new to cb's... need some help

Well first you have to make sure your radio is working properly. They break, so check that out first. Then you need a good antenna and good coax. The stuff that comes in your truck is not considered "good stuff". Although there are a few good factory coax and antenna combinations that will work at least decently, yours is old enough that I would just go ahead and get all new coax as well as a quality antenna. Install it all and check your SWR. If it is below 2:1, you are good to go. If is 3:1 or higher, you probably have a rf ground problem. Here is the solution for that: (see post #7) The only thing I would add is be sure to "shiny up" your contact points and spray paint or undercoat on them after all connections are made to prevent rust of the bare metal you just exposed.


http://www.thetruckersreport.com/tr...-radio-forum/218058-ch-mack-and-high-swr.html

 

Read your owner manual for cobra29 I believe it has built in swr meter. If not, or need a better one check any truckstop or Ratshack approx $20-$40.

Antenna standing wave ratio (SWR) is everything, your goal is less than 1:2.0, perfect is 1:1.0. This is the amount of energy you are wasting and sending back at the radio... if over 1:3 you will burn up radio over time.

since you are new, suggest a single antenna and new coax(RG-58, RG-8x, mini-8 ) if you are out of guide line. Route new coax wisely so its not smashed in door, and give it good ground connection... then trim it to best SWR.

 

Is it your truck, meaning you own it or is it a company truck?

 

You check the SWR with an SWR meter. You want 1.5:1 to 2.0:1. The higher your SWR = less range.

1.5:1 = 96% of your signal is getting out. 2.0:1 = 89% of your signal is getting out. The opposition to this is going back down into the radio as heat. With a high SWR, the finals will overheat and burnout, rendering the radio inoperable to transmit.

Good antenna would be a Wilson 2000

Good coax would be RG8X

The antenna is what dictates your range both transmit and receive. When it comes to antenna, height is might. You want the antenna as high as you can get it and you want the tallest to a 9 ft antenna as you can get it. No you probably can't do this with a truck, but a 5 ft Wilson 2k beats the pants off of a 3 foot Firestick any day, all else being equal.

Most trucks run piss poor antennas (3 and 4 ft) because 1. height restrictions and 2. because most truckers don't understand how a radio transceiver works. The sucky thing about CB is in all reality you need a 9 ft antenna to get out correctly, but for a semi that's too tall, so they made "compromise antennas" to get around that....and that is what they are....you compromise range for size.

With coax, if you get the cheap coax, it will be "lossy" and not allow the full signal to get out the antenna. The higher in frequency you go, the better coax you need. RG8X is good for 27 MHz.

Hopefully this helps you understand

 

Let's take care of your problem one step at a time ok.. First receiving. Nothing you do to your radio is gonna effect the recieve ability other then the rf gain. Have your SWR's checked and your antennas. Make sure that your bracket is properly grounded and your coax isn't all boogered up ie kinked, looped, cut, or pinched. That should take care of your recieve prob. Remember, you get what you pay for, if you buy $15 antennas then you'll get $15 dollars worth of perfomance. If you have a 29ltd, which is a good radio , you don't need anything bigger then wilson 1000 trucker antennas. The db gain on them is excellent and not to mention if you decide to upgrade your radio then you'll have broadbanded enough ants to handle it. Remember, you set the SWR's of an ant to the truck, not the radio. Secondly, transmitting problems,,,, see above and if that is all good, then you can have your radio " peaked and tuned" and that will help with transmitting. Are you running factory coax? If so, spend a couple bucks and get some new stuff ran. They don't measure it very well at the factory, it's mass produced. Find yourself a good cb shop and tell them to check swrs and ants, don't get fooled, actually have them show you the meter and what it is saying. Send me a pm and i'll send ya a list of cb shops that i've dealt with and had good luck with them. Also,,, you don't need a ant that will handle 10,000 watts for your radio. They are gonna try and tell you you need it for one reason or another, wilson 1000's and you'll be good to go and maybe some new coax. Hope this helps.

 

If he's a noob, he might have a tuff time setting his SWR on the Wilson. I would get new coax, and a single Francis 4 footer. Also, make sure your rf gain and mike gain are turned up. A good peak and tune and a road king mic would help u as well.