Base Stations-Are they good or bad?

Aside from working on radio's, I enjoy talking across counties & sometimes the states. I want to hear about everyone's opinions about Base Stations....from some of the worst to the very best...ideas for them, & if you have a base, what kind of setup.

 

Base stations are essentially a mobile radio with an internal power supply.

You can also take a mobile radio and buy a power supply for it and have the same thing.

I did have a base station, a Uniden Washington. It was a very good radio and I really didn't want to part ways with it but I did to fund other projects.

I still do have my 18 ft fiberglass Shakespeare base station antenna that I'm actually selling.

The good thing about base stations is you can usually put the antennas up higher than you can on a mobile, which in turn allows you to talk much further. Height is might. And especially if you have a beam antenna over a vertical, you can really do some coverage.

I think the only drawback to a base station is if you lease your home and the homeowner will not allow you to have an antenna mounted on the house or in a tree. You can do a dipole but IMO an antenna works better.

Any other questions feel free to ask.

 

>>>>> You can do a dipole but IMO an antenna works better. <<<<<

FYI.....A dipole is an antenna.

 

Yes it is...I meant an omni directional vertical antenna or better yet....a beam antenna. Sorry I guess I should have made myself more clear.

 

Like any radio they go from JUNK to GOLD and not only by how much you pay for them. I use a GRANT LT for my CB base it work quite well on AM/SSB.

I stay away from some radios because they have a history of problems but most will serve you for years.

 

I like the setup

 

general stonewall jackson, ######.

 

I have an Imax 2000 behind a Cobra 142 GTL.

 

I use an Antron 99 up around 30ft with a older Radio Shack SSB rig ( dont recall the model number) with a 12 volt power supply. I can easily hear the truckers on the toll road about 15 miles away, and others across the country when skip is good.

Getting out more than 20 miles or so with only 12 watts on SSB is the hard part - you really need an amp to get heard. (I just acquired a Dentron amp that will put out +1000 watts - should be able to hear me on Mars with that )

Better yet would be a beam antenna for your base station if you have the room to put one up.

 

Your Radio Shack CB will not key the Dentron amplifier.