Back in the early GMRS days, GMRS was known as CB class A and FRS was Class B CB. Class D CB was the 11M 26-27 MHz 23 channels which is 40 channels today.
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CB repeaters?
- Thread starter Xman46
- Start date
nd5y
Member
I don't know where you learned that but it's wrong. FRS was never Class anything CB.
Wasn't the original 23 channels carved out of an amateur radio band? Locating CB on 11m never made sense, considering the FCC intended this service to be for short distance communications. Forbidding people to communicate with stations more than 150 miles was laughable, considering operators had no control over propagation.
nd5y
Member
Yes. It was the 11 meter amateur band until about 1958.
nd5y
Member
Here is a Howard W. Sams CB handbook from 1964. Starting on page 14 in the pdf, or 12 in the actual book, is information about Class A and B CB and the list of frequencies and other technical specs.
FRS wasn't created until 1996.
Class B was terminated November 1, 1971.
FRS wasn't created until 1996.
Class B was terminated November 1, 1971.
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You need to read the history of CB because you obviously don't know ****. The Class B was the forerunner for the Family Radio Service (FRS).
Class B CB is not related in any way to FRS. Class A and B CB service were the first, adopted in the 1940s and there were not very many technical specs for class B where radios were not crystal controlled, some were AM mode and some were FM mode. Both class A and B required an FCC license. Due to the lack of technical specs and the fact the radios could drift and operate waaaay off frequency Class B was dropped well before I got into CB in the late 1960s and Class A morphed into what we know as GMRS. FRS came around 1996 as a license by rule service as is Class D CB at 27MHz.
Here is a picture of a typical Class B CB from the 1940s and 1950s, tube type and class B rules dictated the antenna must be attached to the transmitter where Class A used mostly surplus UHF police type radios with a separate antenna. There were some remote mounted Class B radios made where you put the tube type transceiver box at the top of a mast or tower and ran audio and power supply high voltage to the remote box to legally get the non removable antenna up high.
Here is a label off an old Vocaline class B CB showing this particular model was AM and not FM. Others were FM so the class B band was obviously a mess. Pictures are from radiomuseum.org.
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I copied and pasted the link to the article in my browser and removed everything after the “.com” to leave just the main url for the site. It loaded as a legitimate site so I am not 100% certain the link is AI generated.
slowmover
Active Member
It was the way it read.
I was visiting a friend today and as a coincidence to this thread, he happened to have one of the first Class B UHF CBs ever marketed and it was designed by Al Gross, the father of CB who is responsible for getting class A and B CB started. This is a beautiful example of the 1954 Portafone, owned by Bob (pictured) who is the guy that acquired Henry Radio and owns NovexComm that makes custom rack panels and cases for radios and owns some other companies. This radio has a plug in horizontal dipole and ran off a big A/B battery supplying filament and HV for the tubes.
I actually put up a CB repeater in the late 1980's and early 1990's. I wasn't operating on the CB band but there was a notorious operator that went up on the hills at night running a large dirty amp and was causing a lot of interference thru out the HF spectrum and would even take out my TV. I became quite angry and set out a plan. I borrowed a CB radio and 100w amp from one of the local truckers and I put it up my "CB repeater" on a prominent hilltop in Southern California that has coverage from Mexico to Santa Barbara but the actual site location was hidden and away from the main radio towers. It ran on 4 deep cycle golf batteries and 200 watts of solar which was a lot of PV production back then. The input was on 151.625 with a CTCSS tone and the CB radio ran 4 watts out (most of the time) into a big stick antenna on a 10 ft pole that I painted all with camoflague paint. The audio wasn't the best and sounded a little mechanical as I was only using speaker audio and used an old Commspec32 board but it was very effective - I was able to annoy and take out the ears of this CB'er wherever he was and he eventually did get the point and gave up for a long time.
Would that have been just west of Saddle Peak above Malibu?
CB relay has been my goal for a while now. Specifically the ability to communicate from a handheld CB while on foot, to my parked up mobile, and have it relay the transmission to the base station at home.
It's honestly the only reason I picked up the President Washington. Post-purchase realization that it only relays in FM undermines the "max range" idea (facepalm).
Last night I thought about a work around involving a second radio. It's more than a little absurd I'm sure, but the thought was this...
Handheld to mobile one (temporarily installed "slip seater") using FM with CTCSS tone. Mobile two (the permanent "hot" radio) set up on VOX to output SSB. Not exactly a CB repeater, but it might work (maybe).
It's honestly the only reason I picked up the President Washington. Post-purchase realization that it only relays in FM undermines the "max range" idea (facepalm).
Last night I thought about a work around involving a second radio. It's more than a little absurd I'm sure, but the thought was this...
Handheld to mobile one (temporarily installed "slip seater") using FM with CTCSS tone. Mobile two (the permanent "hot" radio) set up on VOX to output SSB. Not exactly a CB repeater, but it might work (maybe).
CB Radio repeaters, I wouldn't hold my breath. The FCC has approved Frequency Modulation use for the 11m Band AKA the Citizen Band Radio Service. However, I don't see the FCC making allowances to use repeaters in the 11m Citizen Band. Don't get me wrong, it's totally possible to do and have potential with increasing range, but I think CB will remain simplex only.
10 meters proves that repeaters are effective in this part of the spectrum. I agree, it's not going to happen. CB is at or near the bottom of the FCC's priorities.
A TYT9800 will cross band FM CB to VHF or UHF as in MURS, GMRS or FRS frequencies. If you have an FM CB handheld you can cross patch it to most anything, not counting FCC rules of course.
slowmover
Active Member
TYT TH-9800 Plus Quad Band Mobile Radio + Programming Cable
Note: TYT TH-9800 is the same as TH-9800 Plus after 2018, all the stock from Radioddity is the latest version of TH-9800 with latest firmware and cross band function. The TYT TH9800 Quad Band Transmit, Twin Receive, Dual Display FM Radio Transceiver for the 10 Meter, 6 Meter, VHF 2 meter & UHF...
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Nice radio. I have one from the original batch when they came out around 2012 or so. However, like a lot of people, my second VFO died years ago. It is no longer capable of cross band repeat, or dual VFO’s. Now i have VFO B shut off and set it to display voltage instead. Still in use in the garage, and can’t really complain as it’s held up for over a decade, other than the dead second VFO.
Don't forget that what you're not telling me something that I don't know. I have been interested in Radio Communications even before I earned my Technician License or applied for my GMRS License. I must admit that I hardy get on the Amateur Radio Band anymore, but I throw my call out on GMRS, which is kind of crazy since GMRS isn't a Hobby as the Amateur Radio Service can be used as a hobby.
Now, the Citizen Band Radio Service is something altogether different. I really don't know what I want to say, because I sure don't want to make a mistake and say something stupid. I do know that I don't want to compare the CBRS to the other PRS, such as FRS GMRS or MURS. From my personal perspective, the CBRS is similar to the 10m. Amateur Band with several obvious differences.
I do not intend to make myself sound as I'm an uneducated moron, because I must know something about radio and the various radio services. After all, no one can't just walk up to a vending machine or walk into a store buy a license to talk on a radio. I studied long and hard to earn my Technician Class License and longer to earn my General Class License.
Of course, with GMRS, there's no examinations to obtain license, but it's not as the FCC has vending machines like soft drinks or candy.
However, I will apologize for not always having solid data or current information to add to the discussion. I probably sound like a moron at times, but I guess that's what I get when I decide to jump into a discussion pool without knowing the truth depth of the topic.
While that’s true, many feel that navigating the FCC’s horribly broken website to apply for a license IS the test for GMRS.
