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First Cb Base Station

KI4ZNG

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Does anyone remember their first Cb Base Station. It was the early 80's and I was in the Army stationed at Ft. Hood Texas. At that time all I had was an old Cobra 29gtl in my car that I would talk to other soldiers on my daily trip to and from the base. A friend of mine said that I should turn my radio on in my car at night and see what was going on. So I did one night and learned two things real quick. First of all there were so many folks out there talking and having a good time. Second thing was a hot Texas night sitting still in my driveway was no place to be! So with a very limited budget I was able to buy a Uniden 810e. I had to wait a little longer to get an Antron 99 and some coax. I did not realize at the time that this was only the beginning of base stations for me! My goal was to have a Cobra 2000 but it was way out of reach for me.
 

slowmover

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Bought an older radio a few years ago for just for that purpose. Right era (ca. 1977), but nicer than I could afford, then. All other radios were/are “mobile”.

Velvet audio compared to many today. Intentionally short-range set-up. First ever, “base station”. A variety of antennas.

The Campground Radio

IMG_4331.jpeg
(Someone else’s equally nice example)
.
 

merlin

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A general MC-11A with the PS resistor strapped. Antenna Specialists Super Magnum, and HiGain 5 element long beam antennas.
Second was a heatkit TX-1 apachee teamed with Collins R-390 URR. An HA 14 sitting on the side.
(The amp I fried my super mag with.)
 

KI4ZNG

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I remember when I was a young man my father had a base station set up in the corner of our living room. I don't remember the exact model but it was a Browning Golden Eagle. I remember going with dad to the drugstore to the tube testing machine and stocking up on tubes for not just his radio but also our TV set.
 

prcguy

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The first thing I used as a base was a Radio Shack 1.5w 3 channel walki-talki hooked to a power supply and goosed in voltage to get more power, then a Shure 515 mic soldered to it and some kind of home made CB antenna that I forget. That was around 1972 and it worked until I got a Hallicrafters CB-3A that might as well been a Browning Golden Eagle to me at the time.
 

K6GBW

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May 29, 2016
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Montebello, CA
I was also 14 when I spent all summer working odd jobs to buy a Realistic Navaho TRC-455. I coupled that to a Realistic 1/2 wave ground plane. It locked down the little town I grew up in perfectly. All the teenagers were on channel 23, the "adults" were on channel 12 and the truckers were on 19. Simpler times!
 

merlin

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I remember when I was a young man my father had a base station set up in the corner of our living room. I don't remember the exact model but it was a Browning Golden Eagle. I remember going with dad to the drugstore to the tube testing machine and stocking up on tubes for not just his radio but also our TV set.
Those golden eagles were a top notch CB in their day. The TR switch cut B+ to the reciever so it didn't instantly mute. Key up and a short feedback gave those radios a very distinctive sound.
The desk mic was a D-104, gold plated with an eagle logo on the grill, best looking/sounding mic ever created.
 

KI4ZNG

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So about a year later I was in the same Cb shop looking around at base stations and noticed a President Madison. I sold the 810e and returned to the store and bought a new one and also a D104 silver eagle microphone. Not too long after that I had orders sending me to Germany for 3 years. I could not ship it over there so I took it home on leave to my fathers house. I set it up for him to use while I was gone. My father bought a new Cobra 2000 just before I returned! He had retired as a otr driver and and new he would missed talking to the truck drivers on I-90 without a radio.
 
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