Is CB radio dead/dying?

[ron36]

As a longtime c.ber former Suffolk va React and Cerrt. i watched c.b. grow and monitored it for years. am 27mhz and vhf low 30mhz up 50mhz go through periods of quiet propergation.meaning its which way the wind blows the skip. c.b is very m channeuch active on 19 6 11 in va. but yes cell phone plays a big part in less usage of 2 way radio no matter what band..but C.b is a good fall back if disaster strikes.if you own a 40channel cb definately keep it or one handy..never know if you loose every thing cb will let you atleast talk to some roadys or close neighbors. 1and million chance but you never know.

 

[kd7mxi]

log trucks on the oregon coast still used cb ,,, in there logging areas they even have cb channels on the entrance tree

 

[jedispork]

I'm going to update my cb gear and buy a nice radio with ssb, matching, and channel scan. I live in a city and I picked up a few people on the air but its fairly quiet. The guys I did hear are extremely annoying to listen too just like when it was popular. I'm still a big fan of the service even though I will be moving over to
2 m for local stuff. During a communications black out a lot of people would be digging their cb's out of the basement.

I'm surprised more people don't use it as a alternative to a cell phone. Sure you would have to be careful about what you said on the air but a person could get by reasonably cheap. Also as someone else said it doesn't require any infrastructure or fee's. Most people with their modern phones don't have any use for this "ancient technology". I was ripped apart on a different board when I suggested we shouldn't be so reliant on the internet and cell phones for our communications.

 

[Oldme]

jedispork..
I hear you.

My neighbor said "you put in a CB, haven't seen one for years".
Then I asked him when the last time this smartphone gave him a traffic update?

I have one in the RV now and may do another base antenna.
It is very quiet around here. I miss the old days.

I am not a cell phone person. I have a basic one and have not used 5 hours in the past
2 months. Now the internet is another thing. Then again nothing real local on that either,
except for e-mail.

I did read that in some parts of the country they are getting real popular again.
People are finding they work for gas prices.

The hobby sure has changes since the 60's with all the information now available.

 

[iMONITOR]

CB is pretty quiet in my part of S.E. Michigan (Macomb County). It's so quiet, I'm beginning to think it might be a viable form of emergency communications.

In recent months I've given serious consideration to setting up a good SSB base, and two mobiles.

 

[Project25_MASTR]

It's not dead, it's just got it's niche. I've been out of high school for 4 years…most of us had cb's in our trucks. Many farmers still use them (cheap, good enough for most in field needs). There still used in over the road trucking (it's a given standard), even companies that have gone to commercial radio still have keep them.

There are off road groups that use them because they simply do not know of anything better.

I got out of cb (though my jeep still has one) and into GMRS for the small business/convoy communications due to the better radio options.


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[iMONITOR]

I got out of cb (though my jeep still has one) and into GMRS for the small business/convoy communications due to the better radio options.

Does the FCC still charge $80 for a GMRS license? If so, it's not worth it. You could buy an extra CB radio for $80, or several FRS radios.

My experience with GMRS was very disappointing. Without a repeater, you looking at maybe 1~3 miles. You can do almost as good with FRS, and no license requirement/cost.

 

[jedispork]

I was considering to setup for gmrs but in reality it was just me being a completist and not something I would use to communicate with anyone on a regular basis. You can use up to 50 watts on certain frequencies but you have to find a certified commercial radio and program it to be legal. I think it could be a great option if the people you wanted to communicate with it were all on board. As I mentioned in another post the lack of supported radios for murs and gmrs is disappointing. frs might be ok if you need to stay in contact with someone down the street.

I'm putting up a multi band HF antenna that should work ok for cb as well.

 

[W3DMV]

My primary interest in CB'S centered around truckers. We have eight different
loading docks and each location had a CB so the truckers could talk to the dock
ans save a trip inside. In recent times we noticed a big absence of radios in trucks.
The dock foreman conducted a survey at each location asking several
hundred truckers if they had a radio. The results indicated about 1 in 22 still had
a radio and those said they only used them on the interstate, hoping to get traffic
reports.
Main reasons for removing radio: Offensive language, people giving false reports,
hookers-shady sales people, and idiots trying to work skip or going on a two day rant
with worthless dribble.
We removed all the dock radios and sent them to the dumpster. I see used radios
at yard sales for $2 and $5 bucks on regular basis.

Since I'm on a bender here, perhaps someone can answer a question. This area has
a fair amount of motorcycle activity due to tourist and bike week functions. I see many bikes
with two antennas mounted on the rear. I assume one is for a broadcast am/fm radio but
am interested in the other antenna. Looks like a chopped down CB antenna but I almost
never hear bikers on CB or GMRS/MURS. Anyone enlighten me ?

 

[Project25_MASTR]

Luckily I maintain 5 or 6 GMRS repeaters in my area. Not all of them are mine, I just know how to work on them. The funny thing, those who own the GMRS repeaters as well as those who utilize them, all have our ham tickets but we still utilize the GMRS licenses more.

Depending on what you need to cover, GMRS may be a better option than cb.


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[PrimeNumber]

CB is pretty quiet in my part of S.E. Michigan (Macomb County). It's so quiet, I'm beginning to think it might be a viable form of emergency communications.

Bingo. And over the next 5 or so years as we slide off the current solar maximum, it's only going to get quieter as the skip mostly goes away. That'll make it even more useful for local communications. Of course even now the skip (mostly) goes away at night.

CB really is good stuff for local talking, and the price is certainly right.

 

[iMONITOR]

The technology is light years ahead of what we were using back in the 60's!

 

[12dbsinad]

Does the FCC still charge $80 for a GMRS license? If so, it's not worth it. You could buy an extra CB radio for $80, or several FRS radios.

My experience with GMRS was very disappointing. Without a repeater, you looking at maybe 1~3 miles. You can do almost as good with FRS, and no license requirement/cost.

GMRS has many advantages over FRS. The ability to run 4 watts of power from a handheld with a removable antenna to allow connection to a mobile or base antenna, the ability to run 50 watt mobile rigs/base units with high gain antennas, the ability to use repeaters. With two 50 watt mobile rigs should yeald you well over 1-3 miles, simplex. Handheld range with a 4 watt unit should well outperform a 0.5 watt FRS handheld. Of course this is using all equipment legally. Buying a FRS/GMRS bubble pack radio and using the GMRS licensed channels, wondering whats the point of getting a GMRS license is a whole other discussion.

 

[Project25_MASTR]

GMRS has many advantages over FRS. The ability to run 4 watts of power from a handheld with a removable antenna to allow connection to a mobile or base antenna, the ability to run 50 watt mobile rigs/base units with high gain antennas, the ability to use repeaters. With two 50 watt mobile rigs should yeald you well over 1-3 miles, simplex. Handheld range with a 4 watt unit should well outperform a 0.5 watt FRS handheld. Of course this is using all equipment legally. Buying a FRS/GMRS bubble pack radio and using the GMRS licensed channels, wondering whats the point of getting a GMRS license is a whole other discussion.

When you add repeaters, you start talking about a whole new type of coverage. It becomes possible to stay in communication with someone reliably at much greater local (we could say regional) distance. One repeater I work on has a 35 mile radius for most of the area. The repeater is only running 25W (we didn't see a difference between 25W and 40W) but it is capable to allow communications up to 70 miles apart.

When you utilize repeaters and the higher power radios, the license is nothing.

 

[12dbsinad]

When you add repeaters, you start talking about a whole new type of coverage. It becomes possible to stay in communication with someone reliably at much greater local (we could say regional) distance. One repeater I work on has a 35 mile radius for most of the area. The repeater is only running 25W (we didn't see a difference between 25W and 40W) but it is capable to allow communications up to 70 miles apart.

When you utilize repeaters and the higher power radios, the license is nothing.

While this is true, the point is the difference between FRS and GMRS. Even excluding repeaters GMRS has the upper advantage 10 fold compared to FRS when talking capabilities and range.

 

[Spankymedic7]

Does the FCC still charge $80 for a GMRS license? If so, it's not worth it. You could buy an extra CB radio for $80, or several FRS radios.

My experience with GMRS was very disappointing. Without a repeater, you looking at maybe 1~3 miles. You can do almost as good with FRS, and no license requirement/cost.

I'm sorry to hear that you weren't happy with GMRS. Activity and repeater availability is highly dependent on location. There are a few repeaters in my part of the state. As far as I've read, there are some states that are inundated with repeaters, some of which have coverage comparable to some "upper echelon" ham repeaters. There is a rather surprisingly high number (and counting) of GMRS repeaters across the country, and even in the absence of one, range can be anywhere from 2-5 miles with a portable, and 5-15 with a mobile (terrain/structures aside). I've enjoyed an average of 2-5 miles on simplex frequencies.

I'll be honest, I've stepped away from the amateur bands and have gravitated toward GMRS in recent years, for a few reasons... 1) The HAM bands have, in ways, become either too quiet, too congested, or too "clique-y". 2) Anyone with whom I desire to talk to on a regular basis is reachable on my good friend's GMRS repeater. 3) GMRS lacks the congestion that some amateur repeaters have, so I enjoy the "solitude", lol.

Again, this is dependent on location. Try looking up "www.mygmrs.org" and check out the site. It may be a good resource for repeater activity in your area.

 

[Spankymedic7]

The funny thing, those who own the GMRS repeaters as well as those who utilize them, all have our ham tickets but we still utilize the GMRS licenses more.



Isn't that strange how that happens? LOL...I just mentioned that in my recent post.

 

[iMONITOR]

I realize what repeaters can do for GMRS, or most any other radio service. However, I live in the city, where I can't have a repeater, tower. Even if it were allowed, initial cost, and maintenance is substantial. Leasing a tower site is out of the question.

In a SHTF scenario, where I might have to leave the area, the repeater would become useless.

 

[k8krh]

I tried GMRS for a few years, no activity, and the limitation of range, 2-4 miles at the most. No one around here uses it.
CB farmers, use it, and I see a number of CB antennas on pickup trucks around the county.

MURS works good and the average range around 25 miles with a beam.
CB is cheap, pick some up at hamfests for 4 or 5 dollars<old 23 channel> and your on the air.
SSB works great on CB, and doubles the range, can't be beat.

DOCTOR/795

 

[Project25_MASTR]

I realize what repeaters can do for GMRS, or most any other radio service. However, I live in the city, where I can't have a repeater, tower. Even if it were allowed, initial cost, and maintenance is substantial. Leasing a tower site is out of the question.

In a SHTF scenario, where I might have to leave the area, the repeater would become useless.

I'm just throwing this out here…

The tall building on the right has a 50W "675" GMRS repeater along with 4 other amateur repeaters. The building on the far left is 150 feet shorter and houses a 25W "700" GMRS repeater and another amateur repeater. No one pays for the space, the building owners gladly allowed us to put the repeaters up when we asked. Sometimes all you have to do is ask.

If you leave the area, you could always take a repeater with you. We take portable repeaters hunting and skiing. If you think about it, a ski resort is a lot of ground to cover…depending on the resort we can cover the entire area and communicate using hand helds.