Why CB is DEAD

[tramd]

Speaking of CB, today is ....

View attachment 128919

You have to be old to remember this TV show.

I watch it on METV every day.

 

[W8HDU]

I watch it on METV every day.

It was a cool program for the time. I broke down and got the DVD box set.

 

[KB4MSZ]

Yep, it's still dead, 40 below to 40 above.

 

[W8HDU]

For being dead, the Spanish language stations have been tearing up Channel 9. Channel 6 was active with a fellow "shooting skip" with an echo chamber mic.

However, we had a major wreck on I-75 northbound, just south of Findlay OH. (4) semis and (1) car, and one truck driver as fatal, and the 16, 19, and 20 were pretty active with truckers looking for information.

 

[cralt]

The other day I made a contact from my mobile in New Jersey to 001 Austria. Good times.

Wow great get.
From CT I can talk in to the tropics and Canada no problem. Still trying to get across the pond. On the rare times they pop in there is a massive pileup.

Yep, it's still dead, 40 below to 40 above.

Band is staying open longer and long it seems. I think the locals here are going to get pushed off 22 soon

 

[RC4]

From the last couple days (10/01/22):

A fellow Texan & truck driver.
See notes on antenna.

Stryker 955 V2 (built-in DSP) a top of the heap radio.

Nothing else sounds like a Stryker.
The price premium pays for itself many times over as men respond to a good radio rig.

This is an important point for those who’ve got a OK radio and have done an average install and maybe a mag mount antenna: you don’t sound too good and you don’t “get out” very far. (The rig doesn’t stand out).

Given that on the highway we’re all moving pretty fast it can be frustrating to try and respond to a guy who just disappears a moment later. (Your 2-5/mile range).

“Big Radio” audio quality (and some punch) means an actual conversation can be held. It is much more likely to get a response

There’s more than one way to have a nice rig. This is a radio many men choose as basis for theirs.

The videos put up by this man are illustrative of not spending a fortune, but in still achieving very good performance.

See his several on DSP filtration.

Remember, day-long use as a truck driver over several decades and a low-cost home station antenna to chase Sideband contacts. Full range CB experience.

You’ll see comments by Mower Junkie in several videos, The King of Low Cost (we all love his vids; sorta like the appeal of Fred in the Shed).

.

So mag mounts will just make you sound ok? What is the best mobile antenna system setup in your opinion?

 

[W8HDU]

So mag mounts will just make you sound ok? What is the best mobile antenna system setup in your opinion?

Signal wise; mobile antennas need a good counterpoise/ground. This not only is for the match, but for the signal radiation characteristics. If it's free floating then the signal will travel at all elevations off the antenna. In radio operation you want the majority of signal to travel off the antenna horizontally. Any signal going up at a 40 degrees elevation or more is lost signal. Good grounding helps.

IMHO a mag mount is a compromise to not wanting to drill the roof, and from my own experiences there are losses between a fixed mount antenna and a magnetic mount. Those losses can not be calculated due to the fact some mounts "attach" strong enough to get some ground effect through paint. But from experience, my 108" whip on the truck always out distances the Larsen 25-30 MHz p/n: LSN-NMO27B which is on a mag mount.

The term "sound" can be ambiguous as it could mean modulation and not transmission/reception strength. I assume we're talking signal strength between two points, and not audio quality which is a whole different subject.

 

[RC4]

Signal wise; mobile antennas need a good counterpoise/ground. This not only is for the match, but for the signal radiation characteristics. If it's free floating then the signal will travel at all elevations off the antenna. In radio operation you want the majority of signal to travel off the antenna horizontally. Any signal going up at a 40 degrees elevation or more is lost signal. Good grounding helps.

IMHO a mag mount is a compromise to not wanting to drill the roof, and from my own experiences there are losses between a fixed mount antenna and a magnetic mount. Those losses can not be calculated due to the fact some mounts "attach" strong enough to get some ground effect through paint. But from experience, my 108" whip on the truck always out distances the Larsen 25-30 MHz p/n: LSN-NMO27B which is on a mag mount.

The term "sound" can be ambiguous as it could mean modulation and not transmission/reception strength. I assume we're talking signal strength between two points, and not audio quality which is a whole different subject.

Ahh thank you! Was the 108 on like a fender hood mount? I’m running a Stryker a10 mag but I just got a tri mag mount with a 3\8 connector so I can run my 102 or skipshooter. Cant wait to try it out.

 

[W8HDU]

Let me give a rundown on what I use.

Personal Truck: 108" whip on ball mount & spring for CB and business radio (near CB spectrum), mounted to the back fender, driver's side, behind the tire and at the top of the wheel well. Best of all for distance. Pain in the ass in a parking garage.

Occasionally I work in wooded areas, and communications between base and other vehicles is the best on CB through dense woods and long distances on the highway. I sometimes take off the whip and put a Hustler "resonator" on and use my FT-857D to talk on 80-6 meters. Works well.

Work Truck: 108" whip on ball mount and spring for CB and business radio. I did have a Larsen LSN-NMO27B in the center of the roof for a while before putting on the whip/ball mount. But on average it was perhaps only 70-80% of the range of the whip.

Jeep: I tried a 60" fiberglass antenna which was horrible. The Larsen LSN-NMO27B would be hard to roof mount because of the fiberglass. I made up a mount to "strap" the antenna on the roof with a 2' x 2' sheet of brass under the antenna for ground plane. It worked better than the fiberglass whip, but still lacked distance.

NOTE: There is a new antenna out by a company called Thunderpole called The Orbitor. I've heard some other people talking about them being pretty good for mirror mounts and ball mounts. I talked to a guy running a pair on a semi hauling logs, and he says they are pretty good. 51" long and beefy enough to run power into. He said he was barefoot using a President Bill and was 11 miles from me through woods and sand/rock terrain. I plan on trying one, but I don't have one yet.

Personal car: Larsen LSN-NMO27B in the middle of the roof. As with the work truck, I don't get the distance I have with a whip.

I'm running barefoot on the CB, use RG-58 for coax, and there is nothing special about the antenna system. On the ham rig, I run an FT-857D, usually 65 watts SSB, or 30 watts AM. I've talked to several countries off the whip, and 42 states. On the business band, I did chat with a fellow in New York while I was in upper Michigan on business band, which is 29 MHz.

EDIT: The Orbitor also goes by the name of "Stinger". I'm not endorsing the seller or the antenna, but here is a seller on EBAY SELLING the antenna.

 

[slowmover]

So mag mounts will just make you sound ok? What is the best mobile antenna system setup in your opinion?

Car, SUV or pickup: Permanent mount + 5’ antenna (or taller) at roof center.

Am finishing the complete radio rig install on mine and this was part of it. I’ve a selection of antennas from 4.5’ to 9’.

This 7’ Texas with an extremely flexible whip tip doesn’t give up anything to a quarter wave except when stationary. And then, not much. (13’ TTL clearance; 11-12’ in actuality). Goes on/off quickly.



With tedious two-day $1,200 radio rig big truck installs at this same location (mirrors, the only choice), I can’t really hear much or be heard at this difficult location (terrain & “noise”).

With the above rig, it’s 7-12’ miles without trying. Those big truck rigs do 7-12’ or better most places in the USA.

I haven’t had the pickup out on the road yet.

.

 

[slowmover]

Previously, ran this with a quarter wave. With or without the HUSTLER QD, it’s not in the same league.



A mag mount will — sooner or later — have the coax destroyed. And it’s always in the way in the interior.

The triple was “good”. I want great (to the extent it can be had). And no downside.

In a big truck one must employ crutches. They help, but it’s not the same as with a private vehicle.

My on-road experience is that of the few private vehicles with CB, the antenna system is so compromised that my big truck outperformed almost all of them by every measure.

Which is ridiculous. A little more work and they’d be jamming.

.

 

[slowmover]

The ultra HD Puck Mount I chose isn’t necessary for others (I want options; there’s a big reinforcing plate on underside), nonetheless, below is the sheetmetal remnant of pulling a radio chassis punch through on 5/8” (atop a connector center section for scale).

Drill a pilot hole and crank the punch. Done.
Beautiful, clean hole needing nothing more.



Sitting at this lousy location I can talk across three Interstates within 12’ miles from here.

I can go to a quasi-hilltop overlooking the highway loop and reach nearly twenty miles west to truck drivers with above average truck radios (80W average; LPF + feedpoint choke).

Im not on Sideband much, but I can get answered on 38-LSB often enough when Skip rolls (mobile needs more power to play that game).

Been awhile since a road trip. Looking forward to the one comes next.

Have yet more RF Bonds to install. Thus far there’s been no need to adjust antenna for length = great antenna design & the right location & mount.

RW TEXAS USA - Radial Whip - CB Antennas - Group President Electronics USA
.

 

[slowmover]

The Texas is weather channel compatible.

The Kenwood KES-5 as shown is out of the way and more than “loud”.

I can open the drivers door with diesel engine at idle to walk 40-yards away and still listen to NOAA.

Don’t forget this aspect of performance.

 

[slowmover]

Let me give a rundown on what I use.

Personal Truck: 108" whip on ball mount & spring for CB and business radio (near CB spectrum), mounted to the back fender, driver's side, behind the tire and at the top of the wheel well. Best of all for distance. Pain in the ass in a parking garage.

Occasionally I work in wooded areas, and communications between base and other vehicles is the best on CB through dense woods and long distances on the highway. I sometimes take off the whip and put a Hustler "resonator" on and use my FT-857D to talk on 80-6 meters. Works well.

Work Truck: 108" whip on ball mount and spring for CB and business radio. I did have a Larsen LSN-NMO27B in the center of the roof for a while before putting on the whip/ball mount. But on average it was perhaps only 70-80% of the range of the whip.

Jeep: I tried a 60" fiberglass antenna which was horrible. The Larsen LSN-NMO27B would be hard to roof mount because of the fiberglass. I made up a mount to "strap" the antenna on the roof with a 2' x 2' sheet of brass under the antenna for ground plane. It worked better than the fiberglass whip, but still lacked distance.

NOTE: There is a new antenna out by a company called Thunderpole called The Orbitor. I've heard some other people talking about them being pretty good for mirror mounts and ball mounts. I talked to a guy running a pair on a semi hauling logs, and he says they are pretty good. 51" long and beefy enough to run power into. He said he was barefoot using a President Bill and was 11 miles from me through woods and sand/rock terrain. I plan on trying one, but I don't have one yet.

Personal car: Larsen LSN-NMO27B in the middle of the roof. As with the work truck, I don't get the distance I have with a whip.

I'm running barefoot on the CB, use RG-58 for coax, and there is nothing special about the antenna system. On the ham rig, I run an FT-857D, usually 65 watts SSB, or 30 watts AM. I've talked to several countries off the whip, and 42 states. On the business band, I did chat with a fellow in New York while I was in upper Michigan on business band, which is 29 MHz.

EDIT: The Orbitor also goes by the name of "Stinger". I'm not endorsing the seller or the antenna, but here is a seller on EBAY SELLING the antenna.

Thanks for the in-depth survey. When I started over 5-years ago it was the sort of info for which I searched. (Helpful).

.

 

[slowmover]

Signal wise; mobile antennas need a good counterpoise/ground. This not only is for the match, but for the signal radiation characteristics. If it's free floating then the signal will travel at all elevations off the antenna. In radio operation you want the majority of signal to travel off the antenna horizontally. Any signal going up at a 40 degrees elevation or more is lost signal. Good grounding helps.

IMHO a mag mount is a compromise to not wanting to drill the roof, and from my own experiences there are losses between a fixed mount antenna and a magnetic mount. Those losses can not be calculated due to the fact some mounts "attach" strong enough to get some ground effect through paint. But from experience, my 108" whip on the truck always out distances the Larsen 25-30 MHz p/n: LSN-NMO27B which is on a mag mount.

The term "sound" can be ambiguous as it could mean modulation and not transmission/reception strength. I assume we're talking signal strength between two points, and not audio quality which is a whole different subject.

Nice explanation!

.

 

[RC4]

Wow great info thank you all! Currently I’m running a 955 in my 2018 Silverado with a a10 Stryker mag. It works really good around town and it’s really quiet as far as noise goes probably one of the best antennas I’ve ever had as far as that goes. But dx is a different story. It’s really hard to make contacts but I can do it from time to time depending on conditions. I just got a triple mag that I’m going to eventually use but I’m changing out the coax and ends before I do. I’ll be using either a 102 or skipshooter or Francis 5.5.
I’ve used fender mounts mounted on the driver side for years but noise becomes a issue for me. Ive heard using a mag in the middle of my roof is about the best I can do I guess. It just becomes a pain removing it every night cause I’m worried it will be stolen. I removed my fender mount but considering trying it again and see how it compares to the mag mounts. I know height is better but like I said noise becomes an issue on my 955. I just want to know what antenna system is the very best for all around performance.I did try the tri mag with a102 when I first got it but my swr was near 2. I’d rather not use a ball mount on my roof cause it would look dumb as hell. My hope is my tri mag with my 6 foot skip shooter will work the best but I’ll just have to wait and see.

 

[slowmover]

I’m not impressed by the performance of the LARSEN NMO27. And I’m not alone in that. But there are reports of using the NMO34 plus 64’ whip and tuning it to suit (use of an antenna analyzer)

An NMO center roof mount would be the way to go for most people. The 34/64 combo is said to be comparable to a WILSON 5000 or SIRIO 5000 if the details pan out.


The type will come off pretty easily.
Low key appearance also.

Install rain cap when not in use (below).

BREEDLOVE MOUNT (makers of mine) also has NMO mounts.



By the way: Looks dumb is for the dummies with crap radio performance.

Those of us know what we’re looking at are likely to key up and compliment you.

.

 

[slowmover]

Wow great info thank you all! Currently I’m running a 955 in my 2018 Silverado with a a10 Stryker mag. It works really good around town and it’s really quiet as far as noise goes probably one of the best antennas I’ve ever had as far as that goes. But dx is a different story. It’s really hard to make contacts but I can do it from time to time depending on conditions. I just got a triple mag that I’m going to eventually use but I’m changing out the coax and ends before I do. I’ll be using either a 102 or skipshooter or Francis 5.5.
I’ve used fender mounts mounted on the driver side for years but noise becomes a issue for me. Ive heard using a mag in the middle of my roof is about the best I can do I guess. It just becomes a pain removing it every night cause I’m worried it will be stolen. I removed my fender mount but considering trying it again and see how it compares to the mag mounts. I know height is better but like I said noise becomes an issue on my 955. I just want to know what antenna system is the very best for all around performance.I did try the tri mag with a102 when I first got it but my swr was near 2. I’d rather not use a ball mount on my roof cause it would look dumb as hell. My hope is my tri mag with my 6 foot skip shooter will work the best but I’ll just have to wait and see.

Work your way thru here. Take some notes. Apply some experimental juice:

Mobile Amateur Radio

.

 

[W8HDU]

I’m not impressed by the performance of the LARSEN NMO27. And I’m not alone in that. But there are reports of using the NMO34 plus 64’ whip and tuning it to suit (use of an antenna analyzer)

The 34 is a tad better than the 27. My problem is on a 2019 Silverado 1500/DC the height kills me in a woods. I've found on both antennas, if you're going to use 27.000 to 28.000 MHz tune for best at 27.400. The edges will usually be the same match. The 34 will usually be lower on the edges. So, yes, slowmover, the 34 is better in that respect.

I’ve used fender mounts mounted on the driver side for years but noise becomes a issue for me.

On the Silverado, the problem I've found with noise is traceable to two issues, and the caveat is I'm talking about a 2010 1500/CC and 2019 1500/DC. The first is the computer GM uses in the vehicle puts out noise. Not only alternator whine, but a slight amount of hash which the radio will get though the DC connection. The way to stop it is with a Kenwood KLF-2 power filter close to the radio. The other issue is harder to solve. The e-coating and paint used in the manufacturing causes resistance between sections of the truck. I ended up needing to put braid between the bed, and cab, as well as to the axels, doors, gate, and chassis. On my 2019 there was as much as 4.2 ohms between the negative battery terminal and the bed. I had to wire brush off paint and coating, and then install a strap to bridge between chassis and body, then use the spray coating to cover it back up to prevent rust. Before I did this my radio had about S5-S7 of noise. Afterward, no noise.

I've tried to engage GM electrical engineering division, but they don't seem to want to talk about the issue. I wrote to Mary Barra about the issue, and one of her lackies called me, wanting to know what was wrong with my in dash radio. I learned the body trick from a guy at General Dynamics who works on the vehicle line, and is also a ham.

 

[RC4]

The 34 is a tad better than the 27. My problem is on a 2019 Silverado 1500/DC the height kills me in a woods. I've found on both antennas, if you're going to use 27.000 to 28.000 MHz tune for best at 27.400. The edges will usually be the same match. The 34 will usually be lower on the edges. So, yes, slowmover, the 34 is better in that respect.




On the Silverado, the problem I've found with noise is traceable to two issues, and the caveat is I'm talking about a 2010 1500/CC and 2019 1500/DC. The first is the computer GM uses in the vehicle puts out noise. Not only alternator whine, but a slight amount of hash which the radio will get though the DC connection. The way to stop it is with a Kenwood KLF-2 power filter close to the radio. The other issue is harder to solve. The e-coating and paint used in the manufacturing causes resistance between sections of the truck. I ended up needing to put braid between the bed, and cab, as well as to the axels, doors, gate, and chassis. On my 2019 there was as much as 4.2 ohms between the negative battery terminal and the bed. I had to wire brush off paint and coating, and then install a strap to bridge between chassis and body, then use the spray coating to cover it back up to prevent rust. Before I did this my radio had about S5-S7 of noise. Afterward, no noise.

I've tried to engage GM electrical engineering division, but they don't seem to want to talk about the issue. I wrote to Mary Barra about the issue, and one of her lackies called me, wanting to know what was wrong with my in dash radio. I learned the body trick from a guy at General Dynamics who works on the vehicle line, and is also a ham.

Wow very interesting. I pretty much gave up on the noise issue with my truck. Using a mag mount helped a lot but didn’t get rid of it entirely. My Truck just doesn’t like cb radios and I’ve accepted that lol