cant get any range

[deathsicon]

hey im new here and having a problem installing a spare radio in my friends car for a trip this weekend and have run out of ideas on where the problem may lie,

just picked up a cobra 19dx and k30 antenna to run as a spare rig to loan to friends for trips and upon installing it we cant talk for more than a few hundred feet apart, the other radio involved is a cobra 29 lx le with a fire stik 5' fiberglass antenna

thanks in advance for any help

 

[Rt169Radio]

Bad coax? Bad antenna connection to/from the radio?

 

[amusement]

Ohm meter is a tool to determine if the coax is bad. See if shield is shorted or there's an open in the center conductor.

SWR meter is a tool to determinate transmission power to the antenna from the CB.

I use dielectric grease to weather proof connectors.

Hopes this helps.

 

[elk2370bruce]

Have you tested the output power on the Cobra? In addition to coax problemsm a bad driver could account for the crappy range.

 

[reconrider8]

what does the swr look like on the radio it sounds more like bad swr then bad coax

 

[n9mxq]

Ohm meter is a tool to determine if the coax is bad. See if shield is shorted or there's an open in the center conductor.

SWR meter is a tool to determinate transmission power to the antenna from the CB.

I use dielectric grease to weather proof connectors.

Hopes this helps.

SWR meter measures power??

From: SWR meter - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The SWR meter or VSWR (voltage standing wave ratio) meter measures the standing wave ratio in a transmission line. The meter can be used to indicate the degree of mismatch between a transmission line and its load (usually a radio antenna), or evaluate the effectiveness of impedance matching efforts.

 

[robertmac]

swr/power meter

I have a swr/power meter that will do both. Could the problem also be skip conditions? Don't have a CB but when I did, and the 2nd reason I got rid of it [first being the foul language] was it was useless for short range coms. when the skip was skipping in.

 

[n9mxq]

I have a swr/power meter that will do both. Could the problem also be skip conditions? Don't have a CB but when I did, and the 2nd reason I got rid of it [first being the foul language] was it was useless for short range coms. when the skip was skipping in.

And it's an SWR/POWER meter..

Seems the K30 is known as a non performer.. K30 Antenna Review
Just one of many bad reviews I've glanced over...

 

[deathsicon]

thanks for the help, the 29 is barely a year old and the 19 was bought less than 3 days ago, antenna is just as new, swr on the 29 is about 1.2 ish and then the jumper went bad on the 19, after playing around and rigging the coax off my truck to work as a jumper for a few minutes i still couldnt get the swr down anywhere in the same zip code as reasonable, i dont have any real output numbers for either rig tho, my meter only does swr no outputs

 

[k8krh]

It sounds as if it is in the coax..shorted some where..I had one of those 19's one time, opened it up and increased made an adjustment to modulation, put a power mic on it and it came alive. average was then 15 miles on it.. ..I would take the antenna back and get a better antenna
DOCTOR/795

 

[LtDoc]

An ohm meter has very limited use for testing coax. It can only tell if there's a shorted or opened conductor, knows nothing about AC (all RF is AC).
An SWR meter can't tell you squat about power. It can only tell you about the relationship between impedance inputs/outputs, and then it's not definitive in that.
First recommendation would be to make sure the antenna is tuned. That tuning will change every time you change the antenna's location so retune it.
Second, make sure the radio is working properly.
If the radio is working properly then it's a fair bet there's a problem in the antenna -system-. Try something different. Any -part- of that antenna system could be at fault.
Sorry, there's just not a good answer without a lot of checking.
- 'Doc

 

[deathsicon]

well im back from the trip, as soon as we got rolling the cbs became completely useless, just static squeals coming thru so we ditched them for the handhelds we were using for the paintball game, as far as tuning iv tried everything in my limited knowledge to bring the 19 into tune but i cant get a reading below pegged on my cheap lil meter, i think im gonna take it out to the shop i got the radio at this week and see if they can help

 

[Rt169Radio]

well im back from the trip, as soon as we got rolling the cbs became completely useless, just static squeals coming thru so we ditched them for the handhelds we were using for the paintball game, as far as tuning iv tried everything in my limited knowledge to bring the 19 into tune but i cant get a reading below pegged on my cheap lil meter, i think im gonna take it out to the shop i got the radio at this week and see if they can help

Maybe it has something to do with the wheels? You said when you started driving,static squeals started coming from the radio.

 

[deathsicon]

iv never heard of anything like that, and it was only when we tried to use the radios, the 29 stays in my truck full time and altho i rarely talk thru it its always recieved just fine

 

[k8krh]

Be sure to let us know what the shop found..
DOCTOR/795

 

[LtDoc]

You don't tune the radio, you tune/adjust the antenna. Most common way of doing that is to make it longer/shorter.
- 'Doc