Do truckers still use CB Radios?

[navsec277]

i recently hooked up an old base station cb to a mag mount mobile whip, up on the metal roof panels of my shop. 90% of all the traffic was on skip, no truckers ,nothing local answered my radio check calls. i see twin antennas on most all of the big rigs that pass thru my hometown, but no one chatting on the cb freqs. i would guess that truckers have their cell phones with their trucking buddies cell numbers and phone up "smoky reports" to each other.

 

[kc2asb]

i recently hooked up an old base station cb to a mag mount mobile whip, up on the metal roof panels of my shop. 90% of all the traffic was on skip, no truckers ,nothing local answered my radio check calls. i see twin antennas on most all of the big rigs that pass thru my hometown, but no one chatting on the cb freqs. i would guess that truckers have their cell phones with their trucking buddies cell numbers and phone up "smoky reports" to each other.

It's the same around here (NJ/NY metro area). Very sparse local activity, maybe one or two channels where locals hang out regularly. Back in the late 80's into the 90's, nearly every channel had activity.

The truckers probably have their radios on but are mostly listening. That seems to be the opinion of many on here.

 

[BrhatWeed]

Could be a regional thing too.

 

[WSAC829]

Could be a regional thing too.

More than likely. It’s dead on 19 here around the Green Bay area, but go south and get in to Milwaukee or Madison and it perks right up. Now if you go farther south, like Nashville area, it's a zoo on 19 just like the old days.

 

[Danielsmith0793]

im in NC and I can usually get a few replies throughout the day on channel 19 and some days there will be a lot of chat on there . A few days ago I did chat with a driver named Scooby-Doo for about 30 mins

 

[slowmover]

i recently hooked up an old base station cb to a mag mount mobile whip, up on the metal roof panels of my shop. 90% of all the traffic was on skip, no truckers ,nothing local answered my radio check calls. i see twin antennas on most all of the big rigs that pass thru my hometown, but no one chatting on the cb freqs. i would guess that truckers have their cell phones with their trucking buddies cell numbers and phone up "smoky reports" to each other.

Easy for a base station to get regular talk started. Just have to stay with it. There’ll be a point regulars on the way through will turn up the volume on 19 to see how far out they can hear you and you can hear them.

If you had read this thread it’s been covered. Examples, and How To.

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[slowmover]

 

[BrhatWeed]

Looks like the typical MNDOT screw-off's looking to bottleneck traffic while they stand around holding up their shovels.

 

[kc2asb]

Looks like the typical MNDOT screw-off's looking to bottleneck traffic while they stand around holding up their shovels.

That's not bad compared to here in NJ, where often all you will see are the cones and barriers, but not one worker in sight.

 

[slowmover]

And how do y’all get around the second impediment?

.

 

[BrhatWeed]

And how do y’all get around the second impediment?

Very carefully

 

[slowmover]

Commercial Road Atlas, GPS, Notepad & AM/SSB Export NRC-Radio + DX-901 Speaker to raise local and/or regional drivers already know the alternates. These are minimums.


Here’s another example has just been cut off today to big trucks and anyone towing a trailer where before it was passable during construction:



One must make a right turn at this light and continue to FM-386 (SR-12) to then turn onto Commercial St to snake along on the outskirts of town with 7-8 required stops plus intersections. Cross over the double rail tracks 2X to get around the bluff. Traffic coming in the opposite direction, same reason.

On map (and from radio) sure enough, if one stays on FM-386 it’ll take him 6-miles to FM-17 to turn left that’ll rejoin desired highway 12-miles farther on. No narrow lanes, no load-limited bridges. No other traffic of significance.

Highly reduced risk is what to have heard. In this instance one doesn’t need access to the other end of town. The river crossing is the key impediment.


Radio means that map reading/GPS alone would get one trapped on FM-17 behind the overturned pickup and stock trailer with dazed cattle wandering about happened under an hour ago. Sheriffs Department and passersby blocked the turn from 386. “Closed”. Now one has to circle back to start point in pic above with a 19-mile detour.


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[slowmover]

As simple as it sounds to do this — map & execute a re-route — until one practices given any opportunity he won’t be good at it until it’s been done a few times. (Has accepted that sometimes it doesn’t work; gets better at acquiring info necessary).

Same as with being other than passive on the radio is that one is prepared.

The radio won’t speak to you on a regular basis until Universe recognizes that this is important enough you aren’t speaking into The Void. Your hand manipulating pen & paper is a key . . as button-pushing isn’t part of Reality, but part of the grid, The Matrix.

Your unmet brothers and cousins will then recognize your voice and answer the call as their earlier efforts took them up the same escalator to this level.

In this example Bob (tail) Jorgensen is coming down the big truck/trailer route 4.6/air-miles away from you still on the other side of the bluff. Yer Cobra 29 of today ain’t gonna git it for what’s needed.

You also need to be able to report on, what did you leave behind you (on US-14 back to the Interstate).

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[kc2asb]

Here’s another example has just been cut off today to big trucks and anyone towing a trailer where before it was passable during construction:

View attachment 184837


Radio means that map reading/GPS alone would get one trapped on FM-17 behind the overturned pickup and stock trailer with dazed cattle wandering about happened under an hour ago. Sheriffs Department and passersby blocked the turn from 386. “Closed”. Now one has to circle back to start point in pic above with a 19-mile detour.
.

All this and no "Your Tax Dollars At Work" sign?

 

[slowmover]

All this and no "Your Tax Dollars At Work" sign?

Not till the Courthouse lawn.

.

 

[BrhatWeed]

All this and no "Your Tax Dollars At Work" sign?

Couldn't fit it in the budget.

 

[LEH]

I think it is a combination of several concerns. One, CBs maybe considered distracted driving and that is a big buzz word now. Two, as stated elsewhere, company owned rigs may not be allowed to 'modify' the rig. Three, cell phones are easier to use and you can talk to who you want. Four apps like Waze and Radarbot give decent bear reports without all the extraneous el toro poop.
I'm on road trip this week and I've been looking at big trucks as we pass. Well over 60% (rough guess) no longer have a CB antenna on their rigs that I can see.
But at a couple of slow down/stops for whatever reason, 19 came to life. Maybe truckers have a handheld for such cases. But driving along, my rig will scan all 40 channels and other than the perpetual ratchet jaws who love locking up a channel, pretty dead.
One question though, when did channel 9 become the Spanish language chit chat channel? I've traveled through 7 states and in 5 I've heard 9 locked up with Spanish conversations.

 

[GadgetGeek]

One question though, when did channel 9 become the Spanish language chit chat channel? I've traveled through 7 states and in 5 I've heard 9 locked up with Spanish conversations.

Been like that for many years.

 

[EAFrizzle]

One question though, when did channel 9 become the Spanish language chit chat channel? I've traveled through 7 states and in 5 I've heard 9 locked up with Spanish conversations.

Been like that for many years.

Decades. In the late 80s/early 90s Cuban taxi companies would dispatch on 9 AM and 40 USB. Eventually, 9 became a rag-chewing channel through much of Mexico and Central America. It was always a good laugh when a CB "net controller" would tell the Mexicans to get off the emergency channel, obviously not comprehending the Mexican replies.

 

[niceguy71]

I think it is a combination of several concerns. One, CBs maybe considered distracted driving and that is a big buzz word now. Two, as stated elsewhere, company owned rigs may not be allowed to 'modify' the rig. Three, cell phones are easier to use and you can talk to who you want. Four apps like Waze and Radarbot give decent bear reports without all the extraneous el toro poop.
I'm on road trip this week and I've been looking at big trucks as we pass. Well over 60% (rough guess) no longer have a CB antenna on their rigs that I can see.
But at a couple of slow down/stops for whatever reason, 19 came to life. Maybe truckers have a handheld for such cases. But driving along, my rig will scan all 40 channels and other than the perpetual ratchet jaws who love locking up a channel, pretty dead.
One question though, when did channel 9 become the Spanish language chit chat channel? I've traveled through 7 states and in 5 I've heard 9 locked up with Spanish conversations.

channel 9 is now the Spanish super bowl in some other country... or countries.

the new generation of truck drivers don't care about having a CB, so very few on trucks now. and if you do see a CB antenna it's a 3 foot tall piece of junk that only works for a couple miles... with such a lousy antenna they learn that their CB's can't communicate with anyone out of sight and they just figure no one is on CB anymore and shut their radio's off.

people buy the cheapest CB and antenna they can buy... like a $34.99 CB off Amazon click this like---> $34.99 CB Radio if you read all the reviews ... no one say's they talk to anyone on the reviews.... most say I love this CB it's small and fits in a tight spot in my car... I have not talked to anyone yet as I bought it for when SHTF..... others say I have not talked to anyone yet but I can hear people easily on Channel 6, 9, and 11 so this is one great CB????? I read thousands of these reviews from cheap CB's and cheap Antenna's... it has killed the hobby--- in my opinion!

as you said all the new programs with GPS and traffic alerts have replaced the desire for CB's

for quite sometime now ( years?) skip has pretty much shut down channel 19.... so people turned the squelch way up high so they could only hear very close vehicles.... but then people with mega watts CB's ( like the guy in the desert ) would broadcast non stop making people on 19 just shut off their CB's...

manufacturers made little 3 foot antenna's like the Lil Wil, K-30, Tram 300, Cobra HG1500, Hustler IC100...... people didn't want to put a big 5 foot tall magnetic antenna on their roofs so they bought those little 3 foot ones... then they would make a contact about 2 miles away on a busy highway near a truck stop.... or hear people on channel 6 ... or hear high powered skip from these 60 plus watt ham Radios or Export Radios and think their CB is working fantastic! then they would review them on Amazon.... and before you knew it, there were thousands of 5 star reviews from people that never even made a contact, but were telling the world that these 3 foot very limited range antenna's are the great thing on the planet......
so next thing you know people read all the reviews and buy a 3 foot antenna and the few CB's that we do have on the roads today can only reach out a little more than 3 miles if that.....
because of the poor antenna's limited range, on a road trip the CB becomes useless and they take it off the vehicle and sell it or give it away and never use it again as they say CB's don't get enough range to be worth having them anymore.... or they say CB is dead.....
if they had only tried a good Stryker SAR-10 antenna they probably would be talking to people in a 10 mile radius!

these 3 foot antenna's makes it very difficult for all of us to actually find someone on the CB when we need someone.

if those little 3 foot antenna's hadn't been made... and everyone was forced to buy a Wilson 1000, or a K40 or Stryker SAR-10 they would be getting 5 to 8 miles of range and I personally think we would see a different hobby than we see today.

just my opinion why very few people use CB radio's today