Ham & CB SSB - redundant?

[KA1E]

Hello, I just got my Tech license and this is my first post so please forgive my ignorance.
I'm trying to figure out a good portable set up for my new pickup truck.
I have a nice Cobra 148GTL 40 ch CB and 40 upper and 40 lower SSB I used to use a lot and like a lot.
I hope to go for my General and hopefully Extra.

I have a friend who wants to buy the Cobra from me and I could then use the money towards the Ham, but right now I'm wondering if I should keep the Cobra because if/when I get a Yaesu or similar Ham will it do everything the Cobra does anyway?

Or do you think the Cobra would still be better for on the road CB SSB trucker communications?

 

[AK9R]

The FCC rules for the Citizens Band radio service (FCC Part 95) require that transmitters used in that service be certified to meet the FCC rules. Most amateur radio transmitters are not certified for use in the CB service. Therefore, legally, you couldn't use your amateur radio transmitter on the CB channels. Not that it doesn't happen. But, it's not legal.

 

[n5ims]

To help clarify, the FCC certifications for a CB radio state that the radio must meet some very specific rules to be legal. This basically means that a CB radio can only be used on the normal CB channels. While it's legal for a ham to modify a CB radio for use on the 10 meter ham band and use it there, these modifications would void the FCC certification for that radio and make it no longer legal for use on the CB bands.

The bottom line is if you want to talk on the CB frequencies, you'll need to keep a CB radio that's dedicated to that purpose. It would be nice if they would allow a licensed ham (say General class or above if you like) to use their ham radio on the CB bands perhaps with restricted power and only on the normal CB channelized frequencies, but that would open the floodgates for non-hams to buy ham rigs to run as CBs using full ham power levels and on whatever frequencies they happen to select (under the idea that "If they didn't want me to talk there and with that power, they shouldn't have made this radio work there with that much power.").

 

[robertmac]

Or another way to look at it. Crappy Band is just one band, yes 40 channels along with SSB. Most ham radios with HF will allow one to listen to CB if one is so inclined. Now, HF bands/frequencies give SO many more frequencies on HF, VHF, UHF, 1.2 G, and higher. You will be limited by how much money you want to spend. Only thing, because of higher legal power, HF mobile may require a little more work to ground and bond your vehicle than CB. But, if done properly, who you talk to is endless. And as I have said before, a lot of trucker comms. is next to dead as they move to VHF/UHF.