So Called 10M CB radios

[poikaa]

Almost like walking through a snowball fight here!

I wanted to add that I have an Anytone AT-6666 and it works well on the frequencies it covers, both channelized and VFO, variable power, No CW but all other modes, I have had several contacts on ten meters and given good reports. Microprocessor controlled and there are three menus for setting the radio the way one likes it, even the display has five different back light colours.
A few years back I modded a Uniden PC-122 by swapping out the VCO crystal, it gave me good coverage of the ten meter band up to about 28.500, so it was mainly in the novice / tec allocation of ten meters. Open up the clarifier so the receive tracked the transmit. I had to re-tune the rig as it is a narrow banded radio but once tuned it worked very good. After this I retuned it to the 11 meter band and went on to something else.
A little later I found a Realistic TRC-485 'digital' CB, something like a Magnum 257. I also converted it fir the ten meter band and had some nice contacts.... Here is a video link I had made....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iqaFwCUVWMI&list=UUs5_A9MJcA5Lj2gQxNltlCQ

I returned the radio to the 11 meter band and traded it for a Magnum 257HP, non-working and made repairs to this.... A better radio by far! Still lots of fun to convert CBs to other bands!
Some of the new '10 meter' transceivers coming out of China, Maxlogs, Anytone, Lincoln II. are pretty neat and beat the old CB style because of the microprocessor controls and menus. But nothing like modifying an old CB to the HAM bands!

73 poikaa

 

[ducksoupe]

My beloved President HR2510 has the chip-switch in it. It has 10 meter and 11 meter bands though I only listen on 10 meter because I am using a 11 meter dipole. I bought it in CB's hayday as the bands were clogged and my friends use to go between channels to talk.

 

[kd7mxi]

they show up at truckstops from time to time and are marketed as 10 meter cb radio ,,, they cover both 10 and 11 meter

 

[KI7HYI]

Looking over the websites of dealers, I see a lot of radios designated as 10M, yet the descriptions never state the frequency ranges and they appear to be regular export CB's on steroids with a high power output using a FET based class C amp somewhere either inside or on the back and typically 5 ranges of 40 channels.

Unlike their microprocessor based competitors like the Magnums or RCI's, these make no pretense they aren't being made for CB conversion and use. The check outs of these websites offer recommended tune jobs and tout their trucker/CB performance features that no amateur would be interested in such as talkback and other CB specific features.

This makes me wonder about something. Do these radios really come out of the box covering 10 meters and how the hell are these companies switching 5 or 10 loop crystals and retuning for around $45 to put them on CB?

My experience with converted CB's to 10M has been spectacular and far better then using a dedicated amateur radio. The CB conversions outperfrom in superior noise blanker and sensitivity although adjacent channel and image rejection aren't the best. These radios price adjusted would be a boone for amateurs if there wasn't a stigma attached to them and the knee jerk response to their use without any understanding of the rules and regs that make them perfectly legal on amateur bands.

Those of you that have either converted these units, operated them on tech/novice voice areas, or have experience with them, I'd like to hear your response. I've already done some conversions and we have a a handfull of guys that were originally on 29.6 fm move over to 28.5 and above for SSB using some of these radios or conversions although the price of a custom cut crystal has skyrocketed to nearly $50 unless you can find a standard microprocessor crystal close to the range or use a surplus rock to move the radio economically.

Back in the 70's, I converted a Sears 23 channel unit that was originally a 300+ dollar radio that blew out for $25 even though they were illegal to sell after the 40 channel radios came out. Crystals were cheap back then and I converted two 4 frequency ranges for local nets and did so with other JCPenny and Radio Shack similar units for some locals before the 02A hygain chassis pushed the surplus market towards am and fm. My cheap 8 chanel mobile with a plus 3 turner mobile mic and &$ 3.50 usb/am crystal blew away the perfromance of my then Heath SB-102 and any of the guys running a yaesu FT-101, Tempo, or Kenwood TS-520. Even during the morning drive to work, I could hear distant stations that the guys with beams and dipoles couldn't hear on their amateur 80-10 stations and got signal reports like I was running power using a barefoot radio with an ASP trunk lip antenna. Defintely a superior setup then. I moved over to two GE transcievers and antennas for 29.6 and 52.525 when everything went FM during the 40 channel surplus and half assed FM conversions. Always did have 2 GE progress line converted mobile into base power supply units since '73 for FM, but the CB conversions really rocked if you were dealing with established nets and totally blew away amateur stations of the day on 10M.

The standard later was for conversions for the usual 40 channels on the PLL rigs starting at either 28.5 or 28.45 that was standarized for early export radios sold in the states for 10M like the Mongoose Cybernet radios sold to amateurs as 10m dedicated radios. Odd their was no stigma attached to those as old timers were buying them and raving about how great they were.

Try that now and watch the condendcention and attacks by former cb'er's

I'd have to dig the Sears AM/SSB radio out to determine if it was 23 or 40 channel, but since there seems to be no stand alone 10 SSB transmitters that I could use with the Icom IC-R71 that I already own and I only have a tech license right now, I'd be interested in seeing any plans that might exist for converting the radio over to amatuer use.

 

[Delta33]

Really?

This thread is almost 3 years old, so Why rehash it?