ummmmm I just kinda skimmed through the tuning instructions for this thing and i think im completly lost, I think I may down grad and get something I can just plug in and play cause man this thing sure seems complicated, not what i want

or maybe I can just plug this thing in and go and Ill never know the difrence.

Evan

 

Well if you just want a magnet mount get a Wilson 1000. It'll run you around $60-70 but its WORTH the money. If you find someone who has a SWR meter to dial it in you will have a range of about 7 or 8 miles(guesstimation). If you want a bolt on for your toolbox I HIGHLY suggest the new Cobra High Gear. I just got one and I love it, but like me you will have to run a ground wire from your toolbox to your frame to ground it for optimum performance (& getting you SWR's down to a low level). If you just wanna go el cheapo though and distance isn't really a key factor get a Wilson Fiberglass stick. They are cheap, usually a good 4FT one will do you good, and they are easy to set up.

Your first major step to getting a good set up in your truck though would be to find a local CB shop. We have one in town where I get all of my stuff at, as well as all of my work done. Yours might be closer to a interstate though. Just to give you an example Evan I bought my CB used for $70 its a Cobra 25 Sound Tracker. It's probably got about $400 in it worth of modifications./wwwthreads_images/icons/crazy.gif/wwwthreads_images/icons/smile.gif It can get to be an expensive hobby. Yeah that's a lot of money to have it, but trust me I know people who have A LOT MORE! in it!!

Lastly, as far as those knobs and buttons I can't remember all of 'em off the top of my head cause mine only has 3 knobs, and 4 switches. And only a couple of 'em are still actually for what they are labeled for(I think only volume & PA/CB are the only 2). If you could give me the list of all of 'em I would be happy to tell ya what they do. Anymore questions feel free to give me a shout. As you can tell I'm long winded on this subject!/wwwthreads_images/icons/laugh.gif

 

I have a cb radio from radioshack. It is just the radioshack brand. It has pa button, squelch, ad distance control. New for 75, worth it. Bought a 29 antenna. And then bought a pa speaker for 10

 

we are talking about this on the ford forum too... but briefly, i run a Firestik II no ground plane (NGP) system with a 4 ft fiberglass whip spring loaded on the spare tire rack. excellent antenna, i can talk with the best of em. make sure if you're mounting it to a mirror or somewhere where it cant get a good ground plane, you get some type of NGP system

www.firestik.com
www.valcoelectronics.com <--- to buy

When I gun this three fifty one, you better run!

www.ArkansasMud.com

 

No CB, but PA yes. I had one in my black truck. I got a unit from Galls thats for ambulances. It's hella loud. I love when at a red light it turns green and the people are talking on there phone or something and don't pay attention, flip the switch and "MOVE". Gets there attention real quick. Always had the head light wig wags and the siren too, but it didn't get used too much/wwwthreads_images/icons/wink.gif

Jason
Big Willy Style
http://www.projectbigwilly.com

http://usor.topcities.com<---Rezzy Joe

Best Auto Insurance | Auto Protection Today | FREE Trade-In Quote

 

Is there a knob that has LSB AM USB or just AM/SSB on the radio? That would be great but I doubt you could pick one with SSB up for that price...

Mic gain is how much it boosts a signal from the mic (or tones down the signal if you want to talk to people who are closer to you, you tend to need to turn the mic gain down a little or it'll sound distorted)

RF Gain is how much it modulates the incoming signal. It should be usually turned up all the way as should mic gain. that will let you hear and get out as far as possible.

If there's a knob marked clarifier or delta tune, that's in case someone isn't set exactly on the frequency, so you can try to tune them in. It's basically like a focus knob on a camera, except for sound. /wwwthreads_images/icons/crazy.gif

Does it have a meter built into it? Not a digital one but an analog gage on it? If it does, you'll be able to set the SWR without buying a meter. I'll explain how to do that one or link you to a page (actually check out the wilson website they have lots of info on how to tune an antenna right (who wouldda thought? /wwwthreads_images/icons/wink.gif))
Wilson Antennas

I currently run a Wilson 5000 magnet mount. I've also had the 1000. It got thieved and since there's not a massive price ($20 if I remember) difference between 1000 and 5000, I figured I'd upgrade.

Make sure you run a ground wire from the case of your CB to the nearest good solid clean metal of the body. This sets up your ground plane and ensures you get out and receive the best you can. /wwwthreads_images/icons/crazy.gif

Tim "Sandman"

 

What make, model and brand would you recommend for PA's? I have a PA output in my CB I'd like to use (I wanna be able to tell the idiots to move, etc also) /wwwthreads_images/icons/laugh.gif Is there a good online place to order from? Sorry for hijacking the original thread... /wwwthreads_images/icons/crazy.gif

Tim "Sandman"

 

I am putting my cb in my tuck as well and am contemplating what antenas to buy. i want to run two i think and mount them on a toolbox. I have a Tristar 240. Has anyone ever heard of that brand. i bought it when i lived in NC.

95 Chevy Ext. Cab Z71, K&N, 6" BDS, Stereo system

 

On a pickup you can't get optimum seperation for 2 antennas to work properly. The single antenna is a much better idea, particularly mounted about dead center of the vehicle.. It's slightly directional front to back on the vehicle (meaning you get out a bit better in front and behind) if I recall correctly. I think the Wilson site goes somewhat in depth on that also, but I'm not sure... /wwwthreads_images/icons/crazy.gif

Tim "Sandman"

 

Check out http://www.galls.com. They have some pretty nice stuff like handcuff keys that look like pens? That might help ya out someday, ya never know/wwwthreads_images/icons/wink.gif

Jason
Big Willy Style
http://www.projectbigwilly.com

http://usor.topcities.com<---Rezzy Joe

Best Auto Insurance | Auto Protection Today | FREE Trade-In Quote

 

Sandman, go to radioshack. They have pa speakers for cheap. There is really no "name" brand pa speaker you need. All it is is a speaker. Just go to radioshack, tell them you want to get a pa speaker for your truck, also get the plug that is inserted in the back of the cb.

 

get one with a built in amp. my brother has one of our old house alarm speakers and it is LOUD.. will hurt your ears if you stand in front of his truck. it has two wires for audio and 2 for 12 volts... it looks fairly inexpensive, but might not be very weatherproof, but it's survived a couple mud holes so maybe it is. that would actually be kinda cool, i think i'll hook one up on the bronco in case the 35's don't say MOVE loud enough.

When I gun this three fifty one, you better run!

www.ArkansasMud.com

 

I was reading through the manual on my CB and it says something about getting somekinda of antena where it makes it possibe to bring, AM, FM and CB radio waves,

 

Kid, dont exactly know what that means. This summer, i might just get a 4ft whip antenna, and get rid of my antenna that ive got now. It is nice, but i dont get to much distance. Since i will be at college next year and all, i will be driving more(highway) so i want a bigger antenna.

 

heres a quick sqetch of my cb, yeah I know my writeing and drawing are of the highest quality

heck that turned out better than my pics

 

what about mounting on mirror? i have the truckers mount i was thinking about placing on mirror. whats the deal?

theo

88 GMC Jimmy 2 Dr S-15 Sierra CLassic.
Broke College Student

 

The mirror should make it slightly directional towards the opposite rear corner of the truck... /wwwthreads_images/icons/crazy.gif

About the PA brand/good/bad one, I mostly wanted to know what would be loud enough... I've seen cheezy ones you could barely hear and I've seen the models mounted on cop cars which leads one to assume they're very loud...

That radio pictured doesn't have SSB. That's ok it seems not many people use the sidebands anyway. 99% of truckers seem to run on the regular AM channels. Not sure why since you can get out farther on the sidebands (12 watts output instead of 4) and there seems to be less background stuff.. Perhaps just cause they don't want to spend the extra $1-- to get the feature. /wwwthreads_images/icons/crazy.gif

Tim "Sandman"

 

Kid as promised here is the info on the knobs/switches:
Knobs
Volume-duh j/k

Dynamic- controls how much of you mic your using so to speak. You can control how much power you have going through your mic by adjusting it forward or backwards, but the farther back you go the hard it will be for people to hear you.

RF Gain- controls how much noise/signal you pull in from around you. The farther back you set it you will only be able to hear people closer to you.

Dimer- You have a NW (Night Watch) version this brightens or dims the lights on your radio face(nice for at night if you don't have knobs/switches memorized, but I do/wwwthreads_images/icons/laugh.gif)

SWR Calibration- for when you go to set you SWR's, your radio has a built in SWR meter so you don't need a external to calibrate yours.

Switches
Send/Recieve-SWR-Calibrate SWR swithes you from sending/recieving(talking) to, checking your SWR's, to calibrating your SWRs

Noise Blank/Annual(?) NB OFF- this is a form of noise block might as well leave it on.

Hi/Nor- not sure but I think it has something to do with signal leave it on hi

19/9/NOR- switches you to locked on Channel 19, locked on channel 9, and normal select-your-channel 1-40

then the Sound Tracker switch- it turns you sound tracker system on/off(the little green light next to it indicates its on) It sort of another noise blank. My 25 has it but with my extra modifications I can't use it cause it causes a squeal in my transmissions.

Hope this as well as Sandman clears this up. Any more Q's just ask.

 

Shotgun

yeah that kinda clears everything up.

I found a magnet mounted antenna in my garage that Ill use till I can get on to mount to my toolbox, so it doesnt stick up as high.
Ive got the cb mounted but havent wired it yet, gota figure out how to wire it into the acessory fuse deal, dont wana run it right to the battery.

thankx for the info, and advice
Evan

 

Run it to the battery. You tend to get cleaner power that way... /wwwthreads_images/icons/crazy.gif

Get a magnet mount and when you don't want/need the extra range like on a trail just put it on the toolbox. don't solid mount it to the tool box because on long highway trips, etc. you can get more range for traffic conditions farther away, etc...

Tim "Sandman"

 

Tim

K to the battery it goes, thats the esyest anyways, if you dont mind me asking?? is there less interference or something when its wired straight to the battery?

Im not sure I get what you mean about useing a magnet mount and then mounting on my toolbox for trails, cause it wont stay on aluminum, or where you saying to get both, or can I get an antenna that can mount both ways with a dif bracket??

sorry for all the questions

Evan

 

Re: just got a CB (discount prices)

Here's an answer to your question on mounting the antenna. The magnetic mount obviously mounts to your vehicle anywhere there is steel. To mount to your toolbox, or your bumper, you need to purchase a separate mounting system.
I have a 5ft Firestick antenna and mount, and it gets me about 6 miles of range across town. You may need to put your antenna on a spring if it sticks up too high. The radio I was talking to was homebased and amplified, so his signal was strong. My signal to his station was almost pegged so that works pretty well.
As far as getting a CB radio for cheap, try this site: www.dbldistributing.com. They sell bulk and overstock on new product with full manufacturers warranyt. My Cobra is $36.00 there and $54.99 at Fry's Electronics. Their selection is always changing, so check them out.

1996 Chevy 1/2T,ExtCab,Z71,Airaid (K&N),Jacobs ign ,Rancho6",Skyjacker springs,Hypertech Comp, DeeZee, Xenon, CenterLine,33"Goodyear MT/R, PIAA

 

Hey Evan, as far as the wiring goes, check in your engine compartment. Right next to the computer in my '96, there is an primary fuse box. There are two studs for accessories.
They are constant hot wires. On my truck they are M8-1.25 pitch threads. I don't know if your truck has them or not.

1996 Chevy 1/2T,ExtCab,Z71,Airaid (K&N),Jacobs ign ,Rancho6",Skyjacker springs,Hypertech Comp, DeeZee, Xenon, CenterLine,33"Goodyear MT/R, PIAA

 

Oh, sorry, when I thought toolbox, I was thinking steel. You could make a steel bracket fairly easily to mount it to by the toolbox in the bed (magnet mount) if you want to go that way. The higher the antenna, the better you'll get out. Just about no way around that... /wwwthreads_images/icons/crazy.gif

I'd not use the fuse panel anyplace, even the accessory terminals, I'd run a couple of leads right from the battery (the battery acts as a filter and gives you smooth power. When you connect anyplace else in my experience anyhow, you get more background interference.) You should probably solder the connectors to the wires just to ensure you get best contact/least resistance... Route the wires away from plug wires and the alternator though.

To make an RF "sniffer" go to http://www.wilsonantenna.com and into their tech articles. This will point you to the sources of RF so you can fix it so the systems don't interfere with the radio much/at all... /wwwthreads_images/icons/crazy.gif

Tim "Sandman"

 

Im pretty sire ourrre boxes are diferent???