Ok so my wagon is about done as far as a running driving lifted suby . So next comes add on stuff or trail ridin' stuff. I figured I would start with a good CB and a good set of offroad lights for the front.

So what kind of CB would you recommend and what kind of lights. Funds are tight right now so it will have to be CL or Ebay.

Thanks in advance

Radio Shack has some cheap (like 60 bucks) 40-channel units, which arent bad. Hook it to a bigger antenna and you can get plenty of range. I find its the antennas that break the deal for me, a new fiberglass whip is like 60 bucks with the coax cable.. I got my 15' whip on the Beast off a old-school Van at the junkyard for like 15 bucks

 

Cobra makes good CB radios as well, huge selection from super simple little 40 channels to uber-fancy ones with a billion adjustments.

 

 

-Bill

I bought my CB at wal-mart, $35. ITs even a cobra. They also had a magenetic mount antenna I bought for $15, but it lasted 1 whheelin trip.

 

The Antenna is definatly the most important part of a CB system. So buy a cheap CB from walmart, but buy a nice antenna from NAPA (I have actually had bad luck finding CB equipment at Radio Shack lately). Napa carries a wide variety of CB accessories.

Also, if you have a hard time finding CB stuff at Napa or Radioshack, go down to the Flying J or any major truck stop, they always have a ton of good CB stuff.

 

-Bill

Good thread. I run a cobra 29ltd and a 4' firestik antenna. Works great for me, but its not in my soob. For lights I added a harbor freight work lite in the bed of the brat. I used the upper bolt for the head rest track on the bed seats. On the front I went with the hella 500 driving lights. They are great. I found a factory fog light switch and a center light switch at pnp. I rigged the rear light to the fog light switch and the hellas to the center light switch. I'm mostly an urban driver with the brat, but love switching on the lights when I get the chance.

 

My cb is a bit big, but its a good one and can be found cheap on cl.

Also, if you have a hard time finding CB stuff at Napa or Radioshack, go down to the Flying J or any major truck stop, they always have a ton of good CB stuff.

 

-Bill

 

+1 the truck stops around here have lots of cool stuff.....

Hey, glad to hear your rig's comin' togather. Posted any pics yet? Guess you've been hard at it. Steve W.

I'm rocking a Cobra 29LTD Classic with a simple 3' fiberglass coil antenna. I particularly like this cobra because it has a built-in swr meter to tune, instead of buying an external one.

weatherband on mine from Amazon is nice to have.

Little Wil magnetic antenna, take it off the roof when i am not needing the CB. If theres a traffic slow down on I-80, I got it so i can open the slider, reach back, and plop the antenna up on top, then tune to whatever channel, hear the truckers tell where, what the holdup is, and take an exit to get on the sideroads and still be home without delay.

 

magnet antenna makes it nice to hide the antenna when i park it places in public so as to not attract any thug to the car for some cheap crak $ for a hot deal for pawn.

Hey, glad to hear your rig's comin' togather. Posted any pics yet? Guess you've been hard at it. Steve W.

 

Ya man its under my "another suby build thread"

Pay the money and have your cb antenna "tuned" if you don't know how to do it yourself.... Truck stops will know of someone/place to have it done....

Re: CB radios - the radio and the antenna are only a part of the equation here - granted, the bigger part....BUT quality coax is important too.

 

you can take the greatest CB on the market, hook it to some crappy coax and an unmatched antenna and it wont work worth a darn - flip side - take a crappy radio, hook it to quality coax and get the antenna tuned, it will probably outperform the previous scenario...

my point being that when you get your radio, get your antenna and get your coax (most magnet mounts have the coax built in - not the best quality, but it will work ok for a time) go find yourself a decent "CB shop" and get the antenna "matched" for peak performance - cost is usually around $20-30 to have it set up right. (BTW pretty much any trucker can tell you were to find a decent shop in your area)

 

I personally am not a huge fan of the fiberglass antennas, but many others do like them - all personal preference really.

 

as far as radios go - if you want cheap and easy to operate - the Cobra 19 is decent - very compact size, fits just about anywhere, can be had brand new for under $50 - the more complex they are, the more expensive they get - some Galaxy radios can be several hundred $$...

i run a pair of Hella 500's on the bumper and another pair of old school KC's on the roof rack.

 

my CB settup is a very old settup out of my grandpa's van. but its a mag mount with a 3ft metal antenna which i hate because i catch tree limbs and knock it off every wheelin trip. im looking for a firestick and fender mount for it now.

I have Hella's on the roof and the bumper.

 

I use a Cobra 75wxt because I could not find the real estate for a traditional CB radio. I have a mag mount 3' Antenaa from radioshack. Granted I do not transmit much but for weather and traffic/police updates it has never let me down.

Try this for CB stuff just make sure you compare prices.

 

http://www.pacetronics.com/

I rigged the rear light to the fog light switch and the hellas to the center light switch. I'm mostly an urban driver with the brat, but love switching on the lights when I get the chance.

 

 

 

__________________________

I am a retired NFL player now owns a replica Jerseys website.

come and get your cheap jerseys on: http://www.stajump.com

i run a pair of Hella 500's on the bumper and another pair of old school KC's on the roof rack.

 

my CB settup is a very old settup out of my grandpa's van. but its a mag mount with a 3ft metal antenna which i hate because i catch tree limbs and knock it off every wheelin trip. im looking for a firestick and fender mount for it now.

 

:lol:

______________________________

if you want to buy cheap nfl jerseys

just find me

I had to resurrect this one because.. Well, I had to.

 

My Step-dad gave me his "trucking" CB before he retired from the road and eventually passed away. Its a Galaxy DX959. Tweaked and peaked with a little "box" to help me reach out and smack someone. I need a new antenna but I got ears!

 

 

 

-Justin

That looks cool! My GF wouldn't like the whole thing sticking that far into the passenger seat area, though

 

I'm looking for a ham radio to mount in my car, then I'll be able to play in this thread too

Well, Its just me in my car 95% of the time. the other 5% is the occasional person to give a ride. they can deal

 

most of the time I'm either otr (over the road) or cruising around town at work and talking to myself only goes so far lol!

 

 

 

 

-Justin

Hah. I wanna get a CB in my car, too. Just so when I'm on long roadtrips I have something to amuse myself with.

oh, and since we're on the subject *tehehe* look what followed me home tonight...

 

predator antenna :-D

 

 

-Justin

That looks cool! My GF wouldn't like the whole thing sticking that far into the passenger seat area, though

 

I'm looking for a ham radio to mount in my car, then I'll be able to play in this thread too

 

I just put a ham radio in mine, it's not permanently mounted yet, just kinda have it sitting on the dash, I'm not brave enough yet to be drilling holes in the interior, but I'm gonna have to do it sooner or later.

The Wilson little wil is the best small magnetic antenna money

But, apprx. $40

Cb's , most are 40 channel , but are made cheaply!

I drive for living, and most drivers that use Cb's everyday

Use cb that are converted from ham radios.

Can buy at trick stops as well as cheaper versions.

I prefer galaxy or Texas ranger.

Cb equipment is like everything else, you et what you pay for

The Wilson little wil is the best small magnetic antenna money

But, apprx. $40

Cb's , most are 40 channel , but are made cheaply!

I drive for living, and most drivers that use Cb's everyday

Use cb that are converted from ham radios.

Can buy at trick stops as well as cheaper versions.

I prefer galaxy or Texas ranger.

Cb equipment is like everything else, you et what you pay for

 

I don't know about that 'Lil 'Will.. I never had any good luck on it. I ran my Galaxy 959 barefoot on it with 17w and barely got 4 miles away - IF that (And yes, it was tuned). I got better range with the plain 'ole 4 ft white whip.

 

You do get what you pay for though. For a Mag mount, I'd at least run a wilson 1k barefoot they are the best bang for your buck on range. I can get a good 25 miles barefoot on my predator 10k. LOT of skip out there now-a-days.. I've been talking to Florida, Rhode Island, Texas as well as New Jersey, I'm only running 125w to it.

 

A "Decent" cheap CB is a Cobra 29ish. They have a built-in SWR calibration meter as well as some signal modification knobs.

 

edit: "barefoot" means without any amplifier's.

 

-Justin

Edited October 26, 201213 yr by crazyman03