CB or not CB? That is the question.
 

Just how useful are CBs now days? Are they worth having for emergencies if
in desert areas or is there something better (Not including cell phones)?


--
Billyism
wtshtf@hot<spambuster>mail.com

"I told my constituents if they wanted me back in
Washington as their representative, they should indeed
vote for me. If they don't, I'll go to Texas and they can
all go to hell."

Davy Crockett

Re: CB or not CB? That is the question.
 

Yes, you should have a CB.

Although a Ham radio has significantly better range, and is becoming more
popular with jeepers in some areas, they are far from universal and you may
find that the only Ham operators you can talk to in an emergency are far, far
away. Also, a decent dual band unit is $300, plus antenna, and you will need a
license.

CB's are almost universal in properly equipped jeeps, and you stand a chance of
reaching someone much closer to you in the event of an emergency or trail
breakdown. (Assuming you wheel on or near the major and/or most popular
trails.) They also make trail riding in a group more fun, as you can
communicate with other rigs.

Carry your cellphone too.

Robert Bills
KG6LMV
Orange County CA

http://www.outdoorwire.com/4x4/jeep/...p-l/billsr.htm
http://www.RobertBills.com

Re: CB or not CB? That is the question.
 

I just installed a CB in my JEEP about 3 weeks ago and I'm very pleased. I
took the jeep on a road trip and it was good to talk to the truckers because
they would relay any road problems, etc. On my trip, they relayed down
which lane to be in during heaving traffic on the 401, and a forrest fire
upahead. Most JEEP's and other trail guys run CB's.

"Robert Bills" <rdbillsjr@aol.comxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:20030729094730.06200.00000613@mb-m03.aol.com...
> Yes, you should have a CB.
>
> Although a Ham radio has significantly better range, and is becoming more
> popular with jeepers in some areas, they are far from universal and you
may
> find that the only Ham operators you can talk to in an emergency are far,
far
> away. Also, a decent dual band unit is $300, plus antenna, and you will
need a
> license.
>
> CB's are almost universal in properly equipped jeeps, and you stand a
chance of
> reaching someone much closer to you in the event of an emergency or trail
> breakdown. (Assuming you wheel on or near the major and/or most popular
> trails.) They also make trail riding in a group more fun, as you can
> communicate with other rigs.
>
> Carry your cellphone too.
>
> Robert Bills
> KG6LMV
> Orange County CA
>
> http://www.outdoorwire.com/4x4/jeep/...p-l/billsr.htm
> http://www.RobertBills.com

Re: CB or not CB? That is the question.
 

Glad to see other hams with jeeps. The one saving grace is with the 2meter
repeaters....if its an emergency all by yourself with no CB/cell phone you can
usually find an autopatch.....the ultimate cell phone lol....but you gotta know
how to key it up!

Brian
88 YJ
KC5CTS

Re: CB or not CB? That is the question.
 

Pretty useful.

On one of our deep bush newsgroup runs last year, Norm Mitchell from
this group came in on a different day planning to meet up with us.

He got, well... a little 'misplaced' and ended up having his driveshaft
fall off because his rear spring packs let loose after a new lift.

So here he is stuck in a swamp in the middle of nowhere, 25 miles from
the nearest cell phone coverage and he hears one of us, Jo on her CB.
Jo got this old clunker CB given to her and it is boosted all to crap
from the output numbers. (or just plain a real good one, it's a 'KRACO'
or something like that)

So Jo sat up on a hill in contact with Norm and the rest of us fanned
out on the bush trails until Steve got a CB tag on Norm. We then all
headed that direction and found him. An hour later and he is on the
beach at our camp where we could fix him up.

They are also handy for truck to truck on the trails, if someone finds a
sneaky hole or rock, everyone gets a fast warning. Or if the person in
lead spots a logging truck, everyone has time to get off the trail.

We also use the loggers channel if we know they are active in the area,
that way we know when they are running a load and they also can hear us
in the neighborhood.

Mike
86/00 CJ7 Laredo, 33x9.5 BFG Muds, 'glass nose to tail in '00
88 Cherokee 235 BFG AT's

Billyism wrote:
>
> Just how useful are CBs now days? Are they worth having for emergencies if
> in desert areas or is there something better (Not including cell phones)?
>
> --
> Billyism
> wtshtf@hot<spambuster>mail.com
>
> "I told my constituents if they wanted me back in
> Washington as their representative, they should indeed
> vote for me. If they don't, I'll go to Texas and they can
> all go to hell."
>
> Davy Crockett

Re: CB or not CB? That is the question.
 

"Billyism" <wtshtf@hot-spambuster-mail.com> wrote in message
news:vics77dlt88c22@corp.supernews.com...
> Just how useful are CBs now days? Are they worth having for emergencies
if
> in desert areas or is there something better (Not including cell phones)?
>
>
A CB radio is a mandatory item for the trail. It allows you to keep in touch
with others in your group. It isn't worth a ---- for an emergency though
because the range is generally too small.

Re: CB or not CB? That is the question.
 

The radio itself can go pretty much anywhere, the antenna usually gets
mounted to the tire rack or the rear corner of the tub. DO NOT get one of
those huge antennas that reach to the moon, most organized runs will
restrict the antenna to 52" max, I have not seen a real need for more than
48", and I use a 36".



"Billyism" <wtshtf@hot-spambuster-mail.com> wrote in message
news:vidlfrjl327880@corp.supernews.com...
> Ok, the answer is a resounding YES!. Sorry to pick your brains more, but
> where is the best place to mount the antenna on a soft top? What about
the
> receiver? I don't want to pay more for the overhead thingy that tuffy
makes
> than the cb rig. Is there another option? If I had the money, I'd be
> designing and manufacturing jeep accessories. there are so many bases
that
> aren't covered.
>
> Thanks again for all your input! I'd rather learn from you than waste my
> money on mistakes or the dealer's advice.
>
> Ride on!
> Billy
>
>
> "Billyism" <wtshtf@hot-spambuster-mail.com> wrote in message
> news:vics77dlt88c22@corp.supernews.com...
> > Just how useful are CBs now days? Are they worth having for emergencies
> if
> > in desert areas or is there something better (Not including cell
phones)?
> >
> >
> > --
> > Billyism
> > wtshtf@hot<spambuster>mail.com
> >
> > "I told my constituents if they wanted me back in
> > Washington as their representative, they should indeed
> > vote for me. If they don't, I'll go to Texas and they can
> > all go to hell."
> >
> > Davy Crockett
> >
> >
> >
> >
>
>

Re: CB or not CB? That is the question.
 

Many of us run both CB and HAM (2-meter) radios. There isnt much in the way of cell
phone service where we wheel, but we can almost always key up a HAM repeater.



On Tue, 29 Jul 2003 08:09:37 -0500, "Billyism" <wtshtf@hot-spambuster-mail.com>
wrote:

>>Just how useful are CBs now days? Are they worth having for emergencies if
>>in desert areas or is there something better (Not including cell phones)?

Re: CB or not CB? That is the question.
 

I've mounted CBs in every 4x4 I've owned... They're very handy when
travelling on the highway, when travelling in a group, and when working
around our place in the mountains. I also have bought a couple of mid-price
5-watt hand-held CBs... good for loaning to people who don't have one and
for keeping in touch with folks out for a walk in bear country.

I usually buy CB equipment through the Web and, when I got my TJ, I went
looking for antenna mounting kits. Bill's 2-Way of California has several
mounting options for CB antennas on soft top Jeeps. I got the under-hood
mount specifically designed for the TJ... it's attached under the hood on
the drivers side of the front end, near, but not too near, the windshield,
and sports a 3' Firestik antenna. Don't go any taller on the antenna than 3'
with this mount, you'll be banging into every low clearance thing you come
to (I've got a 4' Firestik on my 4Runner that has the scrapes to prove it...
I'll be swapping it for the 3' soon). Bill's also offers a mount that
attaches to the YJ spare tire stop on the back. The biggest issue with CB
antennas and a soft top is getting a good SWR match... While I'm running
under 1.5 right now, I'm trying to get it closer to 1.1.

As to mounting the actually CB unit, it's going to depend on what you get. I
picked up the small mobile that RadioShack has been offering for about a
year now... just saw it on sale for $30 less than I paid for it. It features
a SAME enabled weather band and a (useless) compass. The unit is designed to
monitor the weather band while using the CB and it cuts in with weather
alerts... a rather handy feature. Right now, it's set up to sit on top of
the dash and be removed quickly... I haven't found a permanent mounting
solution that both my wife and I like and that will keep the unti secure.
The temporary "sit it on top of the dash" location work well for us as we
really use the thing for travelling in convoy and for working around our
property in PA... a lot of off-roading, but not a lot of extreme
maneuvering.

The major drawback to most CB units is the speakers are usually mounted in
the bottom, firing down. In a Jeep, this doesn't work well because of
ambient noise... get an auxiliary speaker if you can't get a front firing
speaker in your CB. (I have a Midland in my 4Runner mounted in the dash
right under the stereo that works beautifully.) Also, spend the money
($15 - $30) to get an SWR meter and tune your antenna properly... all
antennas have to be tuned to match the CB and the vehicle they're mounted
on; they don't come pre-tuuned, no matter what the advertising says. If it
says "pre-tuned", buy something else.

Also, remember that an unmodified CB only has 4 watts of output power, good
for a range of about 5 miles. Modifying a CB for more power is illegal, but
is sometimes done... check the rules and regs at http://www.fcc.gov/ .

Right now, CB is a good choice for most off-road groups... it's fairly
cheap, has good power and doesn't require a license. However, GMRS radio
will probably overtake it in about 5 to 10 years as the cost comes down.
Although, because CB is AM modulation, it travels better in trees and rough
country than the UHF signal of GMRS. Ham would be an ideal replacement for
CB, but the cost and licensing requirements really limit it to those willing
to make the investment, so it's not common in off-road groups.

Hope this helps.

-----------------------------------
Mike Polo
mikepolo@communitytheater.org
Community Theater Green Room
http://www.communitytheater.org


"Jeff Strickland" <crwlr@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:vie5n43tvrn35c@corp.supernews.com...
> The radio itself can go pretty much anywhere, the antenna usually gets
> mounted to the tire rack or the rear corner of the tub. DO NOT get one of
> those huge antennas that reach to the moon, most organized runs will
> restrict the antenna to 52" max, I have not seen a real need for more than
> 48", and I use a 36".
>
>
>
> "Billyism" <wtshtf@hot-spambuster-mail.com> wrote in message
> news:vidlfrjl327880@corp.supernews.com...
> > Ok, the answer is a resounding YES!. Sorry to pick your brains more,
but
> > where is the best place to mount the antenna on a soft top? What about
> the
> > receiver? I don't want to pay more for the overhead thingy that tuffy
> makes
> > than the cb rig. Is there another option? If I had the money, I'd be
> > designing and manufacturing jeep accessories. there are so many bases
> that
> > aren't covered.
> >
> > Thanks again for all your input! I'd rather learn from you than waste
my
> > money on mistakes or the dealer's advice.
> >
> > Ride on!
> > Billy
> >
> >
> > "Billyism" <wtshtf@hot-spambuster-mail.com> wrote in message
> > news:vics77dlt88c22@corp.supernews.com...
> > > Just how useful are CBs now days? Are they worth having for
emergencies
> > if
> > > in desert areas or is there something better (Not including cell
> phones)?
> > >
> > >
> > > --
> > > Billyism
> > > wtshtf@hot<spambuster>mail.com
> > >
> > > "I told my constituents if they wanted me back in
> > > Washington as their representative, they should indeed
> > > vote for me. If they don't, I'll go to Texas and they can
> > > all go to hell."
> > >
> > > Davy Crockett
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> >
> >
>
>

Re: CB or not CB? That is the question.
 

if you want it for emergencies only, then i would by a decent handheld
walkie with extra batteries and a dc cord. also, a decent 1/4 wave magnet
mount, for extra range with the appropriate connector would be good for
emergencies. then if you had to leave your jeep you can carry the darn
thing with you to scream for help. just hope that when you need to use the
darn thing the skip is running like crazy





"Maurice Laizure" <kw7rf@adelphia.net> wrote in message
news:HbTVa.10516$Ad4.3887380@news3.news.adelphia.n et...
> From experience: I would carry not only a CB but as a ham radio operator I
> carry my VHF and HF gear plus a cell phone! Years ago, when I first became
> active in 4x4's, I had all my radio gear and a cell phone when my sister
> shows up and says "Take me for a ride." Well, we did and we broke out in
the
> middle of the high deserts of California around Trona. I didn't make the
> time to install the radio's or did I grab my cell phone at least I did
grab
> the water jug!
>
> My advice, take what you can carry comfortably to insure your security and
> safety. I didn't want my sister dehydrated, so I let her stay well
hydrated
> as I thought "I can take it." Now, 10 years later, I still only have about
> 20% kidney function left as dehydration can really screw you up. Next step
> for me, dialysis!
>
> Take Care, Be Safe and Rock & Roll
>
>


---
Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free.
Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com).
Version: 6.0.510 / Virus Database: 307 - Release Date: 8/14/2003