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CB recommendations???

Ray H

NAXJA Forum User
Im buying a CB for the XJ. Im mounting it between the sunvisors so my space is limited. The biggest I can go is 7" wide, 2" high and 6.5" deep. Ive pretty much got it narrowed down to the Cobra 18 WXST II, Ranger TR121CP, Midland 77-104XL or Uniden 510 XL.
The Cobra is the biggest of the bunch and is as big as I want to go. Its also $10-$20 more than the others but offers Weather bands. Ive used the weather band maybe once or twice on my other CBs so Im not sure its worth $10 more just for that. The Uniden is the smallest and least expensive but Ive heard decent things about Uniden.
Anyone have thoughts or experiences with these radios they would like to share.
I did have a Cobra 18 years ago and it only lasted for about a year before it stopped tuning. I didnt set the SWRs on it though so it may have been due to that. So, not a great experience with the cobra but Im willing to try again if other can recommend it.
 
I love my 18WxST. I've had it for almost two years, and I listen to it almost daily with not a single problem. I had a Cobra 75WxST (the all-in-one handheld) that developed a crackle in the volume control. After another month or two, it was basically unusable due to having to fiddle with it constantly to hear others' transmissions.
BTW, I mounted mine in place of the passenger's visor. I have lighted visors, so there was already power there, and the roof has a double layer there.

EDIT: Here's a picture. I had to lighten it so you could see it better, and I have to reroute the wiring a bit.
IMG_0060a.jpg
 
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I just got this one last week:
http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=4642484

it's small (7.0 x 4.5 x 1.75 )and does the job on the cheap!!Cut the modulation block and it'll talk farther...A wilson "little will" is a good cheap magnent mount that won't hit everything on the trail.

Timber:
Sounds like the only thing that radio needed was a few sprays of QD electronics cleaner on the volume control....sounds like it was dirty.Where did you get that inclinometer?
 
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jeepdeepfreak said:
Timber:
Sounds like the only thing that radio needed was a few sprays of QD electronics cleaner on the volume control....sounds like it was dirty.Where did you get that inclinometer?
Nope, tried cleaning it; the wiring/circuitry the switch connects to is bad. The squelch control uses the same switch, so I swapped them with the same results. I got the inclinometer at West Marine here in Toledo. If I recall, it was a dollar or two more than online stores, but then after shipping get figured in, it was cheaper by a bit. ~$10.
 
Hmmmm!
More to think about. Walmart has both the Cobra 19 ($35) and the Uniden 510 ($39). Either one would fit. Im leaning towards the Cobra, dont know why though.
Any thoughts on weather bands? Is it worth an extra $10-$15 to get a radio with weather band?
 
I couldn't stand having the mic dangling down in my face and I really didn't want it to be stolen, plus I don't use it too often other than on the trail, so it needed to be removable. This is what I did. A bit more expensive at $95 bucks, but I can talk forever on it and I like its small compact size. Plus I don't have to worry about the mic being in my way.

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here's where I mounted mine:


I see alot of people mount them to the side of the console but I like to be able to slide the pass seat foward to get to stuff in the back.
 
Under the dash was not a good option for me. Ive got the cup holder that mounts to the side of the console which eats up most of the room on the pass side as well as elliminates the side of the console. I used to have my CB mounted ounder the dash on the drivers side, close to the console but I removed it to install a brake controller there.
Today I took a trip to Wallyworld and picked up a Cobra19. I made a mount and mounted it between the visors. It fits nicely there. Havent decided how I will deal with the mic cord hanging down yet.
I also made a mount for the antenna thats real similar to the bought ones that stick out of the hood crack except it comes out of the back of the hood instead of the side, and its lower profile than the bought ones. I should have everything hooked up and working tomorrow. I wouldve got done today but my compressor quit (I was using an air cutoff wheel to make the brackets), then my rearview mirror fell off when I started messing around with it.
 
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XJ Beater said:
ive got the cobra wxstII and it works damn good, the cobra 19 from wallyworld is decent too, i like the 19's pa output, my wxstII dosnt have a pa option and i miss it

The WXSTII my wife had worked well for about a year then quit tuning. I thought the WXSTII had a PA?? Well at least you have weather band and the 19 doesnt. I would sooner have weather than PA.
 
I highly recommed the Cobra 75 WX ST All-in-handset Mobile CB. VERY small footprint. Easy to mount, does not take up any space and among other options, gives you access to 10 NOAA weather channels. Just get a good K-40 antenna and you will be fine.
 
Ok, got my Cobra 19 in and working. I have 18ft of coax, a bottom loaded 3' whip w/ring adjuster mounted at the drivers rear corner of the hood. I got an SWR meter and checked SWRs. I am able to get very good SWR readings, below 1.5 across all frequencies. The radio sounds surprisingly good and I can receive for at least 3 or 4 miles under most conditions. The problem is that Im not transmitting worth a crap. Its really just line of site. Someone suggested that I need to increase modulation to transmit better. ????
This is just a basic CB system, Ive only got about $75-$80 into it so I dont expect a great deal of performance from it, but it should be better than line of site, I cant even get a radio check unless I can see the other person. I dont know what else to do besides make sure the SWRs are good and low without having someone boost the radio power or put another $50 into a better antenna and cable. What am I missing here?
 
53guy said:
I couldn't stand having the mic dangling down in my face and I really didn't want it to be stolen, plus I don't use it too often other than on the trail, so it needed to be removable. This is what I did. A bit more expensive at $95 bucks, but I can talk forever on it and I like its small compact size. Plus I don't have to worry about the mic being in my way.

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If I didn't have a Uniden 510 laying around my house, this is what I would have done. I like out of site, removing the temptation. Having said that, the uniden I'm using has got to be over 10 years old, and it's the second one I've had, no problems at all. Has worked well, and stood up well to years in an open top vehicle with lots of dust and dirt. My Uniden is mounted as high up in my overhad console as I could get it. out of site. and the mic is in the center console when I'm not using it.
 
Ray H said:
Ok, got my Cobra 19 in and working. I have 18ft of coax, a bottom loaded 3' whip w/ring adjuster mounted at the drivers rear corner of the hood. I got an SWR meter and checked SWRs. I am able to get very good SWR readings, below 1.5 across all frequencies. The radio sounds surprisingly good and I can receive for at least 3 or 4 miles under most conditions. The problem is that Im not transmitting worth a crap. Its really just line of site. Someone suggested that I need to increase modulation to transmit better. ????
This is just a basic CB system, Ive only got about $75-$80 into it so I dont expect a great deal of performance from it, but it should be better than line of site, I cant even get a radio check unless I can see the other person. I dont know what else to do besides make sure the SWRs are good and low without having someone boost the radio power or put another $50 into a better antenna and cable. What am I missing here?

Cut the modulation block out and it'll talk way father.....
 
Find out where your local CB shop is(usually around a truck stop) have them crank the power up on it. The legal limit is 4 watts, that CB can be cranked up to around 20 watts for about $20 (around here anyway). That will give you the power that you need to "modulate".

I have a Uniden that has the "big finals" and is cranked to 40 watts.
 
xjtrailrider said:
Find out where your local CB shop is(usually around a truck stop) have them crank the power up on it. The legal limit is 4 watts, that CB can be cranked up to around 20 watts for about $20 (around here anyway). That will give you the power that you need to "modulate".

I have a Uniden that has the "big finals" and is cranked to 40 watts.
You know you are encouraging someone to break the law. The FCC will prosecute if they catch you. And from what I am reading in the ARRL newsletters, they are catching "adjusted" CB's, and they have lawyers who are prosecuting. If you are interested in more reliable communication, and being able to talk "farther," Look into Amateur Radiowww.ARRL.org
Happy trails
KG4PLH
 
jeepdeepfreak said:
Cut the modulation block out and it'll talk way father.....
Bad idea. It will cause it to over modulate and bleed over onto other channels otherwise know as splatter. When overmodulation takes place, the audio signal used to modulate the carrier is distorted. The higher the level of overmodulation, the worse the distortion becomes. In other words, your voice that is being transmitted is changed in a detrimental way when overmodulation occurs. Also, when overmodulation takes place the amount of energy contained in the harmonics increases dramatically. The radiated harmonic energy can cause increased levels of interference in your cell phones, radio, in extreme cases your ecm possibly if you were dunning a big enough linear, and other radios operating around you. Not to mention it's illegal.
 
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