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Old 08-16-2013, 08:29 AM   #1
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CB Radio in your TV?

I am just curious....does anyone here use a CB radio in their TV while traveling? If so please pass along positives....if not, why not?
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Old 08-16-2013, 08:59 AM   #2
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Back In The Day that CB would keep you in touch with your fellow travelers, or enabled you to call for aid. With cell phone coverage pretty much everywhere, you can get direct to whomever with security, speed, and privacy.

That said, if you are going to be Out in the Middle of Nowhere a CB would be a great choice where cell coverage is scant or non-existent.
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Old 08-16-2013, 09:18 AM   #3
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I drove a tractor trailer for ten years and used my CB quite often. I got so tired of the general BS thats out there I found myself using it only when I needed it.If you are in a caravan its nice or some other situation it may be useful but for basic monitoring when you drive it gets to be a bit much.With the content of the conversation and the foul language it is not something to listen to,especially with the wife and kids in the car.
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Old 08-16-2013, 09:46 AM   #4
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I've always had CB in my ride. as a 4 wheeler we drive in caravans and can talk amoungst us. as a solo driver out on the highway if the traffic stops its good to know if your there for the long haul and should look for a bypass or park waiting it out. Here in California we sit alot for some incident or another, nothing more frustrating than knowing nothing and just sitting. Regular sit there and listen to the CB while driving I never do that. Here in California they fall under the do not use while driving cell phone laws. For me I would always put one in my Tow unit even if its just a hand held.
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Old 08-16-2013, 10:45 AM   #5
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I used to use one a lot "back in the day". A couple of years ago I installed two sets in two vehicles because my wife was going to be driving one while I drove the other on a fairly long trip and we wanted to stay in close contact. They worked really well for that purpose.

What really surprised me was the difference between the old days and now. Not much chatter at all. I just removed the one from my TV because it just doesn't seem to be much use anymore. Maybe the results are different in other areas.
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Old 08-16-2013, 10:55 AM   #6
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Being a Ham (amateur radio operator) I don't have a lot of use for CB. I do always drive with my dual band ham radio on. Almost anyplace I can find a repeater and get a hold of somebody if needed. The range is far greater than the CB I used to have. The biggest draw back is the need of a license and the cost of the radios is higher.
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Old 08-16-2013, 11:39 AM   #7
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There are emergency hand-helds that might come in handy, but I would think that anywhere you don't have cell service would also be a place where there might not be anyone else listening to a CB.

Several years back I rode with a bud who kept his on on all the time "for entertainment" he sez. Gotta say, if listening to (seemingly) 3rd graders practicing a very limited vocabulary with mostly 4 letter words, is entertaining, so be it....



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Old 08-16-2013, 11:56 AM   #8
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I was thinking about getting one for the good point that Steve makes....road conditions....weather/road conditions.
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Old 08-16-2013, 11:57 AM   #9
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I had a CB long ago, but used it in running events, not for travel. I.m no longer involved in those events, and they went to licensed amateur radio use anyway.

I agree that the traditional uses for CBs on the road have largely been replaced by new technology, so I have never considered installing that old radio in any recent vehicle. One use was to keep in touch between vehicles travelling in a group, but FRS/GMRS plus phones replaced that... and I haven't done the convoy thing for many years, anyway.

In Alberta and BC, if you don't have mobile phone coverage I don't think you're reaching much traffic by CB either... and if you need assistance but don't have a radio just wait a minute and flag them down as they'll drive by, since you're both on the only highway within CB radio range!

At least in fiction (movies) truckers used CBs to inform each other of speed trap locations. I don't know to what extent that really happened, and I have no interest in doing it.

As for listening to the chatter... no, and I don't follow any Twitter feeds, either. Not my style.
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Old 08-16-2013, 12:18 PM   #10
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Byron Kinnaman View Post
Being a Ham (amateur radio operator) I don't have a lot of use for CB. I do always drive with my dual band ham radio on. Almost anyplace I can find a repeater and get a hold of somebody if needed. The range is far greater than the CB I used to have. The biggest draw back is the need of a license and the cost of the radios is higher.
I certainly never think of the requirement for a license or the higher cost of radios as a draw back compared to CB!

More like solid benefits to me.

And I always carry both on the road,the CB has saved me more than once too even recently. I just carry a Handheld and Mag Mount antenna they do not take much space.

Any Band Any Time!

73

Ed
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Old 08-16-2013, 01:19 PM   #11
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I have a CB in my truck, as well as a dual-band VHF/UHF ham radio, a 10-meter radio, and a public-service mobile radio for EMA stuff. The CB is used with a non-ham friend who has one in his truck, we use it quite a bit when travelling together or cutting firewood. I had it on a few times on our last trip to Maine, ended up just leaving it off after a rest stop, nothing on there that I need to hear, and I certainly would never rely on it in any emergency. Same goes for the ham radios- I have them on all the time, very rarely do I hear anyone calling, and when I call I've only ever gotten 2 responses. More of a novelty/time-killer if I'm sitting somewhere than a reliable means of communications. The ham radio community has started to believe its own propaganda that we will be the only ones providing communications in a disaster.

That being said, I've had some great contacts with an HF radio in the truck, using a "hamstick" antenna. But I don't think some guy in Cuba is going to help much with local speed traps!
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Old 08-16-2013, 02:22 PM   #12
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Thanks Kevin. I have a ham tech license but when it came time to renew, I found it so frustrating to try to get that done, I just let it go. So I guess in a disaster I won't be able to talk to anyone either.
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Old 08-16-2013, 02:59 PM   #13
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Thanks Kevin. I have a ham tech license but when it came time to renew, I found it so frustrating to try to get that done, I just let it go. So I guess in a disaster I won't be able to talk to anyone either.
In a disaster it is pretty much agreed that you can use any means needed to handle traffic.

Also Kevin,I work in EmComm a lot and while there are some who do echo the sentiment you stated by far the majority are there to help when and where we can.

Something tells me the victims in Joplin and Katrina etc. are grateful that Hams responded,it was also some of the most rewarding service I have ever been a part of.

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Old 08-16-2013, 03:02 PM   #14
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Originally Posted by KevinPete View Post
I have a CB in my truck, as well as a dual-band VHF/UHF ham radio, a 10-meter radio, and a public-service mobile radio for EMA stuff. The CB is used with a non-ham friend who has one in his truck, we use it quite a bit when travelling together or cutting firewood. I had it on a few times on our last trip to Maine, ended up just leaving it off after a rest stop, nothing on there that I need to hear, and I certainly would never rely on it in any emergency. Same goes for the ham radios- I have them on all the time, very rarely do I hear anyone calling, and when I call I've only ever gotten 2 responses. More of a novelty/time-killer if I'm sitting somewhere than a reliable means of communications. The ham radio community has started to believe its own propaganda that we will be the only ones providing communications in a disaster.

That being said, I've had some great contacts with an HF radio in the truck, using a "hamstick" antenna. But I don't think some guy in Cuba is going to help much with local speed traps!

It's too bad you feel so negative about Ham Radio and it roll in emergency communications. I witnessed at least one case where Ham radio made a big difference and know of several others. The one I witnessed (monitored) a guy on a motor cycle got run over by a jeep back in the woods. No other communications worked, but ham radio did through a repeater and a phone patch. There's many other true stories around.

Second Garmin makes a nice travel GPS receiver for your tow. Available from ARRL is the repeater list. A quick couple taps and you'll have the closest repeaters, frequencies, tones, and distances and direction on the screen.

Traveling with mine, (dual receive) one on 146.520 I get very little activity as you said. The trouble with any portable communication device is the distance you can communicate is small.
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