CB questions from a total novice

Following on from Kirkynuts posting in the Tong thread where he suggested CBs for us 'no mate' types attending the event.

I've been thinking about a CB for a while, but I run two 4x4 vehicles and if I have a cb in one, I'm gonna want one in the other. If you've got the wiring and antenna set up on each vehicle is it easy to 'hot swap' a radio around or would it be a ball ache?

Anyone recommend a cheap starter set (really cheap to justify perhaps buying two)?

Are there alternatives, like handhelds - and are they any cop compared to an installed radio?

Thanks in advance CB guru types!

i too would be interested in a starter CB setup for mine so would be keen to hear of any recommendations. i dont wanna steal the thread but a quick question i have is where do people run the wire for the aerial and where does it go through the body to get to the aerial outside?

I bought my cb from ebay, was £49, i was so chuffed with it that i bought a second one.
the cost to set up my cb system was as follows

cb unit - £49
coaxal cable, 5 metre - £12
black 5 foot stinger ariel - £18
dash fitting plate - £15

i dont mind about the body work, so i drilled a hole in the roof to mount the cb,

this is it fitted in the dash

Daft question time,

A standard radio sized CB unit will normally slot into the space under the radio with no real cutting? Ive had the bottomn half of my dash off before, and whilst sitting there and slurping tea, looking at the mess of wires, it did briefly cross my mind that the space looked almost radio sized. I have also looked at the compact CB unit on the thunderpole website and i think it will fit in the gap at the side of the clock - where thats useless cubby hole is. Any body have one of these?

There is a chap flogging CB areial mounts on Fleabay - hes based in stoke and they look pretty good. His mount on the spare wheel bracket with the mount at the top or at the side. I'm thinking this will be the way forward, but i do have plans for getting a pair and using the top mount for the whippy and the side mount one to fasten a work light or "tw@t" lamp too - we all get them, the numpty who thinks that my rear bumper is so good for looking at his reflection in. If they do, give the "tw@t" a flash!!!:evil: Just need to be careful it aint the fuzz :whistle: Utimately a complete set of tractor ploughing lights would be ideal, you can give them a free instant sun tan, but that would mean upping the battery and alternator for maximum effect

I'm hoping that because i've been a good boy this year santa might leave me the set up for Xmas - cb rig and the mounting brackets :laugh:

Garry wrote: I bought my cb from ebay, was £49, i was so chuffed with it that i bought a second one.
the cost to set up my cb system was as follows

cb unit - £49
coaxal cable, 5 metre - £12
black 5 foot stinger ariel - £18
dash fitting plate - £15

i dont mind about the body work, so i drilled a hole in the roof to mount the cb,

this is it fitted in the dash

That is a nice looking setup, I wouldnt mind going for something similar. Where did you get all the equipment from?

When you put the wire through the bodywork, what did you use to seal it so that water doesnt get in?

I"ve always gone for the small Midland units and I have mine mounted in the passenger footwell. Best bet for the aerial is to bite the bullet and drill a hole in the roof near the back then run the cable inside the headlining. The aerial mount has a rubber gromit that seals the hole but I always put a bit of silicon sealant on aswell. I use a 12v plug/socket off a radio controlled car for quick disconnection of the power as I don't like to leave mine in the car when its parked outside my house.

You definately need a CB for laning to keep in touch and warn of any problems found by the lead vehicle.

Adamski wrote:

Garry wrote: I bought my cb from ebay, was £49, i was so chuffed with it that i bought a second one.
the cost to set up my cb system was as follows

cb unit - £49
coaxal cable, 5 metre - £12
black 5 foot stinger ariel - £18
dash fitting plate - £15

i dont mind about the body work, so i drilled a hole in the roof to mount the cb,

this is it fitted in the dash

That is a nice looking setup, I wouldnt mind going for something similar. Where did you get all the equipment from?

When you put the wire through the bodywork, what did you use to seal it so that water doesnt get in?

as Gromit says, the best bet is to drill a hole in the roof,

a cb will get its strongest signal mounted on a flat surface in the middle, ie, the middle of the roof

it wont be a good signal if mounted on the spare wheel carrier, as it is effectivley boxed in at the side

i ran the wire behind the head lining then down the inside of the plastic cover on the drivers side of the windscreen

the ariel mount is sealed by a rubberised cup thats part of the mount

Crickey, lots has been said already!

There are 2 elements that need to be considered when mounting and setting up a CB ariel.

Firstly it needs a good groundplane - think of it like an earth - which needs to be at least a foot square and ideally of steel construction. Aluminium is not a good groundplane so some Landrover owners have issues.

Secondly it needs the ariel SWR tuned.

Rather than me try to explain what both of these mean I think Martin has done an article on it or look here:

www.thunderpole.co.uk/cb_radio_guide_groundplane.html

and

www.thunderpole.co.uk/cb_radio_guide_swr.html

It has been mentioned that on the spare wheel carrier is not a good place to mount the ariel. It's not the best place to mount it but if you just want to use the CB to chat to your mates who you are out laning with on the lanes, the motorway and roads between the lanes and on an off road site - such as TONG, it is adequate.

I had mine mounted there for over a year on my Jimny as I didn't want to cut a hole in the body and it was fine. That was on a cobbled together bracket from the local hardware store.

For a more professional mount look at this:

cgi.ebay.co.uk/Suzuki-Jimny-Antenna-Aeri...&hash=item2c5801747d

I would advise against making a hole in your body because if you get the ariel caught in a tree (which I have) you could rip a nice bigger hole through your body!

Mine is mounted to my roll cage so the cage and effectively the chassis are my groundplane.

For the cheapest and simplest set up for those without having the luxury of a cage and want to keep their Jimny's hole free I would suggest the above spare wheel mount er... mount for the ariel and then get a sarter pack from Thunderpole like this:

www.thunderpole.co.uk/cb_radio_pack-starter.htm

I have no experience with this brand - MAXON as I have always had TEAM CB's from Thunderpole but they have all the features you need. You get the right ariel for offroading - the mini orbitor and you can choose the right mount for you. It also comes with plenty of ariel lead.

I find Thunderpole's delivery very quick and their customer service is great.

I would buy a cheap SWR meter from them at the same time though and although they say their ariels are pre-SWR tuned they are only roughly tuned.

If you want to update your CB in the future you can just plug it into the ariel and lead you've already fitted. Lots of people swear by Midland for example.

I temporarily mounted mine under the centre dash console bit by hanging it on cable ties pulled taught (I like cable ties) and it is till there 2 years later!

I had enough ariel lead to take it under the carpet in the centre of the car, under the seats, through the boot and out of the rear door, cutting a notch out of the door frame under the rubber seal. An extention patch lead is only a couple of quid if your not sure - just buy it all in one go to save postage.

I have had 2 Thunderpole set ups now, one on the SJ and one on the Jimny and I'm well chuffed.

That's about all the advice I can offer really!

Kirkynut

Wow! thanks K-nut and all the others that contributed!

I'm guessing that swapping a CB unit between vehicles (both equipped with antennas and wiring etc) is probably going to be a bit of a pain.

Are handhelds too much of a compromise?

Mick C wrote: Wow! thanks K-nut and all the others that contributed!

I'm guessing that swapping a CB unit between vehicles (both equipped with antennas and wiring etc) is probably going to be a bit of a pain.

Are handhelds too much of a compromise?

No mate, no pain at all if you use the normal bracket supplied (plus an extra one) and use a plug/socket connection for the power like I have in mine.

This what I use for the power connection,

cgi.ebay.co.uk/Big-Tamiya-battery-connec...&hash=item35ad18ecc6

Nice one! cheers Gromit!

Mick C wrote: Wow! thanks K-nut and all the others that contributed!

I'm guessing that swapping a CB unit between vehicles (both equipped with antennas and wiring etc) is probably going to be a bit of a pain.

Are handhelds too much of a compromise?

Swopping a CB over to another vehicle that has all the wiring does not need to be a faff but why do it when you can buy a starter pack with everything in so cheaply - just buy 2!

Kirkynut