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Installing a cb radio

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Evilgoat:
Check your aerial, some dont need the SWR doing (like mine). Make sure your ant is well attached and if its a mag-mount you want it in the middle of a large body panel.

It can be wired into an ignition fed circuit or directo to the bad but it MUST be fused. 10A fuse is enough unless its had the powere turned up a fair way. 5A may be better for newer units. Run all wires as far away from any source of electrical noise like relays, the coil, ECU wiring etc. Ground the radio as close to the unit as you can and a ferrite choke on the power leads will help stop pick-up and stop interferance from the radio when transmitting. If you wire right to the battery dont forget you turned it opn when you get to where you are going or finish playing. Newer digital units like mine reset to channel 9 after the power goes off which is VERY annoying and may be worth wiring direct just because of that.

When doing the SWR you may be able to loosen off a bolt on some base and center loaded ants and adjust the SWR that way.  If you have to cut it do it in small chunks, no more than a few mm at first to get an idea of how much a given distance alters the SWR. Remeber if you start to climb again you've taken off too much and just stop and live with what you have. You are aiming for as close to 1 as possible, anything above 2 is normally not going to be too useful if you want range. IIRC 1.4 is considered OK.

You need to be WAY out to blow the power stage and even then it takes a lot of doing. I rmeber using a LW full length dipole as a test aerial and that would have been not much better than using none at all.

Evilgoat:

--- Quote from: "muddyjames" ---how much do i take off in 1 go

also if i use it inside it will have a different swr meter reading surely. I just fancy trying it out inside first.
--- End quote ---


Inside/out makes no odds. What will make a difference is the ground plane. It will need a good earth at 90 degrees to the aerial element, a cake tin thats earthed will do or a sheet of stell or maybe even earthed tinfoil. Earth it to a pipe NOT TO THE WALL SOCKET  :D

You'll also receive [!Expletive Deleted!] all indoors unless someone is parked on your lawn using one :)

muddyjames:
I am sure I can find a pipe to atatch the aerial too. If I put the aerial outside and the cb inside it should work shouldnt it? I have a main road about 50yards from my house and is a rat run between 2 motorways so I should be able to say hi to a few lorry drivers. Matt_H lives about 5 miles down the road. Be cool if I could chat to him for free!

Evilgoat:

--- Quote from: "muddyjames" ---I am sure I can find a pipe to atatch the aerial too. If I put the aerial outside and the cb inside it should work shouldnt it? I have a main road about 50yards from my house and is a rat run between 2 motorways so I should be able to say hi to a few lorry drivers. Matt_H lives about 5 miles down the road. Be cool if I could chat to him for free!
--- End quote ---


That works too :)

You'll find not too many lorry drivers actually use CB anymore. Them that use radio use Licence Free or PMR setups. In fact no-one really seems to bother. Channel 19 or 14 might get you something to listen to.

5 miles is a realistic proposition depending on terrain and how high your aerials are. Give him a bell, pick a channel (Beleive the lot down here use 35) and give it a shot.

Dont forget to send off the form for the Licence either  :(shades):

muddyjames:
I was just about to ask if i need a license. How much does that cost? Nobody has ever told me about licenses GRRR

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