CB Radio

Company shop hooked up my radio for me, but I am not able to pick up any of the weather channels. I press the "weather" button which brings up those channels (7 of them) and then select "scan." Nothing. Even while driving near Cleveland on 271 to 90, nothing on weather channels. This was the main purpose for me to get the radio, so if these are not working for me, I feel like I have a piece of hardware just sitting there.

Suggestions?

Ran that by Tom, Ryan . . . TCB is right. Personally (well, Tom's words...) if possible, get the company to look at it when you swing by, or stop into that Bob's place off the '80. You'll be so glad you did.

Yep, don't over key the mic until you get this looked at, or figure it out . . . with help from Bob's, haha!

TCB, not getting what you mean by antenna not hooked up/connected??? The 'other' channels work; wouldn't that be indicative of an antenna supporting the SWR? Fuse, perhaps? All above, not my words . . . but, I'd have it looked at, for sure.

Best y'all!

~ Anne & (sleepy) Tom~

Company shop hooked up my radio for me, but I am not able to pick up any of the weather channels. I press the "weather" button which brings up those channels (7 of them) and then select "scan." Nothing. Even while driving near Cleveland on 271 to 90, nothing on weather channels. This was the main purpose for me to get the radio, so if these are not working for me, I feel like I have a piece of hardware just sitting there.

Suggestions?

Maybe they didn’t connect the antenna cable. A quick way to check, besides checking the back of the cb, is to quickly press and release the mic. Button. If the SWR meter goes above two, it’s probably not connected. Don’t hold the mic button for too long if the meter is above two, or you might fry your transmitter. If the antenna is not connected, it’s a quick fix. Many of the trucks factory radios have weather channels.

Anne, he didn’t indicate if the regular cb channels were receiving or not. I am assuming they are not, which could be a antenna problem.

Ryan, it the SWR is over 2 and still poor reception, sounds like an antenna issue. Make sure that the antenna wire is securely screwed into the antenna jack, not just the prong stuck in. Also make sure that the antennas are screwed into the antenna mounts and not loose. The antenna mounts could also be loose. If none of that works, it might be a wiring issue from the radio to the antenna. The fix for that would probably involve removing part of the dash. If you are not comfortable doing that, or don't want to pay someone to do it, you could put an antenna on a bird perch screwed into your mirror mount, and run an antenna wire directly from you cb, out the door jam to the antenna. Also make sure that the antennas are not broken. Does your truck am/fm radio have a weather band? Some do.

Company shop hooked up my radio for me, but I am not able to pick up any of the weather channels. I press the "weather" button which brings up those channels (7 of them) and then select "scan." Nothing. Even while driving near Cleveland on 271 to 90, nothing on weather channels. This was the main purpose for me to get the radio, so if these are not working for me, I feel like I have a piece of hardware just sitting there.

Suggestions?

Ran that by Tom, Ryan . . . TCB is right. Personally (well, Tom's words...) if possible, get the company to look at it when you swing by, or stop into that Bob's place off the '80. You'll be so glad you did.

Yep, don't over key the mic until you get this looked at, or figure it out . . . with help from Bob's, haha!

TCB, not getting what you mean by antenna not hooked up/connected??? The 'other' channels work; wouldn't that be indicative of an antenna supporting the SWR? Fuse, perhaps? All above, not my words . . . but, I'd have it looked at, for sure.

Best y'all!

~ Anne & (sleepy) Tom~

Company shop hooked up my radio for me, but I am not able to pick up any of the weather channels. I press the "weather" button which brings up those channels (7 of them) and then select "scan." Nothing. Even while driving near Cleveland on 271 to 90, nothing on weather channels. This was the main purpose for me to get the radio, so if these are not working for me, I feel like I have a piece of hardware just sitting there.

Suggestions?

Maybe they didn’t connect the antenna cable. A quick way to check, besides checking the back of the cb, is to quickly press and release the mic. Button. If the SWR meter goes above two, it’s probably not connected. Don’t hold the mic button for too long if the meter is above two, or you might fry your transmitter. If the antenna is not connected, it’s a quick fix. Many of the trucks factory radios have weather channels.

Anne, he didn’t indicate if the regular cb channels were receiving or not. I am assuming they are not, which could be a antenna problem.

Indeed, he did not, good sir. I'm thinking you nailed it !! So much for me trying to dip, where I knoweth not *enough,* hahaha!!

I'll pass on a wager, this time!

~ Anne ~

Peaking and tuning isn't something that everyone needs but it will definitely optimize your radio's performance.. When you peak and tune the radio you are tuning the output and adjusting the modulation and power so you get higher output wattage and clearer more natural sounds.

Winter weather will be coming before too long, so I took advantage of a $20 discount on Uniden CBs at Pilot/Flying J, on top of having $28 in points saved to get a CB radio with weather bands. My statements on CBs are well known here. I am sharing this to show good faith that I am not completely refusing to acknowledge the validity of opinions expressed by other drivers. I asked company shop to connect it and they got right on it.

Good for you, Ryan!!

The gang shall be proud of ya ~ Tom says kudos ... decent unit, especially if you've gotten it peaked and tuned!

Not sure if the company shop does all that, but there are MANY great stops & shops in the vicinity that'll do that for a decent price. I'm sure those in the know on TT will chime in; but if you run the I'80 in PA, Bob's is one of the best, per the Tomster.

Best to ya, good sir.

~ Anne ~

Yeah, getting your CB “peaked and tuned.” I wonder if that’s exactly the same as getting the undercoating put on your car. As Puddy (car salesman) said on Seinfeld, ‘we don’t know what that is.’

My advice to folks who are new to CB's is if you're going to invest in one, invest in it. I'd have it P&T right from the start so you're optimized from day one. On the road a cb will never stop giving back, so imo its always money well spent. You don't need the best of the best but one should at least get a moderately decent radio set-up. Also, put some thought and research into your antenna placement and how the wire is ran. It is very relevant to your range and how much interference you will deal with. Once you have a radio set up and working, the next thing I would invest in is an external speaker, and a decent mic (and for the love of god no roger beeps!). Another accessory you will find value in is a decent mic keeper, a retractable one.

When you use a radio for the first time or after making changes it is always good practice to do a radio check...You can just say something like: "Can I get a radio check".. "I just replaced 'x', can someone give me a radio check".. etc.. Then you can ask what their "20" is (20 means location) to get an idea of your range as well as ask for feedback on how you sound to them. Likewise, any time you hear someone else asking for a radio check it is common courtesy to relay back to them that you do hear them, as well as if you notice any distortion or audio issues.

Always be respectful and be mindful of how you're conversating and don't talk to people any way different than you would face-face. We all have our differences, but when it comes down to it we're all in this together and we're all experiencing many of the same problems, stresses, and idiots out here. A lot of folks tend to grow an auxiliary set of balls thinking they're big and bad behind their mic.. they eventually learn the hard way they're not.

Another good rule of thumb.. nobody wants to hear "Whoa, Black Betty (Bam-ba-lam)" distortedly coming through their cb's speaker while they're listening for traffic hazards. Keep your music off the CB, including any background music when you're broadcasting.

A cb is great for getting intel on hazards with time enough to plan for them but CB's don't identify and broadcast these traffic hazards themselves. Try to give back the best you can and identify hazards with their location any time you are able. It's also courteous to thank individuals who relay you information.

Ryan, I hope you don’t mind, but I want to piggyback on your CB topic. I plan on getting a CB soon, but have never used one before.

I’d like to see comments about current CB etiquette for new users. A tutorial would help us new users.

N P, I’m no expert but your reply seems outstanding to me. Thank you!

Waiting to get loaded in Medford, MA with a load going to Columbus. No idea when I will be back at company yard. I have two external antennae. I know that at least one is connected to something because satellite radio works. I really figured that when I asked company shop to hook the CB radio up that they would make sure it's ready to go. I didn't expect them to tune it and everything, just have it ready to transmit and receive so that I would be able to calibrate it and tune it. From seeing several YouTube videos on this radio, it's not one that needs to be opened up and adjusted. Basically, the adjustments needed are a good length antenna that is properly grounded (already installed on these trucks), calibration through radio settings, squelch for receiving signals, and SWR. I would kind of be going out of my way to stop at Bob's CB (junction of I-80 and US-322) on my way to Columbus. Since antennae on these trucks are internally wired through mirror housing, I thought to myself that it might be easier for me to buy a mag mount antenna to hook up myself.

The company shop said that the radio was hooked up and ready to go. Nothing further was said about it.

So far, the only transmission that I have picked up is a weather transmission from the Corning Airport as I passed it on I-86. I was at a big DC in Westfield, MA last night with probably 300 trucks there at any given time and I had nothing on 9 and 19. Pretty sure that if the radio were picking anything up that something would have come across with that many trucks docked or parked on the staging pad. I am not going to try to transmit because SWR is way above 2. I don't want to risk frying transmitter.

Well, I will say that the radio is pretty nice. I really like the option for two display settings (day/night). No concern for having to brighten/dim display according to time of day. This split display setting also allows different display colors for the split setting. Once I get the connection issue figured out, I am sure that it will serve Its purpose for me well.

N P, I’m no expert but your reply seems outstanding to me. Thank you!

Totally agree with you, BK. That was an "All Star" comment, for sure.

Wonder if Ryan has any updates ?!?!?

Seriously, Tom's previous mechanic at FAB did a great job installing, in a 'removable' fashion, being day cabs.

In the OTR days, it was worth the money to us .. as N.P. eloquently and succinctly stated. To each their own, however.

Be safe, no matter !!!

~ Anne ~

I want to put a CB in my truck.

It looks like there was already one installed because all the wiring is in place and there's an antenna mount.

I don't know what antenna or radio to buy.... Does any antenna work for the radio?

What do you guys recommend?

A good antenna can make any radio shine. The factory antennas are just basic and the coaxial cable is run through the doors inside the mirror mounts on many trucks. That cable can get damaged every time you open the door and eventually breaks. Do yourself a favor and run you own cable to your own quality antenna. I have a Crapcadia and I run my cable from the CB mount out the front and to the right by the passenger visor and down the right door and across the entire front of the dash to the drivers door. My antenna is mounted on a bracket bolted to the door mirror mount. Do not coil the cable, that will create feedback loop and limit range. Now I do like to get out and reach with my range. Depending on atmosphere conditions and solar activity, I can get about 25 miles.

my setup: Connex CX36HPF Radio Browning BR-78 Flat Coil Antenna Wilson CB Antenna mount for 2018+ Cascadia 18' Coaxial RG8X Cable with Weather Boot

The antenna mount is an aftermarket on the passenger door frame. I'll take a picture of it when I get to work. The mirror mounts on my truck look busted.