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As I write this, Southern California is on fire. More than 600,000 acres have burned with no containment in sight. The skies are full of smoke, the ground is covered in ash, and in the midst of this huge natural disaster, all of us are reminded that communication is key. Staying in touch at a time like this can save your life. Cell phones are great when land lines are down, but what if the cellular infrastructure burns down? This might be a good time to revisit a medium that has kept drivers in the loop for decades - CB radio.
Midland and Uniden mobile CB radios can be permanently mounted into your truck, and start at less than $40. Cobras start at less than $50 and Texas Rangers for less than $60, so unlike polo and Cuban cigars, this is not a rich man's hobby. As the prices increase to above $100, you'll begin to see features such as backlighting for night operation and vibration resistance for off-roading.
Of course, you are also going to need an antenna, which is sold separately and might be an equivalent investment. Issues with the antenna include where it is mounted (the center of the roof is the preferred place), how it is mounted (permanent vs. magnetic), and how its frequency is tuned to your particular truck. This is a complicated issue you will want to discuss with your CB retailer. Wave antennas radiate vertically, which make them suitable for city use, whereas collinear antennas radiate horizontally, which are preferred when most of your driving is in wide-open spaces.
The coax cable that connects the antenna to the base unit is also important. You can't just loop the excess cable with a zip tie because that will drastically suppress your range. This may seem complex so make sure you ask someone who knows. Remember, once you have a CB in your truck, it's free. You'll pay no monthly service charge such as your cell phone.
If you think Citizens Band is just for long-haul truckers, you just might be surprised. Check out the new Cobra Xtreme unit (above). Tony Mirabelli, senior vice president of marketing and sales for Cobra Electronics, says,"The Xtreme Street Communicator is designed to do two things, get the driver noticed and enable them to talk with a large group of people." In other words, manufacturers are starting to add some consumer electronic sizzle to the CB steak, and there's nothing wrong with that.
10-codes
Everybody knows 10-4. This means, message received. You might already know 10-20. Or what's your 20? These both mean, what's your location?
Here are some other 10-codes:
10-1 Receiving poorly
10-7 Going off the air
10-8 Back on the air
10-9 Repeat Message
10-33 Emergency
CB Etiquette (Courtesy of the rec.radio.cb FAQ)Take care not to step on other units - transmitting at the same time - thereby making both of your transmissions unreadable.
If you want to talk on a channel that is already in use, it is likely your initial transmission will accidentally walk over someone else's. You must keep your transmissions short. The word break is generally accepted. Try to time by pausing in the conversation.
Even when your break is recognized, keep your next transmission short. For example, "Break one seven for Godzilla," if you're on channel 17 and looking for someone whose handle is Godzilla.
What is Single Sideband?
Questions answered by Wallace Stewart, long-time CB user.
Q: What is Single Sideband?
A: There is an upper and lower sideband channel for each of the 40 CB channels. Essentially, while using side band you do not broadcast a carrier frequency. This means no power is developed by the amplifier on the radio until you modulate or speak into the microphone.
Q: What do you use it for?
A: This will allow you to broadcast with double the power you would on AM, allowing you to communicate much further. It is not appropriate to use side band on all of the CB channels. The most popular channels are 15 to 18, and 31 to 40.
Q: Advice for new CB users?
A: Listen and don't talk. A lot can be learned about the appropriate use of a new radio by just listening to people who have been using CB for a long time. If you are polite and courteous, you will find plenty of people willing to talk to you once you've listened for a while and get the hang of how people in your area use the different channels. Remember, channel 9 is always reserved for emergencies.
Channels
The following have been set aside for special uses:
Channel 9 is the emergency channel, monitored by both good samaritans and local law enforcement.
Channels 19 and 17 are official and unofficial channels for big-rig truckers with weather, traffic, and speed trap advisories.
Channels 15, 16, and 31 through 40 are set aside for single sideband (SSB) broadcasts. Single sideband is on a need-to-know basis, and I don't need to know it right now, so I'm shining it on.
10-4? I'm 10-7 - outta here!
