Darn CB interferance!

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I hope that you guys with radio experience can help cause this is really getting to me!

Basically I have a Radioshack CB, like 15 years old,(TRC-417) and twin 4' fiberglass sticks in the box.

The problem is that I get 4 bar noise going under some, not all, power lines. Sounds like I plugged the radio into the wall. Makes you jump through the roof #ad
!!!
So I have to keep the squelch above 3/4 just to keep my sanity. Also, the range hasn't been great, less than 2 Mi.
Now, is it the radio or the way I have the antennas or What?? I need help guys #ad


Jason

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Lil' Mack - 89 D250LE 2WD 5 Spd 3. 54 Reg Cab. K&N,"tweaked pump", BD Injectors, Banks Pyro/Boost, 3. 5" Exst tail section straight. E&M Custom seats. Bosch H4, PIAA 80W/80W HdLites. 100W Drv,55W Fogs.
232,500 miles (372,000 Kms) 7700 Hrs. Cummins Power Booster member. The Original Turbo Diesel

 

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Get a amature radio license and a 2M radio. #ad
#ad


Kevin

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2001 2500 QC LWB 4x4 6-speed loaded except leather, Jake E-Brake, Line-X, Stan's Headers 4" exhaust, Ramsey RE10K

 

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What the H is that supposed to mean?? #ad

Thanks for the help? #ad


Setting the SRW and all that was not supposed to be necessary with this setup. So please dispense the knowledge.

I thought I would try here before goin down to the local shop. Sorry.

(edit) oh ya, its "get an amatuer... "

[This message has been edited by Lil' Dog (edited 10-05-2000). ]

 

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Okay Jason I'll give it a try, not sure if I know what I'm doing, only been talking on a CB for 29 years and have been working in a CB shop for only 7 or 8 years now so here are a few things to check.
#1 Check the radio and see if it has an ANL/NB switch or toggle on it and make sure its on. These are filters that don't hurt the performance of the radio they just filter out the EMI and RFI interferance that come from the vehicle and your surrounding environment, those power lines are creating EMI. We all get it just some radios are effected more than others.
#2 Don't worry about the VSWR right now cause that is just for transmit not receive.
Those antenna are fiberglass so there really isn't much adjusting to do to them unless they have the adjustable tips that slide in and out. If they are just capped then peeling out the fine wire inside is possible but not really recommended.
#3 check and see where you have the power source for the radio coming from. The fuse box is the worst place due to the fact that everything in the truck gets its power there and things like inside fan motor, wipers,altenator, electric pumps produce EMI's. So source your power from the Power point or better yet from the battery.

#4 Not being critical here but the age of your radio doesn't help either. Unless the chassis is Uniden it may be of low quality. Some Radio Shack radios were okay but some were not and I'm not familier with that model.
#5 And lastly, understand you hear and talk with the antenna NOT the radio. It has features that are nice to have but the antenna does the work. Having two antenna on your truck is killing you, unless you can set then 7 to 9 feet apart they are fighting each other. One good antenna in the middle of the roof will out perform ANY two antennas on a pickup. So think about upgrading your antenna and I think you will be happy with the results. Regards Pete

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99'3500,quad cab,4X4,a/t
3:54,all the right packages!PROPER VALVEMENT

 

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Right on Pete!!!

Thanks for all the great info!!Thats all I needed #ad


1)The ANL switch is on all the time, but doesn't seem to help but we will leave it on.

2)You called it, the antennas are non-adjustable, but can be replaced. Sounds like only 1 is required.

3)These old trucks have crappy fuse panels, so I have a second one under the dash run through a relay and power from the battery. The extra lights, tach and CB are on it. I will try a dedicated connection to the battery.

4)New radio time?... Hello Christmas!!!

5)I have 2 antennas just to look cool and balanced. I will disconnect one and just have one hooked up, that shouldn't hurt right? A dead antenna shouldn't feed back.
On the roof is a little bothersome for me, but... ah I don't know. .

Thanks a whole bunch. I like having the radio, sure helps when the snow flies.

Jason

 

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Jason, To be #ad
you can run one dummy antenna and one hot just don't use the co-phasing harness that the two antennas came with, its only good for dual antennas(72ohm techno stuff) just run a good quality coax 50ohm and you should be fine. Make sure the antenna mount is grounded real good to the truck. Regards Pete

 

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Will do. Do I have to be careful with length on the 50 ohm? A little extra rolled up, is that going to cause problems? In the places I can find it, its usually in fixed lengths. Or I could buy the cable and solder on the ends with heatshrink.

BTW The mounts are 1/2 of the brackets for the mirror mount bolted to the post hole in the box.

Pete, thanks again.

 

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Jason, most shops sell coax in pre-determined lenths. Just remember that we do this in increments of 3 feet, but the number must divide equally into the number 36. Use a 12 foot piece or a 18 foot piece and you will not have a problem. Now DO NOT coil the extra coax up as it will create a magnet and RF won't go through it, just loop the coax behind the seat and you on your way!! Pete

 

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I totally forgot about the sensitivity to wavelength multiples #ad
. Probably the basis of all my trouble so far, right!

Jason

 

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Could cause alot of your problems but mainly on the transmit not the recieve, remember you can listen on a coat hanger you just can't talk off of one! Pete

 

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Pete... .
As long as we have you here, would you answer a couple of questions for me? I started with a magnetic roof mount. But it was scratching my paint so I went to the fender mount ( Drivers side ). The roof mount was much better performance. Others warned me to be sure of a good antenna ground. Question, How is the magnetic mount grounded? With the fender mount I started with two leads on the coaxil. One to the base of the antenna and the other to a ground screw on the antenna mount. Now I put a different base on the mount so I can screw the coax directly to the base of the antenna with a J349 (?) connector. The new base mount has plastic washers to keep the antenna from grounding. Now where is the ground? The current set-up is not nearly as good as the magnetic mount but I just don't want to do damage to the roof of the truck. Your help will be apreciated.

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98 Properly Valved 4x4 SWB QC ISB A/T Metallic Red w/ tan cloth interior, DC nerf bars, DC two piece mud-flaps, 275 h. p. injectors, Monroe Gas Magnums, Armor Tuff spray in bed liner, Goodyear Wrangler ATS 285/75r/16, BD Heavy Duty Valve body. Walker 21468 thru flow muffler,Cobra 29 NWST CB. American Racing Wheels.

 

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RK, First lets deal with the mount and coax your installing now. The shielding on the coax is the ground leg for the RF from radio to antenna, the center conductor goes to the center of your antenna mount. Yes that little plastic washer keeps the antenna insulated from the truck so the RF will find the antenna, resonate correctly then accelerate off the surface of the truck( thats the ground plane for the RF).

Now the magnet antenna, I use them all the time. They are plug and play. Remember what I had said to Jason, the antenna does the work. SO with that being said spend as much as you can on the antenna then if there is any money left buy a radio!! K-40's are very good infact one of the best. My choice is the Wilson 1000. It is top shelf. Now the magnet comes new with a nice mylar finish on it to not do damage to the paint, but it will wear out. To cure this simply go to the local hobby shop and get some of that clear self laminating plastic paper you use to protect cards with and scrape the magnet then apply plastic. It has very good glue on it and it should last for awhile. Hope this all helps!! Pete

[This message has been edited by Pete Peterson (edited 10-05-2000). ]

 

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Oh wow! Is the K-30 also a goodie??? Would it be better than the dual 4' whip setup?? It's funny, you said that and I had the K-30 sittin here right next to me and I thought they were no good #ad


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Mine: '93 250 LE 4x4 5spd 4:10 Pwr win/loc/mir,cruise,dual 5" chrome stacks,12cm2 turbo,pyro/boost,diamond plate tool box, CB, 16x10" AR rims, 285/75/16 Bf goodrich, US Gear E-Brake,Fuller Roadranger shifter, PW injectors, K&N. "wirenut_21529" on Yahoo Messenger
Moms:'96 Ford B-Series school bus (5. 9 Cummins!)I'm gonna Bomb it!
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pictures.

 

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Wirenut, the K-30 is okay. The quality is as good as it gets but by its very physical size it won't keep up with the K-40 or the Wilson 1000, but it doesn't cost as much either. rest assured it will get the job done. Regards Pete

 

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Got the single cable last night at the local CB shop in the truck stop. Wow, what a difference! #ad
Thats the way I remember it in my dads truck. #ad

Unhooking the passenger side antenna made the signal clear and guys were acknowledging my radio check almost 2 miles away in the city. On the highway it was about 3-4. Thats more like I wanted. The reception was better I thought, more clear and less "fuzz". Amazing.
Now for the radio. In the shops here they are pushing Cobras alot, which I heard are crap. They have Unidens, are they any good?
Or are they like Sony where they have the cheap line and the quality line. I would like a good radio without all the toys. Its not busy enough around here to need sideband, but RF gain and Mic gain would be good. I am afraid of the E-purchase thing from the US, and the exchange kills.
Any suggestions on radios?Or at least what to look for.

Thanks again Pete!!

 

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Okay Jason, now your trying to get me in trouble #ad
. Talking about radio brands falls under the heading of opinion, Not like last night when most of that was factual.
But I'll say this, up until 3 years ago ALL Cobra chassis were built by Uniden, so with that being said at one time Cobra was as good as it gets. Noting that Uniden is the #1 telecommunications builder on the planet. Now Cobras are built by Ranger Communications Corperation which is pretty good. Most guys talk about the export radios and that their better, but thats an opinion just like most of what I'm saying is.
Now as far as a radio goes a Cobra 29NWST would be a good choice or the Uniden PC78XL. The one I run in my dually is the Uniden Grant XL. It has the most filtering stages of all the radios on the market. Its a single sideband rig so it cost a lttle more but the quality is there. But I must admit in my ghetto cruiser(87 Suburban,multi altenatored multi batteried able to keep an 8 foot flourecent bulb lite for 25 feet with RF off the antenna) I use a Northstar 3000 but they are not made any more. Hope this helps, Pete

 

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Hey man, opinion is all I could ask for. Experience helps, so that gives alot of credit right off the bat. #ad


OK, noted those models and will do some searching for the christmas list. I will also look for a good antenna for the hot side. I'll try to find the adjustable tipped glass, then I will probably get the shop the set the SWR for me as I don't need another gadget in my toolbox. #ad

Is the SWR set for a certain number of channels? If you are on 19 most of the time you set it there right? Then it should be good in a range above and below, I would think.

Jason

 

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Almost Jason. What your doing with VSWR is making the antenna resonat with the frequency the radio is putting out. But we must also balance the antenna over the band width of the radio, so to do this we go to both ends of the radio,ie; channel 1 and 40 to set the antenna. Now to do this you simply calibrate the meter on channel 1 check the reflection then go to channel 40 and repeat the process. Make sure you recalibrate the meter EACH and EVERY time you change channels(very important). Now get both channels to read the same and it not so important as to how low the VSWR is but that 1 and 40 are reading the same. Once you get it balanced then go to channel 20 recalibrating the meter every time and check the VSWR here to see if there is just a little dip lower than 1 and 40, this is called a "Dip Tuning" procedure and it will make a big difference in your broadcast abilities.
Try a Wilson Silver Load, good antenna and is adjustable. Hope this helps. Pete

 

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Hey Pete,

Since, "you d'man," #ad
I got another question for you. I park my truck in the garage. Where can I find a good antenna 1/32" tall? #ad
Just goofin'.

My truck clears the garage door and garage door opener by about ..... mmmmm..... say... . a millimeter. So the real question is: Where is the next best place to mount the antenna? It would have to be mounted low enough not to exceed the roof line by too much.

Also, since I don't have either a CB or antenna, will you recommend a radio and antenna? Make sure to clarify which is which... . I'm a little slow #ad


Thanks.

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Y2K 2500 Cummins ETC/DEE, SLT+, 4X4, Quad, LB, Intense Blue Sport, 3. 54 anti-spin, rear aux. springs (camper special), sliding rear window, all options except cab clearance lights including agate leather, totally stock, some ring fell off, whistles louder since & D/C must have screwed up on the wiring cause the fogs stay on with high beam. Since everybody else listed their toys, I will too.
1995 Kawasaki ZX6-R (For Sale)
1990 Toyota Celica
1983 Mazda RX-7 GSL (For sale)

 

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I certainly hope this thread gets archived. There is a lot of good information for all of us to use.

Thanks for sharing your knowledge Pete. Greatly appreciated.
Jason