Warning new driver -- she needs CB

[Tom W]

My 50 something year old sister decided she needed a career change so she enrolled in semi truck driving school. My first thought was "No one in their right mind will hire her". She completed the school with the highest marks and passed her CDL with no problem. She got hired by Arrow Trucking and just completed a one week orientation in Tulsa. She is leaving this week for a month long training drive with an instructor (female).

After that she will be on her own with a new Frieghtliner. She could be anywhere between Mexico and Canada so "LOOKOUT".



She asked my advice on a CB and I don't have a clue but I am a member of TDR which has the most knowledgeable truck drivers anywhere. What kind of CB should she get? Price is a major factor.



Thanks, Tom

 

[Archive]

Tom... I have a cobra... but there are some good threads on here about CBs... Do a search and you will find more than you ever wanted to know.



More importantly, Congrats to your sister. A career change is never easy... it takes guts.

 

[EMDDIESEL]

Every truck i see has a Cobra in it. They are not too expenivse

 

[Oasis-3]

Any CB

Congrats to your sister.



Any C. B. is better then no C. B. I have an old radio shack C. B. and and if it's set up right it will do just fine. Some have more bells and whistles then you what to do with.



Cliff

 

[B.G. Smith]

CB

Cobra is a good choice but not just any Cobra. I would suggest you check out the local truck stops and find a couple with CB repair shops nearby. Talk to those guys and save buying two or three radios before you get the right one. She will want some of the goodies and some of the radios are not compatible with upgrades. I have a Cobra WX ST and when you turn the squelch up to kill the noise you also tune out all the CB traffic. Also have a Cobra 29 Classic and it does vewry well. bg

 

[Pogodually]

Check this site. http://www.exportradios.com/ . They have some BOMB'd radios that an OTR driver would like. Also check out local truck stop CB shop for some BOMBing help. Turn that power UP.

Uniden is also a good brand and cheaper. If you are near a Flying J check out their prices. Usually have a good selection as do other truck stops. Wish her luck. And keep it between the while lines.

 

[illflem]

Here's the TDR type website for truckers, it's a very good site. Register and ask your question, you get answers almost immediately or seach their archives. http://truck.net/bbs/

 

[DieselDoghouse]

'My sister the trucker'

Think you got some great advice already on radios. Best of luck to your sister, she's in the ranks of some really great people. There was an article in Smithsonian recently about truckin in the US, nice interview of a couple been on the road almost 25 years, now both in their 60's. Shiny side up, rubber side down, fried chicken in the pail, wind on your tail!!

 

[swamp rat]

Unless she has a desire for a "BIG RADIO", the Cobra 29LTD Classic is about as solid as you can go with an off the shelf radio. It just needs to make a trip to a good Bench Tech to make 'em holler at the top of their lungs.



If she wants to walk the walk and talk the talk, for a few dollars more she can step up to the "BIG RADIOS" aka export radios.

I'm partial to the Mirage 88 which is a clone of the Galaxy 88. I'm so partial to it that I got one for my wife from a "Big R" driver who hadn't a clue how much radio he had. Sold it to me for half the going rate.



I highly recommend getting a good noise cancelling microphone as it is an absolute necessity to quash excess cab noise in a big rig. Road King-56 is my preference but the Astatics are good, I just never did like the feel of them in my hand.



A high quality Motorola external speaker comes in handy as well. They will last as a lifetime if not deliberately damaged or abused, but they ain't cheep! Uniden speakers are nice too and about half the price of a Motorola in plastic that is.



As far as an antenna goes, that is extremely dependent on the rig she drives. Some antennae/coax combo's work well in certain trucks while "blowing negative high volume vacuous pressures" (IOW sucks) in others. My experience has taught me it can be a trial and error experience, especially in a Volvo and Anteater style fibreglass bodied trucks.

 

[Power Wagon]

Years ago, when I lived in Montana, we used CB radios as our telephones, pagers, cell phones, and more. It was a safety device, rescue tool, navigation tool... everything.



Unfortunately, the best CB's we had aren't made anymore.



We had 2 Palomar CB radios (Very, VERY good), one Spark-o-Matic (Surprise, one the best I ever used), and a Midland (absolute junk). This was back in the 23 channel days, and Channel 22 was the community channel. Truckers called off thier milemarkers so you could find a wide spot to let them go by, if they were loaded (logs or beer, either one was wise), and hazards, such as moose, deer, bears, or motorhomes driven by geezers were announced to the "equipped" driving public.



Looking back, those were fun days... Strangely enough, modern technology has made it less used... oh, well. Not all change is good.